Barnes & Noble's new Nook: The anti-iPad

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It's not an iPad, or even a Nook Color. But that's the whole point of Barnes & Noble's newest e-reader: it's not supposed to be.

FORTUNE -- Just six months after launching its well-received Android-based Nook Color tablet, Barnes and Noble (BKS) unveiled a major hardware update to the original e-ink-based Nook e-reader that cuts down on bulk, weight, and physical buttons.
Here's the important thing to note right off the bat about this new Nook: it doesn't have a color display like the iPad or the even the Nook Color. There isn't a full-fledged Web browser, email app, or really any third-party apps to speak of.
"Boring!" one Fortune reader complained about the Nook's launch last month. "An iPad does all this and about 1 zillion things more."
I initially agreed. I wouldn't say my iPad 2 3G does a zillion things in comparison, but it's much more versatile. So when I met with the B&N folks to pick up a review device, I was skeptical of its value and timing, particularly its arrival after Nook Color, a device I came to enjoy after the software update last March ironed out the major software kinks and added support for apps like email or one my favorite news curation readers, Pulse.
Some readers -- myself included -- don't want to give up the best features in their current e-readers for the tablet's shortcomings like comparatively shorter battery life and a display that can be tough to view outside. For us, there's the Nook: an unapologetic, laser-beam focused e-reader that does little else and doesn't bother to placate tablet proponents with so much as a full-fledged browser. But what it does do, it does exceptionally well, better than its nearest rival, the Kindle.
What's inside
At $139, the WiFi-only Nook sports a 6-inch touchscreen that marries infrared technology with a Pearl e-ink display to let users navigate with taps and swipes. It's backed up behind the scenes by an 800 MHZ Texas Instruments processor which the company says enables a much smoother reading experience, including quicker page transitions. All of that is housed in a soft, black, rubbererized plastic chassis measuring 5 inches by 6.5 inches by .47 inches  and weighs just under 7.5 ounces -- 35% lighter than the Nook first edition. There are six buttons, including recessed physical page flip buttons users can use if they prefer, and a home button. All that makes for an understated, sophisticated look that trumps the Yves Behar-designed Nook Color.
The Nook's biggest feature is one Barnes & Noble is particularly proud of, so much so they've dubbed the Nook the "Simple Touch Reader." By coupling infrared sensors with the e-ink screen, they've created one of the first dedicated e-readers that doesn't need a slew of physical buttons to get around. Many e-book readers will welcome the change because the tech actually works pretty well: there's little lag between the time you tap, swipe to flip a page, or type a letter, and when things happen onscreen. It's not as responsive as using as a color tablet, but the difference is negligible enough that users won't get frustrated. And as a result, it's easy to use the software-based keyboard.
So what you get here is the benefit that Amazon has been plugging all along with its Kindle -- reading in sunlight or on the beach -- with a responsive touchscreen, making it more intuitive to use than the first Nook or the Kindle.
Another benefit is the reduction of that film negative-like flashing effect we've come to associate with e-ink displays. Here, the company has come up with a neat little trick that it says reduces the effect by up to 80%: instead of having that happen every page, it happens every six pages. When you're reading an ebook, that claim proves true, but when you're navigating through the Home screen or looking for books in Barnes & Noble's online book store, it's not -- there's still a lot of flashing action. Luckily, screen transitions are quick enough it's not a major issue.

