The Nook e-reader series of Barnes & Noble isn’t quite dead. The company has stated its intention to sell its Kindle rivals following the launch of new units in shops later this spring even though the stock is now running out. Indeed, the firm would immediately disclose a previously unannounced tablet.
Susan McCulloch, Senior Nook Operations Manager of Barnes & Noble, says the firm will announce its line of Nook tablets with the new “Nook tablet built with Lenovo”, which it will disclose in the coming week. The $129 10.1-inch Nook is Barnes & Noble’s newest Android tablet. However, the Nook Tablet has been inaccessible to purchase, just like every other Android tablet from Barnes & Noble since last July.
Nook GlowLight 3 and GlowLight Plus are sold out digitally, so the e-readers are sharing a similar fate. Apparently, according to Good e-Reader, it’s the first time these items are not available simultaneously. Some retailers also list in-store stock, which contributed to the possibility that Barnes & Noble could completely discontinue the Nook line—which we saw happened earlier with devices such as Apple’s HomePod.
But this supply scarcity is partly because the two items are “exceptionally successful,” and McCulloch claims that the last year has improved their readings. “That’s a bitter-sweet one for a dealer as issues go, of course,” she said.
GlowLight 3 was launched in 2017 and GlowLight Plus is about 2 years old. Provided the Nook GlowLight 3 and the GlowLight Plus are slightly outdated, this will be impressive. However, in comparison with Barnes & Noble planning a new model or exiting the whole e-reader market, the decline in supply seems to be only due to an incremental demand.
Despite the odds, the brand seems to be getting new and refreshing over the next few weeks instead of folding. Barnes & Noble would not leave the older e-reader equipment or remarkably over-saturated Android tablet market behind.