Just as Amazon is launching a new versions of the Kindle in Europe (but not the Fire tablet, yet), one of its big competitors is taking one more step in its bid to enter the European market: Barnes & Noble has incorporated a new company, Barnes & Noble Digital Media GmbH, in Germany.
B&N incorporated the German company on March 15, just around the time that the U.S. company came to… → Read More
As you probably know, bistable or passive displays like the E-Ink ones in e-readers focus on battery life and readability rather than color and interactivity. The latest devices have been optimized for fast page refreshes and touch operation, but generally you’re still waiting a half a second or so for the screen to flip over to the next page, menu, or what have you.
But that’s not all they’re… → Read More
While initial reports pointed at a launch on February 22, Barnes & Noble has just taken to the wires to officially announce the release of the new 8GB Nook Tablet. As expected the new Nook variant has a price tag to match its reduced memory capacity, and with both now selling for $199 the battle between the Nook Tablet and the Kindle Fire seems ready to heat up once more. → Read More
Barnes & Noble seemed pleasantly surprised when they announced their Nook Tablet “exceeded expectations” over the holidays, but their 70% year-over-year jump in device sales paled in comparison to rival Amazon’s 177%.
That their flagship Nook Tablet cost a full $50 more than the Kindle Fire certainly didn’t help, but that should change soon — according to a document obtained by … → Read More
For people who have been doing just one thing for a long, long time, it’s amazing how many content distributors get things so catastrophically wrong.
These last few weeks brought us quite a few unique situations, including the launch of Apple’s iBook Author software as well as a number of announcements from the studios to withhold streaming rights for Netflix viewers. Cory Doctorow points to a… → Read More
Barnes & Noble is now heavily discounting (and even giving away free) NOOK devices with digital subscriptions to a magazine or newspaper, the first time a bookseller has ever done this type of promotion if I’m not mistaken.
The company, which is considering spinning off its NOOK business into a separate unit, this morning said customers who purchase a one-year NOOK subscription to The New… → Read More
Two bits of news crossed the wire this morning, neither of them good for traditional publishing. First, Barnes&Noble has reportedly put their publishing arm, Sterling Publishing, up for sale, a company it bought in 2009 for $115 million. Sterling produces puzzle, game, and crafts books for kids and adults. Not as big a deal as it sounds, but it still points to a reduced interest in paper-based… → Read More
Barnes & Noble this morning reported sales and earnings for its second quarter ended October 29, 2011, and they’re a mixed bag. Total sales decreased slightly, from $1.9 billion to $1.89 billion, compared to the prior year.
The company posted a net loss of $6.6 million for the quarter, or $0.17 per share, as compared to a net loss of $12.6 million last year. This is below Wall Street… → Read More
I hate these kind of videos. There’s enough waste in electronics that we don’t need to destroy stuff that is in already perfect condition (hence our refusal to post those ridiculous Will It Blend videos). However, this is for science! → Read More
In the mad rush to push out more and more Android slate products, Amazon and Barnes & Noble are like a calm port in the storm. Their devices are touted as ereaders but, after a bit of digging, you find that they are now considerably more interesting – and compelling – as tablet products for an entry level market. They are not threatening nor are they particularly difficult to grasp. In short… → Read More
Digitimes, quoting “sources from upstream supply chains,” is stating that PC manufacturers like Dell, Acer, and HP are building fewer tablet products in direct reaction to devices like the iPad, Kindle Fire, and Nook Tablet. Citing an inability to gain traction against devices with rich content to back them up, the manufacturers are looking elsewhere to regain a foothold in the mobile… → Read More
The Nook Tablet, announced last week to much fanfare, is a follow-up to the company’s popular Nook Color and a direct competitor to Amazon’s $199 Kindle Fire. I’ve only just got this device into my hot little hands so expect a full review this week but initial impressions are good.
The device is about as big as the Nook Color and the Fire, although the Tablet is considerably more streamlined… → Read More
We’ve grabbed some footage of the Nook Tablet in the flesh and it was interesting to see how responsive and speedy the device was, especially when compared to the Nook Color. This is a full multimedia tablet with plenty of power for video and rich content and everything sped by without much lag or stuttering. → Read More
In late September, Amazon unveiled a $199 tablet called the Kindle Fire. Obviously this left a massive divide in the market between the much pricier iPad 2 and the new Kindle Fire, which Barnes & Noble has this morning responded to. Ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, I’m pleased to introduce you to the Nook Tablet. → Read More
With the launch of the Kindle Fire tomorrow, I thought it would be fun to write a little bit sci-fi and imagine what the publishing market will look like in the next ten or so years. I’m a strong proponent of the ebook and, as I’ve said again and again, I love books but they’re not going to make it past this decade, at least in most of the developed world.
