The estimated reading time for this post is 5 minutes
Amazon is conducting an experiment and you get to be the guinea pig. 3G Kindles have a well-hidden browser that you can use to access the Internet for much more than just downloading books and shopping in Amazon’s Kindle Store.
If you have a Kindle 3G, you paid extra when you bought your Kindle to be able to download your books even when you’re away from Wi-Fi. The extra cost of the 3G Internet service is a one-time fee when you purchase the device, there is no monthly fee for 3G service.
The good news is that if you have a Kindle Keyboard 3G, you can use the 3G connection to access the Internet for free through a feature called the Experimental browser.
[note] The Kindle Touch 3G Experimental Browser accesses the Internet through Wi-Fi only. [/note]
If you’re away from Wi-Fi, even outside your home country, and want to surf the web, check your email, connect to Facebook, post on Twitter or search on Google, you can do that for free using the Experimental browser. If you tried to access the Internet outside your home country on your 3G/4G iPad or smartphone without Wi-Fi, you would quickly rack up expensive international data charges.
You can access 3G on your Kindle from many countries in the world. Check out this coverage map showing where you can get free 3G coverage for your Kindle in Europe.
How to Use Kindle Experimental Browser
Using the Experimental browser is easy, but you have to know where to find it. Here’s a video showing you how to use the Experimental Browser feature on your Kindle 3G.
- Go to the Home screen on your Kindle Keyboard.
- Click the Menu button.
- Toggle down to Experimental and press the center button.
- Toggle down to “launch browser” and press the center button.
- You will be shown a list of pre-loaded bookmarks.
- Toggle down to the bookmark you want or click up to the address bar at the top of the screen and type in the web address.
Once you arrive at the site you may see a square with a magnifying glass with a plus sign in it. Click on that to enlarge a portion of the screen to make it easier to read.
The Downsides
The Kindle Experimental Browser won’t make you regret buying an iPad or a Kindle Fire. Think of it as a resource when you’re traveling internationally or in a spot where you can’t access the Internet otherwise because there are some downsides to using the Experimental Browser.
1. Black and white. There’s not even a hint of color on a Kindle. eInk screens are strictly shades of gray. If you want a color Kindle, get a Kindle Fire (though the Fire doesn’t have an Experimental browser because it’s Wi-Fi only and uses the Silk browser).
2. Slow. If your area only has EDGE (2G) coverage (shown in light purple on the map above), your time to load a site would be painfully slow. Best to wait to use the Experimental browser until you get to an area that has 3G or where you have access to Wi-Fi.
3. Limited sites. You won’t be streaming YouTube or Netflix on your eInk Kindle. Some sites don’t format properly on the Kindle, making them illegible.
4. Navigating challenges. Since you don’t have a mouse or a touch screen, toggling around a screen can be frustrating.
5. Battery. Surfing the web uses a lot of power. If you’re not connected to a power source, you can run through your battery very quickly as you load websites. If you’re counting on using your Kindle for reading, you could be frustrated when the battery runs out because you were using the Experimental browser too long.
My Kindle Experimental Browser Story
Even with the downsides, the Kindle Experimental browser is a very handy resource to have. The Kindle Experimental browser was a huge help to me one night when I was visiting New York City on my way back to my home in London. I needed to get in touch with a friend of mine I was supposed to meet for breakfast the next morning, but all I had was her email address.
I checked into a hotel that had “complimentary Wi-Fi,” but when I got to my hotel room, I read the fine print about the Wi-Fi service. The “complimentary” Wi-Fi was 25 kb of data (not enough to check email), after which they charged $30 per mb, making international data charges seem cheap. I was desperate to avoid this trap for the unwary, but it was late at night and pouring rain so I didn’t want to venture outside in search of free Wi-Fi.
I remembered my Kindle Experimental browser, launched it and logged into my email account. I sent my friend an email and arranged to meet with her the next morning before I left for London. Without the Kindle Experimental browser, I either would have spent a lot of money to send one email or would have missed seeing my friend (though since then I have been more careful in finding out whether a hotel has free Wi-Fi)!
Bottom Line
If you’re debating which Kindle to purchase, make sure you consider the Kindle Keyboard 3G. If you want free 3G Internet access around the globe and don’t mind the downsides, paying the extra to get the 3G could come in very handy. If you’re debating between the 3G Kindle Keyboard and the 3G Kindle Touch, factor in that the Kindle Keyboard will allow you to access the Experimental browser over 3G while the Kindle Touch will only allow you to use the Experimental Browser on Wi-Fi.
Did you know about the Kindle Experimental browser? Have you ever needed to access the Internet when you were away from Wi-Fi but all you had was a Kindle? Let us know in the Comments section below!
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Update:
Amazon has imposed a 50 MB monthly limit on browsing using 3G outside the US for Kindles purchased in the US. Amazon
* Kindle Beach image by Diane Cordell
** Kindle Experimental image by Dan Woods
*** New York image by Chris Schoenbohm
Hi Carolyn,
That is exciting news. I have old kindle but the experience just keeps getting better and better. Downloading books from my library system first and now this. I have several questions: How long have this feature been available? Do know or think if they will upgrade to 4g and do you think this will become a permanent feature. I remember when Bezos provided all kindle books for $9.99 with a audio version. Mr Jobs put an end to that. I am a big fan of Bezos. Hope all is going well.
Riley
Hi Riley, Great questions! The Enxperimental browser feature has been around for years. It’s not new, but few people know about it because it’s well-hidden.
