Barnes & Noble Adds Apps To Nook eReader

NEW YORK — Barnes & Noble Inc. on Monday added an applications store and an email program to its Nook Color e-reader, bringing the $249 device closer to working like a tablet computer in the vein of the iPad.

The Nook Color has a color touchscreen, which gives it capabilities beyond those of Amazon.com's competing Kindle. The Kindle has a gray-scale screen that isn't touch sensitive.

The Nook Color runs Google Inc.'s Android software, which is used on phones and tablets, but the device doesn't run standard Android applications. Instead, Barnes & Noble is encouraging developers to submit specially written applications to its Nook Apps store.

Among the more than 125 applications available Monday are the game "Angry Birds" and cooking recipe vault "Epicurious."

Barnes & Noble is also adding the ability to play Flash content on the Nook Color's Web browser.

Jonathan Shar, head of Barnes & Noble's "digital newsstand," said the Nook isn't intended to go compete directly with full-fledged tablets such as the iPad, for which there are more than 65,000 apps.

"The target for this is still people who love reading," Shar said.

The bookstore chain launched the Nook Color in November as a successor to its first Nook, which had a gray-scale screen and a smaller, color one. Right from the start, the Nook Color had a few non-book applications like "Sudoku," but there was no way to add more.

The new features are available as a free software update for current Nook owners.

Comments

[hairydodger]

04:39 PM on 04/27/2011

Do any of you have the new Nook? If so could you go to the iTunes ebook store and see if my enhanced ebook will play on your Nook, please? This is not a commercial post as the book is free, no charge and the ebook contains no advertising. No profit to me and no cost to you. The book is called "Box Head Man". I thought enhanced ebooks would take this new path and published this children's enhanced ebook to test the waters. It'll take a few minutes to download as it has videos that compliment the text.

[KHAAANNN]

05:36 PM on 04/26/2011

Just updated my wife's Nook Color to the 1.2 software.
It's great. The new social functions are very nice, and the flash in the Web browser works very well. Email is still kinda basic, but what do you expect from an inexpensive e-reader/tablet anyway? (for the price it kicks kindle's butt.)
I love the ability to change the broswer from "Desktop" to "Mobile" mode for rapid browsing.
Much quicker and more fluid animations and responsivness too.
Nice notification icons for SD cards and lots of other "tweaks".
Good job B&N. You delivered the upgrade in good shape and ON TIME.
I have some friends who have rooted theirs and are all running Honycomb on it. Very very nice for the price.
BTW - It is also a damn good e-reader!

[Simple Living]

08:05 AM on 05/06/2011

I am new to the nook. Where do I go to update my nook color? Is it the B & N website?

[Rgo]

12:56 AM on 04/26/2011

Did the tablet upgrade on my Nook Color today. It's great and overall I really like reading with the Nook a lot more than I thought I would. I'll probably be using the Nook versus my laptop or PC in a lot of situations, simply because you can get more comfortable when reading. On a trip this weekend I'm taking the Nook versus lugging my laptop and books.

[bkerensa]

10:49 PM on 04/25/2011

I thought Nook sucked until I heard this. I guess @Amazon's Kindle has something to worry about now.

[Mitchman57]

07:57 AM on 04/26/2011

"I guess @Amazon's Kindle has something to worry about now. "

No. Not the same target audience. Kindle is just for reading. No games, no color, no glowing neon tube, no noises, no GPS tracking, no email interruptions. $100.00 cheaper

Kindle....Kinda like a book.
Nook..... Kinda like a computer.

I've got 3 computers, and a Kindle.

[Glowcy]

10:16 AM on 04/26/2011

I have a couple of word games on my Kindle. Still though, I agree with you.

[repatriate]

01:45 PM on 04/26/2011

There's no GPS on the nook color. If you have either a Kindle or a Nook with the 3g plan, guess what? you have GPS tracking through the cell modem provider.

Not sure where you got the idea that the nook color featured a glowing neon tube. Haven't seen that on my unit.

All that said: as of now, a rooted nook color is more of a table than a stock Nook running the new update. And a nook running the Gingerbread port, even moreso, with Bluetooth keyboard support available. (and maybe BT headset. I've only used the keyboard.)

I find reading on the Nook color, and looking at the nook, to be much less of an eyestrain issue than I did the iPad I bought and then gave away a year ago.

