I have an Amazon tablet, a Kindle Fire tablet (Fire HDX 8.9 Tablet). I use this a lot when I am home and traveling, but recently as I went to Stockholm I wanted to watch some films included in my Prime subscription, but I was unable to watch the film. I think it was an error because I was in Sweden, but is there anything I can do to be able to watch Amazon Instant videos on my Kindle Fire abroad?
Great question and thank you for asking! This is a common problem and it is very similar to problems with watching Instant videos on Android devices and in Windows from abroad. The only difference though is that you can not just install a VPN application on your Kindle Fire that will make you able to watch Amazon Instant video anywhere in the world. I just read a detailed instruction on how to still install a VPN protocol on your Kindle Fire, but this will make you loose all warranties and it is a quite risky operation, so I would simply recommend everyone to stay far away from such a solution, especially because there is a much better way (or two).
Watch Amazon Instant Videos on Kindle Fire abroad
Your Kindle Fire is connected to the Internet through a WiFi connection. This is where the solution to our problem can be found. There are two ways to fix the problem. I will start with the easiest solution and finish with the harder, but maybe more effective way.
The easiest way for those with a Windows computer nearby
If you have a Windows computer nearby then you can fix this easily. You will still need a VPN subscription to HideMyAss for this to work so make that the basic, and then as you have your subscription ready, keep on reading!
Now that you have your VPN subscription in order you can just for fun try to watch Amazon Instant Video in your browser in Windows. Connect to a VPN server in the United States using the HideMyAss application and then open your browser and visit Amazon.com and get started watching whatever you want of videos and TV series on Amazon.com. Working, right? Now, what can you do to make this work on your Kindle Fire tablet as well?
For this to work on your Kindle Fire you need to share the VPN connection of your Windows computer with the Kindle Fire. First you need to manually configure a VPN connection in Windows which is very easy. Follow the instructions in the IP Address Guide which can be found here. When this is done you are ready for the last part of the task, and that is to install a program named Connectify. This is a Hotspot program which will make you able to share your Internet connection in Windows with other devices around you. You need the Pro version which costs about 12 USD for this to work, but once you have this in order you will see the possibility to share your new manually made VPN connection in Windows with the devices connecting to your WiFi Hotspot, and thus all devices connection will get an IP address from the VPN server you are connected to, and further on, this will make it possible for you to use Amazon Kindle Fire tablet from abroad as you use the VPN connection in Windows which has an American IP address to connect to Amazon.com on your Kindle Fire tablet.
Maybe this sounded complicated, but it truly isn’t. Again, shortly the three steps.
- Get your VPN subscription in order. Choose HideMyAss as they have a very nice refund policy.
- Manually configure your VPN connection to a server in the United States in Windows. Connect to the server once this has been done.
- Download and buy Connectify and share the VPN connection with all users connecting to the HotSpot created by the program.
You can now watch Amazon Instant Video on your Kindle Fire wherever you are in the world!
A harder way, but maybe more effective!
Another way of fixing this is by configuring your router to automatically run all traffic using your VPN subscription, and thus absolutely all movements on the Internet will be filtered and run through the VPN server you are connected to. This is somewhat hard for the layman, but with some technical insight you can configure this yourself after getting yourself a router running the Tomato firmware or a DD-WRT router. An easier way of doing it is by buying a preconfigured router for HideMyAss from Flashrouters.com.
These are the two ways of watching Instant Videos on Amazon.com using your Kindle Fire abroad. It may sound hard, but it isn’t. Good luck, and feel free to ask questions and write comments in the discussion fields beneath this article!
