Barnes & Noble soon to add more tablet functionality to Nook Color

Chris Meadows, TeleRead:: "Barnes & Noble has announced a big update for the Nook Color e-reader coming in April which will include a number of new functions such as applications and email, essentially bringing the LCD e-reader closer to being a full-fledged Android tablet. ... "

Nook Color Android app store coming in April along with Flash support

Crave - CNET: "While plenty of people have "rooted" their Nook Colors with custom firmware that allows them to access the Android Market and download applications, most Nook Color buyers have stuck with the official firmware that came with the device. If you're in the latter group, you'll be happy to note that you'll soon have access to Barnes & Noble's version of an app store, which is due to launch in April, according to the HSN Web Site, where the Nook is being sold for $299.90."

Google Says Microsoft Patent Lawsuit Threatens Innovation

PCWorld: "'Sweeping software patent claims like Microsoft's threaten innovation,' Google said in a statement. 'While we are not a party to this lawsuit, we stand behind the Android platform and the partners who have helped us to develop it.'"

Microsoft v. Android: now B&N Nook gets software patent lawsuit

Computerworld Blogs: "Microsoft is suing more Android device makers: now it's Barnes & Noble with it's partners Foxconn and Inventec. Steve Ballmer's gang doesn't like B&N's Nook e-reader, so has slapped them with a software patent lawsuit."

What if Amazon released Android Kindle tablet?

Tech Gear: "Firstly, in the short term, any Android-based Kindle isn't about Amazon competing with iPad or other Apple iOS devices. Amazon's ambitions are much larger: Capitalizing on the enormous Android ecosystem of applications and devices and extending its core competency as a retailer. Amazon already does this on Android and other mobile operating systems with the Kindle app. But Amazon sells more digital content than just ebooks. Android Kindle -- as device or app -- would allow Amazon to better bundle other digitally downloaded products, like movies, music and TV shows."

Is Amazon working on an Android Kindle?

Nick Bilton of NY Times via NDTVGadgets.com: "Although Jeff Bezos, Amazon's chief executive, has said in the past that a color Kindle is 'multiple years' away, new job listings on the Lab 126 Web site, the division of Amazon that makes the Kindle, show that the company is building up its team of Android developers, which might involve developing software for a color screen. At least five new jobs were added in the last week alone seeking developers with Android programming experience. Now this could simply mean that Amazon is hiring engineers to work on new software for other Android devices. But it could also pave the way for a Kindle that runs Android, which would in turn be a color device. The current Kindle runs the Linux operating system. It's still up for debate whether an Android Kindle would be good for Amazon, or better for Google. With tablets becoming a competition over the number of apps available for the platform, Amazon would have a lot of catching up to do if the company decided to introduce an entirely new tablet operating system."

Kindle to move to Android? [Rumor]

Android Community: "There’s talk going around that Amazon may be looking to take completely redesign the Kindle platform and base it on the Android OS. According to posts in the New York Times Blog, Amazon is looking for Android developers for 'Lab 126' which is Amazon’s Kindle development unit. That would make for a very interesting development and may signal Amazon’s concern that the NOOKColor is suddenly very popular with Android geeks looking for an affordable tablet option. There’s also the fact that with Amazon’s Android App Store that the book seller may simply be looking to evolve the Kindle to take advantage of Android apps they sell."

NOOK for Android updated with new grid view, wish list and download progress meter

intomobile: "Barnes & Noble has updated its NOOK Android app adding in few of the user-requested features. Version 2.5 comes with a new library grid view, wish list facility and download progress meter, along with “other improvements” — I assume they talk about performance improvements."

Google adds eBooks to Android Market

Important given advent of Honeycomb for new gen of Android tablets. Expert Reviews: "An extension of the Google eBooks store launched late last year in the US and formerly known as Google Editions, the Books portion of Android Market makes it possible to buy and download electronic books for reading on an Android 3.0 device."

Motorola Xoom - Bad Timing, High Price, Complex Interface

Xoom price = $800, $70 above 32-gig iPad. + iPad 2 about to launch. + Honeycomb a complex interface compared to iOS. NYTimes: "Starting Thursday, you’ll be able to buy one of the most eagerly awaited iPad rivals: the Motorola Xoom. Like most iPad aspirants, this one runs Google’s Android software — but the Xoom is the first that runs Android 3.0 (code-named Honeycomb), which Google designed for tablets instead of phones."

