Okay, who's going to go test a Nook?

It may be me, actually--RH has complained before that he likes the idea of a Kindle, but would really want to try one before shelling out that kind of money. So I found out today that B&N is releasing a competing product, with a couple of features whose absence I've found to be a real deal-breaker in the Kindle. Wired.com's got a good general write-up and a blow-by-blow comparison posted. The release date is purported to be the end of November, and it looks like one can look at it in stores as opposed to having to guess from the online information and/or hope you have a friend who'll let you look at theirs.

It's not that I don't love my books, and gods know there are hardcopies I wouldn't ever let go. I own a few books worth well over $150--rare editions, limited released, signed by the author, etc. But every time I have to move, I move boxes and boxes and boxes of books. Not having to shift that much sheer mass around has begun to be a really appealing prospect. It's the readability/availability/persistence equation that's keeping me in hardcopy.