Is Barnes & Noble's Nook a Kindle killer?
(Credit:
Barnes & Noble)
While information on Barnes & Noble's new e-book reader, the Nook, has been trickling out for several days, the company unveiled the new $259 device on its Web site Tuesday a few hours before the official launch event in New York.
As previously reported, the Nook, billed as the first Android-powered e-book reader, features not only a 6-inch E-ink screen but a color touch screen that allows you to navigate content and also can turn into a virtual keyboard for searches. At launch, no separate Android apps will run on the device, but Barnes & Noble says that one of the reasons it chose Android to power the Nook is because it's an open platform with a large developer community and that future apps are a possibility.
Like the Kindle, the Nook has a built-in 3G wireless connection (AT&T is the carrier) and a dictionary. However, the Nook also packs in Wi-Fi connectivity and a memory expansion slot--you get 2GB of internal memory, but can add up to a 16GB micro SD card.
It's worth noting that initially Barnes & Noble said the WiFi connection would only work in its stores, where Nook owners would have have access to exclusive offers and free browsing of complete e-books. But later a PR person emailed us to say that, "The Wi-Fi connectivity will also work on other Wi-Fi networks to give you access to browse and download from the company's digital store at fast broadband speeds."
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). 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.
That said, Barnes & Noble is touting one very important new feature: the ability to lend out e-books you've purchased to friends for free for 14 days. The company says that you'll 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.
At the launch event, Barnes & Noble reps weren't letting anybody touch the small number of working prototypes they had on hand, so we didn't get a chance to actually play around with one ourselves, though we did see demos of various aspects of the device. The color touch screen uses capacitive technology and seemed quite responsive (as for it being as responsive as the iPhone's screen, that was hard to tell). All in all, the device measured up quite well against the Kindle from a design standpoint, but what really sets the Nook apart is that color touch screen--it immediately catches your eye and represents a clear competitive advantage.
The Nook is due out toward the end of November, with Barnes & Noble prominently featuring the device and its accessories (mostly protective covers) in its brick-and-mortar stores. The company is also taking pre-orders on its website and the first 10,000 buyers will receive a free e-book copy of Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point (Gladwell made a brief appearance at the launch event).
We don't expect a review sample to materialize until shortly before the unit ships to the public, but as soon as we get our hands on one we'll give you the full rundown. Until then, feel free to post your own comments based on the specs and images (check out the slideshow below).
Hunkered down in New York City, Executive Editor David Carnoy covers the gamut of gadgets and writes his Fully Equipped column, which carries the tag line "The electronics you lust for." He's also the author of "Knife Music," a novel. E-mail David. Follow David on Twitter. 
Of course WalMart is banking that pulp still has plenty of life left against the onslaught of electronic versions.
500,000 titles are free, and that is not just classics, there are also contemporary titles including james patterson.
there are thousands of books under 5 dollars as well.
you can browse the ebooks available on bn.com.
not all the free ebooks are listed under the free ebook tab for some reason, but i have found ebooks that are free just not listed under the tab. i'm assuming it's a website error.
i assure you that when it comes to selection, nook has it. 1 million + titles and 500,000 free. more magazines and newspaper availability. i mean, at least nook has the dallas morning news available (which is where i'm from). kindle doesn't.
the new release date is dec. 7. we're sold out of preorders for the holiday season, but live units should be in stores dec. 7.
however, that is subject to change. it has already.
http://www.yourhelppage.com/index.php/showdown-kindle-vs-nook
After all, the reason I hesitate to get a Kindle is due to the closed eco-system of the Kindle system, which makes Amazon the gatekeeper in that case. I hope that is not the case with B&N's ebook.
The irony is that Amazon does have an awesome MP3 store that is DRM-free with a large selection and often good prices. Yet that is a completely open format, which is preferrable.
On the note about Amazon, I recently came across an interesting table that details the discounts on Amazon.
It is at http://www.uberi.com
Maybe someone will find it useful too. While you are there, I would suggest checking out the "Amazon Filler Item" among other things there when you get a chance. It's quite amusing.
Reply to this comment
Also, when will we see an eBook based on OLED screen? That would be beyond cool. Wikipedia has some pretty good info on OLED.
Some of these companies expect you to not only pay a very high fee for the reader, but then be locked into the company for all of the content. If they want to lock us in then the reader should be subsidized like cell phones are. I would actually expect a free reader if the arrangement is locking me into one content source. They should make you pay $100 for the reader, and then the first $100 worth of content is free.
In theory, there's nothing to stop you from giving your ebook to a friend, as long as you trust them not to abuse your credit card number :)
Ars Technica has a list, though: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2009/10/barnes-noble-puts-android-on-an-e-reader-with-the-nook.ars
"PDF, EPUB, eReader, MP3, and PNG, JPG, and GIF"
They exist. They are called libraries.
P.S. Why is there a semicolon after "returned she", instead of a comma?
One format. This industry will never go anywhere until there is ONE format...and not one hogged by one company. There needs to be one universal secured format everyone can agree upon. After that the competition can be driven by competing device features and extras.
Enjoy your 15 minutes of fame B&N. Like EVERY device that came before yours, you've got maybe a year of being popular, then you'll be just another format in the crowd.
All in all, this is about the best hybrid of features & standards you can get in an industry that hasn't yet decided on a single format. (Especially considering the Kindle which has its own completely proprietary format, can't render PDF w/o a conversion done through Amazon, and has no way to manually put data on the device). And like all industries, that single format will end up being decided by which ever manufacturer ends up with the most popular device.
To manually put something on your Kindle, you just need to connect to your PC. Regardless of which format wins out, it will still use DRM.
ePub is the MP3 of the e-book world. Everyone is converging there. ePub supports DRM, but it does not insist upon it, so all you open documents will be in ePub without DRM. Commercial documents will be in ePub with DRM.
As long as this device supports ePub it will have legs. Kindle can add this support with a firmware upgrade, but who knows if they ever will. They seem to be locked into the idea of you loading your content up to their servers.
If this eReader lets you connect (over WiFi) to any ePub based vendor, then It will be a win.
For example, it mentions there are over 500,000 free books available for the Nook but not for the Kindle. Of course, these are all public domain books made available through Google. You can easily find the same books available for the Kindle albeit on other websites such as manybooks.net.
There is also one huge caveat with the lending feature from the FAQ on the B&N website. If you are lending your book to someone else, you yourself cannot read it. Further proof that it most likely uses DRM.
I'm waiting to see what Amazon's next move. I wouldn't be surprised if they add the Epub format to the Kindle which can easily be done with a software update.
- by 1kingsfan October 20, 2009 4:22 PM PDT
- I've wanted a Kindle for a long time but it still comes down to function and price for me. Right now, the Nook has more functionality for me - but the price on both is killing me - ummmm we're still in a recession right?
- Like this Reply to this comment
-
-
- by JGowan October 21, 2009 5:02 PM PDT
- I have to say -- if you've wanted one since, let's say, the Kindle debuted (Nov 20007) when they were $400, you could've bought one by now at saving about $15 a month. We're in a recession, but if you want something, you have to find a way to get it... saving, little by little, works well. Also, by the time you buy it, it's cheaper and better -- the pride you feel of having something you've worked hard to save feels very good.
- Like this
-
Showing 1 of 4 pages (135 Comments)Good luck to you!