Lest you think that Apple’s iPad has totally frozen the evolution of e-book readers, Barnes & Noble has announced a Wi-Fi version of its nook — and lowered the price of the 3G version. The Wi-Fi model will list for $149, and the 3G’s price drops to $199 from its original price of $259.
The company said the new price for the 3G unit is “the market’s first under-$200 dedicated full-feature e-book reader that offers both free 3G wireless and Wi-Fi connectivity.” The new Wi-Fi-only nook resembles the 3G in features, except it weighs about half an ounce less.
‘Extra Extra Large’ Font
Also new for Barnes & Noble’s e-readers is its latest 1.4 software update for the devices, which includes free use of AT&T’s nationwide Wi-Fi network, available in thousands of restaurants, hotels and other locations. The update also includes a new “extra extra large” font size and a Go-To Page feature in which users can immediately jump to a specific page.
Barnes & Noble, the largest U.S. bookseller, is still trying to overcome the nook’s widely panned launch.
At the time of the launch, David Pogue wrote in The New York Times that “every one of the nook’s vaunted distinctions come fraught with buzz-kill footnotes.” Barnes & Noble touted its two screens, one for navigation and one for reading, but Pogue said the small color touchscreen feels “disconnected” from the larger black-and-white screen above, the touchscreen is “balky and non-responsive,” and it took almost three seconds to turn a page.
He also pointed out that his test device locked up twice and crashed twice. In short, he wrote, the nook is “a mess.”
‘Tapping into New Segment’
With each software update and new model release, the company is trying to correct the bugs and turn the focus to its strengths. One strength is leveraging its 723…