The Nook line of tablets is full of solid Android devices. The only trouble, until now, has been that the devices relied on a limited app store created by Barnes & Noble. No more of that though! A software update is adding full access to the Google Play store and all its apps to the Nook HD and the Nook HD+.
While users of Barnes & Noble's latest tablets will have access to more than 700,000 apps available through the Google Play store, they will also maintain access to the bookseller's own app store. Apps downloaded through Barnes & Noble will have a tiny little "N" icon so that you can differentiate them from apps downloaded through Google Play. (Neatly enough, Barnes & Noble isn't segregating the apps in other ways. If you download Angry Birds through its store but there's a newer version in Google Play, you'll snag that update.)
In addition to getting apps from Google Play, Nook HD and Nook HD+ users will also get access to Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps, the Google Play Music store, and the Chrome browser.
The software update which adds all these goodies will be included on all new Nook HD and Nook HD+ tablets. If you already own one, don't worry. An automatic over-the-air update will take care of things once you connect to a Wi-Fi network. (If you're in a hurry, you can also grab it from the Nook website.)
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