iFixit - Active Questions With Device "Kindle 3"

Kindle 3: Kindle won't power up

Sat, 21 Feb 2026 08:41:59 -0700

I opened up my Kindle and recharged the battery. It still won't power-up. What to do next? Please advise. Thank you very much in advance.

⟐ Commented February 21, 2026 at 8:41 MST

Kindle 3: Text to Speech is not working.

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 01:25:25 -0700

The text to speech is no longer working. Kindle still powers to 100% but I only get a few slow..... words and then nothing. Love my text to speech! Can it be fixed?

⟐ Answered August 05, 2025 at 1:25 MST

Kindle 3: Can't put book in "read" folder anymore

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 11:38:24 -0700

I have many folders on my Kindle K3 ereader including a "read" folder to put books in after I read them. Lately, when I finish a book, the "transfer to folder" option is grayed out and I can't move the book into my "read" folder. Does any one know why and what I can do to get it back? I tried a hard restart with no results.

⟐ Commented July 10, 2025 at 11:38 MST

Kindle 3: How to diagnose a frozen screen

Mon, 19 May 2025 04:09:44 -0700

I recently got a Kindle with the screen stuck in the loading screen (not reading a book under a tree with a loading bar) no matter what I do.

I tried using the Kubrick tool found here, which went through successfully.

So now I have a Kindle with a fresh firmware 3.4 but the screen is still unresponsive.

Considering I was able to put the Kindle in download mode and flash something, I don’t think it’s a motherboard fault like in this thread.

I suspect it may be the e-ink display but I don’t want to order it online just yet if I’m not sure, partly because I don’t trust the build quality of random Chinese sellers on the internet - I’m assuming the OEM part is of a better quality, so if there’s nothing wrong with it, I hope to keep using it.

Other clues I’ve gathered are that despite charging for really quite long, I don’t get a green LED (in the above iFixit thread, the user mentions getting a green LED after fully charged)

I read somewhere that you can control the screen using the UART. I don’t mind trying that if I knew how haha

If anyone has any suggestions for me to fix this I’d greatly appreciate it.

Kindle 3: Troubleshooting Case Light Not Turning On

Fri, 19 Jan 2024 16:12:03 -0700

I recently bought a used kindle keyboard that came with a case-the kind that has a light in the upper right corner that slides out to power on and connects on the left side with two pins. The kindle is working great so far but I have not been able to get the case light working. Is there anything I can do to troubleshoot it/restart it/repair it? It would be really handy to use the light.

Has anyone successfully repaired one of these? The only forums I've been able to find have been from 2011-2012 and have said to replace the cover.

What I've tried so far:

Restarting the kindle

Pulling the light out all the way

Ensuring the pins are attached correctly & re attaching them

Any info would be appreciated, thanks :)

Kindle 3: Is there anyway to boot kindle without battery or get a cheap battery

Tue, 09 May 2023 04:15:41 -0700

i have this old kindle, but no battery, i was wondering if there is anyway i can boot it without having a battery installed, i do have a 3.7 volt battery that does supply enough energy for it but the kindle wont boot as it doesn't think its a amazon original battery, i dont want to spend the money on a battery as those can cost up to $20+. thanks (if u got anymore questions about it i would be happy to answer)

⟐ Edited by author May 09, 2023 at 4:15 MST

Kindle 3: run kindle without battery.

Thu, 09 Mar 2023 16:45:13 -0700

quick question, is it possible to run a kindle without the battery?

⟐ Commented March 09, 2023 at 16:45 MST

Kindle 3: So I have a metal tab stuck in my kindle

Wed, 01 Mar 2023 13:34:42 -0700

My kindle 3rd gen came with a book cover that attached itself to the kindle through metal tabs. One of the tabs broke off clean inside the kindle and like it still functions fine but like its the kinda thing I tend to pick at. I've tried getting in there with tweezers, spudgers, anything small enough. Is there a known methodology to this or am I doomed to be slightly inconvenienced?

⟐ Commented March 01, 2023 at 13:34 MST

Kindle 3: Unresponsive to all fixes, shows amber light but will not turn on.

Sat, 17 Dec 2022 17:14:08 -0700

Hello! I got a Kindle 3 Keyboard from a friend. She said the battery needed to be replaced, and it was stuck on the “Low Battery” page. No lights came on when charging or switching power button. I replaced the battery no problem (I’ve done this successfully before). After replacement, amber charging light came on when plugged in. I waited for it to charge, then tried to turn it on. No success, so I held the power switch for 20 seconds, then for 30 seconds. Nothing. I held power switch for 30 seconds then held home button for 45 seconds - screen started flashing, but it stayed blank and did not pull up the “Recovery” screen. I held “R” just in case, but nothing happened. Now, switching the power button does absolutely nothing. When plugged in, the amber light still comes on, but power switch does nothing. I opened the back and it looks like everything is properly connected and free of dust, but I’m not enough of a tech person to know if something is wrong back there. The screen connector (thing on the left side/bottom left??) is connected, and the little wire moves when the power button is moved, so that is all working. I don’t know any other way to fix this, but I also don’t know enough to consider it a lost cause just yet. Any help welcome!

