In October 2009, Barnes & Noble announced the launch of nook, the Barnes & Noble eBook reader, which marries innovative technology and sleek minimalist design with access to the company's digital store of over one million eBooks, newspapers and magazines.
nook features many industry firsts as it is the first AndroidTM-based eBook reader and the first to offer a color touch screen for navigation along with a best-in-class E Ink display for an immersive, enjoyable e-reading experience. For fast connectivity, nook is the first eBook reader to provide, at no additional costs to customers, both 3G wireless access on AT&T's mobile broadband network and access to Wi-Fi for Barnes & Noble in-store browsing and enjoyment. And to help friends share their joy of reading, nook is the first eBook reader to offer digital lending for a wide selection of eBooks.
nook: The Device
The centerpiece of Barnes & Noble's strategy to deliver any book, any time, anywhere, nook was created expressly with the reader in mind, with features and functionality to create an immersive, seamless and fun experience:
A Gripping Read, by Design nook's sleek, minimalist design puts the focus on the content, not the technology, and the combination of color and touch make navigation intuitive and simple. nook feels great in hand and features a contoured, easy-to-hold back. About the size and weight of a paperback book, nook is thin, small and portable. Its best-in-class E Ink VizplexTM display is easy on the eyes with text as clear and crisp as a printed book. And with no glare or backlight and adjustable text size, you can read comfortably for hours without straining your eyes.
Color Touch for Easy Navigation The beautiful lower color touch screen offers an immersive experience, inviting you to virtually browse through brilliant cover art, flip through an expansive library, or search using a virtual keyboard. nook presents the controls, navigation and keyboard you need, only when you need them.
Download eBooks Wirelessly With fast 3G wireless and Wi-Fi access, nook is the most-connected eBook reader. Browse and instantly download eBooks, magazines and newspapers simply and seamlessly on AT&T's 3G wireless network, the nation's fastest, with no set-up required or additional wireless costs. Connect to the complimentary Wi-Fi, provided by the AT&T Wi-Fi network, in Barnes & Noble stores and download at broadband fast speeds.
Lend eBooks to Friends With nook's breakthrough LendMeTM technology, lend a wide selection of eBooks to friends free of charge, for up to 14 days at a time. Just choose the book you want to share and send it to your friend's nook or iPhone, iPod touch, select BlackBerry® and Motorola smartphones, PC or Mac® with Barnes & Noble eReader software.
A Continuous Reading Experience With "Reading Now," your virtual bookmark, nook brings you back to the last book you've read, right where you left off. And it works across a range of devices. If you forgot your nook at home, Barnes & Noble's free eReader software on your iPhone, select BlackBerry and Motorola smartphones or laptop lets you pick up where you left off, including annotations. And when you're reunited with your nook again, the Reading Now page will be updated and ready to go.
A Wealth of Content, in the Palm of Your Hand nook can hold up to 1,500 eBooks and other printed content, and the sky's the limit for your digital library when you use nook's expandable memory slot. A 16GB MicroSD card holds up to 17,500 eBooks.
Portability and Personalization You can also easily transfer PDF-format documents from your computer to access and read business documents, legal contracts and travel information on your nook. And transfer your photos to create custom screensavers.
Protect Your nook in Style nook comes with a removable back cover you can personalize from a selection of four additional great colors. You can also choose from a range of accessories by renowned designers kate spade new york, Jack Spade, Jonathan Adler, Tahari and others. From classic and colorful portfolios to an innovative book light, Barnes & Noble will offer stylish and elegant accessories designed exclusively for nook both in stores and online.
Over One Million eBooks, Newspapers and Magazines
As part of nook's introduction, Barnes & Noble has further expanded its wide selection of content to satisfy every reader.
Expanded eBookstore From fiction to horror and romance to thrillers, with the launch of nook, Barnes & Noble's eBookstore now offers the most eBook titles - over one million - with most bestsellers and new releases for just $9.99.
Your Daily Newspapers on nook Read your "morning paper" any time, anywhere you go. Barnes & Noble now offers subscriptions to more than 20 newspapers, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and Los Angeles Times. Barnes & Noble expects to offer, in digital form, subscriptions to every major U.S. daily.
