Barnes and Noble's Nook to Go on Sale on February 10th
Reuters reports that Barnes & Noble is finally going to start selling its Nook ebook reading device. The device was delayed in December after Barnes & Noble failed to get enough of the devices in its stores. The Nook will go on sale in Barnes & Noble stores on February 10th. This date allows Barnes & Noble to give the Nook a Valentine's Day push.
Barnes & Nobles, based in New York, said it was shipping Nook e-readers to the majority of its stores beginning this week, with devices on sale in stores as of February 10.
The Nook's in store debut, originally expected in December, was delayed after Barnes & Noble sold out of the device before the holidays and was unable to get production sufficiently ramped up.
The Nook costs $259, which is the same prices as Amazon.com's Kindle. Amazon.com is also promoting its Kindle as a Valentine's Day gift. Both Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com are currently running free shipping offers with ebook reader orders.
Barnes & Noble to Issue Gift Certificates to Compensate for Late Nook Deliveries
Internet Retailerreports that Barnes & Noble is sending $100 gift certificates to customers who ordered a nook but did not receive it in time for Christmas because of supply issues. Barnes and Noble may have to issue as much as $200,000 worth of gift certificates because of the delay in shipping its new ebook reading device.
Barnes & Noble said the delays affected "a very small percentage of customers" who may not receive their Nook in time for Christmas Eve. "We are working very hard to keep up with the demand and to get all Nook orders out the door and to customers on or before Dec. 24," says a spokeswoman. “Unfortunately, there may be a very small percentage of customers who may not receive their nooks before the holiday.”
The multichannel bookseller has taken orders for as many as 50,000 of its Nook readers-and somewhere between 500 and a couple thousand may be affected by delay, estimates Forrester Research analyst James McQuivey. That translates into $50,000 to $200,000 worth of gift certificates.
The gift certificates should please those who ordered nooks but did not receive them in time for Christmas. The $100 gift certificates show that B&N is serious about its ebook device. It is really the bad reviews that could cause problems for nook sales. Barnes and Noble will have to make sure the second version of the gadget fixes all the glitches and software issues that reviewers are complaining about.
Barnes and Noble's ebook reading device, the Nook, has landed in the hands of gadget reviewers and the reviews are not good. David Pogue at the New York Timesreview is called "Not Yet the Season for a Nook." He says the Nook takes nearly three seconds to turn a page. David Pogue writes, "Worse, the touch screen is balky and nonresponsive, even for the Nook product manager who demonstrated it for me. The only thing slower than the color strip is the main screen above it."
The Wall Street Journal's Walter Mossberg also says the Nook needs work in his review. Mossberg says, "During my tests, I found the Nook slower, more cumbersome to use and less polished than the Kindle. I ran into various crashes and bugs."
The negative reviews are primarily for the Nook's software which means the Nook can be fixed with a software upgrade. This can be done remotely so Nook owners can get upgraded software without having to do anything. However, it still isn't a good start for the Nook. They would have been better off waiting until they had it right then rushing out a glitchy product. Barnes and Noble's inability to get the device in stores for Christmas may have actually spared them a lot of angry customers.
The AP's Peter Svensson calls the Nook a "dual-screen mess." He shows a couple of the glitches in the video below. Take a look:
Barnes and Noble Won't Have Nooks In Its Stores Until January, 2010
Reuters reports that Barnes and Noble has delayed the in-store debut of the Nook until January, 2010. The initial plan was for customers to be able to handle the Nook in Barnes and Noble stores and buy one before the Christmas holiday.
Barnes & Noble said just eight days ago that it would ship the newly launched Nook to its highest-volume stores on Dec. 7 to allow customers to buy an e-reader and take it home. [ID:nN29420464]
For now, only demonstration models are available in stores.
While analysts caution further delays could steer wavering e-reader buyers to rivals, such as the Kindle e-reader from Amazon.com (AMZN.O) and Sony Corp's (6758.T) (SNE.N) Daily Edition device, they do not expect this latest snag to hurt Nook's market share in any lasting manner.
"You'll have some people thinking the Nook is the ideal holiday gift but they might look at a Kindle instead," said James McQuivey, a media analyst at Forrester Research.
This latest delay fits with the delays analysts and journalists had been reporting. Unfortunately, it isn't good for Barnes and Noble. The retailer tried to rush its new device before it was ready to compete with Amazon.com's Kindle for the holiday. They should have just waited and launched the device next year.
