As shown with the other Kindle articles I’ve posted, almost all of the reportage is from outside the U.S. This article is no exception witness its pricing in pounds and the naming conventions it uses for the Kindle models.
It’s a good overview of how to use Kindle Unlimited but in the U.S. you can have 20 items out at a time rather than 10. Further, the list price is $9.95 a month. However, buying any new device from Amazon that is either a Kindle or can take a Kindle app can include three months of Kindle Unlimited free. Also, until this most recent Prime Day, an offer was made to allow the purchase of one or two years of KU for half-price — an incredible deal. You just need to stay alert.
Amazon Kindle Unlimited – Costs, Advantages, Disadvantages and Cancellation
Jen Kleinholz 27 August 2022
Kindle Unlimited is a service provided by Amazon. This is a subscription model for reading e-books and listening to audio books, and selected e-magazines are also available. To be able to use the service, a standard Amazon account is required, which can then be expanded with the Kindle Unlimited feature, and a device (e.g. smartphone, tablet or Kindle e-reader) that enables e-books to be read. A subscription gives you access to the full (unlimited) library of Kindle Unlimited, and similar to a physical library, books are borrowed to be read. This means that you do not own the books in e-book form, but only have access to this book for a limited time – either as long as you pay for the subscription or until you return it virtually. Access protection is provided via a DRM (Digital Rights Management) realized, which is also used for other virtual goods.
How many books can I borrow at the same time?
There is a limit to the number of e-books that can be borrowed at one time through Kindle Unlimited. You can borrow a maximum of 10 e-books at the same time. If you then want to borrow another e-book, you first have to return another book – but this can be done easily if you just want to borrow the eleventh book.
On the Amazon website, click on Kindle Shop in the category selection and then on the Kindle Unlimited button. This takes you to the home page you see here.
Filter: Search only in Kindle Unlimited?
It’s a bit of a hassle when you go through the entire Amazon store and then find that the book you want isn’t included in Kindle Unlimited (more on this “problem” below). If you want to simplify the search for literature, you will find a few practical filters on the Amazon website:
- all offers in Kindle Unlimited
- new offers in Kindle Unlimited
- eBooks on Kindle Unlimited
- eMagazine in Kindle Unlimited
- Audiobooks in Kindle Unlimited
- Books Series in Kindle Unlimited
How much does Kindle Unlimited cost?
Kindle Unlimited is a subscription model. Like many of these models, Amazon also offers a 30-day trial period during which you can use the full scope of the service and have access to all books, magazines and audio books. After 30 days, the subscription is automatically subject to payment unless the subscription is canceled before the end of the 30-day period. If you decide to subscribe, there are various options and offers from Amazon. A standard subscription costs €9,99 per month, which can be canceled at any time.
Amazon occasionally offers promotions in which subscription deals are offered, which can initially have a favorable price effect for the customer. But be careful, because there can also be subscription traps that are unfavorable for the user due to longer terms, among other things. In particular, a contract can be concluded which is valid in combination with an Amazon Prime subscription. Here it must be considered that Amazon Prime also generates monthly costs, which then add up to the costs of the Kindle Unlimited Service.
Depending on how you want to use Kindle Unlimited, there may be additional costs for the purchase of a Kindle e-reader. Depending on the model and functions, these are available for around €80 (for the cheap models) and up to €250 (for expensive models).
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Use Kindle Unlimited on smartphones and tablets
There is a free one for mobile phones and tablets App in the respective stores for download. Here only the software has to be up to date, which is the case with most smartphones that are no more than 5 years old. The reading experience is still best on a Kindle reader in my opinion. Although this only has a black and white display and also does not have the possibility to run other apps, it is smaller and lighter than a tablet and reading is much easier on the eyes than reading on an iPad or iPhone.
Another advantage of the Kindle Reader is the battery life. While you have to go back to the charging cable after a few hours with a tablet or smartphone, a Kindle reader is much more energy-efficient and can offer many days of reading time. So I would always recommend a Kindle reader for bookworms.
What are the advantages and disadvantages?
A definite benefit is access to a huge library of books, as well as a wide selection of magazines and audio books. Furthermore, e-books are a real asset, especially for people who travel a lot or only have limited space to take physical books with them. With the Kindle Unlimited app provided, you can download books and magazines directly onto your smartphone or tablet and enjoy them on the go. But it is nicer with the Kindle Reader.
Another criticism I have of Kindle Unlimited is the selection. When I booked the subscription, I assumed that every book that is available as a Kindle edition on Amazon is also available in Kindle Unlimited. However, that was a fallacy, because only selected books appear in the Amazon reading flat rate. In my case, that wasn’t a problem as I wasn’t looking for a specific book, I just needed general evening reading. If a sci-fi novel isn’t available, I’ll read another. But one should be aware that this is a limited (but very extensive) selection of books.
Not all books are available with Kindle Unlimited. It is therefore worth checking whether your favorite literature is available in Kindle Unlimited before booking.
Books with illustrations and graphics are difficult to read on an eReader. The eReaders neither have colored displays nor do they have a high resolution. In my view, therefore, plain text documents are the best type of content to read on a Kindle reader.
Although the Kindle Unlimited app is free, the reading experience on a smartphone is – as already mentioned – not the best. For frequent users, the purchase of a Kindle e-reader is therefore advisable. Unfortunately it is not possible to use other eReaders like the Tolino, which has to do with the type of subscription model and the copy protection (DRM). This results in additional costs for a device.
Another thing to keep in mind is the rental model. By borrowing the books, one pays money without actually owning the books.
Based on my recommendations on the Unlimited site, you can already see that I mostly work in the science fiction field. These books are also often quite cheap, so I’d have to read two or three a month to offset the cost.
When is Kindle Unlimited worth it?
In my experience, most of the books I’ve read so far cost between 4 and 10 euros. I usually read a novel in the evening before falling asleep and these are usually around 4 euros per book. So I would actually have to read two books a month to make halfway use of the costs. I can’t read that much, but I booked Kindle Unlimited so that I can read other guides that are offered by authors via Amazon’s self-publishing service (KDP).
For normal people, however, the amount of two books per month should be the point at which Kindle Unlimited becomes interesting. But be careful: Not every book that you find on Amazon is automatically available on Kindle Unlimited. You often look in vain for specialist books or new novels. So I would recommend checking out the Kindle Unlimited deal before booking.
Here you can see the button on the left side of the page, which you can use to cancel the Kindle Unlimited subscription.
How do I cancel Kindle Unlimited?
Canceling the subscription – either before or after the free trial month – is comparatively easy. The standard subscription can be canceled at any time by following these instructions:
- Visit the Kindle Unlimited page
- On the left you will find the area “Manage Membership”
- There you click the button “Cancel Kindle Unlimited Membership”
- ready
As you can see, canceling the service is so easy that it’s almost suspiciously uncomplicated. Most of the time, the wildest tricks keep you from canceling a subscription, but there’s no sign of that here. The only thing Amazon could have done better would be a link from the Amazon customer account page to the Kindle Unlimited page, because the first thing I checked in the customer account was to see if the subscription was referenced anywhere.
With that, my knowledge of Kindle Unlimited is exhausted. If you can think of any other topics related to Kindle Unlimited that should be covered in the post, please let me know. I am happy to expand the article if there are other aspects to it.
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Abycats' Thoughts 