The Nook's new Home screen

On the software side, the Nook runs off a heavily modified version of Android 2.1. The only vestige of Android you'll likely recognize is the occasional Web browser window that pops up if you click on book embedded links.
The user interface (UI) is really all about the newly simplified proprietary software, which simplifies the Nook Color's UI even further. According to Jonathan Shar, the company's general manager for digital newsstand and emerging content, it's supposed to be so simple that users should only have to tap up to three times to get anywhere they want to go. And unless you're banging out the name of a title in a book search, that's pretty much true. There's a homescreen with three panels: a "Reading Now" area that displays what book users are currently reading and the number pages of left, "New Reads," or other ebooks in your library you haven't touched, and "What to Read Next," a social-focused section that displays what say, Facebook friends are reading. Alternatively, pressing the physical Nook button at the bottom, brings up a strip of icons that access the Home screen, your full library, the B&N shop, a search feature, and settings.
The last word
Releasing a black-and-white e-ink-based e-reader after a color screen e-reader tablet sounds counterintuitive, but I'm willing to bet the new Nook does well anyway, particularly with e-book readers who want a device that really excels at its purpose: reading. It's lighter and smaller than the iPad, so I don't have to prop it on my lap; it's got a display that doesn't strain my eyes during long periods, and battery life is pretty stellar. (I don't know about that two month claim, but after reading more than three hours a day on it since I got it last week, I've still got plenty of juice left.) And because of that touch screen and user interface, scooting through menus and even just flipping pages makes makes navigating a pleasure.
All that adds up to a win for Barnes & Noble, which has struggled recently with the closure of stores as reading has shifted towards digital faster than many analysts originally anticipated. The Nook won't make you forget about that iPad, but it will remind you that Apple's tablet has a ways before it can be everything to every user. Until then, or at least until Amazon answers B&N's rallying cry with a new Kindle of its own later this year, this new Nook will be the e-reader to beat.

Today's video gamer? It might not be who you think

A woman plays games at the Sony PlayStation booth at last week's Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles.