As we well know, ebook sales are now… → Read More
Last Friday, Amazon sent out invites to a press conference being held this coming Wednesday. They didn’t give away any details in the invite, but given our scoop earlier this month, everyone assumed it was to unveil the new Kindle tablet. We can now confirm this is correct. And we know a bit more.
On Wednesday morning in New York City, Amazon will unveil the Kindle Fire. Yes, this is the name… → Read More
The ninjas at The Digital Reader have uncovered the names of two new Nook Color versions – the Encore, priced at $249, and the Acclaim, priced at $349. The Nook Touch (now called the Nook Smart Touch) will remain $139. → Read More
The full line of Nook wares are hitting Radio Shack stores and RadioShack.com beginning October 3. The Nook will join the Kindle and a dozen generic ereaders within the 3,000 Radio Shack locations and select franchises throughout the US. These stores will carry both the Nook Touch and the Nook Color along with a likely stunted line of accessories. → Read More
Although it is free to develop for the B&N Nook Color’s homegrown version of Android, the company is courting devs who may or may not be as comfortable with the vagaries of Android development by selecting Appcelerator as a partner to help “accelerate” app development for the platform.
Appcelerator makes Titanium mobile, an IDE that focuses on web devs rather than hardcore coders. It is a… → Read More
It’s called simply the “Amazon Kindle”. But it’s not like any Kindle you’ve seen before. It displays content in full color. It has a 7-inch capacitive touch screen. And it runs Android.
Rumors of Amazon making a full-fledged tablet device have persisted for a while. I believe we were one of the first to report on the possibility from a credible source — the same person who accurately called… → Read More
At the beginning of the year, Apple said it wanted 30% of everything sold through the iPad platform. You could sell almost anything – books, downloadable content, magazines, pictures of kittens – but, according to their subscription rules, everything had to go through Apple itself and you could not, in short, go out to a web page to complete the transaction. That promise – to shut down external… → Read More
Got an “old” ereader you want to “upgrade?” Get yourself a Nook and B&N will throw in $315 worth of free books, 30 titles in all, including “Glory in the Fall: The Greatest Moments in World Series History, 21st Century Crossword Puzzle Dictionary, My Boyfriend Wrote a Book About Me” along with some public domain titles. There are some cook books in there and a few other interesting titles but… → Read More
There’s a new Nook in town and it’s great. But that doesn’t mean the old one is now suddenly any less great than it once was, which makes this daily deal quite nice. For only $79, you can snag a refurbished 3G Nook. That’s $90 less than it’s recently lowered price. Sure, it’s not a true touchscreen (fine by me) and it doesn’t have a new e-ink screen or a… → Read More
Just last week we posted a video of the new Nook (which we just reviewed) running Angry Birds. Not exactly the best match for an e-paper display, but it does show that the underlying Android install is sound and functional. Further proof comes this weekend, with forum-dwelling hackers installing the ADW Launcher home screen and even the Kindle app on it. → Read More
The folks at Punchtab, eager as beavers to get their products into your hands, want to send you a new Nook. Why? They’re in love with you and you won’t accept their love, so they’re in the friend zone and you refuse to pay attention to their attempts to win your heart. It’s like 16 Candles only with start-ups.
Anyway, here’s how to win. → Read More
Short Version: After a few days with the new Nook I was hooked. It is a pure reading experience condensed into a device the size of a paperback and with a super-crisp e-ink touchscreen. The Nook is, in short, the best e-reader from a major player I’ve used thus far and is well ahead of its competitors in terms of usability and form factor. → Read More
The new Nook (colloquially called the Nook Touch) runs Android underneath that crunchy black and white book interface, so Nook hacker JFreke decided to root it and see if something like Angry Birds will run. Lo and behold, it does. Very, very poorly. But it’s still awesome, in a really shabby way. → Read More
We just posted our hands-on with the new touchscreen Nook e-reader, and we’ll have a full review in a couple days — but if you can’t wait (or don’t care what we think), B&N has actually started selling the things ahead of schedule. Pre-orders have shipped, online orders are shipping now, and devices will be in-store on Thursday and in stock on Monday. Thinking about… → Read More
I have egg on my face, hands, and in my hair. Last year I called a premature end to the ereader race, stating that the Kindle was first to market and therefore in first place. I’m pleased to report that I was wrong.
The new Nook is without question the best standalone Wi-Fi ereader on the market. Note that I added a few weasel words there, and if you’re looking for 3G then the Kindle 3G is still… → Read More
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