Latest Gear Live Videos
Bleeding Edge TV 359: Bartleby’s Book of Buttons Vol. 1
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gizmatic, Apple, Features, Handhelds, Podcasts, Software, Videocasts, Videos
We visit the Monster Costume offices to get a look at their awesome new iPad app, Bartleby’s Book of Buttons Vol. 1: The Far Away Land. Aimed at children and parents, Bartleby is a new take on what a book can be when you have the power of the iPad and its multitouch screen at your disposal. Rather than focusing on pages, the book focuses on interaction with the story, character, and elements.
We also chat about the potential future of interactive books in general, and where Monster Costume sees that they can take their publishing platform in the future.
Advertisement
Amazon introduces a thinner, lighter Wi-Fi Kindle for $139
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds, Hot Deals, Wireless / WiFi
This evening, Amazon introduced us to their new Wi-Fi Kindle ebook reader, and we’ve gotta say, we think they’ve done it again. Hot on the heels of the release of the newly redesigned Kindle DX, the new Kindle is 21% smaller and 15% lighter than the Kindle 2. You don’t lose out on screen real estate though, since the Kindle keeps its 6-inch display size, although the e-ink screen now sports 50% better contrast and 20% faster page refreshes. It now packs 4GB of storage space, which can hold up to 3,500 books. Even better, though, is that Amazon is pricing this at just $139. That’s a significant price drop from the Kindle 2. If you want the new Wi-Fi model, but also want the free 3G connectivity, Amazon will be selling a 3G model for $189, which is still a huge savings from what the Kindle 2 sells for. Here are the links for those who want to pre-order:
The new Kindle will be released on August 27th, and if you pre-order, you’ll receive it that same day. It’s available in both white and graphite.
Read More 
| Amazon Kindle
New graphite Kindle DX now shipping, still in stock
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds, Hot Deals
Keeping true to their word, Amazon has started shipping their new graphite Kindle DX to customers who pre-ordered the device. Even better though, if you didn’t get the opportunity to pre-order, Amazon still shows the Kindle DX as being in stock, so you should be able to order one today and have it shipped pretty much immediately. Don’t forget, the Kindle DX price was slashed from $489 down to $379 about a week after the smaller Kindle went from $259 to $189. You can purchase the Kindle DX and the smaller Kindle now:
- Amazon Kindle DX: $379
- Amazon Kindle: $189
Amazon Kindle DX: Now $379, 50% more contrast, new color
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds, Hot Deals
Hot on the heels of the Amazon Kindle price drop, the company has just released a new and improved Kindle DX. The most obvious change is the new color, as the Kindle DX is now darker than its littler sibling, sporting a graphite hue. The display is greatly improved, with 50% better contrast, making everything nice and sharp. It still rocks free 3G wireless, allowing you to download books just about anywhere you are, and the display is still 9.7-inches in size, which is a ton of real estate.
Even better than all the new features, though, is the price. Amazon has slashed the price of the Kindle DX down to $379 from the previous $489 price point. That’s even cheaper than the original 6-inch Kindle when it first shipped, and the Kindle DX is a far superior product. You can pre-order the new Kindle DX now—it ships on July 7th.
Read More | Kindle DX
iBooks 1.1 now available for iPad and iOS 4 iPhones
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Books, App Updates, Apple, Free Apps
Just a heads up—one of the benefits of iOS 4 (which is available now) is that you can install iBooks on your iPhone. It’s not included in the OS itself, which allows Apple to update the app without updating the entire iOS version itself, so you’ll have to download it manually from the App Store. The good news is that it’s available now—so go ahead and grab iBooks, it’s free!
[Thanks again, Jason!]
$149 Wi-Fi-only B&N nook now available, nook 3G now $199
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds, Hot Deals
If the $259 Barnes & Noble nook was too rich for your blood, but you’ve been wanting a quality e-reader, you are gonna wanna take a second look at what B&N has to offer. Today they’ve announced that they have cut the price of the 3G nook by $60—that means you can get the same nook that launched at $260 for $199 starting today. However, we think it’s safe to say that most people don’t really have a need for the 3G that’s built into the nook. It’s easy enough to log on to Wi-Fi and load up on books before you leave the house, or even at a hotspot. That said, B&N has also just announced a Wi-Fi-only nook, and that costs just $149. That is a fantastic deal, and we suggest that you jump on it if you were on the fence previously. In fact, to us, it looks like the best deal in the e-reader world to date.
You can buy the B&N nook at the new prices now.
Read More | B&N nook
Google Editions eBookstore to Launch by Summer - Let the ebook wars begin
Posted by Finnian Durkan Categories: Corporate News, Google, Internet, Rumors
According to an article in today’s Wall Street Journal Google Editions—Google’s attempt to elbow its way into the ebook market—will launch sometime this summer. When it does become available, Google Editions will launch with some 400,000 to 600,000 titles available. When you compare this to the 330,000 titles available on Amazon.com for Kindle supporting devices, it is clear that Google means to be a major player in the ebook market right from jumpstreet. With Google Editions, not only will people be able to buy books via multiple devices—including the iPad—using Google’s book search service, but independent shops will also be able to sell Google Editions copies of books via their own personal websites. With the availability of titles coming directly from their search engine, and not from a typical store-based website, Google is betting heavily on its massive web-presence to make Google Editions the standard of the ebook market. Cry ‘havoc’ and let slip the (ebook) dogs of war!
Nook 1.3 update boasts web browser, faster page turns, apps
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Handhelds, Software
Barnes & Noble has finally releases nook update 1.3, which brings a couple of welcome upgrades and features to the ereader. One notable change is the presence of a web browser, which in turn, makes Wi-Fi a bit more useful. How so? Well, if a Wi-Fi hotspot requires a login, you can now use the browser to do that and hop onto the network, whereas before, you were just out of luck with the nook. Pages will now turn faster, which is always nice, and they’ve also got some apps and games available for your enjoyment as well. If you want to take advantage of the in-store nook perks, you can now read any ebook for free for an hour when connected to a Barnes & Noble hotspot, and later, you’ll be able to read newspapers and magazines for 20 minutes per day. If you wanna get your nook updates immediately, you can download the update and manually install it over USB, or if you’re in no rush, it should auto-update over Wi-Fi sometime over the next few days.
Read More | nook Update
Marvel Comics iPad app video demo
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Books, iPad Apps, Videos, Free Apps
One of the more exciting iPad apps that shows off what may be the future of literature and reading is the Marvel Comics app. Setting aside the whole problem where you can’t share the comics, and can’t sell or give away the old comics you’ve purchased and build community around it, we must say, it looks pretty slick. If you are a fan of Marvel, this will obviously be an app you’ll want to add to your iPad. The app is essentially a no-cost storefront that let’s you preview and purchase comics to read.
CNN covers iPad and Kindle book publisher deals
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News, Handhelds
A quick clip from CNN as they go over the upcoming launch of the iPad, and the fact that Apple has just made deals with publishers Perseus and Workman to distribute books on the iPad. They also look at the pressure that Amazon is feeling as it pertains to the Kindle, as publishers want Amazon to mimic the Apple agreement method of selling eBooks.
You can pre-order an iPad now.
Follow Gear Live!
Recent Galleries
Facebook Fans
Advertisement
© Gear Live Inc. – User-posted content, unless source is quoted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Public Domain License. Gear Live graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, videos, articles, blogs, forums, scripts and other service names are the trademarks of Gear Live Inc.
