Almost a year ago I posted about Kindle 2 being broken by air-travel. Well this time if was Kindle DX that got it… I was returning from a vacation with my parents and since there were many of us travelling and all of us love reading, Kindle DX that was usually stay-at-home kind was taken along for a want for more portable e-Readers. Once the plane was in the air my Mom tried to power it on and instead of Walter Scott novel saw some horizontal lines that I was all too familiar with. This time around they were accompanied by some vertical lines.
Since this time around I didn’t power the Kindle on after I’ve cleared security I can’t tell for sure where it was ruined by X-ray machine (which I still consider unlikely but not impossible) or by slight decease in cabin pressure that accompanies the take-off.
As usual Amazon customer service was top notch. Within 24 hours of a phone call there was a new Kindle DX on my porch. I secretly hoped that Amazon wouldn’t have any CMDA B004 Kindle DX left and that the replacement would be a newer GSM B005 Kindle DX with better battery life but unfortunately it wasn’t so. Even so I can’t really complain.
I wonder if customer service applies to international Kindle owners as well. I live in Spain. What if something like this happens to my device?
That’s something I didn’t know about. It would be interesting to know if it was the cabin pressure change or the scanning machine. Glad to hear Amazon took care of you–I’ll be using my Kindle on a plane (that sounds like a bad sci-fi channel movie) someday and would at least want the piece of mind that they’ll replace it if it happens to konk out.
What kind of case were you using? My wild guess (without knowing any real facts) is that the display was damaged by physical shock (drops) or pressure (things poking it in carry-on bags). I’ve flown several times with a K2 in an M-Edge Platform, which is very resistant to pokes, and protective of the edges when dropped, and so far so good.
I wasn’t using any case however the Kindle was pretty safe in the outer pocket of hard carry-on suit-case. I’m pretty sure that it wasn’t hit or poked with anything.
I did some counting… So far I’ve logged 17 kindle * flights which resulted in 2 Kindles broken – 12% failure rate. 4 different Kindle devices participated in these “tests”. 2 failed…
Now that I look at it – it seems probably some bad luck is involved in my case. If Kindle would really have failed that often there would have been a strong public uproar about it even with outstanding job that Amazon does in replacing those.
Interesting-I wonder what caused that. At least Amazon dealt with the problem..I have a Kindle too as well as a BeBook One and I love them both!
What is going to happen if that happens to me considering the fact that I am not a U.S. citizen and reside in South Korea and I am using non-international Kindle DX?
How would I be able to apply for replacement????
Back in October, my Kindle DX suffered the same fate on a plane. I used it following the security checkpoint while waiting for the plane and carried it in the location typically reserved for a laptop in my briefcase in the standard leather amazon cover. The briefcase was stored under the seat in front of me so it wasn’t banged around in the overhead compartment. So, it wasn’t the x-ray machine that did it. I seriously doubt it was due to physical jostling.
When we got to altitude, I opened my Kindle DX and saw lines similar to the pic above. I called amazon’s customer service upon arriving at my hotel room and was told that they’ve heard of this happening to handful of Kindles. Their service and willingness to quickly replace my reader were top notch. The new Kindle was waiting for me at home when I returned less than 48 hours later.
If it’s the air pressure, I wonder if it would help to put the kindle in a sealed zip-loc bag. Or two.
Curious! I thought Kindle DX warranty is only one year? Does Amazon cover situation like this even if your Kindle DX is bought over 1 year ago?
So far, I have taken Kindle DX out for flight twice (going there and coming back), and fortunately, nothing has happened to it yet ;)
This is interesting.
Is this only happening to DX Kindles? That’s kinda freaky as I was hoping to read on planes.