Barnes & Noble

General
January 30, 2012
by

Barnes & Noble’s next Nook said to launch this spring

By on January 30, 2012 at 9:15 AM.

Barnes & Noble’s next Nook said to launch this spring

Barnes & Noble’s fifth-generation “e-reading device” will reportedly launch this coming spring. Mentioned in passing within a New York Times profile of the struggling bookseller, it is unclear if the device in question will be a new media tablet or a standard eReader. With Barnes & Noble’s current-generation color tablet having just been announced this past November, however, a refresh of the company’s E Ink-equipped Nook Touch in the spring seems more likely. Barnes & Noble first unveiled the Nook Touch — then referred to as the “all-new Nook” — at a press conference in New York last spring. The device has since been upgraded with an improved display and a battery that lasts up to two months on a single charge, but the design of the eBook reader remained unchanged. The lightweight ergonomic case and soft-touch rubber feel on the Nook Touch make it our preference over Amazon’s E Ink eReader, so we hope the company’s fifth-generation model doesn’t stray far from the current design. More →

No Comments
Tablets
January 23, 2012
by

Tablet and e-book ownership nearly doubled during holiday season

By on January 23, 2012 at 1:40 PM.

Tablet and e-book ownership nearly doubled during holiday season

Pew Research conducted a pre-holiday survey among people age 16 and older between November 16th and December 21st, and two additional surveys of adults age 18 and older in January. The data found that during the holiday gift giving season, sales of tablets and eBook readers nearly doubled from 10% to 19%. In the same time frame, the number of Americans owning at least one of these devices jumped from 18% to 29%. More than 33% of those living in households earning more than $75,000 a year own a tablet, with almost a third of those with college educations or higher owning the device. The eReader data revealed that more woman own the devices than men and those with both a high level of education and income showed the highest percentage of ownership. More →

No Comments
Software
December 13, 2011
by

Barnes & Noble Nook Color update brings Netflix, other Nook Tablet features

By on December 13, 2011 at 3:00 AM.

Barnes & Noble Nook Color update brings Netflix, other Nook Tablet features

Barnes & Noble’s previous-generation Nook slate is getting an update beginning today that will add a number of features from the new Nook Tablet to the device. “Among the new features, NOOK Color v1.4.1 now offers access to streaming popular movies and TV shows through Netflix, comics and graphic novels, new PagePerfect NOOK Books, reading NOOK Books in portrait and landscape modes, and many other enhancements through-out the device,” Barnes & Noble said. Version 1.4.1 of the company’s Android-based operating system is available immediately as a manual update on Barnes & Noble’s website and it will automatically be downloaded to devices over Wi-Fi beginning some time this week. Barnes & Noble’s full change log follows below. More →

No Comments
Business
December 9, 2011
by

Nook Tablet shipments total 1 million units, report claims

By on December 9, 2011 at 9:45 PM.

Nook Tablet shipments total 1 million units, report claims

Barnes & Noble’s manufacturing partners have now shipped a total of 1 million new Nook Tablets according to a recent report. Unveiled early last month and released shortly thereafter, the new Nook Tablet features a 7-inch “Vivid View” display built by LG, 16GB of internal storage, 1GB of RAM, a dual-core 1GHz processor and the Android 2.3 operating system. According to sources at component suppliers speaking to DigiTimes, more than a million new Nook Tablets have been manufactured and shipped to Barnes & Noble to date. The report also claims Barnes & Noble had to increase orders recently due to strong sales — the bookseller initially ordered 800,000 Nook Tablets to be built through the end of 2011, DigiTimes noted. More →

No Comments
Business
December 1, 2011
by

Barnes & Noble Nook business jumps 85% to $220 million

By on December 1, 2011 at 9:50 PM.

