Barnes & Noble Nook
Developer | Barnes & Noble |
---|---|
Manufacturer | Foxconn |
Type | E-reader |
Release date | November 30, 2009 21 June 2010 (Wi-Fi only) | (3G+Wi-Fi)
Introductory price | US$259 (Wi-Fi + 3G version) US$149 (Wi-Fi only version) |
Operating system | Android v1.5, released 22 November 2010 |
Storage | 2 GB internal storage microSD expansion up to 16 GB |
Display | 600 x 800 pixel, 6 inch E-paper display and a 3.5 inch 480 x 144 pixel color control display |
Input | Color touchscreen, left/right paging buttons |
Connectivity | AT&T 3G 802.11b/g Wi-Fi |
Power | rechargeable, replaceable lithium-ion polymer battery |
Dimensions | 7.7 in (196 mm) H 4.9 in (124 mm) W 0.5 in (12.7 mm) D |
Mass | 12.1 oz (340 g) (Wi-Fi + 3G) 11.6 oz (330 g) (Wi-Fi only) 7.48 oz (212 g) (Nook Touch Reader) |
Website | nook |
The Barnes & Noble Nook (styled "nook" or "NOOK") is a brand of e-reader developed by American book retailer Barnes & Noble,[1] based on the Android platform. The original device was announced in the United States in October 2009, and was released the next month.[2] The original Nook includes both Wi-Fi and AT&T 3G wireless connectivity, a six-inch E-paper display, and a separate, smaller color touchscreen that serves as the primary input device.[3] A Wi-Fi-only model of the original design was released in June 2010. The original line of Nooks was followed in November 2010 by a color LCD device called the Nook Color, in June 2011 by a second-generation E-paper device marketed as the Nook Simple Touch,[4] and in November 2011 and February 2012 by the 16GB and 8GB versions, respectively, of the Wi-Fi only Nook Tablet.[5][6] On April 30, 2012, Barnes & Noble entered into a partnership with Microsoft that will spin off the Nook and college businesses into a subsidiary.[7] On August 28, 2012, Barnes and Noble announced partnerships with retailers in the UK, which began offering the Nook digital products to people in October 2012.[7][8]
Devices
Current
Nook Simple Touch (E-paper, 2nd Edition)
- Announced on May 25, 2011, the Simple Touch Reader (also informally referred as Nook 2nd Edition) was released on June 10, 2011 at a retail price of US$139. The Simple Touch is a Wi-Fi only Nook, with an infrared touch-screen, E-paper technology, and battery life of up to two months (or 150 hours, offering approximately 25,000 continuous page turns with Wi-Fi turned off). The device weighs 7.48 oz with dimensions of 6.5" x 5" x 0.47".
- On November 7, 2011, the Simple Touch Reader retail price dropped to US$99.
- On December 9, 2012, the Simple Touch Reader retail price dropped to US$79.
- On April 12, 2012, a version with built-in LED lights (called "Glowlight") was released, and currently retails for $119
Nook HD (LCD)
Announced September 26, 2012 and released November 1, 2012 along with the Nook HD+, Nook HD is a 7-inch tablet with a resolution of 1440x900. It is set to compete with the Amazon Kindle Fire HD and comes in two colors: snow and smoke (a dark gray). NOOK HD has a Texas Instruments 1.3 GHz dual-core processor with 1GB RAM. It can play back video at 720 pixels from the NOOK Video store, much like Amazon.com's Instant Video service. The Nook HD starts at US$199 for 8GB and US$229 for 16GB.[9]
Nook HD+ (LCD)
Nook HD+ (stylized NOOK HD+) is Barnes & Noble's first HD tablet capable of playing back movies and television shows downloadable from NOOK Video store at 1080 pixels.[10] Announced along with its younger brother NOOK HD on September 26, 2012, the NOOK HD+ is a 9-inch tablet with a 1920x1280 resolution. It is set to compete with the similar 8.9 inch Amazon Kindle Fire HD. It has a Texas Instruments 1.5 GHz dual-core OMAP 4470 processor and is priced at US$269 and US$299 for 16 and 32 GB, respectively.[10]
Discontinued
Nook Classic (E-paper, 1st Edition)
- 3G + Wi-Fi version
- This version made its debut on November 22, 2009, at a retail price of US$259. It was offered with built-in Wi-Fi + 3G connectivity for free access to the Barnes & Noble online store.
- The price was reduced to US$199 on June 21, 2010, upon the release of the new Nook Wi-Fi.
