stormcloude (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stormcloude) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
ebooks2009-10-21 02:04 am
stormcloude) wrote in ebooks2009-10-21 02:04 am
B&N Nook
Demo vid for the new B&N reader, Nook.
They were pretty smart to put the touchscreen at the bottom, separate from the reading screen. I wonder how the lending feature works.
They were pretty smart to put the touchscreen at the bottom, separate from the reading screen. I wonder how the lending feature works.
no subject
Still waiting on real specs.
It says it reads ePub, eReader, and PDF; no info about txt (if it doesn't read txt, it'll be the first dedicated ebook reader since the ebookwise), or formats like RTF or HTML. (It says it reads "PDB," which includes both eReader and PalmDOC formats; I'm assuming it reads both, since PalmDOC is kinda like the txt version of palmOS documents.)
Doesn't say which DRM'd formats it deals with, other than that it must deal with eReader DRM 'cos that's what the B&N store sells.
Unclear if it's got any kind of folder support, or if you'll have to scroll through your entire list of 1700 books in internal memory and 10,000+ potentially on a smartcard.
It seems to allow transfer of books from your computer with the USB cord, but doesn't say if that takes special software or if it's drag-and-drop.
It looks good--looks like it's the first *innovation* in e-ink readers in a while--but I'd love to have more technical details about it before considering recommending it. (I won't be buying it; it's larger than a Sony PRS-505, and that one's almost too big for me. If I get another reader for myself, I'll get one of the 5" screens.)
no subject
I think the wifi is going to make it a popular contender with the Kindle too.
no subject
Not sure how useful the wifi will be; so far, there's only confirmation that it lets you buy books from BN, not actually browse any other websites.
The "loaning" hasn't been described in detail; their support page just says,
Q. Can I lend eBooks from my nook?
A. Yes. With our new LendMe™ technology, you can now share from nook to nook. But it doesn’t stop there. Starting Nov. 30th, you can lend to and from any device with the Barnes & Noble eReader app, including PC, Mac OS®, BlackBerry®, iPhone™ and iPod® touch. All you need to know is your friend’s email address. You can lend many of your eBooks one time for a maximum of 14 days. When you use our LendMe™ technology, you will not be able to read your eBook while it is on loan, but you always get it back.
-------------
So, one-time loan, for up to 14 days. If that's "once per book," it's fairly pointless. (And it's unclear how you will be "unable to read your book" in the meantime, especially if you copied it onto your main computer before loaning it out.)
However, loaner tech is a big step up, and it's what ebook publishers need to work on--ways to allow legal, easy loaning, giving and re-selling of ebooks. Because until they can make digital files act more like physical ones, they're going to continue to see lots of downloading & filesharing, which people will continue to think of as the same mental niche as buying from a garage sale or used book store--in either of those cases, the original author gets no royalties.
no subject
no subject
as for the Nook...they better support RTF!!!! Or Doc or some other format that holds formatting without requiring extra conversion stuff. I think they assume most of their readers will be buying books that are already in epub format.
no subject
I'm liking the idea of having the touch screen at the bottom...but I'll have to wait and see how it affects battery life. I'll also like to know how it handles large collections.