I spend a lot of time browsing shops in Orlando because, well, that’s where I live, and book stores are high on my list of fun places to shop and while away some hours. The other day I was meeting my mom for lunch and decided to drop in to Barnes & Noble since I don’t have one close to my house. As I was checking out with my purchases, the cashier mentioned that the store would be debuting the new nook reader which is an electronic reading device “gadget.”

This caught my attention because I had just been considering putting the Kindle on my Christmas list this year. You know how it is when you log into Amazon, you always see the advertisements for their electronic reader right in your face, and eventually you become brainwashed where you suddenly decide you MUST have one of those (insert name of new gadget here). That’s what happened to me with Kindle I think. And I’ll be honest with you, I really didn’t know a whole lot about it.

So when I heard about the nook reader that B&N is about to unveil, I asked the check-out lady a few questions and then when I got home I decided to check it out on the website. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it actually appears to have more features than Kindle.

So here’s the lowdown. They both have 6-inch screen displays so they are easy to read, you can adjust the text size with both devices, and both of them feature 2 GB memory, ability to browse and shop for ebooks, speakers, headphone jack, rechargeable battery, comparable weight, software updates, quick page turn by hard key, synchronized last page read between devices, and ability to read your books on multiple devices.

But, here’s what you get on the nook reader that is not available on the “other reader.” Color touch screen, touch control and navigation ability, library view by book cover, Wi-Fi, free Wi-Fi in Barnes & Noble stores, expandable memory, more than a million titles, more than half a million free ebooks, exclusive content at B&N, directly load and read PDF’s (very helpful), synchronized notes between devices, “LendMe technology” which is where you can share books between nook, iPhone, iPod touch, Blackberry, PC, and Mac, and a replaceable battery.

Sounds good, right? I was impressed. In addition, and this is really key, you can go into Barnes and Noble and try out the nook in person. You can hold it in your hands. Studies have shown that this is key in allowing buyers to make a decision on a purchase. You can sell a lot more when the person can touch as well as see.

I have to say I’m really interested in the nook reader and to be honest, I think it really wins in the head-to-head battle with Kindle by a landslide. Of course, I have not tried out the actual device yet but it will be in stores at the end of November (so I was told). So if you are considering an E-reader you should check out the nook when it becomes available, either for yourself or maybe as a gift.

I spend a lot of time browsing shops in Orlando because, well, that’s where I live, and book stores are high on my list of fun places to shop and while away some hours. The other day I was meeting my mom for lunch and decided to drop in to Barnes & Noble since I don’t have one close to my house. As I was checking out with my purchases, the cashier mentioned that the store would be debuting the new nook reader which is an electronic reading device “gadget.”

This caught my attention because I had just been considering putting the Kindle on my Christmas list this year. You know how it is when you log into Amazon, you always see the advertisements for their electronic reader right in your face, and eventually you become brainwashed where you suddenly decide you MUST have one of those (insert name of new gadget here). That’s what happened to me with Kindle I think. And I’ll be honest with you, I really didn’t know a whole lot about it.

So when I heard about the nook reader that B&N is about to unveil, I asked the check-out lady a few questions and then when I got home I decided to check it out on the website. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it actually appears to have more features than Kindle.

So here’s the lowdown. They both have 6-inch screen displays so they are easy to read, you can adjust the text size with both devices, and both of them feature 2 GB memory, ability to browse and shop for ebooks, speakers, headphone jack, rechargeable battery, comparable weight, software updates, quick page turn by hard key, synchronized last page read between devices, and ability to read your books on multiple devices.

But, here’s what you get on the nook reader that is not available on the “other reader.” Color touch screen, touch control and navigation ability, library view by book cover, Wi-Fi, free Wi-Fi in Barnes & Noble stores, expandable memory, more than a million titles, more than half a million free ebooks, exclusive content at B&N, directly load and read PDF’s (very helpful), synchronized notes between devices, “LendMe technology” which is where you can share books between nook, iPhone, iPod touch, Blackberry, PC, and Mac, and a replaceable battery.

Sounds good, right? I was impressed. In addition, and this is really key, you can go into Barnes and Noble and try out the nook in person. You can hold it in your hands. Studies have shown that this is key in allowing buyers to make a decision on a purchase. You can sell a lot more when the person can touch as well as see.

I have to say I’m really interested in the nook reader and to be honest, I think it really wins in the head-to-head battle with Kindle by a landslide. Of course, I have not tried out the actual device yet but it will be in stores at the end of November (so I was told). So if you are considering an E-reader you should check out the nook when it becomes available, either for yourself or maybe as a gift.