Forgot to mention that the screen is currently blank, but you can see (very faintly) the “Low Battery” page, as if it did not completely go blank. I don’t know if this is relevant or not.

⟐ Edited by author December 17, 2022 at 17:14 MST

Kindle 3: Is there a way to fix the spring for the power slider button?

Sun, 20 Nov 2022 21:31:24 -0700

I've had this Kindle for ages and it has worked fine until recently. The power/wake switch used to have some kind of tension and it would always spring back when you slide it over, only now it doesn't. You can slide the button over and it will just stay. I've opened it up and there's a sortof R-shaped spring thing that is only partially attached, but I can't see how to get it re-attached on the left side (I think perhaps there was a bit that bent down into the slot on the button but it has broken off? Hard to tell). I've googled every way I can think to describe this, but haven't found anything besides general breakdown instructions. The attached picture is one I found online of how it's supposed to look, but I can't tell if the left side bends down to go into the hole or if I'm missing some other detail completely.

Kindle 3: My case is cracked from a drop which is causing a problem in turning p

Tue, 11 Oct 2022 18:30:52 -0700

Cracked case from drop causes problem turning pages. Can the case be replaced.

⟐ Answer accepted October 11, 2022 at 18:30 MST

Kindle 3: cracked case causing page turning issues

Sat, 30 Oct 2021 11:00:50 -0700

where can i order a new case for a Kindle 3?

⟐ Commented October 30, 2021 at 11:00 MST

Kindle 3: Why wont my amazon kindle model D00901 turn on

Thu, 12 Aug 2021 08:54:28 -0700

Ok my kindle wont turn on its been fully charged . The green light turns on but gos off after a few seconds... Ive tried holding the button over for fifteen seconds thirty seconds and fifty seconds and for some reason it still wont turn on.. I have no idea what to do but anything helps..

⟐ Commented August 12, 2021 at 8:54 MST

Kindle 3: Why is half my screen dark?

Wed, 28 Jul 2021 16:38:49 -0700

Suddenly the bottom half of the page on my Kindle 3 is darkened. Can i fix that?

⟐ Answered July 28, 2021 at 16:38 MST

Kindle 3: My kindle won't show on my pc.

Wed, 17 Mar 2021 08:35:27 -0700

my kindle works but won’t show on my PC no matter what i try.Can’t load books on it .Have only dictionaries and user guide .

Kindle 3: 5 Way, Menu, Back and Home keys won't work now so can't open books

Thu, 14 Jan 2021 07:27:44 -0700

After replacing the battery, I must have damaged a part on the inside opening the case because now I can not get the 5 Way, Menu, Back or Home keys to work and so can not open any books. I do not want to try doing a hard reset as I have 775 unread books and don’t want to have to down load them all again if I buy another Kindle.

Kindle 3: Screen not responsive, what do I do?

Thu, 17 Sep 2020 21:44:02 -0700

The screen is blank! Even with the power switch showing "green" for fully charged. What is the problem? I've tried the charge with the computer--no change and charge via electrical outlet--no change. Is this a hard reset issue? If so, how do I go about doing that without a screen? Is it worth trying to repair? or replace and donate Kindle to some repair tech training location?

Please advise.

⟐ Commented September 17, 2020 at 21:44 MST

Kindle 3: Mini USB charging port worn out and not charging

Mon, 27 Jul 2020 16:21:46 -0700

Is it possible to replace the mini usb charging port on my Kindle 3? If so, is it a reasonable diy fix, or are there repair people out there who would do it quickly and for not too much? I live in Gloucestershire.

⟐ Commented July 27, 2020 at 16:21 MST

Kindle 3: How to change battery

Mon, 08 Jun 2020 02:50:15 -0700

Does anyone know how do I change the battery in my kindle. And where to get a replacement battety

⟐ Answered June 08, 2020 at 2:50 MST

Kindle 3: Kindle 3 select button on the 5 way button does not work

Thu, 04 Jun 2020 12:38:09 -0700

Everything else on my kindle works except for the select button on the 5-way button.

I would like to either be able to fix this, or somehow substitute its function but I can’t find any solutions for this so far.

This mean I can’t choose a book to read, sync or change wifi, rendering my otherwise fully functioning device totally useless. Hate to throw away something for such a small flaw.