The biggest news about the new firmware update for the Nook Color is that it turns the ereader into a quasi tablet of sorts with the launch of Barnes and Noble's Nook Appstore. (the-ebook-reader.com)
If you don't like B&N's lackluster software you can always root the Nook and turn it into an E Ink Android tablet of sorts. (blog.the-ebook-reader.com)
Apple actually launched its first tablet of sorts in the 1990s, with the Newton MessagePad, although Jobs was outside Apple at the time. (cultofmac.com)