Is There a Keyboard for the Kindle Fire?
JOHN LISTER
TECH
The Amazon Kindle Fire range is a series of touchscreen-based tablet computers that do not come with physical keyboards. You can use a Bluetooth keyboard (either on its own or as part of a protective case for the tablet) on all but one model. Using a USB keyboard is not completely impossible but is largely impractical.
1 Built-In Keyboard
No Kindle Fire models have a physical keyboard. Instead they all offer a virtual keyboard which involves you typing on the touch-sensitive screen. The keyboard appears automatically whenever you need to input text into an application, then disappears when you've finished typing. You can access keyboard settings by pressing the gear icon in the status bar, then tapping "More" and then "Kindle Keyboard." From here you can control whether your Kindle Fire makes a clicking noise when you tap a virtual key, and whether it automatically capitalizes certain words you type.
2 Original Kindle Fire
If you use the original 2011 Kindle Fire model, you cannot use an external keyboard. This model does not support Bluetooth connections. Although it has a Micro-USB slot, the slot can only be used for power charging and data transfers: it can't be used for peripherals such as a keyboard.
3 Bluetooth Keyboard
All models of Kindle Fire released since 2012 (including those marketed as "HD") include support for Bluetooth. To use a Bluetooth keyboard, you must first switch on Bluetooth by sliding down from the top of the screen to show the top menu, tapping on "Wireless" and then "Bluetooth" and then finally tapping the "On" tab next to "Enable Bluetooth." Next, make sure the batteries are in your keyboard, then turn it on and press the connect button, usually found on the back. Now tap "Search for devices" on the Kindle Fire and wait till you see a listing for "AmazonBasics Keyboard." Tap this listing, wait for a pairing request to appear onscreen with a four-digit code, type the code into the keyboard and press the "Enter" key.
4 USB Keyboard
In principle it is possible to use a USB keyboard with the Kindle Fire. However, this is not a practical option in most cases; in addition to the process requiring advanced technical knowledge, you'll need to install additional software which is not supported by Amazon, which may invalidate your warranty. The USB slot on the Kindle does not supply enough power for most keyboards, so this method will usually only work on keyboards with batteries.
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