Nook Color Honeycomb 'beta' hack advances | Crave - CNET

Carnoy, CNET: "A couple of weeks ago, I posted something on how an industrious Android enthusiast, who goes by the handle deeper-blue on the xdadevelopers' forum, had hacked or 'rooted' the Nook Color to run a preview version of Honeycomb. At the time, we were looking at a pretty crude port that was missing a lot of Honeycomb's core features. But since then, some improvements have been made, giving 'rooters' hope that the slightly underpowered Nook Color might be able to handle Google's Android 3.0 operating system for tablets without running too sluggishly. Several videos of "HoneyNook" in action have cropped up in recent days, including the embedded video from Noah at TechnoBuffalo, who credits the newer NookHoney port to deeper-dev. More recently, David Cogen at theunlockr.com put together his own NookHoney demo complete with a background soundtrack. His assessment: "Not bad for a $250 tablet running beta software...it can only get better." (Note: Cogen is running the Honeycomb port from the internal memory, which works better and has the Android Market, but is harder to undo)."

Sports Illustrated Magazine to Offer Subscriptions for Android Devices

Digits - WSJ: "Sports Illustrated magazine on Friday afternoon will start offering subscriptions to digital editions on Android smart phones and tablets, according to a person familiar with the matter. ... "

Android Powered Archos 70 Joins eReader Market

At $149, serious competition for the Nook. EverythingUSB: "Archos will begin shipping a new Android device which will undercut every other 7 inch tablet available now. The Archos 70 tablet unassumingly sports the usual feature set of lower end tablets. Marketed as an eReader, the Archos 70 is an a capable tablet that ‘should’ come with all the abilities of any Android device. In the past, Archos has chosen to disable some of the Android features in order to focus users on their intended features; Music,Video and eBooks. These lockouts are usually quickly undone by the modding community. ... "

Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) ported to Nook Color with hardware acceleration

Geek.com: "For those who don’t know, the Nook Color (from Barnes & Noble) started life as a simple color e-book reader, but back in December last year an XDA-developer member hacked the device to unlock its true potential. However, last Friday witnessed a new milestone for the tablet/e-reader with news that a port of Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) has been successfully transferred to the Nook Color. ... "

Sony Unveils Sony Reader for Android

AppScout: " ... The app gives you access to your Sony eBook Store account, and allows you to download books you've previously purchased right to your Android phone. In addition to giving you access to your account, the app is also an eBook reader, and allows you to open your downloaded eBooks and read them the same way you would on a Sony device. ... "

Barnes & Noble Update 1.1.0 for Nook Color

AndroidOS.in: "Barnes & Noble has released the update version 1.1.0 for Nook Color Android tablet. It is no FroYo update, but it comes with several bug fixes including improved Wi-Fi connectivity. ... "

Sony Reader eBook app Hits Android Market

mobiputing: "Sony has launched a mobile eBook Reader app for Google Android. It’s now available for download from the Android Market. The app supports Android 2.2 and up. An iOS version is expected soon. ... "

Kindle App Coming To Android And Windows Tablets

San Francisco Chronicle: "Following Amazon's success with Kindle on the iPad, Amazon is releasing a version of the Kindle app for tablets based on Android and Windows as well. Revamping the Android version of Kindle for tablets is a no-brainer given the number of Android tablets slated to come out in 2011, but the Windows move is a surprising vote of confidence in Microsoft's tablet strategy. ... " I don't get that latter statement at all. Rolling out a Windows version will not be expensive for Amazon to do. Granted, Microsoft's tablet "strategy" looks to many (myself included) like a very late nonstarter. But why shouldn't (wouldn't) Amazon go for the deepest penetration possible?

Google Digital Newsstand Aims to Muscle In on Apple

WSJ: "Google Inc. and Apple Inc. have stepped up their battle to win over publishers, as the two companies vie to become the dominant distributor of newspapers and magazines for tablet computers and other mobile devices. Google is trying to drum up publishers' support for a new Google-operated digital newsstand for users of devices that run its Android software. With the effort, it is chasing Apple, which already sells digital versions of many major magazines and newspapers through its iTunes store. ... "

eBooks Outsell Paper Books On Barnes & Noble's Online Store

Riggio & colleagues better enjoy themselves and get the most out of the moment, now that the Nook Color has been rooted to run Android apps, including Kindle for Android. They could not foresee this? HuffPost: "The New York company said its Nookcolor e-reader, which launched eight weeks before Christmas, was its top-selling gift of the holiday season. Barnes & Noble also said it now sells more digital books than physical books on its Web site. Nearly 1 million e-books were purchased on Christmas Day alone, the company said, with popular titles including James Patterson's Cross Fire and Stieg Larsson's The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo." Wow, what great results. But imagine how many more books they would have sold on Christmas day if their servers hadn't crashed.