Barnes & Noble’s NOOK HD and NOOK HD+ tablets jave gone on sale in the UK.
Available in 7” (NOOK HD) and 9” (NOOK HD+) models, the device runs a modified version of Android Ice Cream Sandwich, allows multiple users to set up custom profiles and offers access to more than 2.5 million books, a wide choice of magazines and apps, plus a NOOK Video service.
The 7” (NOOK HD) model offers a 1440 x 900 resolution, 243 pixels per inch and HD video playback of up to 720p. B&N say it offers “25 percent more pixels than Kindle Fire HD for a better overall viewing experience”
The HD weighs 315 grams and measures 127 mm wide, and is more than 20 percent lighter and one centimetre narrower than Kindle Fire HD.
Available in two colours – Snow and Smoke – the HD will retail for £159 for a 8GB model and £189 for a 16GB version.
The 9” NOOK HD+ offers a resolution of 1920 x 1280 and 256 pixels per inch for up to 1080p video content, and is said to be 20 percent lighter than the iPad, at 515 grams.
It includes a 1.5GHz dual-core processor with 1GB of RAM and is available in a 16GB model for £229 and a 32GB version for £269.
Both the NOOK HD and HD+ support email and web browsing in addition to media consumption.
Jamie Iannone, President of NOOK Media, said: “Our new tablets offer the best quality reading and entertainment experiences, at the best price. With the highest resolution 7-inch display available in the UK, every book read, every movie watched, every game played is rendered in a digital quality unmatched by other tablets. Pre-orders have exceeded our expectations and we look forward to UK customers being able to experience these stunning new tablets.”