Nook GlowLight 4 Review

I've been using e-ink e-readers since the beginning, and the Barnes & Noble Nook GlowLight 4 is as good as it gets for comfort and reading usability.

Yes, I'm talking about the buttons. With almost every other e-reader in this class, there aren't any buttons to turn pages, which is fine when you're reading with your dominant hand. You tap the right side of the screen (or left if you're a lefty), and the page turns.

The problem happens when you switch to holding the e-reader in your non-dominant hand. Suddenly, you have to move your thumb way over to the middle of the screen and swipe left (in my case). It's a pain, so the addition of buttons on both sides of the GlowLight 4 continues to be the killer feature in Barnes and Noble's series of e-ink reading devices.

You can customize them easily, using a simple setting that defines the page forward and back buttons on top or bottom.

Don't just take my word for it; try the Barnes & Noble Nook GlowLight 4. Once you experience its comfortable and user-friendly design, you'll never want to return to a button-free e-reader again.

Some Downsides of GlowLight 4

Some missing options would help the GlowLight 4 compete with similar e-readers like the Kindle Paperwhite or the Kobo Clara. For some reason, the GlowLight 4 isn't waterproof like the Paperwhite, Clara 2e, or even the GlowLight 4 Plus, a bigger e-ink reader from Barnes and Noble.

This seems like a significant oversight because many of us use e-readers in the bath, swimming pool, or at the beach.

The other less-than-optimal feature here is the reliance on Adobe DRM for library books. With Kindle and Kobo devices, getting library books via Libby or OverDrive is a cinch.

With the Nook GlowLight 4 (and any other Nook I've used over the years), you have to download the ePub from the OverDrive or Libby app, put it on your computer, open it with Adobe Digital Editions, and sideload it to your Nook.

It's doable but such a pain (especially compared to the Kobo, where you can browse and borrow OverDrive books right on your device) that it pushed me away from the platform a few years ago. (Sad panda.)

The GlowLight 4 has this same issue, and while the buttons are worth a lot to me, I use the library a ton and can't abide having to use Adobe Digital Editions.

While the Nook GlowLight 4 has no SD card slot, its 32GB memory is fine for reading and storing Nook and library books. The recessed screen here sometimes gets dog and cat hair stuck in it. Other readers have screens flush with the bezels, which keeps dust and dirt out.

The Upsides of GlowLight 4

What's great about the GlowLight 4? Well, pretty much everything else. The screen is sharp and bright, and the backlight (the "glowlight," if you will) is perfect for reading in any type of external illumination.

You can manually set the backlight to Night Mode using a slider to change the light from a cool blue light to a warmer hue. You can also set your GlowLight to color shift throughout the day automatically. I generally keep it to this setting, so I don't need to think about it.

The interface for your Nook Library is easy to use, and you can customize it to show all the books you've bought from Barnes and Noble, past and present, or just a selection (downloaded only, annotated only, unread only, etc.).

Reading books is what you'd expect. You can bookmark pages, highlight sections, look up words using the on-board dictionary, and tap to move anywhere in your book with a little slider. The covers are all black and white, but that's not a big deal. We're here for the words, right?

The screen displays 300 PPI (pixels per inch), which printers use to define a printed image vs. a screen one (usually 72ppi). That allows for text that's crisp and easy to read. The display still lags a little when turning pages and occasionally flashes black when refreshing its contents. It's not a deal-breaker, but newer Kindles and Kobos seem to have less of this problem.

Setup and Buying Books

Setup was a breeze, too. The GlowLight 4 came with about 70 percent charge, so it was just a matter of pulling off the screen protector, pressing the top button to turn the e-reader on, then connecting it to Wi-Fi. There was a quick OS update, and then I logged into my Barnes and Noble account to find all my books ready to download to the new device.

Buying a new book was just as easy.

Honestly, the best thing about Barnes and Noble GlowLight 4 (besides the buttons!) is the easy access to the catalog. Since I've been a B&N customer for so long, I have a wonderful back catalog of books ready to download anytime.

I can access my Nook books on any device, from my iPhone to Mac. I purchase them online, and they are instantly delivered to my Nook. It's frictionless and easy to spend too much money on e-books, but it's delightful in terms of instant gratification.

I bought a copy of Blake Crouch's Dark Matter since there's a new TV series based on the book, and I was reading it within seconds of wanting it. That's some great stuff. I've never had a problem finding a book I want in B&N's catalog.