Barnes & Noble

What's missing from the Kindle and Nook? Support for printed books

Having just come from the unveiling of the latest Nook e-readers, I'm feeling more than ever that the future of reading will come in tablet form. I'm already "that guy": I read all my latest books on my iPad via iBooks or the Kindle app. And yet, there's something big--something obvious--that e-readers are missing. It's something that magazines, newspapers, DVDs, and Blu-rays have already figured out.

A way to marry print books and digital ones.

I see bookstores around me closing every day. I'm part of the problem. Here's the vile thing I do: I browse through a bookstore like a vulture. I finger through books. When I find one I like, I buy it, right there, on my iPhone--on the Kindle. The bookstore loses the purchase. I'm a horrible person. And yet, I'll keep doing it. Because those big, bulky physical books don't come with download codes to get e-versions, and right now, I'd rather choose digital. There has to be another way.… Read more

B&N's new Nook Tablet

Hard drive shortages and weak sales slow down the PC market, HTC announces phones that will get the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update, and Barnes & Noble takes on the Kindle with a new lineup, including the Nook Tablet and Nook Simple Touch.

Links from Monday's episode of Loaded:

The 404 941: Where we did it all for the Nook (podcast)

Barnes & Noble just announced three new tablets that could extinguish the Amazon Kindle Fire--tune in to hear why you should care, and how to shop for the best device this holiday season. Also, happy birthday, Wilson!… Read more

Barnes & Noble introduces Nook Tablet (live blog)

Editor's note: We used Cover It Live for this event, so if you missed the live blog, you can still replay it in the embedded component at the end of this post. Replaying the event will give you all the live updates along with commentary from our readers and CNET reporters. Or you can read the edited transcription below. And to get the key points from today's announcement, in which Barnes & Noble introduced the $249 Nook Tablet and reduced the prices for its Nook Color and Simple Touch, you can check out a summary story here. Click here for a hands-on review of the new tablet.

This morning, Barnes & Noble is holding a press conference to unveil next-generation Nook products. We'll be there starting at 9:45 a.m. ET, live-blogging the whole event.

How much less expensive will the touch-based Nook get? Will the new Nook Color be significantly different from the existing one? And, will Barnes & Noble be able to offer the right types of content and value to compete with Amazon's intimidating cloud offerings in books, music, TV, and movies? Will it all unfold like recent rumors suggest, or will there be surprises?

Bookmark this link, and follow the live blog below.

Nook Tablet: Hands on with Barnes & Noble's Fire-eater

If you've preordered the Amazon Kindle Fire, Barnes & Noble hopes you're now having second thoughts.

That's the message of the just-announced $249 Nook Tablet, the successor to 2010's Nook Color (which remains on the market for $199). The new 7-inch color tablet equals many of the basic specs of the Kindle Fire, but justifies its $50 price premium over Amazon.com's model by offering several notable upgrades.

The Nook Tablet will offer more than twice the storage and twice the RAM of the Fire; it's got an SD expansion slot for even more storage capacity (which the Fire lacks), up to 32GB; and Barnes & Noble is already touting Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Pandora apps which will come included on the device from the start (Amazon's list of third-party Fire apps remains undisclosed). Those features are in addition to the existing assortment of apps and features already available on the Nook Color (and on deck for the Kindle Fire)--e-mail and a Flash-enabled Web browser, in addition to a fully stocked e-book store and magazine and newspaper newsstand.

In short, the Nook Tablet immediately becomes the first real challenger to the Kindle Fire in the emerging bargain tablet arena. Here's why.… Read more

B&N unveils $249 Nook Tablet, $99 Nook Touch, to offset Amazon

It may have the Fire, but now Amazon's the one feeling Barnes & Noble's heat.

On September 28, Amazon sent shockwaves through the tablet and e-reader space by announcing the $199 Kindle Fire and two new low-priced e-ink readers, the $79 Kindle and $99 Kindle Touch. At the time, a lot of people wondered if Barnes & Noble, mum after Amazon's announcement, would be able strike back with both a compelling product and pricing that could blunt Amazon's blitz.

The answer appears to be yes, as Barnes & Noble today unveiled the $249 Nook Tablet, a … Read more

The 404 940: Where we go down on Siri (podcast)

Don't forget to update your Facebook status update for the last time before Anonymous nukes the whole site tomorrow. Remember, remember the fifth of November. Leaked from today's 404 Podcast episode: Siri goes down, Google does a barrel roll, Kevin Rose goes Oink, and who are the 35 million people still using AOL dial-up?… Read more

Friday Poll: Will you buy an iPad alternative?

The iPad won't go unchallenged forever. A host of alternatives are aiming to knock the reigning king of tablets off its throne. Do any of them tickle your fancy?… Read more

New Nook Tablet to launch Nov. 16, report says

Barnes & Noble apparently isn't taking Amazon's Kindle Fire lying down.

The rival bookseller plans to launch its Nook Tablet on November 16, according to documents obtained by Engadget. The Nook Tablet will reportedly have Wi-Fi and feature a 7-inch VividView IPS color touch panel with a 1,024x600 screen resolution, a 1.2GHz dual-core OMAP4 processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of inbuilt storage, and a microSD expansion slot.

The Nook Tablet, which appears to bear a striking resemblance to its predecessor, the Nook Color, will retail for $249, while the Nook Color's price will be reduced to $199. … Read more

The 404 937: Where we shoot the Courier (podcast)

Today's show begins with a history lesson on the fate of the Microsoft Courier tablet and its possible reincarnation with a modified version of the Windows 8 operating system.… Read more