Nook Goes on Sale in Barnes and Noble Stores on November 30th
Barnes and Noble's new electronic reading device called the Nook will be available in its bookstore on November 30th. Computerworld says shoppers can currently pick up pamphlets in Barnes and Noble stores that are cut to match Nook's size. Those curious about the Nook will be able to hold and feel the device in B&N stores and decide whether or not they think they would prefer it to Amazon.com's Kindle. This could give B&N an advantage. Apple has been able to use its stores to show customers a wide range of products. Some customers are more likely to purchase a device they can touch and feel. Barnes & Noble will need any advantage it can get. Many people already own a Kindle as Amazon.com began selling them long before the Nook launched. Amazon.com has also had time to perfect its device and respond to consumer complaints while the Nook will be on version 1.0. You can read more about the Nook here on bn.com.
Barnes and Noble Unveils Online Kids Store, Top Ten Lists
BarnesandNoble.com unveiled its newly designed online B&N Kids Store today at www.bn.com/kids. B&N also released three holiday top ten lists with the launch of the online store for children's books, toys and games.
B&N Kids Top Ten for Children's Books:
Fancy Nancy: Splendiferous Christmas
The Silver Spoon for Children
A Light in the Attic: Special Edition
The Nutcracker
A Christmas Carol (Sterling Unabridged Classics Series)
The Magician's Elephant
The Polar Express
The Little Prince
The Snowy Day
Julie Andrews' Collection of Poems, Songs, and Lullabies
Nook Shipment Date Gets Pushed Back on New Pre-orders
Brighthand and CNET report that Barnes and Noble has pushed back shipment dates for the Nook. Those who were first to order the Nook were told it would be shipped by the end of November. People ordering the Nook now are being told it will be shipping in the second week of December. A Barnes and Noble spokesperson told CNET that were happy with the demand for the device but wouldn't give details about how many units have been purchased.
"Like with any hot new consumer device, the sooner you order it the sooner you receive it," said Mary Ellen Keating, senior vice president of corporate communications and public affairs. "We had high expectations for the Nook and couldn't be happier" with pre-order sales, she said. However, she declined to say how many of the e-readers had been pre-ordered.
"We are working hard to meet demand for the holidays," she said.
If the Nook is a device you want to give as a Christmas gift you would be wise to order it soon.
Barnes and Noble Launches Its Ebook Reader Called Nook
Barnes and Noble has entered the ebook wars with its own ebook device called the Nook. The Nook is a Wi-Fi enabled $259 paperback sized reader with an E-ink Vizplex electronic paper display. At the bottom of the reader is a 3.5 inch color touchscreen LCD that lets you change books by touching the book cover. The Nook runs on Google's Android software. The Nook can store up to 2GB of books, which is approximately 1500 ebooks. It also provides the ability to expand memory using a Micro SD expansion slot.
Ebooks for the Nook can be ordered wirelessly through Barnes and Noble's ebookstore. Other feature with the Nook at the ability to sync your ebooks to your iPhone, iPod Touch, BlackBerry, Mac or PC. Barnes and Noble also says you can read any ebook for free in a Barnes and Noble store. B&N is also launching the Nook with accessories including designer covers from Kate Spade and Jonathan Adler.
The Nook arrives November 30th but it is available for for preorder online at bn.com/nook or nook.com. Amazon.com's Kindle has a big head start when it comes to ebooks. The Wall Street Journalreports that the nook already controls 60% of the ebook market. Barnes and Noble has posted a Nook and Kindle comparison chart here in an attempt to convert Kindle users to the Nook.
Gizmodo has provided this first look at Barnes and Noble's upcoming ebook reader. They have several more photographs here. Barnes and Noble's reader is expected to have a screen made by E-Ink, multitouch input and a vitual keyboard. It will provide wireless access to Barnes and Noble's online ebookstore, which is similar to how the Kindle works with Amazon.com. Gizmodo predicts B&N's ebook reader project is expected to be unveiled next week.
Borders plans to offer free wireless Internet access in over 500 of its stores. Reuters reports that the stores will have free Wi-Fi access from Verizon by mid-October.
The company said it is working under a deal with Verizon to equip those stores with the facility, which it expects will be available by mid-October.
Many retailers around the United States, like Starbucks Corp, already offer wireless Internet service in their stores, though a payment is required in some cases to use the service.
Borders' competitor Barnes and Noble launched free Wi-Fi in its stores this summer.
Internet Retailer 
BarnesandNoble.com unveiled its newly designed online B&N Kids Store today at 
Borders plans to offer free wireless Internet access in over 500 of its stores. Reuters 
