Who can forget the very successful NOOK Color? With Android ported into this e-reader, it became a hit not just to people who love books but to Android fanatics, as well. It’s been more than a year now, and it seems like Barnes and Noble (B&N) is about to release a new and better model of the NOOK Color, reportedly this November 7.

There are strong rumors though that B&N is going to release the new device on the said date–a NOOK Color 2, codenamed the Acclaim.  The date, notably, is just about a week ahead of the Amazon Kindle Fire release date on November 15.  The Kindle Fire is Amazon’s latest and upcoming tablet and a chief competitor to B&N’s products.

There are very few details about NOOK Color 2 product launch, not even a hint of how the new device would look like. There has been no official word from Barnes and Noble yet.

Information about the new product release comes from The Digital Reader, an online blog, which got insider information saying a new NOOK department is being set up in B&N.

Digital Reader informants also said that the current NOOK Color will most likely keep its price of US$250, while the upcoming NOOK Color 2 (Acclaim) might come with a US$350 price tag.

Moreover, the company has also confirmed to The Wallstreet Journal its plans to expand B&N NOOK boutiques in 40 B&N stores all over the country, reportedly in time for the upswell in holiday sales.  The Wallstreet report mentions that the boutiques’ sizes will be doubled.

NOOK boutiques are sections in B&N stores where the company’s e-readers such as the original NOOK Color and related accessories are available for public demo.  Potential customers can try the devices hands-on and make purchases instantly in NOOK boutiques.

Putting these pieces together, it’s enticing to say that Barnes and Noble will definitely be launching the latest NOOK Color on November 7, but it could also be something else. The company has not been showing any signs of what’s been going on, which might also be a good thing since it can surely build up the hype.

With the way things are going right now, we’ll just have to wait and see. November 7 is not that far away anyways.

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But wait, seen below isn’t the new Nook (it’s Mr. Lynch at a previous Barnes & Noble event), as photos of it are a bit scarce. Read on for the full reveal.

The official unveiling drew an obligatory amount of oohs and aahs from a rapt audience who were teased the new Nook’s virtues. Running on Android 2.1, the Nook is slated for a June 10th release and features a bevy of improvements to warm the hearts of devout fans. Most notable is the E-Ink display with decreased page flashing and 50% less contrast than Nook part 1.

Dubbed The Simple Touch Reader, the lightweight device being hailed as the newest sibling of the “best selling Android tablet in the U.S.” marks a considerable improvement over its predecessor. There’s also a social networking-like aspect to the Nook thanks to recommendation app Nook Friends where avid readers can share their favorite texts with like-minded fellows.

There’s so much cool stuff about the Nook Simple Touch, it’s best to have a block quote form the official press release:

“At only 7.48 ounces (212 grams), the artfully designed All-New NOOK is lightweight and thin – 35 percent lighter and 15 percent thinner than NOOK Wi-Fi 1st Edition™. Lighter than a paperback, NOOK’s sleek but durable, compact design (6.5 inches high by 5 inches wide by 0.47 inches deep) makes it easy to fit in a jacket, pocket, purse or backpack, holding up to 1,000 digital books and more personal content using the expandable memory slot. Its ergonomic, contoured design with a soft-touch back makes it easy and comfortable to read, even with just one hand, and for extended periods of time. And thanks to best-in-class battery life, read for up to 2 months on a single charge with Wi-Fi off – that’s twice as long as the other leading eReader available.”

The last important bit is the new Nook will cost a decent $139.

Source: Phandroid

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NOOK for Android updated

NOOK for Android is a pretty popular application, especially among Barnes & Noble customers. This hot application has now received an update and those users who are running Android 2.1 will enjoy new features including four professionally designed themes for page and text color including: Day, Night, Sepia and Butter. You can also adjust the screen settings, controlling the brightness and margin. Other benefits include,

• Ability to read rights-free ePub files from a personal collection in the app simply by side-loading them into the My Documents folder
• Flexibility to store the app on board or an SD card (for devices using Android 2.2 OS)
• A new search function in Library
• Other performance enhancements

The NOOK offers over one million digital titles, which includes 198 of the 205 current New York Times Best Sellers and  also supports free eBook lending. Grab the App from the Android market or check it out here.

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The NOOK app works on Android 1.6 devices or higher and is available now for free on the Android Market.

