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For those of you out there that own the NOOKcolor or are looking for yet another reason to own the NOOKcolor, a significant step forward has been taken in the development of stable Android ROMs for the device. In a new SD bootable build of CM7 for the e-reader turned tablet Android developer verygreen of XDA has enabled Bluetooth support.
There are still some kinks to be worked out. Currently, Bluetooth only has a functional range of about 13 inches. For now that means most will find use pairing their NOOK to a keyboard or headset in close proximity. With further development the range should hopefully be extended to at least a few feet.
I’m buying the next gen nook, hopefully it has gps or camera.
@Keller: Very doubtful that it will. Why would an eReader get need GPS or a camera?
I commend verygreen and fattire (who wasn’t mentioned for some reason in this article), for this development. Great job, guys.
I doubt that Barnes n Noble will find reasons why their color/touch ereader needs GPS n a front or rear camera(not happening) waiting in vain
Hopefully, we call sell the idea of a GPS or camera to B&N.
1. You need GPS to help you find the Barnes & Noble Store.
2. You need a camera to take a picture of a book or magazine so you can find it in the B&N Nookstore so you can download it.
Those are valid points, but B&N wants to sell books, not hardware. The hardware just facilitates the selling of books, which is where the big profit margins are. Adding a camera and GPS to an “eReader” just cuts into a profits they MAY get by selling the hardware because it increases the manufacturing costs. The suits will definitely put a big no on that idea.
It is sort of like buying a printer cheaply, and then paying out the butt for printer ink. The printer companies make all their money on the ink, not the printer.
To those saying there is no chance the next gen nook color will get gps, camera, etc….
Consider the fact that this thing is selling very well. This might just open B&N’s eyes that they need to sell something as more than just an ereader. An economical tablet is what people want. Who knows, maybe they will get into the tablet business specifically (and not just sell a “fancy” ereader). Where there are customers there is a will and where there is a will there is a way.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying this is a sure thing or even a highly probable thing, but I wouldn’t go so far as dismissing it completely.
Make the Nook Color a low end tablet/ereader and see it for 300 bucks. I’d buy it. I’d buy it at 350 to 400 if they made it a honest tablet with a snappy ereader app and the hardware goodies that it needs. B&N would clean up!
This is equivalent to a ‘sleeper hit’ in the tablet industry. Who’d’ve thunk? I love it!
I’m sure they know that a good minortiy of the people who bought it did so because of android. So I’m staying hopeful
Hey, slap a SIP client on that thing and pair it with bluetooth for some VoIP goodness!
Didn’t B&N announce that they were going to release an update which would add the android market to Nook Colors by the first quarter of 2011? Or was that just a rumor?
I got tired of waiting and rooted my nook color, but held out for a long time waiting for an official update.
I was looking at one of these the other day and was impressed with it. I would think that B&N at this point realizes they have a hit on their hands (small unexpected tablet use) with the Android community. So there is good reason to believe the device will at least enjoy some support and shelf life you might not see in other devices.
That said… I don’t think they will change the hardware specs to satisfy a small group looking to make the device a full fledged tablet, UNLESS the can look outside the box and see potential to increase sales. Something along the line of creating book clubs that an meet and discuss books via web interface with a Skype type group setting, then the camera thingy might come into play. (remember I said it first and retain any and all copyright/patent claims!) lolz… All in all, I think I’m going to purchase this just to play around with it, $250 really isn’t such a loss should things go bad! ;) Anyway, just my opinion…
I see B&N on ebay has remanufactured for under 100
Got one about a month ago and absolutely love it. Not so much so for some of the prices of eBooks though.
It will never officially get the android market. B&N is developing its own curated app store to enhance functionality and build an additional revenue stream. Len Riggio, while speaking to the AAP two days ago, said that it will someday include thousands of apps. It is going to need an update to android 2.2 first (or at the same time) as certain apps will need to utilize adobe air and flash.
Bluetooth needs to be certified by the FCC so it’s highly unlikely/impossible for the nookcolor to get official support for it. I’m basing that off of me having not personally ever been aware of a device being certified once (for the wifi) and then for another function (BT) but I could very well be wrong about that…I’d like to be wrong about that.
B&N has a hit on their hands already. Instead of thinking like a hacker, people need to think like a business. This device is absolutely killing it for B&N. The state of affairs is that for 98% of people, the nookcolor is more than enough tablet already (books/mags/newspapers, web, games, plays audio, video, pandora) while quietly and discreetly leaving the device wide open as the most hackable android device out there since it boots off the SD. The 2% of us that are rooting are helping keep the nookcolor in the headlines which each incremental advance in developing the rooted device. I implore people to simply be happy with the situation we have, we couldn’t realistically ask for more.
how..why….what…does an ereader need with bluetooth
wow
fluffy, think outside the box. I returned my Acer netbook for one of these and couldn’t be happier. Plays N64 really well!
if B&N a book seller can come out with a decent color screen tablet at 200 dollar with wifi, why not motorola. Motorola can add 100 dollars to it and sell a wifi only tablet with color screen at 300 dollars. I mean WTF.
You have to remember that the reason B&N put this out is to sell eBooks.
I imagine that is the reason they dumped a bunch out there for a discount a couple of weeks back. If they don’t see a return of eBook sales increases due to the number of Nooks sold at a discount, don’t count on them continuing to come out with better features. This is a bonus to Android community more than it is to B&N.
I bought two, one for my wife and another for myself, also convinced a friend to get one. All rooted. A great price for a decent tablet.
Good now to get gingerbread on a sd card!
The reason the Color Nook is cheap, is because B&N is selling it to you with the idea your going to buy ebooks to offset the price, kinda like the iPad is cheap because your forced to buy Apples apps. If B&N starts selling the Color Nook as a tablet expect the price to jump 200/300 dollars.
B&N is making a big mistake loosing market outside of US too. I bought the device not only for rooting capabilities, but also as a reader, but I can’t buy B&N books and magazines, because you need US billing address (I’m in Canada). So I buy books from Amazon now via Kindle application, although I’d rather been buying from B&N, who built this amazing device.
Well, if they don’t give us the hardware we want, they won’t get the books that they want. Simple as that.
To Vlad: I am a Canadian and happy Nook owner. I got around the U.S. billing address issue by using my B&N store address instead. It did the trick and I’ve been buying books ever since.
Anybody thinking they will add features like this is just wanting more shiznit for free. Be happy it’s rootable and has become much more than B&N had expected. Other than that stop getting these grandiose ideas that you are going to get a full fledged tablet with camera and GPS this year for $250.
Some of us might have the wrong idea here… B&N might be selling this as a ‘loss leader’ and might jack the price up (which is fine for those that root, but unfair for those that just want a decent inexpensive eReader) or they might lock it up, like some phone manufacturers are trying to do, because it’s being used other than intended and B&N is definately losing sales of it’s books.
It might just be what I would do, but I’m sure I’m not the only one that would buy the Nook and then not even use it as an eReader…
They own GameStop. They could upgrade it to their own game machine that plays Playstation Market games. How’s that for reason?
B&N is the only ebook retailer that _requires_ a credit card.
apple-itunes and amazon-kindle can be fueled by itune/kindle gift cards. However, if you want to buy ebooks for your nook with a b&n gift card, you can’t until you have attached a credit card to your nook account. Its quite frustrating for those of use that can’t get credit cards due to age, geographical, or religious reasons.
(Same thing goes for the Nook android app.)
–nods
You do not need a USA address, you just need to have access to the B&N website via a USA IP address, Do this from a PC. There are lots of proxys and vpn services out there – most good ones are pay services but you can use them to watch things like hulu. I used a free proxy to buy ebooks on my B&N account, they magicly appeared on my nook when I turned it on and connected with wifi. You can’t use the built in store in the nook, it caused my nook to not see new books on my B&N account. (Factory reset / de-register fixed it)