Skip to main content

New Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader due May 24

Barnes & Noble Nook ColorBarnes & Noble revealed this week that it plans to release a new version of its Nook e-book reader on May 24, the Wall Street Journal reports. The news comes via a filing from the company with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Reports of the new e-reader closely follows news that Barnes & Noble has upgraded its Nook Color e-reader with Google’s Android 2.2 “Froyo” mobile operating system. This update converts the Nook Color from a standard e-reader into a device with functionality more on par with Apple’s iPad and iPad 2 tablets, though at a considerably lower price — and considerably less processing power. (As Apple critics are sure to point out, Android-powered Nook Color units can also run Adobe Flash, while Apple’s iOS devices cannot.)

Recommended Videos

Barnes & Noble has so far withheld concrete details on the new Nook device, so there are few specifications we can report. According to speculation from WSJ, however, it’s possible that Barnes & Noble “will release a more powerful combination tablet and e-reader, perhaps running a more advanced software like Google’s Honeycomb software,” the third-generation OS used on Android tablets like the Motorola Xoom.

So far, most iPad competitors have had trouble breaking into that market, which Apple currently holds in a vice-like grip. Fortunately for Barnes & Noble, the e-reader market, which is led by Amazon’s line of Kindle e-readers, has been more receptive to competition. Because of this, other industry watchers believe that the new B&N e-reader will be an inexpensive device that more directly competes with Amazon’s Kindles. In other words, a Wi-Fi-only Nook with e-ink technology that costs about $100.

Either way, the new Nook will be here in just a few weeks, at which time we’ll have a better idea of where Barnes & Noble plans to take its e-reader line, and which company it will have to compete with most for business.

Andrew Couts
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Features Editor for Digital Trends, Andrew Couts covers a wide swath of consumer technology topics, with particular focus on…
Instagram investigation finds sexual content is served to Teen acounts
Instagram Teen account settings on phone.

Late in 2024, Meta introduced Instagram Teen accounts, a safety net intended to protect young minds from sensitive content and ensure that they have safe online interactions, bolstered by age detection tech. Accounts for teens are automatically classified as private, offensive words are hidden, and messages from strangers are blocked.

According to an investigation by youth-focused non-profit, Design It For Us, and Accountable Tech, Instagram’s Teen guardrails aren’t delivering on their promise. Over a span of two weeks, five test accounts belonging to teens were tested, and all of them were shown sexual content despite Meta’s promises.

Read more
Apple could let users replace Siri as the default virtual assistant 
Invoking Siri on iPhone.

Apple’s struggles with giving Siri a next-gen AI makeover are pretty well-known at this point, while rivals like Google’s Gemini have flourished on the Android ecosystem. The situation with delays got so bad that Apple had to pull the ads showing Siri’s advanced capabilities that are yet to ship nearly a year later. 

As a stop-gap solution, the company integrated ChatGPT within the Apple Intelligence stack on iPhones, letting the OpenAI chatbot handle queries that Siri can’t answer. The company is also said to be in talks to bring more AI chatbots onboard in a similar capacity. 

Read more
Here’s one fella who can’t wait to get his hands on the iPhone Air
Alleged concept render of the iPhone 17 Air in black.

The so-called “iPhone Air” is apparently on the way, despite Apple remaining characteristically tight-lipped about such a device. 

Numerous leaks have suggested that the iPhone Air, which is expected to launch this fall along with the iPhone 17, will be just 5.5mm thick, making it easily Apple’s slimmest handset yet. 

Read more