Hasta La Gadget!

You didn’t think Barnes & Noble was just going to let Amazon rest on its “vague sales milestones” laurels, did you? The veteran bookseller just announced that the Nook lineup — 3G, WiFi, and the new Nook Color combined — has become “the company’s biggest bestseller ever in its nearly 40-year history.” That’s bigger than Barnes & Noble’s sales (note: not global sales) of DaVinci Code or any of the Harry Potter novels. Unfortunately, we can’t say exactly just how many that is, as the press release only announces “millions” being sold. A B&N rep we spoke with told us they likely wouldn’t specify any further, nor would there likely be a breakdown of sales by individual model.

Other notable factoids include Nook Color’s reign as the company’s “number one selling gift of the holiday season” and nearly one million “Nook books” downloaded on Christmas Day. In fact, the company now sells more digital books than it does physical books over BN.com (i.e. not including books sold in brick-and-mortar stores). Wish we had some hard figures, but hey, if any company is going to mince words in a sales announcement, it might as well be a book company, right? Press release after the break.

Continue reading Nook lineup sells millions, Barnes & Noble’s best-selling product of all-time

Nook lineup sells millions, Barnes & Noble’s best-selling product of all-time originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 13:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

We like a bit of ambition around these parts and Sharp’s plans for entering the US e-reader battlefield reek of the stuff. The Galapagos tablets that recently enjoyed their Japanese debut are going to be retooled, according to the Mainichi Daily News, to include new 3G radios for the internet-addicted US consumer, while the primary content format will also be switched from the proprietary XMDF in Japan to the almost universally compatible EPUB. Content partnerships are said to be brewing as we type, because, quite naturally, Sharp intends to have its own e-bookstore for Americans as well. After the Yanks, the company’s said to be looking into bringing its 5.5- and 10.8-inch tablets to China, India, and Brazil. Highly ambitious indeed.

Sharp Galapagos media tablets will bring 3G and EPUB content to US e-reader market in 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 05:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Netbook News  |  Mainichi Daily News  | Email this | Comments

Consider all the things you’ve bought from Amazon, all the things you wanted to, but couldn’t afford to buy from Amazon, all the wildly popular fashions and fads that have gone through that online store’s brief, but torrid history … each of those has now been overshadowed by the mighty sales of the third-generation Kindle. Jeff Bezos and team have today announced that their latest and greatest Kindle has become their bestselling product of all time, thanks in no small part to an aggressive price that’s been “low enough that people don’t have to choose,” as Jeff puts it, between an e-reader and a tablet — they’ve just gone and bought both, apparently. Alas, we’re still no closer to knowing the exact figure of Kindle sales, but who really cares at this point, the thing’s looking like a runaway success.

Continue reading Amazon’s third-gen Kindle is now its best-selling product… of all time!

Amazon’s third-gen Kindle is now its best-selling product… of all time! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Dec 2010 10:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

E-readers are flooding the market these days, and KDDI has delivered its most recent offering just in time for the holiday season. Since the biblio Leaf SP02‘s specs were first released, battery life seems to have grown to 13,000 pages, with presumably a few extra thrown in courtesy of its solar array. The device utilizes KDDI’s LISMO Book Store and its 20,000 titles to obtain content, and if that isn’t enough reading material for you, the company claims that five times as many titles will be available by 2012. All this can be had on Christmas day — if you’re lucky enough to hail from the land of the rising sun, that is.

Update: Details on the e-reader, much like the device itself, seem to have gotten lost in translation. As a few readers have pointed out — and our own Engadget Japanese editor Ittousai confirms — the SP02 has an “open” price of around ¥15,000 (about $180 in US currency), with 3G prices ranging from ¥525 per month for data on a two-year contract, or ¥1,575 without ($6.28 vs. $19, respectively).

KDDI’s biblio Leaf SP02 priced, due out Christmas Day in Japan (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Dec 2010 04:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Dvice  |  IT Media  | Email this | Comments

It’s not often you hear of a case causing technical problems with an electronic device, but that’s just what a number users have been saying about Amazon’s own Kindle Leather Cover. Apparently, the problem stems from the metal hooks used in the case — they’re designed to conduct electricity in the lighted version of the case, but in the non-lighted version they’re reportedly causing Kindles to freeze or reboot. While the company hasn’t officially confirmed the problem, Amazon has told PC Magazine that its engineering team is looking into the issue, and that it will offer a refund or replacement to anyone experiencing a problem with the case, no matter when it was purchased. Those looking to take Amazon up on that offer can email kindle-response@amazon.com.

Amazon offers refunds or replacements for problem-causing Kindle covers originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Dec 2010 23:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  PC Magazine, Amazon  | Email this | Comments