BUT, there’s A SOLUTION!
- Amazon doesn’t ship Kindle out of the US. Therefore you must register with Vpost first. With Vpost, you can buy products from countries like, US, Europe and Japan.
- Go to Amazon.com, log into or create an account if you do not already have one. Buy the Kindle 2/DX and have Amazon shipped it to your Vpost (USA) **address. I will skip the rest of the procedures between you and Vpost as you can find them at their site.
- Once you receive your Kindle 2 in Singapore, the fun begins!
- Log into your Amazon.com account and buy a Gift Certificate and email the code to yourself.
- You should be able to receive the gift certificate code in your email in a matter of minutes.
- Copy and paste and apply the code to your Amazon account.
- Delete ALL you existing credit card information. Reason being that when you buy a Kindle book, the system will check this information and when it recognises that your credit card is not issused by a US bank, the purchases won’t go through.
- Drum rolls please…..
- Congratulations! You should now be able to buy books for your Kindle 2. Just ensure that the gift certificate has enough credit for what you are purchasing.
- To download your purchased books and sync to your Kindle via USB, go to ‘My Account’, scroll down to ‘Digital Content’ and click on the ‘Manage Your Kindle‘ link.
- Scroll down until you see, ‘Your Orders’. You should be able to see all your purchases. And on the right, there is an drop down menu that says, “Deliver too…”.
- And in that menu, choose the option that says, “Transfer via computer…” or something to that effect.
- Connect your Kindle via USB and drop the newly purchased book(s) into your Documents directory of your Kindle and HAVE FUN READING!
- Hope the above instructions help. If you run into any problems, feel free to ask me via this blog.
*Updated on 2 Jul 09: Thank God, I finally found the original blog where I learned this trick from. Credit must go to NerdGirl! I just tweaked it to people here living in Singapore. 
WARNING! (dtd 10 Jul 09): DO NOT use IE 8 to purchase your Kindle books. A reader, David, had problem purchasing his Kindle books, even with the gift voucher. Until he changed to Google Chrome, the problem was solved!
Update: 10 Jul 09: PDF Conversion: If you want to read pdf books, no problem! Just send your pdf book to yourusername@free.kindle.com. And in a few minutes time, an. azw (Kindle) version will be sent back to you. There’s no need to add Subject or Body heading. But remember the word, “free.” must be added in front of “kindle.com”. Therefore, it should be @free.kindle.com, not @kindle.com.
**Update: 11 Dec 09: Spoke with a Singpost staff and asked her especially with regards to the Amazon Kindle. She told me to ship it to Portland Oregon address instead of the Compton California’s. Reason being Compton is very strict with battery stuff. I’d suspect it’s the state of California that is strict, not Compton itself. So, just ship to the Portland Oregon address.
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Evan you need to remove all information related to singapore on your amazon account. CC details and address that contains ur singapore location has to be removed.
I am using a amazon usa account and i am using a gift card account to buy magazine and books. no errors so far.
Hi, I’ve been informed that the “Kindle titles are not available in Singapore” after clicking into the Kindle Books on Amazon. Is anyone encountering the same and is there any solution for that? I really need some enlightening. Thanks much.
Anyone has a Kindle 2 for sale? I need one as a present. Urgent. Kindly email me @ brian.lawz@gmail.com Thanks!
I have updated to the latest 2.3 firmware and i can read pdf files natively on my kindle 2.
Kindle (Global Wireless) and Kindle (U.S. Wireless)
Longer battery life for Kindle (Global Wireless): You can now read for up to 1 week on a single charge with wireless on. Turn wireless off and read for up to 2 weeks.
Built-in PDF reader: Your Kindle can now display PDF documents without losing the formatting of the original file. Send PDF documents directly to your Kindle (via your @Kindle address) or drag and drop PDF files from your computer to your Kindle (when connected via USB). Learn more.
Manual screen rotation: The Kindle screen can now manually rotate between portrait and landscape views so you can see the entire width of a web page or magnify the page of a PDF file. The page-turn buttons work the same in either orientation, and the 5-way controller movements are switched to match the orientation. Learn more.
Thanks for the info, Jeffrey, much appreciated.
Anyone tried using Spore CC to buy Kindle Magazines and still be able to buy books from amazon?