(CNN) -- At 37, Lisa Sharp is comfortable calling herself a video-game junkie. But that wasn't always the case.
"I was the typical high-school girl who always watched the guys play and never picked up a console until well after college," she said.
Then, one day, the cable was out, so she grabbed a controller for her roommate's Nintendo 64. The rest is pixelated history.
Now, she and her husband have an old Nintendo 64 of their own. And a GameCube. And a PlayStation 2. And a Wii. And, as of last Christmas, a PlayStation 3.
"It relaxes me," said the Atlanta resident, whose favorites include the "Legend of Zelda" and "Final Fantasy" series. "My job gets a little bit crazy at times, so it's nice to go slash and bang stuff around."
As a mom who works in the finance department at Georgia Tech, Sharp hardly fits the stereotype of the avid video gamer -- that teenage or 20-something guy in the basement grinding out hours on his console or PC.
And that's part of a story that those in the video-gaming world already know: thanks partly to games on new platforms such as Facebook, smartphones and tablets, gaming is more popular than ever. Some observers even see parallels to the early-'80s arcade heyday, when games such as "Pac-Man" became mainstream phenomenons.
Last year, video-game software and hardware raked in more than $25 billion, according to the Entertainment Software Association, a gaming industry trade group. Compare that with the $7.3 billion the association reported in 2004, and it's not hard to see what's happening.
"I still think we have a lot of growth to go, even though we're at the highest point ever of people playing video games," said Tal Blevins, vice president of games content at IGN Entertainment. "As we have grown up with video games, it's just become a normal part of society.
"Video games did seem weird to our parents when we were young. But now, we're the old fogies, and it doesn't even phase us."
The massive growth of the past few years, evidenced at last week's Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, has moved on two tracks.
The 'blockbusters'
The first is the swelling mainstream popularity of so-called "hardcore" gaming titles, the detailed, immersive and artfully rendered games that take even the most devout players hundreds of hours to complete (longer, if they opt for multiplayer challenges that can last forever).
Last year's "Call of Duty: Black Ops" didn't just break video-game records. Selling 5.6 million copies in 24 hours and grossing $650 million in its first five days, it was the biggest entertainment opening of all time -- bigger than "Titanic," "Avatar" and every other Hollywood blockbuster.
The previous record holder? "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2," which grossed $550 million in the same five-day span. By comparison, "Avatar" grossed $77 million in its opening weekend.
"They've become blockbusters in the way we traditionally talk about something at the cinema," said Rich Taylor, a senior vice president with the Entertainment Software Association. "If you look at the dollars and cents compared to the blockbusters coming out of Hollywood and the publishing world ... (video games) are the ones that are knocking it out of the park."
The rise of the social game
But the industry has also made massive strides on a second front. The recent explosion of so-called casual gaming has brought new populations into the fold and threatens to forever blur the distinction between "gamer" and "non-gamer."
Nintendo's Wii, with its motion-based controllers, unleashed a flood of family-friendly party games when it was released in 2006. It quickly became the most popular gaming console in the world and was followed last year by Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's Move motion systems.
But the bigger advance might be happening on smartphone screens and Facebook pages.
Zynga, the makers of the alternately addictive or infuriating FarmVille, is worth an estimated $14.5 billion and expected to make its initial stock offering in the near future.
And versions of "Angry Birds," the addictive mobile game by Rovio, recently reached a staggering 250 million downloads on multiple platforms, from the iPhone and iPad to Google's Chrome browser.
"Mobile, and the iPhone in particular, is creating a so-much more casual and mainstream audience," said Dave Castelnuevo, co-creator of "Pocket God," a perennial app-store favorite that has been downloaded more than 4.5 million times since debuting in 2009. "They're not your hardcore gamers. My wife can't quit 'Angry Birds,' and she's never picked up an Xbox joystick."
The numbers definitely show a growing gamer base.
According to ESA's statistics, the average video-game player last year was 37 years old (like Sharp). That's up from 30 in 2004.
Forty-two percent of players were women. And nearly half (47%) of the online games people reported playing could be categorized as "casual" -- puzzles, trivia, board games, card games and the like.
More "hardcore" titles will always be in demand and "the industry has answered that bell time and time again," Taylor said. "But it's an industry that has expectations beyond just that audience. Any more, if it has a screen, it's going to have games."
The rift
Among diehard video-game enthusiasts, the rise of casual games has caused resentment in some quarters. On CNN Tech, any passing mention of FarmVille brings waves of fury in the comments section.
A story from E3 on mobile favorite "Fruit Ninja" coming to Microsoft's Xbox Kinect system prompted angry responses. Among them: "E3 is currently going on and THIS is the crap that mainstream media decides to write to the public about? How about talking about real games rather than app crap."
"I think sometimes, a lot of the people who are in the old-school mentality of hardcore gaming feel a little threatened with what's been happening over the past two or three years because it was, to them, almost this secret world," IGN's Blevins said. "It's like a 'We don't want you in our clubhouse' mentality."
At E3, Nintendo's world president Satoru Iwata talked with CNN about the rift as he promoted the upcoming Wii U, which Nintendo hopes will appeal to avid and casual gamers. He said that if tension between the two groups continues, it could be dangerous for the industry.
"Many people in this industry tend to categorize our customers into two groups -- one is the core gamer and the other is casual gamers. They somehow say that these two groups will never mix or overlap ... " Iwata said through a translator. "If we maintain that kind of wall or psychological barrier separating the two groups, someday I'm afraid that the culture of video games will be diminished."
Coming together?
Many observers say that, as gaming's growth continues, it's just a matter of time before those barriers fall.
"I consider myself a 'good game' gamer," said Taylor. "I play the games that are high quality, that entertain me. I play first-person shooters. I play sports games. I play 'Little Big Planet.' I play 'Angry Birds.' I play a lot of 'Scrabble.' I don't sit there and say 'I'm a hardcore gamer so I only play these titles.' I don't go to the store and see the hardcore-gaming section."
Castelnuevo, whose "Pocket God" franchise has branched out into toys, comics and cartoons, agrees.
"I think it's all growing," he said. "The 13-year-old males (who play "Pocket God") also play Xbox. They also play Nintendo DS. They love Mario and Batman and 'Bioshock.' "
Blevins also sees the divide getting thinner and says that, one day, even the term "gamer" may be outdated.

"You don't say 'I'm a movie-er' or 'I'm a book-er,' " he said. "Video games are now just another form of entertainment. There was once a little bit of that stigma -- the lonely kid in the basement. It's very different these days."

