From Engadget:

The reader is a little buggier than we’d hoped for– outside of reading, the touch technology leaves a bit to be desired, and the freezing puts the overall stability a bit in question. Beyond that, however, the Nook serves its main function quite well. This is a great device for just plain reading, and if sales are any indication, there are still plenty of people who want to do just that.

…and Gizmodo:

If you’re looking for a no-nonsense e-reader that’s easy to use, connects to an online book store, handles your side-loaded content (like PDFs), let you interact with other friends who use the Nook store, and rarely has to be charged up, you will love the Simple Touch Nook. In terms of form and design and guts, the hardware is superior to the Kindle.

…ZDNet (which is a little more measured in its praise):

This is a stripped, bare basics version of the Nook that would be ideal for students and anyone else on a budget.

…and CrunchGear:

The new Nook is without question the best standalone Wi-Fi ereader on the market. Note that I added a few weasel words there, and if you’re looking for 3G then the Kindle 3G is still a winner, but as a reading device the Nook is nonpareil.

The Wi-Fi-only Nook is shipping now, by the way, for $139.

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While the Kindle 3G “with Special Offers” (available now) still lacks a touch-sensitive display, it does (of course) boast 3G wireless connectivity—meaning you can download books anywhere there’s a 3G connection. The new, $139 Nook, on the other hand, doesn’t do 3G, leaving e-book lovers at the mercy of the nearest Wi-Fi hotspot.

So, here’s the question: would you rather snag a smaller, nearly button-less but Wi-Fi-only Nook for $139, or cough up $25 more for a 3G-enabled but ad-spouting Kindle that’s about 10 percent bigger than its new touchscreen competitor?

That depends on you, of course. If you do most of your book shopping from the comfort of your home Wi-Fi network, you’ll probably be fine with a Wi-Fi-only e-reader like the touchscreen Nook or Amazon’s cheaper Wi-Fi-only Kindles ($139, or $114 for the Wi-Fi-only “Special Offers” model). Globetrotters, on the other hand, might appreciate the flexibility of buying and downloading books wherever there’s a decent 3G signal.

Thoughts? Fire away below.

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Slated to ship next month for $139 (you can pre-order one right here), the 7.5-ounce, 5 by 6.5-inch Nook looks a little like a squarish, paperback-sized tile, and yes—you’ll be able to turn pages on the Nook’s six-inch e-ink display (the same size as the Kindle’s) simply by swiping your finger.

The shorter, squatter Nook is also missing the Kindle’s full-on QWERTY keypad—and indeed, the only button on the front of the Nook is a single Home key.

Look Ma, no QWERTY!

Barnes & Noble execs took several more shots at the Kindle, noting that the new, 0.47 inch-thick Nook boasts two month’s worth of battery life on a single charge—twice as much as the Kindle’s—while the compact design (ten percent “less bulk”) and soft, contoured back will make for a more comfortable fit in your hand. Or so they say.

Other specifications include 2GB of on-board storage, with the possibility of 32GB more thanks to the microSDHC memory slot; six on-screen fonts, along with seven different sizes; and the ability to share book recommendations with pals via Facebook, Twitter, and email.

But back to the touch-sensitive e-ink display (which, by the way, is also a feature of the just-announced eReader Touch Edition by Kobo)—how did Barnes & Noble do it? After all, Amazon execs have long contended that adding a touch-sensitive layer to an e-ink display would reduce its overall contrast, all for the somewhat subtle (according to Amazon, at least) improvement of being able to swipe to turn a page rather than click a button.

Well, both B&N and Kobo say their new e-ink displays use infrared technology to sense your fingertips, a method that keeps any reduction in screen contrast to a minimum—and indeed, Barnes & Noble reps are crowing that the display on the new Nook has 50 percent more contrast than on the first e-ink Nook.

And with its revamped e-reader, B&N has demonstrated in dramatic fashion the main benefit in going the touchscreen way: a smaller device thanks to the jettisoned QWERTY.

Nice, but the Kindle still has a leg up on the new Nook in at least one regard: 3G, with the touch-sensitive Nook coming only in a Wi-Fi version.

So, which e-reader do you think you’d prefer: the larger but QWERTY-packing Kindle, or the smaller, touchscreen Nook?

Correction: The original version of this post incorrectly stated the new Nook’s estimated battery life. According to B&N, it’s said to last for two months on a single charge, not one. Sorry for the goof.

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