The New Nook Glowlight vs. The Kindle Paperwhite

Kindle Paperwhite vs. Nook Glowlight

After all the ups and downs of the last eighteen months or so, it's good to see Barnes and Noble confirming their commitment to their Nook range by launching a new version of the Glowlight e-reader.

It's a well timed move, just in time for the Christmas gift giving rush. There will be the inevitable comparisons between the Kindle Paperwhite and the new Nook Glowlight - so here's a quick comparison for you. Just use the left and right arrows to move through the presentation.

Kindle Paperwhite vs Nook Glowlight 2013 from Thamisgith

So, which reader is best?In reality, there's not a great deal to choose from between the two readers. Most people will probably choose based upon whether they prefer to buy their e-books from one store or another.

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The Nook Glowlight 2013

After waiting about eighteen months since the launch of the Nook Simple Touch With Glowlight, Barnes and Noble has finally updated its flagship e-reader. The new Nook Glowlight, 2013 edition, is now available.

Here's a brief summary of its key features. Use the arrow keys to move backwards and forwards through the presentation:

Nook Glowlight 2013 from Thamisgith

It's good to see that B&N is still committed to the e-reader market. There were all sorts of rumors about their Nook division being sold off last year. This should give B&N's loyal customers a little more confidence that the book selling giant will be in the e-book market for some time to come.

This is the smallest and lightest Nook to date. It weighs in at just 6.2 ounces (the Kindle Paperwhite is 7.5 ounces). It really does feel very light in your hand.

It no longer has physical page turn buttons, which is a shame in my opinion. I always thought that those buttons were a nice touch and that they gave users more options when it came to using their reader.

There's no slot for an SD card reader either - but with 4GB of memory, which should be enough for about 2,000 books, this won't be something which bothers the large majority of Glowlight users.

Hopefully the Nook Glowlight 2013 model will sell well for B&N in the run up to Christmas. Whether or not you prefer it to the Kindle Paperwhite doesn't matter too much. It's good for consumers that there is some healthy competition in the market. That always drives development of new features and helps to keep prices down.

Nook Simple Touch To Get Web Browser And E-Mail Facility

If you're the proud owner of a Nooks Simple Touch e-reader - with or without "Glowlight" - then you are about to receive an unexpected upgrade. Whether you were aware of it or not, the Nook Simple Touch has been shipping with a "hidden" web browser for some time now. All units shipped since 2011 will have this facility.

Barnes and Noble now intends to release a software update to activate both web browsing and e-mail functionality on its readers. It should be a welcome addition for Nook owners everywhere.

B&N has struggled to catch up with the Amazon Kindle readers and tablets - but it has really been upping its game of late. Last year it expanded its market by starting to sell the Nook range in the UK. Just recently, massive price drops, first in the UK and then in the USA (via Radio Shack outlets) saw the Nook enjoy better sales than ever before.

This latest development certainly won't do any harm to B&N's prospects.

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Kindle Fire HD Tablet Computer

I recently got my wife a Kindle Fire HD tablet for her birthday. Given her longstanding hatred of technology (she doesn't like using her antiquated mobile phone), that may seem more like grounds for divorce than a recipe for marital bliss. However, she absolutely loves it. Adores it in fact.

My better half needs to keep in touch by e-mail, like many of us do. Until now, that has been a stressful experience for her. Switching on a notebook, firing up windows and getting "on the line", as she likes to call it, was never pleasant - not for her or for anyone else within earshot.

There's none of that with her new tablet. Switch it on and one tap takes her to her Gmail account. It really couldn't be easier or simpler.

It's a similar situation for other mail services such as Yahoo and Hotmail. Twitter and Facebook also have one tap access functionality.

It's been a liberating experience for my wife. I the space of a few days she was dealing with e-mails with confidence - something which has never happened before! She has now graduated to watching TV shows and movies on her Kindle and is the self appointed family "Googler" now.

All things considered, the ease of use of touch screen tablets in general - and the Fire HD in particular - make them a great, if somewhat surprising, gift choice for anyone who doesn't especially enjoy using technology but who wants the benefits that it can bring.

http://run311.com/electronics/tablet-computers-and-ereaders/