For years, the only practical alternative to Amazon’s Kindle e-reader was Kobo. But after a long absence, Barnes & Noble is back in the game with its new GlowLight 4 e-readers. The company recently released the Nook GlowLight 4e for $ 119.99, the budget version of the Nook Glowlight 4 for $ 149.99, introduced in December. With its physical page-turning buttons, USB-C support and 212 dpi resolution, this new entry-level model looks like a strong contender.
On paper, that’s it. After testing the e-reader for about a week, I’m not convinced it’s worth it – unless you really like physical page-scrolling buttons.
Good things
- You can quickly flip through pages with the physical buttons
- No advertising provides a distraction reading experience
- USB-C support
- Scratch and fingerprint resistant 221 ppi display that looks crisp and clear in sunlight
- Easy fast loading of ePub files
Bad things
- Overpriced for a budget e-reader
- The physical buttons are unreliable because they stopped working for a short time
- The lack of adjustable color temperature can cause eye strain after sunset
- Borrowing library books takes too much time compared to its competitors
- The touch screen may respond slowly
Basically, these buttons distinguish GlowLight 4e from other e-readers in this price range. Like its more expensive sibling, the GlowLight 4e’s buttons are located on the right and left sides of the page scroll display. This is a feature that is usually reserved for more expensive Amazon and Kobo e-readers and even the $ 139.99 Kindle Paperwhite is missing. They make it easy to flip through pages quickly without having to swipe across the touch screen, which – like many e-reader displays at this price – can respond slowly.
By default, the buttons at the top rotate the page forward, while the bottom buttons rotate it backwards, although you can reverse the order. You can also double-click the buttons to move forward or backward toward a chapter, or quickly flip through pages by pressing and holding the button that scrolls the pages forward. You can also use the buttons to scroll up and down in the list of books that Barnes & Noble sells.
The only problem? These buttons stopped working the second time I turned on GlowLight 4e. It took two consecutive reboots of the device to work again. They haven’t caused any problems since then, but I don’t know if this problem will reappear in a month and become a regular occurrence. Barnes & Noble spokesman Braden Boyle says this is not a problem the company encountered during its internal testing course, so it’s likely to be a problem unique to my device. However, it is not reassuring for this to happen at all for the relatively short time I use Nook.
Nook GlowLight 4e comes with physical page-turning buttons.
Weighing just six ounces and 6.11 inches tall, the slim rectangular GlowLight 4e is light and easy to put in a purse. It has a soft touch cover that is comfortable to hold while reading, even with just one hand. However, given that this is a more entry-level model, Barnes & Noble naturally replaced some features with others. For example, unlike the $ 139.99 Kindle Paperwhite, it is not waterproof and has no speakers, headphone jack and Bluetooth support. As a result, you won’t be able to listen to audiobooks – something you could do even with the cheaper $ 89.99 entry-level Kindle.
But unlike the $ 119.99 Kindle and even Kobo’s Clara HD, the GlowLight 4e actually has a USB-C port (although you’ll have to provide your own charging brick). They can be charged faster than micro USB cables, and Barnes & Noble says the 5-watt charger should recharge in about 2.5 hours. This is an accurate estimate – I was able to charge the device from 50 to 100 percent within an hour.
Barnes & Noble claims that GlowLight 4e should work for “weeks”. After a week of test reading for 20-30 minutes each day with Wi-Fi on and a screen with 50 percent brightness, the battery level dropped by 60 percent. Then I expect the battery life to last nearly two weeks or about six hours on a single charge with Wi-Fi on and a light at about half power. With Wi-Fi on and the lights off from time to time, it can last a few more days of use – or a total of about three weeks – which isn’t terrible. Still, given that for $ 20 more you can get Paperwhite in recent months, I was hoping for a longer battery life.
Nook GlowLight 4e supports USB-C, which is definitely a plus. You can adjust the text size and change the fonts.
At 221 dpi, GlowLight 4e’s E Ink display outperforms Amazon’s Kindle, which offers a disappointingly low resolution of 167 ppi, but isn’t as sharp as Kobo Clara HD’s 300 ppi display. If sharp text is more important to you than the physical page scroll buttons, this can be a problem. However, this was not an obstacle for me. The text is still easy to read and I can easily adjust the size and fonts of the text to make it easier to view if necessary. In addition, as you can guess from its name, GlowLight 4e comes with adjustable backlight, which makes the text much easier to see – especially at night. However, the light does not have a color temperature setting, which makes it easier to read after sunset, which is offered by both Kora’s Clara HD and Kindle Paperwhite. Without it, reading for more than 30 minutes before bed strained my eyes, especially because I don’t have good eyesight.
In addition, while the GlowLight 4e’s semi-matte display looks crisp and clear in direct sunlight, it doesn’t get rid of glare, as promised by Barnes & Noble, but rather simply reduces it. In direct sunlight, I also noticed a slight decrease in contrast and sharpness levels. The display must also be resistant to both scratches and fingerprints. Fortunately, so far GlowLight 4e is fulfilling its potential in this regard.
Finding something to read can take a while.
In fact, using the navigation screen in the interface requires patience. The touch screen responds slowly, which makes going through the setup process, finding a book, and adjusting settings a tedious task. However, things get more enjoyable as you move from the main menu to reading. Save to adjust settings such as text size, no need to use the touch screen while reading, as you can rely on the buttons to scroll pages very quickly. In addition, GlowLight 4e has no ads that you have to pay extra to remove when you buy a Kindle.
Unlike Amazon’s Kindle, but similar to Kobo’s e-readers, Nook supports the ePub format, so you can read books received outside of its bookstore. I was happy to find that it is relatively easy to quickly load ePub files into it. Within 10 seconds, I was able to connect the Nook to my MacBook Air using the USB-C cable and drag and drop an ePub file into the e-reader. You can do the same on the Kindle, but it’s a long and complicated process involving the Caliber app – at least for now. There are rumors that Kindle’s “Send to Kindle” feature will soon be able to easily convert ePub files to a format that Kindles can read, which can level the playing field here.
You can also borrow ebooks from the library, but the process can be faster and easier. It took a few minutes to borrow a book and transfer it using Adobe Digital Editions and a USB-C cable. Amazon, on the other hand, partners with library programs like Overdrive so you can borrow a book wirelessly. Meanwhile, the Overdrive library is conveniently integrated right into Kobo’s e-readers.
Nook GlowLight 4e home screen. The back of the Nook GlowLight 4e.
For an entry-level e-reader, the Nook GlowLight 4e generally provides a good reading experience. My main remark, however, is the price. With Nook GlowLight 4e, Barnes & Noble is trying to provide a budget alternative to e-readers, which offer page-turning buttons, which are usually the most expensive. The company naturally cuts some corners to make this happen, but when the product’s feature temporarily stops working just after a day of use, they may shrink too much. In addition, some features are too basic for daily reading to trade when you pay $ 119.99. Kobo’s Clara HD without ads costs the same amount, but you can read it at night without straining your eyes, thanks to the adjustable color temperature settings. Battery life that lasts a few weeks is good and comparable to Kobo’s Clara HD, but the new Kindle Paperwhite will last you months for only $ 20 more.
After all, if you don’t want to be tied to Amazon and don’t need physical buttons, Kobo e-readers are still a better alternative. But if you don’t care who makes your e-reader (and don’t mainly buy books from Barnes & Noble), it’s worth spending the extra $ 20 on a Kindle Paperwhite – or at least wait for it to go on sale. With the exception of the ad-free experience, you will get most of the benefits that Kobo’s Clara HD offers, but with water resistance, additionally …
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