I don’t think Amazon will increase the speed to 4G because their main purpose is to connect you to the Internet to sell and download books. The 3G connection is fast enough to download a book to your Kindle within seconds, no need for the experience to be faster. Plus, 4G is different in other countries than it is in the US, the 4G iPad doesn’t work at 4G speeds outside the US and Canada.
Since Amazon didn’t offer this feature on the Kindle Touch 3G, I worry that Amazon will get rid of this in the future. If so, I will keep buying older Kindles to make sure I have this feature as long as I can get it.
Text-to-speech is still available on many, though not all Kindle books. But now you can link your Audible account so you can listen to audiobooks on your Kindle.
I think Amazon was willing to price Kindle books at $9.99 to help introduce the world to Kindle. Now that it’s a hit, Amazon doesn’t have to be as aggressive with pricing. I love the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library and being able to borrow Kindle books from my local library.
There have been many improvements to Kindle within the past year. This feature is older than that, but still a fantastic feature!
Great job on that video Carolyn! You explained exactly how to browse with the Kindle. I can see where it might be a little time consuming since it’s not a touch screen but like you said, if you have your Kindle and you’re traveling, that could come in very handy.
I can see why they decided to go this route with everything that is being introduced right now. I think it’s a great feature for Kindle.
Loved the video and loved the subscribe button. Yey! Love those annotations.
Thanks Carolyn and enjoy your day!
~Adrienne
Thanks, Adrienne. I really appreciate your tutorial on how to add annotations to your videos. That was very helpful as the buttons on the Kindle can be hard to see on the video so I added an annotation to help viewers.
Having an Internet browser on the Kindle can come in handy, but having worldwide free 3G is a huge benefit. I think that alone is well worth the extra initial expense for having a 3G Kindle unless you’re around Wi-Fi all the time.
Wow Carolyn – this was news to me about the Kindle Experimental browser, I will need to keep this in mind since my wife is asking for a kindle from a long time , and i really owe her one now.
Right time I came across this article, works for me to pay a little more upfront and be connected!!!.
Thanks for sharing.
Hi Praveen, I’m glad the timing of this article was good for you. Yes, if you’re considering getting a Kindle for your wife, this is valuable information to have. Even if you only need the Experimental browser a few times, the extra money you pay for getting 3G could pay for itself. 🙂
Hey Carolyn nice post mostly WiFi are available on every place rather than my Caravan 😛 I think it’s best suited product for me because I am away on tour far from my hometown for half in the month.
Hi Rizwan, Yes, if you’re away from Wi-Fi quite a bit, and need to access the basic sites, the Kindle Keyboard 3G could be a great solution for you. It’s much less expensive than paying for data coverage with a smartphone or an iPad.
Very interesting for Kindle owners. I use the Kindle on my Ipad, but I wish I could find a waterproof e-reader so I could bathe and read. I used to love to do that all the time!
Hi Amberr, I agree, it would be great to have waterproof tech. For those who want to use an ereader in the bathtub or at the beach, I suggest putting your ereader in a large ziplock bag. You can read eInk screens through the plastic and protect your tech.
I remember the vacation in Italy like it was yesterday. Me and my Kindle by the pool 🙂
It was a lot harder to use than the iPad, but on the other side, it was completely free 🙂
Hi Jens, I remember you telling us that you were tweeting by the pool in Italy on your vacation using your Kindle 3G. Having worldwide Internet access for free is a truly amazing feature for the Kindle. You’re right, it’s more difficult to use than the iPad, but the International data charges for the iPad would be too expensive.
Hi Carolyn,
This is so interesting. I think if Amazon keeps on pushing like this, the big boys of industry Apple and Samsung will need to worry a lot then,
The web feature may be a little clumsy right now but it can always be improved.
Also I saw my little ebook on your kindle device. Really happy about it 🙂
Carolyn, so great that you figured out how to make use of the Kindle experimental browser in a pinch. I’m still wondering if I should get an iPad…
I’m guessing that the little glitches you mention, like black and white, battery issues and slow will change. I still remember owning a black and white tv.
Hi Leora, Actually, I’m not sure that the black and white screen, battery issues and speed will change. This feature has been labeled “experimental” for years and hasn’t changed. since it was launched. In fact, that feature isn’t included on the Kindle Touch 3G. So instead of hoping for an improvement in this feature, I’m just hoping that Amazon keeps the feature in the future. After all, this is just experimental so they could end it at any time, saying that the experiment failed.
I use the experimental browser on a daily basis; just for Wikipedia. It leaves me wondering how on earth I managed to survive before I had the entirety of the world’s knowledge at my fingertips on a 24/7 basis.
Hi Stefan, It’s great to hear from another reader who enjoys the Experimental browser feature on the Kindle. It’s great for Wikipedia. You’re right, I constantly wonder how I survived without the Internet at my fingertips constantly. 😕
My wife has a kindle and I refuse to pay for the data plan for a smart phone (okay I’m beyond frugal, I guess). So, when we are traveling and need directions, a phone number, or the time for a movie, we’ve used the kindle browser in our car many times. Yes, it is slow. Yes, the navigation methods on the page (zoom, scroll, etc..) can be a pain. But, it has provided what we needed when we needed it; that is, information to act on in a certain time and place. As long as text and mapping is your target, it works okay. So, when you max out on your data plan, give it a try.
Hi Chris, It’s so great to hear from another fan of Kindle Experimental browser. Yes, if you want to save money on a data plan for a smartphone, the Kindle is a fantastic alternative.
Thanks for stopping by and adding to the conversation, Chris!