- The price was dropped to US$169 on May 25, 2011, in accordance with the announcement of the newer Nook Simple Touch Reader.
- In early 2011, Nook Wi-Fi + 3G was phased out due to shrinking demand.
- Wi-Fi version
- This version of the Nook 1st Edition, which supports only Wi-Fi (not 3G Wireless), made its debut on June 21, 2010, at a retail price of US$149.
- It was launched with Firmware Version 1.4 already installed. It is easily distinguishable physically from the Wi-Fi + 3G due to its white back panel, in contrast to the gray back panel of the Wi-Fi +3G version.
- A price reduction was made on May 25, 2011, dropping to closeout prices of US$119 in accordance with the announcement of the newer Nook Simple Touch Reader.
- In September 2011, the price was dropped again, to US$89.
- In late 2011, Nook Wi-Fi was phased out due to shrinking demand.
Nook Color (LCD)
Released on November 19, 2010 and priced at $249, the Nook Color comes installed with Android 2.1. The device is powered by a TI OMAP 3621 800 MHz processor, and has 512MB of RAM, 8GB of flash storage, a 7" LCD screen, and a microSD expansion slot. On February 21, 2012, the price of the Nook Color was reduced to US$169. On August 12, 2012, the price of the Nook Color was reduced to US$149. On November 3, 2012 following the release of the Nook HD and Nook HD+, the price of the Nook Color was reduced to US$139. [11]
Nook Tablet (LCD)
The Nook Tablet with 16G of internal storage became available on November 17, 2011 for US$249. A version with 8G of internal storage was made available February 21, 2012 for US$199, replacing the Nook Color in that price range. On August 12, 2012, the price of the Nook Tablet 8GB and Nook Tablet 16GB were reduced to US$179 and US$199 respectively.
Features and specifications
All models have the following features:
- Wi-Fi
- Micro-USB connector
- Micro-SD memory card slot
Generation | Appearance | Release date |
Display type | Capacity | Cellular data (3G) | Android version |
Screen size (mm) | Screen resolution | Dimensions (mm) (in) |
Weight (g), (oz) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nook | first generation Nook | 2009-Nov-30 | E-paper (E Ink) and LCD | 2 GB | yes | 1.5 | 152 (6 in) (E-Ink), 89 (3.5 in) (LCD) | 600 × 800 (E-Ink), 480 × 144 (LCD) | 124 × 196 × 13 4.9 × 7.7 × 0.5 |
343 (12.1) |
2010-Jun-21 | no | 329 (11.6) | ||||||||
Nook Simple Touch | 2011-Jun-10 | E-paper (E Ink 2) | 2 GB | no | 2.1 | 152 (6 in) | 600 × 800 | 127 × 165 × 12 5.0 × 6.5 × 0.5 |
212 (7.5) | |
Nook Color | 2010-Nov-19 | LCD | 8 GB | no | 2.2 | 178 (7 in) | 1024 × 600 | 127 × 206 × 12 5.0 × 8.1 × 0.5 |
448 (15.8) | |
Nook Tablet | Nook Tablet | 2011-Nov-17 | LCD | 16 GB | no | 2.3 | 178 (7 in) | 1024 × 600 | 127 × 206 × 12 5.0 × 8.1 × 0.5 |
400 (14.1) |
2012-Feb-22 | 8 GB |
Sales
On December 1, 2011, Barnes & Noble stated that Nook and Nook-related sales for Q2 of 2011 were $920 million.[12] The Nook had 13.4% global market share for E-paper readers in 2011.[13]
On 29 October 2012,[14] the rival Blackwells and Foyles bookshops, the John Lewis department stores, the Waitrose and Sainsbury's supermarket chains and high street catalogue retailer Argos launched the Nook e-reader in the UK - and from, November, the Nook HD and Nook HD+ tablet computers went on sale in the stores.[15]
Nook e-Reader applications for third party devices
Barnes & Noble provides a number of free e-Reader applications to permit reading on devices other than Nooks. Selections include Nook Free Reading Apps, Nook for Web, and Nook Study.
Nook Free Reading Apps
- For Computers
- Mac
- Windows PC
- For Smartphones
- Android
- iPhone (& iPod touch)
- For Tablets
- Android Tablet
- iPad
- NOOK Kids for iPad
Nook for Web
The Nook for Web tagline reads: "Read Instantly on any browser".
NookStudy
Mobileread describes (NookStudy or NOOKStudy) (also styled as Nook Study) as "a free eTextbook application from Barnes and Noble that provides a suite of digital study tools. It is available for Windows and Mac OS X." [16] NookStudy cannot be used on Nook ereaders; rather it is designed for use only on PCs, Macs, and iPads, and permits one to read e-Textbooks "on up to two (2) computers".
