B&N's NOOK GlowLight 4e Ereader Gives Kindle Some Affordable Competition

Amazon's Kindle e-readers have become the household name in this market primarily for two reasons: the first is its voluminous library of content, and the second is the dirt-cheap price tags Amazon slaps on these devices. It is, however, hardly the only game in town, and despite business outlooks over the past years, Barnes & Noble continues to push its NOOK line of ebook readers into the market. Its latest offering tries to make those devices even more approachable and accessible by taking the price tag down a notch. With the NOOK GlowLight 4e, B&N is taking the fight to Amazon's doorsteps, though it unsurprisingly cut a few corners to get there.

The ebook reader market has changed a lot over the past years, especially with the rise of brands like Onyx, BIGME, Remarkable, and the like. These companies have turned e-readers into more than just reading devices by incorporating tablet-like functionality, including the ability to take notes with a stylus. Some have even started using colored E Ink screens, closing the gap with traditional tablets even further.

Of course, there will always be an audience and a market for "old-school" devices that are simpler, cheaper, and longer-lasting. Barnes & Noble's NOOK line was once in danger of dying out, but it continues to cater to those who might not want to tie themselves to Amazon's business. It has now come out with a more affordable alternative to try and woo more budget-conscious readers into its fold.

As the name hints, the new NOOK readers take after the NOOK GlowLlight 4 that was launched last December. Both sport the same design, which means thick bezels on the soft-touch housing. Those bezels house physical buttons for page-turning, so there is an advantage to that somewhat dated look. This new model also supports USB-C charging, something that Amazon has finally caught up with.

The biggest difference is in the price tag, with the NOOK GlowLight 4e selling for only $119.99. That low price does come at a cost in features,  but hopefully the differences won't be so noticeable. The GlowLight 4e, for example, only has a 6-inch 212 dpi screen compared to the 300 dpi of the original. The battery is also rated to last weeks on a single charge rather than up to a month, though that will naturally vary depending on use. It also only has 8GB of data storage, which is a rather large drop compared to the 32GB of the $150 NOOK GlowLight 4.

The B&N NOOK GlowLight 4e is aiming at the Kindle Paperwhite 2021 with slightly similar specs, especially the 8GB of storage and USB-C port, but a higher $140 price tag. That said, it is still considerably more expensive than the base 6-inch Kindle, which goes for below $100. Ebook purists might not be too happy with the compromises that Barnes & Noble made to reach that lower price point, but the NOOK GlowLight 4e does open the door to more readers who may prefer to get their books outside of Amazon but don't have the luxury of splurging on a more expensive device.