Read Your Favorite Magazines As the nation's second largest retailer of magazines, Barnes & Noble is now pleased to offer its customers digital subscriptions. Enjoy reading publications including Forbes, Newsweek and The Nation on your nook, at home or on the go.
Experience nook at Your Local Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble's nationwide network of stores enables its customers to see nook and get hands-on demonstrations from its booksellers. Furthermore, nook owners get added benefits.
Dedicated Booksellers Barnes & Noble's 40,000 booksellers are ready to help customers get the most of their nook e-reading experience, demonstrate the eReader applications on other devices, and assist and support purchases, browsing and downloads in-store.
Free Complete eBook Browsing Customers will also be able to browse complete eBooks for free on nook at any Barnes & Noble store, whether or not the actual book is in stock, beginning later this year. Plus settle into the cafe and get exclusive in-store-only content, free eBooks, special offers and much more using Barnes & Noble's complimentary Wi-Fi, provided by the AT&T Wi-Fi network.
Availability
nook, the Barnes & Noble eBook reader is now available at Barnes & Noble stores.
Pre-order nook Now from Barnes & Noble
Amazon Kindle 2 (U.S. & International Wireless)
Amazon Kindle DX (U.S. Wireless)
nook by Barnes & Noble (U.S. Wireless)
Display
6" diagonal
9.7" diagonal
6" diagonal
Resolution
600 x 800 pixels
1200 x 824 pixels
800 x 600 pixels
Gray Scale
16-level
16-level
16-level
Size
8" x 5.3" x 0.36"
10.4" x 7.2" x 0.38"
7.7" x 4.9" x 0.50"
Weight
10.2 oz
18.9 oz
11.2 oz
Storage
2GB internal (1500 eBooks) 1.4GB accessible Not expandable
4GB internal (3500 eBooks)
3.3 GB accessible Not expandable
2GB internal (1500 eBooks) Virtually unlimited expansion using Micro SD expansion slot; 16GB card holds up to 17,500 eBooks
PDFs, MP3s and graphics load to your nook from your computer or micro SD card.
Image: JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP
Case colors
White only
White only
Covers in 4 Colors: Exclusive nook covers from Kate Spade, Jack Spade and Jonathan Adler
Price
$259
$489
$259
Purchase
Kindle vs the nook: Some Points to Consider
What clearly stands out about Barnes & Noble's new reader is the color LCD touch screen at the bottom of the device that allows users to browse book covers. It's similar to the "cover flow" feature familiar to Apple customers who flip through album covers on iTunes or with their iPhones.
The nook does weigh an ounce more than the Kindle (11.2 ounces vs. 10.2 ounces) and can't match the Kindle's battery life (10 days vs. 14 days with wireless off). And while it does play back MP3 audio and has a built-in speaker, it doesn't have the Kindle's text-to-speech feature or a Web browser.
Storage: The Kindle comes with 2GB of internal memory and has no expandable memory. The nook also comes with 2GB of internal memory, but it also has a memory expansion slot--you can add up to a 16GB micro SD card.
Barnes & Noble has something Amazon cannot replicate: 1,300 or so physical locations (including college stores) across all 50 states. Every Barnes & Noble has free Wi-Fi, and if you go into a Barnes & Noble with a nook and get on their network, you can browse any e-book there for free.
One important new feature of the nook: the ability to lend out e-books you've purchased to friends for free for 14 days. You will be able to send e-books to a friend's nook, iPhone, or iPod Touch, select BlackBerry and Motorola smartphones, as well as Windows or Mac PCs that have the Barnes & Noble eReader software installed on them. However, not all e-books will be available for lending.
With the free Barnes & Noble eReader app, you can also read your eBooks across a wide range of devices in addition to your nook, including: iPhone and iPod touch, BlackBerry® smartphone, or Windows® and Mac® laptops and desktop computers. And the eBooks purchased from BN.com will sync between your nook and other reading devices with the Barnes & Noble eReader app, so you always return to the last page you read.
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