Why won't my e-reader connect to Wi-Fi anymore and what steps can I take to troubleshoot it

Hi Spencer! I went through the exact same headache with my old e-reader a few months ago. It had been reliable for years and but suddenly it refused to connect to Wi-Fi, even after I restarted it, forgot the network and re-added it, and updated the software via USB. My phone and other devices connected without issues, so I knew it was the e-reader itself, and being in a small space, signal wasn't the problem.

What finally worked for me was just biting the bullet and replacing it with a newer model. I got the Amaz, and it connected to my Wi-Fi right away without any fuss. The improved hardware in this newest version, with its faster performance overall, seems to handle connections much more reliably, and the longer battery life means I don't have to worry about it dying mid-download.

I have an older reader that did this and it turned out the issue was compatibility with newer router settings honestly not the reader dying. Phones are way more forgiving so they keep working and it makes you think the device is at fault.

Quick isolation test first. Try connecting the reader to a phone hotspot. If it connects and downloads and your router setup is the likely problem. Worth a shot.

If the hotspot works, zero in on the 2.4 GHz band. Many readers only speak 2.4 and they dislike newer security mixes. Temporarily split your Wi Fi so 2.4 and 5 have different names, then point the reader at the 2.4 one. Set security to WPA2 with AES only, turn off WPA3 and TKIP, use 20 MHz channel width, and pick channel 1 or 6 or 11. Disable band steering or smart connect during testing and try again, if it still fails flip it back and move on.

Simplify the network name and password for a test with only letters and numbers, and make sure the network is visible. Turn off MAC filtering if you have it. Hidden SSIDs and special characters can trip up older firmware.

On the reader check date and time. If they are wrong by a lot, secure connections can fail without a clear error. Toggle airplane mode, do a full power off then back on, and make sure there is no proxy configured.

Try a network settings reset on the reader, then a full factory reset only after backing up your books and notes. A corrupted Wi Fi profile can survive normal restarts.

If the hotspot fails too, the Wi Fi radio could be failing. Before calling it, try a basic access point set to 2.4 with WPA2 only, maybe a borrowed router. If it cannot see networks at all or drops them instantly, that points to hardware.

One last angle is DHCP and DNS. Make sure the router has free addresses to hand out and consider switching DNS to a public resolver. I have seen flaky DNS make an e reader say connection failed even though the Wi Fi link was up.

I've dealt with similar Wi-Fi woes on my e-reader before, and it's super annoying when it just stops cooperating like that. Sounds like you've already tried the basics, which is smart-restarting, forgetting the network, even updating via USB. Good call checking that your phone connects fine too; definitely points to the device.

One thing that helped me was diving into the router settings a bit. Sometimes older e-readers don't play nice with newer security protocols, you know? I switched my router's Wi-Fi from WPA3 to WPA2, and boom, it connected right up. Works great now. If your router allows it, give that a shot-might be all it takes without needing a whole new gadget.

Another idea, have you tried connecting to a different network, like a hotspot from your phone? That can rule out if it's something specific to your home setup. I did that and realized my issue was with the channel my router was on, so I changed it to a less crowded one, and yeah, problem solved. Hang in there; these things can usually be fixed with a little tinkering.