Amazon will remove the option to download/transfer Kindle e-books via USB by February 2025

Amazon has announced that the “Download & Transfer via USB” Kindle option will be discontinued starting February 26, 2025. This change will close a loophole that allowed Kindle users to download older DRM formats that were easily crackable. Initially, this feature was designed for users without Wi-Fi access, enabling them to sideload e-books via USB. It also provided a straightforward method for converting Amazon-purchased books to other formats, like EPUB, for use on alternative devices such as Kobo.

Despite this change, users will still have the option to transfer e-books over Wi-Fi. Additionally, transferring e-books through Calibre remains unaffected. The discontinuation does not eliminate the ability to drag and drop files onto a Kindle; it simply removes a method that facilitated piracy by transferring older retail book formats via USB. Notably, 12th generation Kindles never supported this feature, and now it will be unavailable on all models.

While this decision may upset some users, it is unlikely to impact the majority of Kindle users who are not concerned with DRM removal or reading Kindle e-books on non-Kindle devices.