Last week Barnes and Noble posted an interview on YouTube with Jennifer Perry, the Director of Digital eCommerce at Barnes & Noble, and she confirmed that new Nook devices are coming out in 2026.
Literally no details were given beyond that. We don’t even know for sure if she was talking about E Ink Nooks or Nook tablets, but going off the context of the conversation she was likely referring to both types of Nook devices.
Frankly, it’s surprising that it’s going to take that long for B&N to release new Nooks. I expected at least one new Nook to come out in 2025, but apparently we aren’t getting any new Nooks until 2026, and since new devices are rarely released at the beginning of a new year, the release is probably at least 7 months away at this point.
The current 6″ Nook was released in 2021 so it’s due for a refresh. The larger 7.8″ Nook GlowLight 4 Plus came out in 2023 so it’s still fairly recent, but by 2026 B&N might look to replace it as well.
B&N used to release new Nooks more frequently. There was also a GlowLight 4e that was released in 2022, but it has since been discontinued. But for 3 years straight they released a new model; now there’s going to be a 3-year gap between new models with new ones coming out in 2026.
It’ll be interesting to see if B&N jumps on the color E Ink bandwagon. Virtually every other ereader company sells a color model now so the odds are high for a color E Ink Nook.
B&N might see the blooming eNote market as an opportunity as well, but I just don’t see B&N getting into the eNote game with Nooks. That would require a lot of software development, and that’s never been B&N’s strength when it comes to Nooks (the GlowLight 4 is still running software based on Android 8.1 for crying out loud).
The topic of new Nooks is discussed at around the 43:00 mark in the video below.
New Nooks Confirmed for 2026
via: MobileRead
What do you think about DIY/DIY-like ereaders? They might be the best option for those who want to maintain software independence.
Zero interest because the market is infinitesimally small, even smaller than the market for Nooks.
Too late for the ereader market? I feel they are behind the curve, especially with the interest in Kobo.
I really do not think BN can ever get back the customer trust they had at the beginning when they were at the top of the pack. I will never buy a Nook device even if someone rated it ten stars. I’ve been burned too many times by their devices and software.
My 94 year old dad has the patience of a saint. The NOOK is utter crap and the one we just purchased in January 2024 is consistently dropping his books. Shame on B&N.