TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog - Posted Fri, 09 Jul 2010 23:00:00 UTC +00:00

I've been watching the e-reader competition with great interest lately -- after the iPad entered the market with such a splash, Amazon and Barnes & Noble have been trying to position their own devices in a place where they'll at least be profitable. But at the same time, those apparent iPad competitors have also been updating their own App Store apps. Amazon updated the Kindle app a little while back, and now Barnes and Noble has updated its own iPad app, including support for multiple orientations and brightness control, along with a few other bugfixes and features. As I said before, I like the precedent here -- even if these companies don't match up with Apple on the hardware, this update does a lot to bring the B&N eReader in line with iBooks. Of course this gives us iPad users more options -- even if we don't own a Kindle or Read More

TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog - Posted Tue, 01 Jun 2010 13:00:00 UTC +00:00

Jun 1st 2010 at 8:00AM Our B&N recently closed, citing bad rent re-negotiation. But I think its lack of sales. I have been a Kindle reader since last years release of the Kindle2. I think the local book stores will go the way of the local CD/Record store. If you can't find it at Walmart/Sam's or Best Buy, you will be buying it online. I am usually reading a novel (finish one every other week or so) and listening to a different one in the car while driving around town. I used to have to spend a lot of my time getting, and disposing of paperbacks. Vacationing usually meant arranging for a lot of books, a recent trip to Paris took 2 books each way. The Kindle 2 came out right after that. E-books are going to become the norm, whether you prefer to turn pages or not. That being said, Read More

TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog - Posted Thu, 27 May 2010 17:00:00 UTC +00:00

Barnes & Noble released its eReader for iPad (free) this week. This latest incarnation adds some features that the iPhone version lacks, like text highlighting and room for annotations (something I wish Apple's iBooks app did). But more than that, eReader for iPad is about sharing. A unique feature called "LendMe" lets customers "lend" books to anyone with the app across platforms (iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, Mac) or a Nook. You can grab their address from within the app itself. The app comes with ten free samples of current best sellers, three free classics and a dictionary. Much was made of the iPad's potential as an eReader before its release, as comparisons to the Kindle and Nook were inevitable. Now that some months have passed, users have had time to explore the idea and compare applications for their look, feel and usability. What's your experience been? [Via Electronista] Read More

The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia - Posted Thu, 13 May 2010 00:00:00 UTC +00:00

It’s no longer such a novel thing to read a book on a mobile phone, and on the iPad, it’s practically a requirement to download “The Elements” or open Winnie the Pooh” to give your friends a glimpse of the future of book reading. But for many people, choosing the best book-reading app is a challenge, especially for iPhone users, because of the wealth of choices in the App Store from Apple. The problem is not really the small things — the differences in how the iBooks and Kindle apps, for example, turn a page, or enlarge the fonts. The better apps are all pretty good in these respects already, and they will all reach parity on such things quickly enough. And they’re all free, so it costs nothing to switch. Nonetheless, the iBooks iPad app offers a generally better reading experience than its rivals, because of automatic brightness adjustments and Read More

Mashable - Posted Tue, 06 Apr 2010 15:08:12 UTC +00:00

While you may well be excited about the Apple iPad and its iBookstore, iPhone and iPod touch owners choosing not to upgrade to the newest 9.7-inch device can still get e-reading on their iProduct right away thanks to a shelf-full of great e-book reading apps available now in the App Store. Though it’s unlikely you’ll want to consume War and Peace on your iPhone, having a few e-books on board for a quick read on the train or your lunch break is a great way to pass some time. And who knows, depending on the title, you might learn something new too. Here we’ve pulled together a list of five free apps that offer you e-book reading abilities on your iPhone. So pick the one that suits you, get a title downloaded, and drift off into good-book bliss. This free app from book selling giant Barnes & Noble comes with five Read More

TechCrunch - Posted Tue, 26 Jan 2010 03:47:35 UTC +00:00

Erick Schonfeld is the Editor of TechCrunch. He oversees the editorial content of the site, helps to program the Disrupt conferences and CrunchUps, produces TCTV shows, and writes daily for the blog. He is also the father of three adorable children. He joined TechCrunch as Co-Editor in 2007, and helped take it from a popular blog to... → Learn More Of all the rumors swirling around the Apple Tablet expected to be announced on Wednesday, the one most everyone can agree on is that it will be used as a full color electronic reader which will put Amazon’s Kindle to shame. Over the past few weeks, Apple has been negotiating a flurry of last-minute deals directly with book publishers such as HarperCollins and McGraw-Hill.  Magazine and newspaper publishers are salivating to get on the device.  But one unanswered question so far is whether Apple will add books and magazines to iTunes Read More

iPhone Alley - Posted Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:10:11 UTC +00:00

Barnes & Noble’s new ebook reader, the Nook, has a handy feature for iPhone users that isn’t getting much attention. According to a press release released recently, the device will have a “reading now” feature that will let you save your place in a book across devices, including the B&N eReader app for the iPhone [App Store, Free]. A Continuous Reading Experience With ‘Reading Now,’ your virtual bookmark, nook brings you back to the last book you’ve read, right where you left off. And it works across a range of devices. If you forgot your nook at home, Barnes & Noble’s free eReader software on your iPhone, select BlackBerry and Motorola smartphones or laptop lets you pick up where you left off, including annotations. And when you’re reunited with your nook again, the Reading Now page will be updated and ready to go. Read More

textually.org - Posted Tue, 22 Sep 2009 13:12:32 UTC +00:00

According to a press release from Barnes & Noble, Inc., the B&N eReader app for the iPhone and iPod touch recently hit the one million mark. The free B&N eReader app is one of the most popular apps in the iTunes Books category, and held the No. 1 spot throughout the summer. Read More

iSource - Posted Sat, 25 Jul 2009 22:17:39 UTC +00:00

You remember some of those other free reigns that focused on apps that didn’t do all that much? This isn’t one of those posts. This is a post so chock full of free features that you might go out and buy a yogurt (or some sort of sherbet) just so you can sit down and have something to enjoy as you read through it. Alright, random intro over. Free Reign! Real Miracles: Concept:  A rare and real ‘feel good’ app for the iPhone.  A simple app that helps you learn about and donate to the Children’s Miracle Network, which is a non-profit organization that raises money for children’s hospitals. Strengths: Simple and well done, and helps a great cause. Non-strengths: None to speak of. Overall: Proof that in amongst all the flatulence apps, there are also some apps that can make you feel good about doing a little bit of good Read More

AppVee - Posted Mon, 27 Jul 2009 19:21:15 UTC +00:00

The B&N eReader is Barnes and Noble\'s answer to all the eBook readers that have hit the store since launch. Barnes and Noble is now offering their own easy to download library of books along with a reader to accompany it. The app pretty much runs the same as Stanza or the Amazon\'s Kindle app as it involves flicking to reach the next page, in app downloading, and different options for font size and readability. Users can download entire libraries of books right onto their device for mobile reading. Each book downloaded is stored in your personal online library of books so that anytime you switch devices or need to redownload, you have them all there. There is even a coinciding Mac or PC app that allows users to read their books on their computers as well. There really isn\'t too much that\'s different between this free ereader and others like Read More