Last week I went to http://kindle-thailand.in.th and filled out their order form for a Kindle Paperwhite, (฿ 6900 ) there were some problems with this so I called their number and spoke to a rep who promised they would confirm the order with a delivery date ASAP.

As of today still no word from them, no surprise there, but I also took a look at Amazon UK and see the price for the Paperwhite is 109 GBP or a simpler Kindle for 69 GBP, so 2 questions here

1, would buying from the UK and paying taxes make the Paperwhite more expensive.

2, Is the Paperwhite really that much better than the cheaper Kindle on sale. I have been using a no frills Hanlin book reader with no complaints.

Cheers.

Don't be fooled into thinking this is an Amazon-official sales channel, they buy in the US and pre-register there, so you are dependent on them for handling warranty and service issues, more likely to be Thai style rather than Amazon's international levels of customer service.

Not saying which way you should go, just be fully informed about the facts.

At the moment the Paperwhite is not available for International shipping direct from Amazon

B2S is a reputable compamy but when they get stock theyu may then be available from Amazon.com and maybe cheaper

At the moment the Paperwhite is not available for International shipping direct from Amazon

B2S is a reputable compamy but when they get stock theyu may then be available from Amazon.com and maybe cheaper

Note that B2S is using kindle-thailand - not saying that's a problem just so people know.

I would order to a US address via a friend or forwarding agent.

Thanks for the info, http://kindle-thailand.in.th are talking of delivery for end December, but as they have not confirmed the order I have little confidence in them, looks like having friends in the UK forward is my best option, so has anybody an opinion on the Paperwhite versus the cheaper model

Isn't it cheaper just to download the app on your phone?

The whole idea of reading a kindle is the paper like experience vs trying to read on an lcd screen. No comparison at all.

Books made from dead trees still work pretty well too.

I wonder if you can buy kindle at Heathrow Airport or Singapore Airport

I looked into this some Months back when the paperwhite was being launched in the US. Was gonna have a friend hand carry one over. But unfortunately they were out of stock in Hawaii the week he left. While visiting the UK I saw that they were going to be released there ( a few Months later ) so ordered one online.. Once more fate interceded and it arrived at my parents place the day after I returned to Thailand.. So had my Dad airmail it in a bubble wrap envelope.. It arrived in one piece with no tax to pay.

Biggest rort I could see is the pricing.. Numerically the same in the US and UK but in different currencies.. A 69 dollar US kindle becomes a 69 pound kindle in the UK... Still a great piece of kit and an improvement over my original Mk1 Kindle,

I wonder if you can buy kindle at Heathrow Airport or Singapore Airport

Ignore this post found out you can buy there and save yourself about £2.

Priceless

I looked into this some Months back when the paperwhite was being launched in the US. Was gonna have a friend hand carry one over. But unfortunately they were out of stock in Hawaii the week he left. While visiting the UK I saw that they were going to be released there ( a few Months later ) so ordered one online.. Once more fate interceded and it arrived at my parents place the day after I returned to Thailand.. So had my Dad airmail it in a bubble wrap envelope.. It arrived in one piece with no tax to pay.

Biggest rort I could see is the pricing.. Numerically the same in the US and UK but in different currencies.. A 69 dollar US kindle becomes a 69 pound kindle in the UK... Still a great piece of kit and an improvement over my original Mk1 Kindle,

The UK price is always much more than USA price bloody rip of as far as i'm concerned

The UK price is always much more than USA price bloody rip of as far as i'm concerned

Consider yourself lucky they deign to sell it to the foreign rabble at all 8-)

I think you'll find that you can't buy a kindle from the UK site for delivery to Thailand. You have to buy from the US site. Something to do with copyright. At least that's the way it was 3 months ago.

"1, would buying from the UK and paying taxes make the Paperwhite more expensive"

Probably, by the time you've paid carriage and duty. A while back I bought a Bosch garden shredder from Amazon UK, priced there at about £140. If the shipping address is overseas their system automatically deducts the VAT and then adds back an amount for shipping and another amount for what they think the duty will be in the destination country. They say that if the duty actually charged is less than the amount taken, they will refund the difference. From memory the shipping was about £30 and the duty about £50, so overall I was charged about £190, and surprise,surprise, there was no refund. That was ok for me because I've never seen a garden shredder in any of the DIY sheds, and I would have expected to pay up to 10000baht for a good one here anyway.

The UK price is always much more than USA price bloody rip of as far as i'm concerned

Consider yourself lucky they deign to sell it to the foreign rabble at all 8-)

O dear i did'nt expect that reply.

Shame, i always liked Americans

O dear i did'nt expect that reply.

Shame, i always liked Americans

the 8-) was to indicate a joke.

Free market dude, when demand outstrips supply up go prices, extra costs developing into a new market, maybe extra regulatory requirements etc.

Lots easier just selling to the home market at first.

Places like Thailand are pretty low down the priority list. . .

O dear i did'nt expect that reply.

Shame, i always liked Americans

the 8-) was to indicate a joke.

Free market dude, when demand outstrips supply up go prices, extra costs developing into a new market, maybe extra regulatory requirements etc.

Lots easier just selling to the home market at first.

Places like Thailand are pretty low down the priority list. . .

Must admit i did'nt know about the funny 8 my op was aimed at the UK retailers jacking the price up of all goods from the US and as you know most of the goods are not manufactured in America i could handle a small difference in price .

The Americans are the lucky ones 8-)

While UK retailers do jack the price up as much as they can don't forget that they have to add VAT and any duty that's relevant.

"1, would buying from the UK and paying taxes make the Paperwhite more expensive"

Probably, by the time you've paid carriage and duty. A while back I bought a Bosch garden shredder from Amazon UK, priced there at about £140. If the shipping address is overseas their system automatically deducts the VAT and then adds back an amount for shipping and another amount for what they think the duty will be in the destination country. They say that if the duty actually charged is less than the amount taken, they will refund the difference. From memory the shipping was about £30 and the duty about £50, so overall I was charged about £190, and surprise,surprise, there was no refund. That was ok for me because I've never seen a garden shredder in any of the DIY sheds, and I would have expected to pay up to 10000baht for a good one here anyway.

I have actually received a duty refund from Amazon. UK, only once out of about half a dozen shipments but they do occasionally do it.

I can buy a kindle basic e-reader right now for US $69 with free shipping and no sales tax. It appears that I'd also need a $10 power adapter aka charger. Can't believe you have to buy the charger adapter separately. That would be a first. Everything else I've ever bought - cell phone, smart phone, laptop, notepad, etc. always came with that.

Link

I can buy a kindle basic e-reader right now for US $69 with free shipping and no sales tax. It appears that I'd also need a $10 power adapter aka charger. Can't believe you have to buy the charger adapter separately. That would be a first. Everything else I've ever bought - cell phone, smart phone, laptop, notepad, etc. always came with that.

Link

More and more devices simply charge off a standard USB port, no need to have a different one for every gadget.

Standardizing batteries would also be nice (dream on)

I can buy a kindle basic e-reader right now for US $69 with free shipping and no sales tax. It appears that I'd also need a $10 power adapter aka charger. Can't believe you have to buy the charger adapter separately. That would be a first. Everything else I've ever bought - cell phone, smart phone, laptop, notepad, etc. always came with that.

Link

You can charge it from your PC with the USB cable, understand you can also charge with ipod, iphone adaptor, so maybe my Belkin adaptor will also work