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Online radio firm Pandora floats for $2.6bn in New York

Pandora lost $1.8m in its most recent full year

The US internet radio service Pandora Media rose sharply on its debut on the New York Stock Exchange, before falling back.

The firm, which has yet to make a profit, had an offering price of $16 (£9.76) a share.
It rose as high as $26 a share on Wednesday before settling down to around $18.75.
The share price values the company at about $3bn, which is well above the current value of AOL, for example.
Pandora is the latest in a series of high-profile internet share sales, with LinkedIn already having floated and Groupon planning a listing.
LinkedIn has a market capitalisation of about $7bn.
Facebook is also expected to launch on the stock market in the next year.
Pandora started out as a music recommendation service called Savage Beast Technologies in 2000.
It changed its name in 2005 when it launched an internet radio service, which allows users to create custom radio stations by specifying which artists and genres they want to hear.
It has 94 million registered users and makes most of its money through advertising.

Sainsbury's says sales 'solid' in tough market

Sainsbury's has seen modest sales growth

Supermarket group Sainsbury's has reported "solid" sales growth for the past three months in what it describes as a "tough consumer environment".

Like-for-like sales - which ignore the effect of new stores - excluding fuel rose 1.9% in the 12 weeks to 11 June.
The retailer said it had benefited from Easter shopping, good spring weather and the royal wedding.
But it said higher fuel costs were reducing the amount of money people have available to spend.
The company's budget range - Basics - is its fastest growing brand.
Sainsbury's also saw strong growth in its smaller convenience store business, which grew by 20%.
"We've delivered a solid sales performance, in line with our expectations, in spite of the continued tough consumer environment," said Sainsbury's chief executive Justin King.
Sainsbury's first quarter sales figures in its trading update included VAT. On Tuesday, comparable figures from Tesco showed a 1% rise in UK sales for the 13 weeks to 28 May.
Excluding VAT, Tesco's UK sales were down 0.1%. Sainsbury's told the BBC that when VAT was excluded its sales were up 0.9%.
Upbeat mood Sainsbury's said that sales of clothing and non-food items grew faster than food.
It said that trading conditions remained "very competitive, reflecting the challenging economic backdrop".
"We expect this to be the case throughout the year," it added.
Richard Hunter, head of UK equities at Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers, said: "The update has narrowly missed estimates, but the company itself was noticeably upbeat about the latest performance.
"In particular, management was at pains to point out that its non-food offerings grew faster than food and, indeed, ahead of the Tesco number yesterday - albeit that Sainsbury is coming from a lower base."

Zara-owner Inditex's profits rise on global expansion

Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, was spotted wearing a Zara dress after her wedding

The world's largest clothes retailer, Inditex, has reported rising profits as its global expansion continues.

The owner of the Zara fashion chain said net profits for the period from February to the end of April were up 10% on the same period last year at 332m euros ($475m; £292m).
Inditex said it opened 110 stores in 29 different countries during the quarter, including its first store in Australia.
The company had a total of 5,154 stores by the end of April.
Zara has had its profile boosted after Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, was pictured in a Zara dress.
Inditex also announced plans to expand its online business, selling Zara clothes online in North America.
Diversification The results come as many clothing retailers are struggling with rising costs and reduced demand in developed markets.

Global expansion has offset weakness in Inditex's home market of Spain

"It's one of the most diversified clothing retailers which gives it a greater stability. You have to put that in context of the fact that its home market, Spain is so weak," said Mike Dennis, a retail analyst at MF Global.
At the same time, analysts say the company has benefited from manufacturing more of its clothes in Spain and North Africa than its rivals, so it has not been exposed to rising wage costs in Asia.
"The wage inflation in Asia creates the issue of moving your supply to a same-cost or lower-cost manufacturing plant inland in China, or to another market, I'm sure there is a cost to doing that," added Mr Dennis.
Also on Wednesday, rival fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz said that its like-for-like sales were up 2% in May from a year earlier.
The world's second largest clothes retailer said turnover in the quarter hit 27.6bn crowns ($4.36bn; £2.7bn).