In addition to a lot of free books available for your Kindle, at any one point in time Amazon also has a couple of hundred songs and albums in mp3 format available for free. The selection of free songs changes all of the time, with many artists you have heard of as well as many artists you may not have heard of and may not want to hear from again.
If you click here or type in http://amzn.to/koN4Ik into your computer’s web browser, you can see what I mean: I’ve sorted this list to start with the free songs in mp3 format. You may want to bookmark this link (I have) and check it out from time to time.
What does this have to do with your Kindle? Your Kindle can also play mp3 songs: you can listen to it via the Kindle’s speakers or insert your favorite headphones / earbuds into the Kindle and listen away.
I’ve posted about how to listen to music on your Kindle, and it is one of the most popular “tips” I have on the blog. If you’re familiar with the process, you can stop reading now. However, if you are not or need a refresher on how to do it, read on!
In addition to having your Kindle read to your with the test-to-speech option enabled, you can also listen to music. I don’t know about streaming music over the Internet – I haven’t personally tried it but who knows, it could happen if you had a real good connection – but I am talking about your favorite music in MP3 format. At this time, pending a future software upgrade, the Kindle only supports MP3’s for playback.
Here are some of the basics:
Music Location:
You will need to transfer your MP3 files over to your Kindle using the USB cord via your computer. If you haven’t changed the directory structure of your Kindle, you will see three folders: Audible, Documents, and Music. You want to put your MP3 files in the “Music” folder (I know some of you are saying “duh” right now, but some of you are not!).
If you want to organize your music by artist, for example making a folder for “Van Halen” and another for “George Strait,” you can make those folders. However, the Kindle does not allow (pending a software upgrade) you to navigate via the folders as you are selecting songs.
Playback:
From the Home screen, select Menu, then Experimental, then Play MP3. If you want to listen to the music while you are reading, just click the “Home” key and navigate to your book and start reading.
If you want to stop the music, just press the “ALT” and spacebar keys at the same time; the same is true if you want to start playing music again. If you’re tired of the song you’re listening to, just press the “F” key to move to the next song.
Speakers:
While you can listen to your music with the built-in speakers, they sound good to me for what I am using it for – mild background music while I read. However, if you like to have your music a little louder than other people prefer, or maybe traveling on a plane and don’t want to disturb the person 1.7 inches to your immediate left you can plug in headphones (click here or type in http://amzn.to/iMsxjD into your computer’s web browser for some options from the Kindle store). Headphones can be plugged into the audio jack located just to the side of your “on/off” switch on the top of your Kindle.
And who needs an iPod these days when you have your Kindle?
Want to have this blog sent wirelessly to your Kindle vs. reading it on your computer? Try out the free two-week subscription! Click here for the Amazon page for Free Kindle Books Plus a Few Other Tips.
Looking for more or a reliable source of free books for your Kindle? Click here for my “Free Kindle Books and How to Find Them” book (in the Kindle format, of course).