Wendy, to use NLB’s resources,
-Go to http://www.nlb.gov.sg/
-Click eResources at the left hand side
-Browse by A-Z, go to ‘O’
-Click ‘Overdrive: digital media collection’
-Explore ‘Digital Media Software’ at the left hand panel. You need to install Adobe Digital Edition or Mobipocket. These are the reader software. Read the FAQ to get a better idea how they work.
-Search and download books and read.
I think the Kindle for iPod app resides in the US iTunes store.
Thanks very much for the info Jeffrey. How do I go about downloading books from NLB? Can one read books from NLB on the iPhone? Also, I can’t seem to download Kindle onto my iPhone – can you help?
Many thanks.
Wendy, you still can download books from NLB to read on your PC! It’s actually an excellent resource, the Overdrive ebooks.
Thanks very much Charles and Jeffrey, guess I won’t be getting any books from NLB. Cheers!
Wendy, the last time I read NLB’s FAQ, they mention the books are not readable on the Kindle.
NLB’s overdrive books are in DRMed-PDF format. They can be read by Adobe Digital Editions readers.
Wendy@ i not tried getting books from NLB before
Opps.. I didnt read post throughly . I will try with VPN and see if it works for me.
I am not able to buy any magzine / book , its says , Important Message
,Kindle Titles are not available in Singapore.
I have deleted all my address from the address book.
Help appriciated.
Does anyone know if we can download books from the National Library? Cheers.
@Puishan i am able to subscribe to the magazines and download them in Spore like books whenever a new edition appears.
There are no problems subscribing to the magazine. But the copies are send only via whispernet. So if you are in Singapore, you won’t be able to receive anything but will be charged for it. I tried before, thinking I could download and transfer the magazine like the books. Don’t subscribe. The only way around it is to buy the current issue every month. More expensive and inconvenient. But better than nothing.
@Winnie : I am subscribing to multiple magazines but using a USA Credit Card but i heard another user using SG CC and it works. U can try using SG CC to try out.
________________________________
Winnie November 12, 2009 at 12:29 pm
do you subscribe to any magazines etc?
I recently bought a Kindle DX and was using the gift certificate method have purchase up to about 7 books without incident. Since then however I’ve been getting this error message whenever I try to purchase more kindle books: “You attempted to purchase an item while in a different country than listed on your Amazon account”
My amazon account is a US account and I have cleared out all credit card information leaving only my vpostUSA billing address. I am also using Hotspot VPN. Does anyone know how to get around this?? Please please help!!
Hey Winnie,
You’re welcome. I’ve lost count of how many books I have bought. As for magazine subscription, I haven’t done any. I’m not sure if it works though. You can read the threads here. I believe someone has had the experience before.
Thanks Melvin for your very prompt response. Appreciate it! Will try and hopefully it works this time.. will let you know.
Btw, how many books have you bought? do you subscribe to any magazines etc?
Hey Winnie,
It’s already registered to your Amazon account when you first purchased it. Wireless 3G connection only works when you’re in the States. You buy a book with your computer, NOT Kindle. The instructions can be found in this blog post.
Hi Melivin,
Thanks for the useful tips in your article above. I have completed the steps up to #11 but cannot register and connect my Kindle (wirelessly?) for some reason. And, (excuse the basic question), how do I purchase a book- is it on my Kindle 2? I have already bought the gift card.
Your help is much appreciated.
Thank you.
Winnie
@Jeffrey thanks for your info….now i know once my USA credit card expires in Jan 2010 i can switch to a Spore card
Yes I used a US address and an sg credit card. I haven’t seen another magazine that I want to buy at this time..
@Hi Jeffrey: Have u tried buying other magazines beside reader digest? ur address is USA but cc is spore?
I guess we need to wait and see before deciding on Nook (which is the best thing that has happened to the Kindle!) There are some ‘international issues’ to consider.
Updates: Amazon seems to have deactivated the ‘geographical restrictions’. I can now buy books without using a vpn and using my aunt’s US address.
I am able to buy and pay for a Kindle magazine (Reader’s Digest) using a sg credit card. Great!
@meng i am considering to buy but i wonder is it the same method in buying kindle 2 applies to barnes and noble?
