Well if you would have us guess what the new device to be announced today by Barnes & Noble would be, then we would say a refresh of the original E-Ink Nook.
The Nook Color seems to be selling well and the 1.2 update, which brought curated app support, has only been released a few weeks ago. On the other hand the original Nook is starting to show it’s age and there are definitely proponents of the advantages of E-Ink for a dedicated e-Reader device. B&N is a book retailer after all, so although the Nook Color is breaking new ground for the company, it can’t really forget about it’s bread and butter business.
Well, to no surprise, Cnet is reporting that an unnamed tipster is claiming the device will indeed be an E-Ink e-Reader and compared to the previous Nook this will be sporting a touch-screen and will be selling for $139, matching the price of the WiFi only Kindle.
Signage is purportedly tabbing the new device as “The Simple Touch Reader”, an appropriate tagline for the straightforward E-Ink range. The same tipster describes the device as a “squat, black, touch-screen e-ink reader that has been profusely speculated about in recent weeks.”
We will keep you posted as the day unfolds.
[Cnet]