[Lucille]

07:41 PM on 04/25/2011

Literally this past Saturday I ordered a Kindle from Amazon.com. I hoping that e-ink is all it's been cracked-up to be as I suffer sometimes from e-strain yet I love to read so much, I wish I could make a living at it.

Also I've read Nook reviews that the hundreds of free books offered are difficult to obtain on the device, not that they don't exist, but that for some reason Nook owners can't always access them but in reviews for the Kindle there are no such complaints regarding their free books.

Anyway, if I need more than the Kindle offers, I can always purchase a WiFi only iPad.

[Familymember]

12:46 PM on 05/05/2011

Lucille, I never have a problem getting free books on my Nook Color. I am a Nook fan and first owned the nook 3g and now nookcolor. Beats Kindle hands down.

[cdub1991]

06:10 PM on 04/25/2011

I finally got a few minutes to play with my Nook Color over the weekend and I'm loving it. I successfully rooted the device and loaded the Android Market, so I now effectively have a standard 7" WiFi only tablet. If you don't need the camera or any 3G or GPS capabilities, it's a good deal at a wee more than half the price of comparable full tablets. Downloaded a decent browser in Dolphin and Adobe Flash 10.2 and it's ready to go. Those who say it's better to have a dedicated e-ink device are probably overstating the case a bit, although that probably varies with individuals. The good thing, however, is that you can load the Kindle and/or Sony reader--or others you may prefer--and have the freedom to read books in whatever format suits your fancy.

Also loaded Cyanogenmod 7 on an SD card and booted from it, just to take it for a test drive without effecting the default device configuration.. It was a bit sluggish, but it is a gorgeous interface. Once I'm a bit more comfortable, I may abandon the B&N interface (which is fine, by the way) and convert permanently.

[TigerPrice]

04:31 PM on 04/25/2011

I love my nook color and am very excited about this update. I know people talk about the fact it is not e-ink, but if you buy their screen protector it really solves all of the issues with having a LCD screen. It now doesn't have a glare in the sun and it mimics e ink if you keep the brightness low.

www.dell.com/mizzou

[knightoftheroundtable]

03:21 PM on 04/25/2011

If you do a lot of reading then you want the Kindle or Nook non color e reader. The concept of e-readers is ease of strain on the eyes if you read a lot. If your not interested in much reading then go for the Nook Color. Just be sure what you want to do, read or play games.

[repatriate]

01:47 PM on 04/26/2011

Have you spent time reading on an NC? I had problems with the ipad. I have no problems with the NC, and I spend a lot of time on it -- it's pretty much displaced my laptop at the house as my timewasting appliance.

[Blarg]

04:42 PM on 05/05/2011

That's only one of the concepts of an e-reader.

[Mauria Ellenson]

03:18 PM on 04/25/2011

I absolutely LOVE my Nook Color! =)

[KJLSanDiego]

02:27 PM on 04/25/2011

I love my Nook Color!
Yeay to new things to use it for!

[SolarArray]

02:02 PM on 04/25/2011

Can't beat the nearly 30 days battery life on the Kindle. Great product and that e-ink is fabulous.

[RevSpaminator]

01:49 PM on 04/25/2011

If you don't want to wait for B&N's limited selection, CyanogenMod is also an option.

[gemini68]

01:38 PM on 04/25/2011

I don't have an e-Reader- I just use the Kindle app on my iPhone, but if I were to get one it would be the Nook color. I was only entertaining the idea of getting a Nook before but now I officially want one.

[bertha112]

11:34 AM on 04/25/2011

I don't have one, but am a big fan of the Nook Color. From what I've read from owners (rooted or not), they love their Nook Color. I went with one of the inexpensiv­e tablets just to get a taste of the "tablet"ex­perience, and a Nook Color is No. 1 on my priority list....un­less Amazon's proposed Kindle Android machine is everything that I'm hearing it's supposed to be.

[KJLSanDiego]

02:39 PM on 04/25/2011

I recommend it, the net service is good, and they're way cheaper than an I pad!

[crayola 08b]

10:51 AM on 04/25/2011

i like my b&w nook. i wanted a dedicated e-reader with a long battery life. when i decide i want something that does much more than that i'll get the iPad.

[gemini68]

01:40 PM on 04/25/2011

The price point for this is so much better than the iPad (though I'm sure the next Gen Nook will be more expensive). $250 is a lot better than $500

[ESerafina42]

05:43 PM on 04/25/2011

Amen. I was annoyed by the reference in the headline to the "Nook eReader," as if the Nook Color was the only one in existence.