Barnes & Noble Nook business jumps 85% to $220 million

Barnes & Noble on Thursday reported its results for the second fiscal quarter of 2012, in which it revealed its Nook business has seen stellar growth over the last year. The company said that its Nook business, which includes sales of tablets, eReaders and eBooks, pulled in $220 million in the second quarter, up 85% from the same quarter last year. Barnes & Noble did not reveal how many Nook devices it sold during the quarter but said that it expects to sell “millions of devices” during the third fiscal quarter. B&N.com sales increased 17% year-over-year from $177 million to $206 million, but Barnes & Noble’s overall sales fell 0.6% from $190 billion in the second quarter last year to $189 billion this past quarter. Retail sales also dropped 1% from $931 million to $918 million. Barnes & Noble’s full press release follows after the break. More →

No Comments
Tablets
November 23, 2011
by

Tablet owners in the U.S. expected to total 89.5 million in 2014, Apple to own 68% of market

By on November 23, 2011 at 2:25 PM.

Tablet owners in the U.S. expected to total 89.5 million in 2014, Apple to own 68% of market

By the end of 2014, there will be 89.5 million tablet owners in the United States according to a new forecast, meaning one in three web-connected Americans will own a tablet. Of those 89.5 million people, 68% will own iPads. Market research firm eMarketer recently published its tablet forecast for the next three years and it determined that tablet growth will slow over the coming years, as will iPad sales. The firm estimates that there will be 33.7 million tablet owners in the U.S. by the end of 2011. That number will grow 62.8% to 54.8 million in 2012, and another 37.9% to 75.6 million by the end of 2013. Growth will then drop to 18.3% in 2014 according to eMarketer. Over the same period of time, the firm sees Apple’s market share in the U.S. dropping from 83% in 2011 to 76.4% next year, and then further declining to 68% in 2014. Two tables detailing eMarketer’s predictions follow below. More →

No Comments
Tablets
November 21, 2011
by

Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet harder to repair than Kindle Fire, teardown shows

By on November 21, 2011 at 9:45 PM.

Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet harder to repair than Kindle Fire, teardown shows

The team at iFixit recently tore open Barnes & Noble’s brand new Nook Tablet to get a closer look at its inner workings see how they compare to Amazon’s Kindle Fire. The group found that the Nook Tablet is powered by a dual-core TI OMAP 4 processor clocked at 1GHz, and it has 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal SanDisk storage. It also has a 4,000 mAh battery under the hood that’s rated for up to 11.5 hours of reading time, 3.5 hours longer than the previous generation Nook Color device. The Nook Tablet received a repairability score of 6 out of 10 points, which is worse than the Kindle Fire’s 8/10 score. The LCD can be easily replaced because it isn’t fused to the bezel, however one would need to remove the motherboard in order to replace the battery, and there are “excessive amounts of adhesive” and even hidden screws that made the teardown a bit more tedious than usual. More →

No Comments
Business
November 21, 2011
by

Barnes & Noble steps into the ring with Microsoft, won’t bow to pressure over patents

By on November 21, 2011 at 1:30 PM.

Barnes & Noble steps into the ring with Microsoft, won’t bow to pressure over patents

If you are a company that has developed an Android product of any sort, chances are Microsoft has attempted to sue you or drag you in to an expensive licensing agreement. Samsung, HTC and ViewSonic are just a few of the larger firms that currently have deals in place with Microsoft. Barnes & Noble is the latest Android device maker to find itself in Microsoft’s line of fire, but it is not giving up the battle so easily. The retailer recently asked the Justice Department to probe the Redmond-based company over monopoly concerns and has accused the firm of “embarking on a campaign of asserting trivial and outmoded patents against manufacturers of Android devices.” Read on for more. More →

No Comments
Legal
November 9, 2011
by

Barnes & Noble calls on feds to probe Microsoft’s patent warpath

By on November 9, 2011 at 1:40 PM.

Barnes & Noble calls on feds to probe Microsoft’s patent warpath

It is no secret that Microsoft is on a warpath. The company has garnered Android patent licensing deals from major industry tech players like HTC, Samsung and ViewSonic, just to name a few, and has chosen to sue those that resist, such as Barnes & Noble. The book seller, which recently announced its second Android tablet, has sent a letter to the Justice Department’s chief counsel for competition policy Gene Kimmelman that calls on the U.S. government to probe Microsoft over monopoly concerns. “Microsoft is embarking on a campaign of asserting trivial and outmoded patents against manufacturers of Android devices,” Barnes & Noble said in the letter. “Microsoft is attempting to raise its rivals’ costs in order to drive out competition and to deter innovation in mobile devices.” Read on for more. More →

No Comments
Tablets
November 7, 2011
by

Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet hands-on

By on November 7, 2011 at 11:39 AM.

Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet hands-on

Barnes & Noble took the wraps off its brand new Nook Tablet at a press conference in New York City on Monday, and we just spent some hands-on time with the sleek new slate. First things first: the display is amazing. Barnes & Noble spent a fair amount of time during the tablet’s unveiling touting the quality of the display and we have to say, B&N CEO William Lynch wasn’t exaggerating. The display is obviously one of the most important components of any tablet and Barnes & Noble didn’t skimp in this area. The bookseller spent a lot of time comparing its new tablet with Amazon’s upcoming Kindle Fire, and in the display department it’s really not even close. Hit the break for more and don’t forget to check out our hands-on photos in the gallery below.

More →

No Comments
Tablets
November 7, 2011
by

Barnes & Noble announces $250 Nook Tablet

By on November 7, 2011 at 10:08 AM.

Barnes & Noble announces $250 Nook Tablet

Barnes & Noble took the wraps off of the Nook Tablet during a press event in New York City on Monday morning. The device runs Android 2.3, has a 7-inch LG “Vivid View” display, 16GB of expandable storage, 1GB of RAM and a dual-core 1GHz processor. It also weighs under one pound and supports up to 11.5 hours of reading time on a single charge. Barnes & Noble said the device will have free access to AT&T and Barnes & Noble Wi-Fi hotspots. The Nook Tablet has the “deepest Netflix integration of any tablet” and is capable of playing 1080p HD video. The device will have access to Barnes & Noble’s new “Nook Cloud” service for free storage as well as free customer support. In addition, Barnes & Noble said that it will release an update for the original Nook, now priced at $199, with more than 100 new improvements. Among the enhancements is access to MOG, Hulu, Grooveshark and Pandora content. The Nook Simple Touch device, with an E Ink display, is now just $99. The $250 Nook Tablet will be available next week and pre-orders begin now. Read on for the full press release. More →

No Comments
Live Coverage
November 7, 2011
by

Live from Barnes & Noble’s Nook tablet event!

By on November 7, 2011 at 9:52 AM.

Live from Barnes & Noble’s Nook tablet event!

We’re live from Barnes & Noble’s press conference here in New York City where the bookseller is expected to take the wraps off its sequel to the Nook Color tablet. Though the firm used a heavily customized, unrecognizable version of Google’s Android platform to power the original Nook Color, it is still one of the most popular Android tablets in the short history of the media tablet category. Barnes & Noble has reportedly shipped more than 3 million Nook Color slates to date, and with Amazon’s $199 Kindle Fire ready to heat things up beginning next week, we’re hoping B&N has a few surprises up its sleeve this morning to keep the space competitive. Hit the break for our live coverage and don’t forget to refresh the page often, or enable auto-refresh, for all the latest news as it breaks. More →

No Comments
Events
November 6, 2011
by

We’ll be reporting live from Barnes & Noble’s Nook tablet event tomorrow at 10AM

By on November 6, 2011 at 3:15 PM.

We’ll be reporting live from Barnes & Noble’s Nook tablet event tomorrow at 10AM

Barnes & Noble is holding a press conference on Monday morning where the company is expected to unveil a new color eBook reader that will go head-to-head with Amazon’s upcoming Kindle Fire tablet. According to a recent report, the slate in question will be Barnes & Noble’s Nook Color 2 and it will feature a 7-inch 1024 x 600-pixel display, 16GB of storage, 1GB of RAM and a dual-core 1.2GHz TI OMAP 4 processor. Rumors also suggest the tablet will be priced at $249, $50 more than the hotly anticipated Amazon Kindle Fire, but nothing is confirmed until Barnes & Noble executives take the stage on Monday morning.

Bookmark this link, which will go live shortly before the event begins tomorrow morning, and make sure to head there for our live coverage of Barnes & Noble’s press conference! Coverage will begin just before 10:00 a.m. EST / 7:00 a.m. PST.

No Comments