In a statement, an Amazon spokesperson said: "Starting May 20, 2026, customers using Kindle and Kindle Fire devices released in 2012 and earlier will no longer be able to purchase, borrow, or download new content via the Kindle Store.
"These models have been supported for at least 14 years—some as long as 18 years—but technology has come a long way in that time, and these devices will no longer be supported moving forward."
It says the affected Kindle models are:
Kindle: Kindle 1st Generation (2007), Kindle DX and DX Graphite (2009 and 2010), Kindle Keyboard (2010), Kindle 4 (2011), Kindle Touch (2011), Kindle 5 (2012), and Kindle Paperwhite 1st Generation (2012)
Kindle Fire Tablets: Kindle Fire 1st Gen (2011), Kindle Fire 2nd Gen (2012), Kindle Fire HD 7 (2012), Kindle Fire HD 8.9 (2012)
Users will still be able to read e-books they have already downloaded, and their accounts and their Kindle Library will remain accessible on its mobile and desktop app.
Amazon also warned performing a factory reset on affected Kindles will make them unusable.
Kay Aaronricks, 46, told the BBC she was surprised by Amazon's announcement - and by the sadness that came with the thought of potentially losing full use of her 14-year-old Kindle.
"It does show how much of a part that Kindle plays in my life," she said, adding it had allowed her to "take all of my books with me" when working and travelling.
"I love paper books like anyone does, but the Kindle is more practical," Kay added.
Tech industry analyst Paolo Pescatore said while Amazon's move may frustrate owners of models which still work, the decision was "understandable from a security and support perspective".
"The challenge is that these devices were built for a different era and are not equipped to run newer, more data-hungry services and features," he told the BBC, adding "ageing hardware" can also pose problems.
But Pescatore said older devices losing the ability to connect to newer products and services can also "turn a once seamless device into a far more limited offline tool".
Ugo Vallauri, co-director of the Restart Project, which encourages repair of electronics, said manufacturers' promises of newer devices offering better performance, when ceasing support for older products, has been seen before.
"However, that's hardly a good reason for soft-bricking millions of still functioning devices."
Vallauri added while the company has said the change would only affect 3% of current users, "this could amount to 2 million devices rendered obsolete according to some estimates, potentially generating over 624 tons of e-waste".
Additional reporting by James Kelly