NookStudy offers two categories of benefits: the ability to read ebooks and other content that is accessible via other eReading devices, and the ability to read eTextbooks purchased from Barnes & Noble, which are meant to be read on one's computer via the NOOKStudy application. According to Barnes & Noble's NookStudy FAQ's: "You cannot use your NOOK or mobile device to read textbooks as the screens are too small to properly view the contents."[citation needed]
In The Digital Reader, Nate Hoffelder describes capabilities possessed by NookStudy that render it superior to other eReading software for reading textbooks.[17] For example, he writes:
- "you can do multiple types of annotations (highlight, asterisk, question) and you can do asterisks and questions in 7 different colors. You can also attach text notes as well as search Wikipedia, Google, Dictionary.com, Wolfram Alpha, and Youtube. And I just noticed that you can attach a link to the webpage you just found through the search. Attaching the link isn’t easy, but it can be done.
- Now I’m really impressed. I love that I can search Dictionary.com, Wolfram Alpha, and Youtube. I think this might be the killer feature for NookStudy (like indexed search was for the Kindle).
- Some of the other neat features include having multiple ebooks open in tabs, and a second TOC for annotations.
Issues
- If you purchase an ebook through Barnes & Noble and let the credit card you used to buy it expire you lose the rights to that downloaded material.[18][19]
See also
- 3M Cloud Drive
- Adobe Digital Editions
- Aldiko
- Amazon Kindle
- Blio
- Calibre
- Comparison of e-book readers
- E-book
- Kobo eReader
- List of Android devices
- OverDrive, Inc.
- Sony Reader
- Tablet computer
References
- ^ Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg and Geoffrey A. Fowler (October 20, 2009). "B&N Reader Out Tuesday". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 21 October 2009. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
{{cite news}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ Ina Fried (October 19, 2009). "Barnes & Noble's 'Nook' said to cost $259". cnet news. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
- ^ David Carnoy (October 14, 2009). "Barnes & Noble's 'color' e-book reader photos leaked". cnet news. Retrieved October 20, 2009.
- ^ http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2011/05/barnes-noble-goes-after-kindle-with-nook-simple-touch-reader.ars
- ^ Ziegler, Chris (2011-11-07). "Nook Tablet announced: $249, available November 17th". The Verge. Retrieved 2011-11-07.
- ^ Barnes & Noble (February 21, 2012). "Press Release - Barnes & Noble Introduces NOOK Tablet™ – 8GB For Incredibly Low Price of $199: New Addition to Hot-Selling, Highly Rated NOOK Tablet Line Offers Fastest, Lightest, Most Powerful Tablet with the Best in Reading and Entertainment, Now in 8GB, at an Amazing Value" (PDF). Retrieved May 24, 2012.
- ^ a b "Microsoft invests $300 million in Barnes & Noble". Boy Genius Report. April 30, 2012. Cite error: The named reference "post2" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ http://www.barnesandnobleinc.com/press_releases/9_26_12_nook_hd_us.html
- ^ "BN.com". Retrieved 26 November 2012.
- ^ a b "BN.com". Retrieved 26 November 2012.
- ^ Carnoy, David. "B&N drops prices on Nook Tablet and Nook Color". CNET. Retrieved 19 November 2012.
- ^ "Barnes & Noble Reports Q2 Net Loss Of $6.6M, Says NOOK Is Now A $220 Million Business". TechCrunch. December 1, 2011.
- ^ "Microsoft and Barnes & Noble team up on e-reader business". LA Times. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
- ^ Last-minute delay to UK Nook launch, Lisa Campbell, The Bookseller, London.Retrieved 8 December 2012.
- ^ Barnes & Noble's Nook HD and HD+ tablets will come to UK in November, Ian Steadman,wired.co.uk, 26 September,2012.Retrieved 8 December 2012.
- ^ "Nookstudy". MobileRead.com.
{{cite web}}
: Missing or empty|url=
(help); Text "http://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/NOOKstudy" ignored (help) - ^ "Software News: NookStudy is a serious threat to the Kindle textbook market". the-digital-reader.com. 3 August 2010. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
{{cite web}}
: More than one of|work=
and|website=
specified (help) - ^ Barnes & Noble Decides That Purchased Ebooks Are Only Yours Until Your Credit Card Expires | Techdirt
- ^ Barnes & Noble: That Ebook is Only Yours Until Your Credit Card Expires