Barnes and Nobles will release a new e-reader called Nook Glowlight 4 Plus with a 7.8 inch screen.
Barnes and Noble is the biggest bookstore chain in the US and has somewhat neglected its e-reader line in recent years, letting Kindle, Kobo and Pocketbook come out with ever more advanced reading machines.
But 2023 looks to be the year of change for Barnes And Nobles (B&N) as the company has a new e-reader with a 7.8-inch screen available.
This new e-reader from B&N is the Nook Glowlight 4 Plus and therefore compete directly with the Pocketbook Inkpad 4 by offering an alternative with similar technical characteristics.
It has a nice Carta 1200 7.8 inch screen, Bluetooth and headphone jack (yes for audiobooks !) and Wifi.
Considering the e-readers already marketed under the Nook brand, it is also be equipped with a lighting with color temperature adjustment (blue light filter) for a better reading comfort : GlowLight + illumination.
A "night mode" is also be in this e-reader : it display white characters on black screen.
This Nook Glowlight 4 Plus is also be waterproof with a IPX7 certification.
Technical specifications of the Nook Glowlight 4 Plus e-reader:
- Allwinner B300 1.8 GHZ quad-core processor
- 7.8″ E Ink display with 300 PPI
- 2 GB of RAM
- Frontlight with adjustable color temperature (aka "blue light filter")
- 32GB of storage
- USB-C port
- Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n)
- Waterproof: IPX7
- Buttons: Touch-sensor home button; physical page-turning buttons, plus swiping functionality.
- Audio: stream or download audiobooks to listen to via Bluetooth or 3.5mm headphone jack.
- Formats: EPUB, PDF.
- Built-in anti-glare screen protector.
- Dimensions: 7.8″ x 5.8″ x .31″ (198.36 x 146.86 x 7.77 mm)
- Weighs: 285g
- Battery 2500 mAh
This ereader is available, and you can order if on this page : https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/nook-glowlight-4-plus-barnes-noble/1143603294?ean=9780594155256.
The price is $199.99.
It's great news that B&N is back with a new e-reader model.
Like other brands (such as Kobo and Pocketbook), this Nook Glowlight 4 Plus represents a market positioning towards the top end of the market.
If this new Nook lives up to expectations, it will undoubtedly be a very interesting and comprehensive product.
However, there's not much to differentiate it from a Pocketbook InkPad 4. But, compared to a Kindle Oasis or a Kobo Sage, it has the advantage of being more affordable, and is easily found in B&N bookstores across the country.
My opinion on the Nook Glowlight 4 Plus e-reader
With my experience of e-readers, I can now give a first opinion before having a complete review of this e-reader.
First of all, I really like its design and its beautiful 7.8-inch screen. I find this screen format really comfortable for quiet reading at home. And, even though it's a little bulkier than a 6-inch e-reader, it's still perfectly portable.
Secondly, the Nook Glowlight 4 Plus seems to us a version 8.1 of the Android system. Although Google's operating system is used, it is not possible to load applications on this Nook e-reader.
The problem with the Android system is that, when used on a reading device, it is slower than one that uses a system specifically designed for reading (Kindle, Kobo or Pocketbook).
The Nook Glowlight 4 Plus is no exception to the rule, as its interface is a little slower than that of its competitors.
Fortunately, this doesn't make reading any less enjoyable, and the reading experience is perfectly adequate. The various options and menus that Nook e-reader users appreciate are also present.
Audiobook fans will be interested to know that this e-reader is compatible with the B&N Audiobooks service. For $14.99 per month, you can obtain an audiobook from a wide selection of 200,000 titles available in the Barnes & Noble bookshop.
There's a promotional offer for an audiobook at the moment. So it's a good opportunity to try out this service after buying the Nook Glowlight 4 Plus e-reader.
You can use headphones to play the audiobook on your e-reader, thanks to its 3.5mm jack port or Bluetooth 5.0 connection.
You can listen to the audiobooks in streaming or download them to listen to them in a place where no WiFi connection is available.
Please note: if you already have audio books in MP3 format or from another service (Audible), you won't be able to listen to them on your Nook e-reader.
When it comes to reading digital books, the usual Nook e-reader options are available, and the 7.8" screen displays characters accurately.
The lighting also works very well, and the physical buttons on the edges of the screen allow you to turn the pages (you can also do this by pressing the reader's touch screen).
PROS:
- Price
- Good Screen
- Audiobooks
CONS:
- A little slow
- Cannot sideload audiobooks
Nook Official Website : https://www.barnesandnoble.com/b/nook-devices/_/N-8ri
| Nook Glowlight 4 Plus | |
| Image | |
| Screen size | 7.8" |
| Resolution | 1404 x 1872 pixels |
| Color | No |
| Backlight | Yes |
| Waterproof | Yes |
| Storage | 32 GB |
| Pen / Stylus | No |
| SD card | No |
| Ebook formats | EPUB, PDF |
| Blue light filter | Yes |
| Other | Bluetooth, 3.5mm Jack : listen to audiobooks |
| Review | |
| Link (where to buy?) | Nook official Website |
