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Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

Summary: Something wicked this way comes: Barnes & Noble is bringing out a new Nook soon.

Rachel King

By for Between the Lines |

It's (almost) official: Barnes & Noble will be making a very special announcement on Monday, November 7 about the Nook brand.

How do we know it's about the Nook? For starters, Barnes & Noble sent out an invitation on October 31 to next week's media event at B&N's flagship Union Square location in New York City with a bright green lowercase "n" logo. The event will begin at 10 AM EST.

Reports started circulating at the end of last week that B&N would be unveiling a Nook Color 2 in early November, with a ship date expected before Amazon's Kindle Fire officially goes on sale on November 15. Thus, this rumor matches up nearly perfectly with the press invite.

If this isn't the next generation of the Nook Color, it would be incredibly shocking and disappointing, not to mention foolish considering imminent launch of the Kindle Fire, which is almost sure to set off a firestorm (excuse the pun) this holiday season.

If it is the Nook Color 2 (which let's face it, it must be), it's generally agreed upon that the Nook Color 2 will need to impress analysts, investors, and consumers should it be an actual threat to the Kindle Fire let alone a success on its own.

That includes a better price point, higher-end specs, and some kind of ecosystem or partnership with media content providers to bridge the point between colorized e-book reader and low-end (yet worthy) Android tablet.

So be sure to tune in next week when ZDNet covers the Nook announcement live from NYC on Monday along with plenty of post-event analysis.

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Topics: Tablets, Amazon

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14 comments
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  • I've already preordered a Kindle Fire...

    but I'm eager to see what B&N can do to match it with a new Nook Color. When I first investigated the Nook Color, it felt too much like they were positioning it as a 'color e-reader' first and everything else a distant second, where what I really want is for the manufacturer of a tablet to support -all- potential uses out of the box. I don't want to depend on rooting the device to make it do what I want.

    We'll see how each manufacturer meets this challenge.
    RoverDaddy
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    I hope the cases for the NC will fit the NC2. Mine broke after a week so I got a refund but still have the case.
    Admin71
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    For the Nook Color 2 to be succesful against the Fire it's going to have to offer more flexibility than the Fire. An SD card slot and a front facing camera would be a good start. A partnership with Netflix could also help both companies. Also, B&N needs to seriously expand their app store. I had a Nook Color for a while. It was a great device, but a bit too limited if you didn't root it.
    dsf3g
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

      @dsf3g
      instant leverage against the Fire would be to build it on ICS and not Froyo. Offering the Android market place pre-installed would help a lot too. the semi-closed environment is the ONLY reason I did not pre-order a Fire, I could have dealt with all the other short comings if not for that. I don't care if the NC2 is $50 more than the fire, as long as it is at least dual core, has ICS or upgrades to it, is not more locked down than the NC1, and they got rid of that stupid little cut out at the bottom of the device. I was always afraid I would break it off, and I only used one in the store and never bought it (decided to hold out for round 2)
      aiellenon
      Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    I'm guessing you're right, but there's one sign you didn't mention - the continuous lowering of the price of a refurbished NC. It's now down to $139.

    The nice thing about the NC is that the newest update almost makes it into a regular Android tablet. B&N just needs to get more Android developers to make the changes necessary to get their apps into the B&N app store. Then it will be sort of like how Andoid would be if Apple came out with it.
    trevor@...
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    Pre-ordered the Kindle Fire, already own a Kindle. Dismissed the Nook in favor of the Kindle 18 months ago. My own concern is I did not want a device that might be an Orphan and saw no huge Nook device advantage. I
    oldgeek143
    Reply Vote

  • Android Vs Android

    Looks like Android has snuck into the cracks again, and is busily ripping them wide open. While Apple and Microsoft are busy trying to divide the ultramobile market into "phone" versus "tablet" compartments, here Android is creating an entirely new market category, the combination e-reader/tablet.
    ldo17
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    1. Kindle Fire doesn't have microSD slot that, for example, Nook Color has thus it is stuck with 6 GB usable internal storage unlike Nook Color that can get up to 32 GB card in. Kindles are made to be almost like a "dumb terminal" of the past to make sure you're tied up to Amazon's storage on the web (for which you need Wi-Fi connection to get to) and you can only store content you get from Amazon there, not other files. Quoting Amazon on Kindle Fire: "Free cloud storage for all Amazon content". Get it, Amazon content?
    2. The stats of how long the battery can last (Kindle Fire theory is 7.5 hours) are taken with Wi-Fi off. It will last only about 3 hours if you use it to access content from their Cloud storage over Wi-Fi.
    3. Amazon can spy on your web activity through their new cloud-integrated web browser of Kindle Fire.
    4. VERY IMPORTANT ??? lack of microSD slot means that if you decide to root your Kindle Fire, you???ll have to root the actual device thus there will be no coming back. On Nook Color, you can make it boot from a ???rooted??? microSD card and if you want to get back to the original Nook you can just take out the card and reboot.
    5. Kindle Fire doesn't have a camera.
    6. Kindle Fire has about 70% less usable screen area than iPad 2.
    7. Kindle doesn't support eBooks in ePub format that is the most used format in the world.
    8. Kindle app store contains only Amazon approved apps and it does not include (and will not include) Netflix app that iPad has and Nook Color is getting thus again you're stuck with Amazon content only.
    9. Amazon confirmed that you cannot download/stream anything to Kindle Fire when traveling outside US.
    10. Amazon says it will review every app in its Appstore for Fire compatibility, as part of an automated process. Rejected apps will include those that rely on a gyroscope, camera, WAN module, Bluetooth, microphone, GPS, or micro SD. Apps are also forbidden from using Google's Mobile Services (and in-app billing), which, if included, will have to be "gracefully" removed. In terms of actual content, Amazon has outlawed all apps that change the tablet's UI in any way (including theme- or wallpaper-based tools), as well as any that demand root access.
    11. I'd recommend waiting for Nook Color 2 that is rumored to be released by Barnes & Noble shortly.
    eco733
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    Colour e-ink triton Please, reading a book on an led/lcd screen is bad for your eyes.
    newwales
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    I'm thinking of purchasing Kobo Vox tablet. At $200 and with a open system, I can choose what books I buy from them or Amazon.
    lorenzosjb
    Reply Vote

  • Interesting niche

    Personally, I can't understand all of the hoopla associated with this. Perhaps I am the only one who doesn't see the utility in a crippled down, low end, branded, android tablet?
    ajrmd
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

      @ajrmd
      price, a $150-$200 android tablet that does "good enough" is a way better deal than a $400-$500 top end tablet. for the lower cost I can get one for me and one for my wife, and still buy content to add to it for the cost of one high end tablet with no extras.
      aiellenon
      Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    It's interesting to see everyone tearing down these devices for lack of "real" tablet features - cameras, app stores, etc. but that's not how they are being positioned by B&N and Amazon: they are devices to read or play the content that those companies make available. I suspect most ZDnet readers are probably looking to make a $149 refurbished e-Reader into a rooted tablet (heck I've used CyanogenMod on my wife's Nook just to see what it was like), but if you want a real all-purpose tablet, go to Apple, Samsung, or Asus at 2x-3x the cost, but for those that just want to read an e-book, magazine, or occasionally check their mail, these devices are ideal.
    bpurdy3
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Barnes & Noble readying new Nook for November 7 debut

    I can't wait to see what this will be and if there is a possibility of the Nook Color getting a lower price tag. I will definitely go the route of rooting on the SD card instead of the device, so that I can have the Kindle app on the Nook. I have well over a hundred books on the Kindle app (read on my iPhone, iPad, Mac and Galaxy Tab), where I also have the Nook app. The thing I found out was that when a new book comes out (I read 1 or 2 books a week) it tends to be a little cheaper in the Kindle store compared to iBooks or the Nook store. Since I read a lot, the $1 lower price is definitely makes me lean toward Amazon, but I'd rather not be limited by the Kindle Fire. People who are looking for an Android tablet should save up and buy an Android tablet instead of thinking of the Nook as an Android tablet. The Nook is a reader, that can do a bit more, but still basically a reader. The iPhone has a small screen, but the iPad and Galaxy Tab are too heavy and too bright to read in bed, so as not to disturb my wife.
    ManoaHI
    Reply Vote
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