b&n

Nook goes HD to face-off with Kindle

Wednesday's CNET Update puts a filter on it:

Barnes & Noble added two Nooks to the tablet family that have better screens and faster processors. Arriving in October, there's the 7-inch Nook HD (starting at $200 with 8 GB) and the 9-inch Nook HD+ (starting at $270 with 16 GB). They weigh in lighter than the competition and both have slots to add your own memory cards. But neither has a camera.

Gamers will be interested in the Wikipad, 10.1-inch tablet that has a controller dock with two analog sticks, a directional pad and four buttons. It … Read more

Hands-on with new Nook: Better than the Kindle?

Note: CNET's full review of the new Nook is up now.

The day after Kobo served up a new $129.99 touch-screen e-reader, Barnes & Noble, as expected, unveiled its own touch-screen e-ink Nook, which it's branding as "The Simple eReader."

We had a very good idea what the new device would be prior to the launch, but before we get to the initial impressions, here's a quick rundown of the new Nook's key specs:

Touch screen with Neonode "responsive" zForce infrared touch technology 6-inch Pearl e-ink screen (same screen as Kindle'… Read more

As iFlow Reader app closes, harsh words for Apple

Update 5/12: CNET has posted an expanded Q&A with BeamItDown co-founder and iFlow Reader developer Dennis Morin.

Some interesting news from the world of e-reading apps in the land of iOS: BeamItDown is shuttering its iFlow Reader app on May 31, saying "Apple has decided that it wants all of the e-book business in iOS for itself and it has has made mid-game rule changes that make it impossible for anyone but Apple to sell e-books at a profit on iOS."

Just like the Kindle, Nook, and Kobo apps for iOS, the iFlow Reader app for iPhone and iPad has an integrated e-bookstore. Apple has reportedly set a deadline of June 30 for developers to alter their apps to reflect the new terms for subscriptions in the Apple Store, which requires companies to give Apple a 30 percent cut on sales their apps generate.

In the past, e-reading apps like iFlow, Kindle, and Nook have avoided paying the cut by sending customers to a Web-based interface outside the app. Starting in June, however, Apple has said it will require developers to sell content from only within the app.

Fear of reprisals from Apple has kept most companies mum on the looming issue, but the folks at BeamItDown Software who make the iFlow Reader let their anger--excuse the pun--flow freely. It is one of the harsher public condemnations of Apple we've seen. … Read more

B&N says it's manufacturing 18,000 Nook Colors per day

To get a general idea of how many Nook Colors will be sold this holiday season, you can look to some quotes from Barnes & Noble Chairman Len Riggio in a recent Publisher's Weekly article naming Riggio PW's Person of the Year.

Riggio says, "B&N is manufacturing Nook Colors at a rate of 18,000 per day and is loading up a 747 every four to five days to bring devices to the U.S. from China." He adds that, "We'll be up against it to produce enough for the [holiday] season.&… Read more

B&N's PubIt self-publishing platform goes live

Back in May, Barnes & Noble announced that it would be launching a self-publishing platform, and now its PubIt service has officially gone live. The new DIY publishing option allows independent publishers and self-publishing writers to distribute their works digitally through BN.com and Barnes & Noble's eBookstore.

The new service will compete with Amazon's pioneering Digital Text Platform (DTP), which many writers have turned to for distributing their works to the Kindle and other devices that run the Kindle Reader software. Sony, too, has a DYI option for its Reader Store, and Apple is now allowing self-publishers … Read more

Barnes & Noble releases Nook for iPhone

Recently, Barnes & Noble announced that it was rebranding its eReading software across various platforms and calling it Nook. As part of that evolution, the company has released a "next-generation" Nook for iPhone application that incorporates many of the features found in its Nook for iPad app. At the same time, it's updated Nook for iPad to include some new features, including one that allows you to rate e-books from within the app. Users had been requesting the feature, the company said.

Nook for iPhone appears to be a big improvement over the company's previous B&… Read more

What Amazon didn't say about e-books

In case you missed it, Amazon told the world yesterday that for the last three months it was selling more e-books than hardcover books and in the last month it sold 180 digital books for every 100 hardcover copies. It was one of those great self-serving press releases that had a terrific headline and all the blogs and major newspapers jumped on it.

Well played, Amazon. As your CEO Jeff Bezos succinctly put it, "We've reached a tipping point with the new price of Kindle--the growth rate of Kindle device unit sales has tripled since we lowered the price from $259 to $189.&… Read more

Barnes & Noble launches iPad app

While Amazon had its Kindle for iPad app ready in time for the launch of the iPad, Barnes & Noble decided to take its sweet time before releasing its BN eReader for iPad, which is finally available as a free download in Apple's App Store.

Like Amazon, Barnes & Noble is trying to give its customers access to its e-book store from a wide array of popular mobile devices, including the iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, and next month, Android smartphones. Users can store content in one master digital library and shuffle content between devices.

Barnes & Noble is touting the fact that it's designed this version of its eReader app from the ground up, specifically for the iPad. It's also highlighting its e-book lending option, which lets you lend out certain e-books to friends one time for a 14-day period.

Here's a look at the key features:

Two options for displaying your library (Library Grid and Library List views) Choice of colors for text; pages (background); highlights; and links Eight typefaces and five text sizes Variety of margins and customizable spacing options LendMe feature (limited lending of certain e-books) All e-books and most periodicals purchased through the Barnes & Noble eBookstore are accessible on your iPad Built-in dictionary Google and Wikipedia integration for quick searches of terms and words

… Read more

Barnes & Noble launching PubIt self-publishing platform this summer

Though it's taken a little longer than we expected, Barnes & Noble has announced that this summer it will launch PubIt, a new DIY publishing option for independent publishers and self-publishing writers to distribute their works digitally through BN.com and Barnes & Noble's e-book store.

The new service will compete with Amazon's pioneering Digital Text Platform (DTP), which many writers have turned to for distributing their works to the Kindle and other devices that run the Kindle Reader software. Sony, too, has a DYI option for its Reader Store, and Apple is now allowing self-publishers to … Read more