When it comes to reading a book as conveniently as possible, the Kindle is perhaps the first device that immediately comes to mind, as doing anything book-related, whether it’s finding the book of your choice, reading it, or carrying it with you, becomes much easier with a Kindle.
That being said, as the Kindle is an electronic device, after all, similar to your mobile phone or your tablet, it can naturally require some maintenance now and then to operate as intended, whether it’s on the software or the hardware side.
In today’s article, our topic will be an issue that you can come across while looking to update your Kindle’s software to the latest version, in particular, where the “Update Your Kindle” button that clearly serves the purpose of updating your Kindle is greyed out, and hence, not operational.
So, what causes the Update Your Kindle button to be greyed out?
As the purpose of the Update Your Kindle button is to update a Kindle by utilizing a local update file (which can only be present if you have manually sideloaded it) and not to trigger an automatic update, it’s natural for the button to be greyed out under ordinary circumstances.
In the following sections, we will dive deeper into the factors that can cause the Update Your Kindle Button to be greyed out on your Kindle, go through the process of manually updating the Kindle with the Update Your Kindle button, and finally, learn more about finding out whether your Kindle requires a software update or not.
What Causes the Update Your Kindle Button to Be Greyed Out?
While the Update Your Kindle button being greyed out can create some confusion, especially if you have manually confirmed that your Kindle’s software is not up-to-date, there is actually a logical explanation behind the occurrence of this phenomenon.
In the case of practically any modern electronic device, pressing the “Update” button prompts the system to retrieve the necessary files for the software update and conduct the software update process automatically, which is what we are all familiar with.
On the other hand, in the case of the Kindle, things are slightly different, which is practically the reason that there is a lot of confusion around this situation.
Instead, for the “Update Your Kindle” button to be active and operational, an update file needs to be sideloaded to your Kindle, which practically means that you need to retrieve the update file from Amazon’s website, connect your Kindle to your computer, and manually transfer the update file from your computer to your Kindle.
Once your Kindle detects a valid update file that contains a newer version of the software is present on its disk, the “Update Your Kindle” button won’t be greyed out anymore, and pressing it will initiate the software update process by utilizing the update file that you have transferred.
Fortunately, the fact that the “Update Your Kindle” button, in particular, requires you to transfer the update file manually does not necessarily mean that your Kindle is not capable of automatically updating its software, as Kindle’s software updates are, in fact, entirely automatic, meaning that they occur without the need for any action from you.
Even though not explaining the purpose of the “Update Your Kindle” button and not giving the users an option to m prompt their Kindle to check for an automatic update creates a suboptimal experience regarding software updates, a greyed-out “Update Your Kindle” button is perfectly natural as things stand, provided that you haven’t manually sideloaded an update.
How to Use the Update Your Kindle Button to Manually Update Your Kindle?
While your Kindle’s software should automatically update to the latest version in normal circumstances, there can be cases, such as not having access to Wi-Fi connectivity for your Kindle, where a manual update can become necessary.
Below, you can find a step-by-step guide to manually update your Kindle by using the Update Your Kindle button:
- Navigate to the official Amazon Kindle Software Update page.
- Locate your Kindle’s model on the list, and press the “Download Software Update” button to get the update file.
- Connect your Kindle to your computer through USB.
- Transfer the update file you have obtained in step 2 to your Kindle drive’s root directory.
- Eject your Kindle and disconnect it from your computer.
- Press the Menu button to open the context menu (three lines or three dots at the top-right).
- Press the Settings option from the menu.
- Press the Menu button once again.
- Press the Update Your Kindle option from the menu.
- Confirm the update process by pressing OK on the pop-up that appears.
Once you’re done with the update, we recommend comparing the version number on your Kindle to the version number of the update file you got from Amazon’s website, which will allow you to ensure that the update process has indeed been successful.
You can refer to the following section if you need help finding the required information for the verification process.
How to Find Out Whether Your Kindle Requires a Software Update?
As it would only make sense to go through the trouble of manually updating your Kindle if a newer version of the software actually exists, finding out whether your Kindle’s software is outdated or not is the first step you will need to take before preparing for an update.
Below, you can find a step-by-step guide that you can use to find out whether your Kindle requires a software update:
- Navigate to the official Amazon Kindle Software Update page.
- Locate your Kindle’s model on the list, and note the version number next to it as the update file version number.
- Grab your Kindle.
- Press the Menu button to open the context menu (three lines or three dots at the top-right).
- Press the Settings option.
- Press the Device Options button.
- Press the Device Info button.
- Note the version number next to the “Firmware Version” label as your Kindle’s version number.
Once you gather the necessary information by following the steps we have outlined above, compare the firmware version number of your Kindle (step 8) to the version of the update file (step 2).
If the firmware version number of your Kindle is lower than the update file, your Kindle requires a software update. Else, if the version numbers are equal, your Kindle is up-to-date and doesn’t require an update.
Conclusion
While there is no debate that a greyed-out Update Your Kindle button can naturally make you think that something is wrong with your device, the occurrence of this phenomenon ultimately comes down to poor interface design rather than an actual issue with your Kindle.
To summarize, the “Update Your Kindle” will only be active and usable if you have manually sideloaded an update to your Kindle (transferred an update file to the disk) beforehand, as the purpose of the button is to install a sideloaded update rather than triggering an automatic update.
With this in consideration, you will find that the Update Your Kindle button becomes active and usable as intended once you correctly transfer to your Kindle an update file that contains a newer version of the software than what’s installed on your Kindle.
Mark’s first real encounter with tech was when he had to format his computer with Windows 98 around the age of 6 to quickly get back to playing Heroes of Might and Magic III without having to send the computer in for a repair, which he strangely found to be rather enjoyable since it was a new challenge for him at the time.
While he has always been particularly interested in the software side of things, which eventually led to him becoming a software developer, he enjoys keeping up with the advancements in consumer electronics and smart home technology when he’s not busy coding.