Hasta La Gadget!

Barnes & Noble’s done a pretty decent job of keeping a supposed Nook Color hidden from our prying eyes, but an errant accessory may have jumped the gun — the “Nook Color Screen Film Kit,” to be precise, whose product image is pictured immediately above. CNET discovered the protective film hanging out on Barnes & Noble’s website, and quickly grabbed this picture before it could be removed. Even if we’re legitimately looking at the new Nook, of course, this doesn’t tell us much about the seemingly button-less product underneath. How’s this: We’ll go out on a limb and tell you it’s got a color touchscreen.

Nook Color revealed by overzealous screen protector? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 24 Oct 2010 21:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  CNET  | Email this | Comments

Yeah, the Nook already has one color screen, but its primary display is depressingly monochrome. Now there’s word on the street, from a reliable source of CNET’s, that Barnes & Noble will be bringing a full-color, Android-based, touchscreen Nook to its event next Tuesday. That sure sounds a whole lot like a full fledged Android tablet, which would be quite a departure for Barnes & Noble — sure, the Nook is Android-based, but it hardly acts like it currently. Still, there’s a smell of Android tablets in the air, and it wouldn’t be horribly surprising to see B&N move in this direction. CNET’s tipster says the device will be called the Nook Color, and retail for $249. That’s pretty low for a 7-inch touchscreen LCD device, but perhaps (hopefully) B&N has its eye on an alternative tech like Mirasol or Pixel Qi? Either way, the existing Nook will apparently continue to be sold as a lower-end version, so e-ink aficionados have no need to throw their hands up in despair just yet. Stay tuned!

Barnes & Noble prepping new Nook with full color touchscreen? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 17:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  CNET  | Email this | Comments

We still don’t know what Barnes & Noble is announcing at its “very special event” next week, but the company has just made another fairly big announcement: the Nook will be hitting the shelves at some 2,500 Walmart stores beginning “as soon as” October 24th (in addition to Walmart’s online store). That includes both the 3G and WiFi-only Nook models, and some Walmart stores will even have a “Nook-branded eReading area” where customers can try out the device. Head on past the break for the complete press release.

Continue reading Barnes & Noble Nook goes on sale at Walmart next week

Barnes & Noble Nook goes on sale at Walmart next week originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

It ain’t exactly summer, but we’ll take it. Launching just a few days after we’d been told to expect it, Barnes & Noble’s PubIt! self-publishing portal is finally open for business. As you’d heard before, this platform is essentially designed to give independent writers a venue for hawking their masterpieces, with PubIt! converting files to ePUB for use on a wide range of e-readers (read: not only the Nook). Published titles will be available for sale within 24 to 72 hours after upload on the B&N eBookstore, and the company’s pretty proud of its “no hidden fees” policy. Unfortunately, the compensation model — which is being detailed today for the first time — has its quirks. For PubIt! eBooks priced at or between $2.99 and $9.99, publishers will receive 65 percent of the list price for sold content; for those priced at $2.98 or less, or $10.00 or more, publishers will only receive 40 percent of the list price. In other words, there’s a no man’s land in that $10 to $15 range, so you’ll probably be settling for a $9.99 price point or reaching for the skies at $19.99. But hey, at least all PubIt! ebooks will also be lendable for a fortnight — surely that counts for something. Right?

Continue reading Barnes & Noble opens ‘PubIt!’ self-publishing portal, details compensation model

Barnes & Noble opens ‘PubIt!’ self-publishing portal, details compensation model originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Oct 2010 22:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  PubIt  | Email this | Comments

We saw it this weekend for a fleeting moment, but thankfully one handy reader sent us copies of the product page for HP’s Photosmart eStation C510, which we can now confirm is the Zeus / Zeen printer and detachable tablet combination we caught wind of back in early August — and we’ve got some more details. Bad news first: as of a month ago, the Gmail app was missing and there was no support for Android Market, meaning the Zeen might not be an official “with Google” Android tablet like the Samsung Galaxy Tab. (The product page conspicuously lacks any mention of the OS, so we’re thinking Android might simply be the hidden-away base layer for the TouchSmart UI, making this thing super boring.) It does have the default Android browser and at least some custom apps for printing pictures from Facebook, Yahoo, and Snapfish preloaded, but we don’t know about anything else. Major bummer, but we’re told it shouldn’t be too hard for the community at large to root the sucker. Beta testing begins this month, so that all might change before the projected September 20th release. Here’s what else we know so far:

• The Zeen is a capacitive tablet running HP’s TouchSmart skin on top of Android 2.1 — it won’t get shifted to webOS, and it’s not clear if it’ll get upped to Froyo before launch given the development time required. It has capacitive touch buttons, an SD card slot, video support, and at least some prototypes have cameras with a special webcam app installed.
• We’re told TouchSmart will be locked in, but we don’t know how deep that’ll go — right now the standard Android homescreen is still accessible. That’s supposedly going away, so don’t get your hopes up for any native Gmail / Angry Birds use.
• E-reading is a major focus, and the Zeen has “significant” integration with the Barnes & Noble Nook bookstore and ecosystem. Makes sense, as the Nook itself is based on Android, and being able to print e-books from the Zeen would be a huge differentiator — and a great way for HP to sell more ink.
• The touchscreen is apparently not very accurate at all, and we’re told the overall experience is far less satisfying than a competent Android phone. Don’t expect this to replace your Droid Incredible for all at-home use.
• The Zeen will come in two configurations: a $399 bundle with a new printer called Zeus and as a standalone unit for an unknown price. The Zeus has its own “basic” control setup, but when the Zeen is docked it provides a rich interface to the printing functions — presumably a web-connected interface like the one HP’s been moving towards with other printers. (Note: the product page listed $399.99 but provided no indication what price the Zeen might go for solo.)
• Ship date is an estimated September 20th but due to some testing issues this may be pushed back.

Until HP comes clean and inks out the details for all the world to see, check out the product page in pictorial format below.

Exclusive: HP Photosmart eStation C510 is Android-powered Zeus / Zeen, may not run Gmail or Market apps originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments