B&N drops prices on Nook Tablet and Nook Color

Now that Barnes & Noble's new $199 Nook HD tablet is starting to ship to customers, the company has lowered the prices on last year's Nook Tablet models to $179 (16GB) and $159 (8GB), and reduced the price of its entry-level Nook Color to $139.

It's unclear how long Barnes & Noble will keep these models on the market, but it appears they will be sold through the holiday buying season.

In the past you could get refurbished versions of these same models for similar prices. When it was originally launched in late 2011, the 16GB Nook Tablet retailed for $249 (it has 1GB of RAM). Amazon then brought out the original Kindle Fire for $199 (8GB) and Barnes & Noble followed up with the 8GB Nook Tablet, which has less RAM (500MB).

Earlier this week the company started shipping its Nook HD, which competes with the Kindle Fire HD, Google Nexus 7, and Apple's iPad Mini; it comes in 8GB ($199) and 16GB ($229) models.

While the Nook HD leaves off a camera and doesn't have the breadth of apps and media selections (movies, music) that Amazon and Google offer with their latest tablets, the Nook HD has the highest resolution screen for a 7-inch tablet, is lighter than the Amazon Fire HD, and has an expansion slot for additional memory.

Barnes & Noble will also soon start shipping its larger Nook HD+ tablet, which has a 9-inch screen and starts at $269 (it bumps up to $299 for the 32GB model). The company's Web site says the Nook HD+ will be available November 8.

more:

http://deliciousfruitcandy.blogspot.com/2012/11/microwave-vending-machine-from-eatwave.html

'Wreck-It Ralph' Claims Box Office Victory With Strong Debut

While the moviegoing was quite soft last week following the Hurricane Sandy that hit the East Coast, this week's North American box office shows a solid performance as "Wreck-It Ralph" tops the chart with a strong result. The video game-themed animated movie successfully scores around $49.1 million from 3,752 theaters.

The $165 million-budgeted family film breaks the record for the biggest debut for a Disney Animation Studios movie (not including Pixar titles). The record was previously held by 2010's "Tangled" which grossed $48.8 million on its Wednesday opening just in time for the Thanksgiving.

"For a company whose foundation was built on animation, it's a pretty incredible thing to have Tangled and now Wreck-It Ralph do such great business," says Walt Disney Pictures' vp distribution Dave Hollis. "It's a testament to the storytelling, and it's about connecting with both families and adults."

Also performing well on its debut weekend is Denzel Washington's "Flight" with an estimated $25 million from 1,884 screens. Paramount President of domestic marketing and distribution Megan Colligan says of the studio's plan to expand the release of the film, "We wanted to be measured so that we can expand in the coming weeks."

"There's no doubt that Bond will be a big movie, and we had always looked to expand Flight the weekend after Skyfall opens," Colligan goes on explaining. "With word-of-mouth this strong, there will be an audience for both films."

Last week's champion "Argo" places third with approximately $10.2 million for a total domestic gross of $75.8 million in its fourth week. Meanwhile, RZA's directorial debut "The Man with the Iron Fists" opens on the fourth place with only around $8.2 million from 1,868 theaters despite the fact that the marketing team boasted producer Quentin Tarantino's name to boost audience's interest to the martial art film.

Rounding up the top five is Liam Neeson's actioner "Taken 2" which holds strong with an estimated $6 million. After five weeks of playing nationwide, the "Taken" sequel collects a total domestic gross of $125.6 million, while also grabbing $343.4 million worldwide.

Top Ten Movies at Box Office for November 2 -4:

1. "Wreck-It Ralph" - $49.1 million
2. "Flight" - $25 million
3. "Argo" - $10.2 million
4. "The Man with the Iron Fists" - $8.2 million
5. "Taken 2" - $6 million
6. "Cloud Atlas" - $5.2 million
7. "Hotel Transylvania" - $4.5 million
8. "Paranormal Activity 4" - $4.3 million
9. "Here Comes the Boom" - $3.6 million
10. "Silent Hill: Revelation 3D" - $3.3 millio

more:

          Oprah Calls Microsoft's Surface Tablet 'A Wowser!'