Hasta La Gadget!

Starting this week, Barnes & Noble NOOK HD and NOOK HD+ devices will be receiving access to the official Google Play app and digital content store straight from the source. Where since the birth of the NOOK line of ereaders, each Android-based device worked specifically and only with the Barnes & Noble Shop for books and movies, users will now have the ability to access both Google apps and Google Music. There’s only one catch – if you’d call it a catch, that is.

The way a user accesses the Google Play digital content store from their NOOK HD or NOOK HD+ device is through a notification which will be appearing on their device starting this week. This notification will have an opt-in option which downloads the Google Play store. With this download comes the full collection of Google services such as Gmail, YouTube, Google+, Google Search, Chrome browser, and Google Maps.

These apps come instantly when you download Google Play, each of them a requirement if you’d like to work with Google Play. Other than these additions, the NOOK experience remains entirely the same. Once you’ve downloaded Google Play and these apps all at once, the first time you tap any of them you’ll be asked to either create or log in to your Google account.

The NOOK HD and NOOK HD+ are the first two devices to be working with Google Play and will likely not be the last. This is the start of a relationship between Barnes & Noble and Google that we’re expecting will send ripples through the ereader industry – or at least send a shock over to Amazon. Have a peek at the NOOK timeline below to see events leading up to this release and let us know if this addition will be pushing you into the NOOK universe.

NOOK HD gains access to Google Play, apps required is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

When Barnes & Noble first announced the NOOK Color, that was all the way back in October of 2010, which frankly, is a pretty long way back to the past via the time machine – at least in terms of technology, 3 years is a pretty long time ago. The NOOK Color held the distinction of being the first popular 7” Android-powered tablet that was specially priced to move without breaking the $250 price point, where it ran on a highly customized version of the Android operating system that was specially designed to play nice with B&N’s app and book stores.

Needless to say, it did not take too long before hackers managed to figure out just how to load custom ROMs on the NOOK Color, and three years down the road, NOOK Color hacking still remains strong. In fact, you are now able to download nightly builds of CyanogenMod 10.1 for the NOOK Color, which lets you enjoy a custom version of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean complete with full access to the Google Play Store. That’s saying a whole lot you know, considering how other some handsets that were released even as late as last year will never see Android 4.1 Jelly Bean for that matter in its life cycle.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Lexibook Serenity Ultra Not A Name That Will Move Units, M-Edge Slim Case For Your Tablets,

Gadgets cost money. A lot of money. And now that you’ve paid your taxes, you probably have no money. But that doesn’t mean denying yourself the joy of a shiny new gizmo to replace the worn-out junk you should have …

Barnes & Noble has a deal for those looking to get a new ereader. Those who buy a Nook HD+ device starting tomorrow until the end of the month (March 31) will get a Nook Simple Touch for free. This is the latest promotion from a company that has had pretty regular specials and deals, including some earlier this month.

While both Nooks are ereaders, they’re vastly different from each other, with the Nook HD+ being a full tablet complete with access to apps and a 1080p display, while the Nook Simple Touch is your traditional ereader – e-ink display, small screen, and long battery life. The Nook HD+ costs $269 for the 16GB (cheapest) option, and increases to $299 for the 32GB model. The Nook Simple Touch, meanwhile, costs $79 new, but will be free with the tablet.

The Nook HD+ has a 9-inch display with full HD resolution, and boasts being lightweight at a little over 18-ounces. The device can be used to watch video, use apps and Nook Channels, all of it via a 1.5GHz dual-core processor. The Nook Simple Touch, on the other hand, has a 6-inch e-ink display and a battery life of 2 months per charge. The e-ink display is a touchscreen, and is designed to be readable in sunlight.

NOOK Media’s President of Digital Products Jamie Iannone said, “By offering a free NOOK Simple Touch with the purchase of NOOK HD+, customers can fully experience all that the expansive NOOK Store of more than 3 million titles has to offer. NOOK HD+ … is perfect for experiencing movies, apps, magazines and more, while NOOK Simple Touch is ideal for reading millions of books.”

[via The Street]

Barnes & Noble offering free Nook Simple Touch with Nook HD+ order is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Barnes & Noble produces its own line of digital readers called the Nook. The company has offered Nook Free Fridays for a while allowing customers to download free digital content each Friday. Barnes & Noble has announced an expansion of its Free Fridays offering allowing more content to be downloaded each week at no cost.

The expanded Free Fridays program now includes apps. The Nook Free Fridays app offering began last week with users getting a free copy of Office Suite Professional 7 from MobiSystems. That particular app is worth $14.99. The service still offers free books each Friday.

To find out what content is going to be offered for free each Friday customers can visit the Nook Facebook page or blog. That content can be downloaded directly to the Nook HD, HD+, Tablet, and Color digital readers. Sadly, if you didn’t hear about this last week it appears that you’ve missed the free app.

At least you be ready next week and download the free app if it’s a good one. Those that were able to download the Office Suite Personal 7 app last week received an application allowing them to create, view, edit, and print Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files and attachments as well as view PDFs on their Nook readers.

[via Nook]

Barnes & Noble expands Nook Free Fridays with apps is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.