madison

Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader

By | July 22, 2010, 6:33am PDT

Summary: A client I have been patiently waiting for is finally here and I can now take all of my Barnes & Noble content with me on my Google Android smartphones. Nook for Android is available now for free.

Software continues to enhance my mobile life and today I am extremely pleased to learn that all of my great Barnes & Noble Nook content can be downloaded and read on my Google Android devices. Nook for Android is available now in the Android Market for free and gives you full access to your Barnes & Noble ebook content with the added support of the LendMe loan feature. I immediately installed it on my new Samsung Vibrant and found it to be an excellent and fairly full featured ebook reader.

After signing into your account you will see ebooks in your library appear and you just need to tap download to get the books onto your Android device. You can read a summary of the book by pressing the i icon and press the menu button to manage how the books are sorted, filter titles, manage the page turn (animated or sliding), sync your bookmarks across the B&N network, shop for books, or view your account. The animated page turning is fantastic and supports page turns like a real book with differing levels of movement turning the page differently. When you go to shop for titles you are taken to the web browser to view the online store.

After opening up an ebook, you have menu options for font sizes (5 to choose from), font types (8 to choose from), go to a place in the book, view book details, sync your reading location and bookmarks, control the orientation, and go back to your library. Also, tapping on the center of the page brings up a bottom scroll bar to quickly move through the book. So far, I am really liking the client and like the font customization and sliding animation options.

You will also soon see a rebranding of the B&N eReader client found on the iPhone, iPad, etc. where these mobile clients will be known as Nook for xxx. This makes sense as Barnes & Noble tries to have a consistency across the ebook reading experience.

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Topics

Matthew Miller started using a Pilot 1000 in 1997 and has been writing news, reviews, and opinion pieces ever since.

Disclosure

Matthew Miller

Matthew is a professional naval architect by day and a mobile gadget freak at all other times. He purchases his own devices and then sells them on eBay or Craigslist to buy more. Many other devices are sent for review on a 30-day loaner basis and then returned to the carrier or manufacturer. If any are provided as “long term loaner units” this will be clearly disclosed in his reviews.

Biography

Matthew Miller

Matthew Miller started using a mobile devices in 1997 and has been writing news, reviews, and opinion pieces ever since. He is a co-host with GigaOM's Kevin Tofel on the MobileTechRoundup podcast and an author of three Wiley Companion series books. Matthew started using mobile devices with a US Robotics Pilot 1000 and has owned over 125 different devices running Palm, Linux, Symbian, Newton, BlackBerry, iOS, Android, webOS, Windows Mobile, and Windows Phone operating systems. His current collection includes an HTC Radar 4G, Dell Venue Pro, Apple iPad 2, HTC Flyer, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Nokia N9, Apple iPhone 4S, MacBook Pro, and many more, along with tons of accessories and classic devices like the Apple Newton MessagePad 2100 and Sony CLIE UX50. Matthew can be found on various discussion forums under the user name of "palmsolo".

Talkback Most Recent of 16 Talkback(s)

  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    with the new ANDROID sets coming with large screens, i think reading eBooks is the next cool thing to have.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    samiup
    22nd Jul 2010
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
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    ZDNet Gravatar
    upinson
    11th Oct
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
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    Juliety
    28th Oct
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
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    Juliety
    28th Oct
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    a knights the translation of a national from the democratic party a web of city of tomorrow a best of the best a master of the
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    Juliety
    28th Oct
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    a urban not for only a silicon from temple is a basic idea from concept a working always be there a team of the best
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    Juliety
    28th Oct
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    a british urban from it a kids is from playing a saint only goverment to need a online always today from a finance and lot of money
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Juliety
    28th Oct
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    a story is something that a water can demage any a nederland people from around a best TV that you can a newyork is the
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Juliety
    28th Oct
  • Problem with B&N eBook Readers
    When I recently installed the latest B&N eBook reader on my PC, it would not display the ebooks that I had purchased over the years from eReader.com and Fictionwise.com, both of which were bought by B&N. With an earlier version of the B&N reader, I had unlocked all the old books and could read them. The new reader acted as if these unlocks did not exist and only books bought from the current B&N bookstore could be read. I might be able to unlock the old books again, but why should I have to. The installation, if it were well designed, would recognize my existing library and display the books. Ironically, I had made the decision to use B&N rather than Amazon/Kindle because of B&N/Nook's supposed open system that supported multiple books, including the old eReader format. Someone forgot their promise.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    brucegil@...
    22nd Jul 2010
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    My wife is looking to purchase a Nook rather then the Kindle. My thought is, like cell phones who can call different carriers, both companies should allow lending to other devices. Both use ePub file formats, I wonder if they could make this happen.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Maarek
    22nd Jul 2010
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    I have never had an ebook account anywhere but I now have Kindle on my Droid and LoVe it. I can download free books in my favorite genre. and if I like them then I can go buy the hardcopies.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    telamarine@...
    22nd Jul 2010
  • A welcome arrival but feels a little rushed
    I've been waiting for this thing too but there is still work to be done.

    There is a Bookmarks tab that neither shows my current bookmarks NOR lets me create new ones. Why.

    Text is too small on ToC, I should be able to use my trackball to choose items in lists.

    Extremely sluggish (almost to the point of being unusable at times). Hopefully this improves with newer handset.

    Where is my Daily and 'Reading Now'?

    Can't jump back to the 'furthest read point' once you jump somewhere else. (But it gives you a slide bar to help you find it a little more quickly.)

    Let?s hope the updates come in quick succession?

    [currently using a mytouch w android 1.6 - vibrant is on the way]
    ZDNet Gravatar
    vnicholes
    22nd Jul 2010
  • eReading since 2004 - multiple formats even bigger problem now
    First, I read on my Palm Treo. Now, it's my Palm Pre Plus. I have never wanted something bigger since it will not fit into my pocket or purse. I like picking up my book whenever and wherever I am.

    Originally, I used the eReader format (.pdb) books from the eReader, Fictionwise, and other ebook websites plus occasionally a MobiReader book. I didn't buy as many MobiReader formatted books because I really, really hate the way that MobiReader uses its codes for preventing illegal copying of its books. The eReader format just needs my credit card name and number to verify my purchase. Plus the eReader format was used on at least a dozen other sites without any problems.

    Then came .epub and every publisher having their own version. It is beyond irritating that I cannot read books from Amazon and Barnes & Noble on the basic .epub reader from Adobe but must download a publisher specific one. And, only Kobobooks (affiliated with Borders) has a reader that works on my Palm Pre.

    I understand the need to prevent copyright violations and theft of books. I also understand that Amazon wants everyone to only buy Kindles and Barnes and Noble feels the same about the Nook. However, I just want to buy and read books wherever they are available.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Palm Pre Plus User
    22nd Jul 2010
  • NICE
    Now we have both Nook and Kindle! So the library of books is endless! And reading on my HTC EVO is fine!
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Jimster480
    22nd Jul 2010
  • RE: Nook for Android turns your Google smartphone into an ebook reader
    I've been using Aldiko on my Hero. I love it! They have a nice selection of free books, I just finished reading the last of the Phillip K. Dick stories they have available happy
    ZDNet Gravatar
    jred
    23rd Jul 2010

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