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Nook

The Barnes & Noble Nook has been far more popular than Barnes & Noble ever anticipated. The book retailer has struggled to fill orders with shipping delays plaguing those who pre-ordered the Android-powered e-reader when it launched on October 20th. Pre-orders were expected to ship on November 30th but that date was pushed back until December 7th. Even with the delays, Barnes & Noble was expected to fulfill most pre-orders in time for Christmas. For those who didn’t receive their Nook in time for the holidays, Barnes & Noble was sending affected customers a $100 online gift certificate. Estimates from Asian sources suggest that Barnes & Noble will ship 60,000 Nooks in 2009 alone with another 500,000 units projected to sell during the first three months of 2010. If those sales estimates pan out, the Kindle may finally have some serious competition.

[via TechCrunch]

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Nook

The guys over at Slash Gear have had enough hands-on time with Barnes & Noble’s Nook to piece together a fully fledged review. Most of the Android based news and indeed most devices that run Android are based around a Smartphone concept. The Nook is different because it is an eBook reader, similar to Amazon’s Kindle, and yet still runs Google’s Android OS. But this isn’t any old eReader. With two displays, including a full color 3.5’’ capacitive touchscreen for navigation, this thing might even have something to offer those that never thought they’d get sucked in by all the eReader malarkey.

As we mentioned back when we first got the Nook’s specification sheet, it offers WiFi and 3G connectivity. The user is able to user either of these to grab new book off Barnes & Noble’s virtual shelves. Furthermore, when you are in the store physically, you can use free WiFi with your Nook to grab books electronically. This way you can flip through the book physically before buying it electronically. To top this, Barnes & Noble are offering free browsing for up to an hours of any eBook while in store. Finishing on a slight downer, the Nook suffers from a few software issues which Barnes and Noble are looking to address with an OTA software update in the near future. Please visit Slash Gear for the full review, or catch the video after the jump.

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Barnes & Noble Nook

Step aside ‘Alex’, your 5 minutes of fame has come to an end. We now welcome ‘Nook’ from Barnes and Noble. We know for a fact they share similar physical specifications including the common 6″ E Ink display along with a 3.5″ LCD Color Touch Screen positioned below, but anyone not sure about the name? Those who grew up reading Dr. Seuss will remember “One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish” and can perhaps recall Theodor Geisel’s Nook who took a look at the book on a hook. Trendy huh? Before we get into the Android stuff, hardware specs and all the usual items, what separates the Nook from its competitors, such as Alex from Sprint Design?

First, Barnes and Noble address the age old tradition of lending your books to people when you have read them. This is one of the main complaints about the whole notion of electronic book readers which, so long as everyone has a Nook, can be addressed and we can all share and share alike. Well, it gets better. The technology used in the Nook that allows people to share their books also works with the iPhone, iPod touch, BlackBerry, PC, and Mac OS. Second, like Alex, the Nook offers dual screens, including a gray-scale E Ink screen along with a separate color touch screen below the E Ink display. Alex, take note… touch screen. Now for the hardware and other technical specifications after the jump.

• Android OS
• Touch Control & Navigation
• Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary
• PDF and JPG support
• 3G and Wi-Fi-enabled eReader
• LendMe technology (share books digitally between iPhone, iPod touch, BlackBerry, PC, Mac OS and, of course, the Nook.
• Over 1 million ebooks at $9.99
• Subscriptions to more than 20 major newspapers
• Store over 1,500 ebooks

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The other application that we would like to mention is more of a social networking tool by none other than HP. Dubbed ‘Friendlee’, the application is marketed as an intelligent mobile phone based social network. In short, the social networking tool analyses calls and messages in order to build a picture of someone’s closest correspondents. Those most connected to you will appear more prominently so that users do not have to wander through their entire phonebook to find them.

“It builds a network of people that you communicate with,” explained Bernardo Huberman, director of the social computing lab at the firm’s Palo Alto research centre. “If you stop communicating with those people or you begin to communicate [with them] less they keep dropping down to the bottom of your list.”

The development of Friendlee comes about after research by HP’s Professor Huberman revealed that many of the people on our Facebook, Twitter and Myspace accounts are people that we rarely communcate with. No, really? Anyway, it took a team of guys to figure this one out, and there solution is Friendlee.

“The idea of a social network that deals with reciprocity – I call you, you call me, we interact and so on – is much more meaningful than a listing like your whole Rolodex of everyone you’ve ever met,” explained Professor Huberman.

Expect to see more of Friendlee at Mobile HCI conference in Bonn, Germany, this September. On a side note, DigiTimes are reporting that Acer will release their Android smartphone in November. We had already heard word that we should expect a Q4 release date, but since DigiTimes are spreading the word, we’re waiting for confirmation from a third party.

[eReader Via: teleread]
[Friendlee Via: BBC]

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