Barnes & Noble Slashes Nook Prices to Divert Attention from Nexus 7

It's now cheaper than ever to own a Nook device following a series of price cuts Barnes & Noble rolled out over the weekend. B&N didn't make a big deal about the cuts, neglecting to issue a statement of any kind, but the writing is all over the wall for anyone who bothers to look. With the launch of Google's Nexus 7, the 7-inch tablet category is more competitive than ever before, and these price cuts could be the deciding factor for people who are mostly interested in reading eBooks and/or just looking to spend the least amount possible on a capable tablet-hybrid.

These aren't particularly deep price cuts across the board, though B&N did slash $50 off the cost of its 16GB Nook Tablet, which went from $249 to $199 overnight. The 8GB Nook Tablet dropped by $20, going from $199 to $179, while the Nook Color also dipped a Jackson, going from $169 to $149.


In addition to positioning its devices more competitively with Google's Nexus 7 tablet, the cuts are also being viewed by some as proof that Amazon is getting ready to unveil a new line of Kindle models. If B&N needed further reason, the timing also works in the company's favor in that the back-to-school shopping season is coming into view and it's not unusual to find college textbooks being offered in digital form.