There haven't been many details released about what exactly will be unveiled at this event, but the blogosphere has been buzzing about the possibilities. Some of the predictions make sense, others just make me shake my head. Here are the 5 predominate opinions out there with my take on each, and I've also rated each scenario's chance of happening on a scale of 0 (absolutely no chance) to 10 (guaranteed to happen):
- Nook Color 2: The gut reaction by many was the idea of a new device to capitalize on the recent Nook Color popularity. Is it an exciting possibility? Sure, but it is not going to happen any time soon. Yes the Nook Color has its hardware flaws, but not nearly enough to warrant abandoning the current Nook Color model.
- Possibility of happening? 1 out of 10
- Honeycomb update: Some speculated that the Nook Color might benefit the growing trend of Honeycomb tablets with an upgrade to Android 3.0 of its own. Sorry, I just don't see this happening either. Piggybacking off of the previous prediction, Barnes & Noble just spent a lot of time and money upgrading their current model to Android Froyo making another update this soon both unlikely and unwise. The tablet-optimized Honeycomb is still getting its sea legs and would be far too buggy for the Nook Color this early.
- Possibility of happening? 2 out of 10
- From Wi-Fi to 3G: Others have thrown out the idea that the May 24th announcement will be a 3G model of the Nook Color. I really don't like the idea because 3G means carrier charges, and one of my favorite parts about the Nook Color has been the lack of carrier involvement. However, given the prevalence of Internet-needy apps on the Nook Color (and the need for an Internet connection to download new apps), this move wouldn't surprise me too much.
- Possibility of happening? 6 out of 10
- Upgrading the Nook: More and more people are leaning towards next Tuesday's announcement centering on the original Nook e-reader, speculating that the device will get a competitive boost to compete with the Kindle. Considering the general consensus is that the Kindle the better pure e-reader, I agree that this has the strongest chance of happening.
- Possibility of happening? 8 out of 10
- Downgrading the Nook: Another interesting prediction is a new lower-end model of the original Nook that could compete with Amazon's dirt cheap ad-supported Kindle. I don't hate the idea, but I'd rather see Barnes & Noble focus more on putting the Nook on par with the Kindle instead of purely going after sales and market share.
- Possibility of happening? 7 out of 10
Obviously this is all speculation, but it's the only thing the tech world has at this point as we all wait anxiously for May 24th to roll around.