@Charles: I will only consider if they allow international purchases and have magazine subscriptions too.
Will anyone be buying the Barnes and Noble Ebook reader?
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nook/index.asp?cm_mmc=Redirect-_-nook.com-_-Storefront-_-nook
Thanks Sam. I manage to get it to work using free Hotspot Shield
Yong, try using VPN service. You can use Monkey VPN or Always VPN or whatever US-based VPN service out there. Log on to the VPN BEFORE you start browsing / purchasing on amazon.com. Good luck! -Sam
Still error for me
I have deleted all credit card info, used US address and still no good.
Error says “You attempted to purchase an item while in a different country than listed on your Amazon account.”
What can I do? Help!!
Dan,
Jeff Bezos has said that the 2 radios are different, so it’s not just a matter of flashing new firmware. The new K2 comes with a GSM radio…
Surely if Amazon are going to price differentiate the International and U.S. only Kindles they are going to tighten up the possibility of using a U.S. one overseas – we can just hope they offer an upgrade to anyone who has a grey import version like we do!
I presume they will as it’s a bit of extra dough for them to flash the firmware or whatever.
I didn’t use a US VPN for the 5 kindle books that I bought these 2 days. I was able to purchase the books. I’ve since cancelled my subscription for MonkeyVPN within the 1-day free trial.
Kindle 2 International is released but not for Singapore or Malaysia.
Kindle Wireless Reading Device (6″ Display, U.S. & International Wireless, Latest Generation)
Price: $279.00 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. Details
This item will be released on October 19, 2009.
Pre-order now!
http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Reading-Display-International-Generation/dp/B0015T963C/ref=amb_link_85647731_6?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=gateway-center-column&pf_rd_r=0332DXPX5KFTTN6MY8S0&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=493724391&pf_rd_i=507846
Daphne can i say we dont need to use VPN now to buy books from Amazon?
Hi, I tried again to purchase a kindle book again without activating the US VPN and I didn’t have any problem. Here are my settings / process for your reference:
1. Use a Gmail address (pre-friday, I used a .sg account & I changed it)
2. Erase all credit card details and left a US delivery address
3. Created another Amazon account with .sg email to send a Gift Certificate to my Gmail address
4. Make sure there are sufficient certificate balance in your account to purchase the book.
Hope this helps.
Tangs, I’m using a Mac and MonkeyVPN. For mine, I can either disconnect from the Network icon (on status bar at the top where rest of icons like power status, connectivity, sound and date/time are) on my homescreen. You can also disconnect by going to System Preferences>Network> select the network and you should see an option to disconnect in one of the tabs. Should be pretty similar to Windows as it also has a network icon. Cheers.
Daphne
How does one disconnect the VPS service? Do not even
know that it exists in my computer either.
Still getting the “sorry” message.
Tang
Hey Wendy,
In that case, you can either try the other method or just wait for a couple of more days and see. But it seems like one of the commentator, Daphne (see link here), managed to buy the Kindle books without any problem.
Thanks, Melvin, unfortunately it didn’t work. I still get the sorry message.
Hey Wendy,
Just open up your internet browser (eg. IE, Firefox, Safari, Chrome, etc), and press Ctrl-F5 (or Command-R for Mac). Doing that will clear all the old cached files stored in the browser. Amazon may be reading the old files. I’m not sure if it’ll work but there’s no harm in trying.
Thanks, Charles, will try Melvin’s and your suggestions.
Thanks for the advice, Melvin, can you help me with more details as to how to do that? Appreciate all the help you’ve given me over the past few months.
Hey Wendy,
Have you tried forcing a clean refresh by clearing your cache files (Ctrl-F5 for Windows and Command-R for Mac)?
Wendy, try to vpn to usa approach for now. Maybe the technical glitch still pending resolving.
Now DBS online banking also having some glitch
I just tried to buy a book but I’m still getting the “we’re sorry” message. Any suggetions? Tks very much
Daphne, it is a relief to hear this. Thanks for updating us all.
Read in the Kindle forums that Amazon CS said it was a “technical glitch” that has been fixed. I just disconnected the VPN service and tried to purchase a Kindle book. It works now, just like pre-Friday. No more “restricted geography” message. Cheers.
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