Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight hands-on

What's American's number one problem in the bedroom? Honestly, whatever you first guessed is probably the right answer. For the sake of this conversation, however, let's just assume that it's light, as Barnes & Noble suggests. People are keeping their partners awake at all hours by leaving the light on as they finish the final gripping pages of that Stieg Larsson novel. There's got to be a better way! Something like, say, the Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight (make sure to put little sparkly illustrations over the last word when you read it aloud, by the way).

As you'd imagine, it can see in the dark. -- or, rather, you can see it in the dark, so you won't have to get kicked out of bed for reading The Hunger Games anymore. The clunkily named Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight is up for pre-order now at $139 a pop. Plunk down your information today, and it should be on its way to you in early May -- just in time for Mother's Day and with a bit of time to spare for 'ole pops. So, how does the reader stack up to its predecessor? Click on through to the other side to find out.

For all intents and purposes, the Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight is exactly like the original Nook Simple Touch. We're talking the same stubby body, TI processor, 2GB of storage, microSD slot and six-inch Pearl E Ink display with infrared touch. Oh, and the rubberized page turn buttons on the sides of the screen, the little "n" home button on the bottom and that power button on the rear are all in tact. The concave back cover that makes it easy to hold the reader one-handed? That's the same, too.

There are a few distinctions, though: the border around the perimeter of the device is lighter, so you wont accidentally pick the wrong device out of a pile (think of the slight difference in color between the Nook Colour and Tablet). The device is also a bit lighter than its predecessor -- five percent, to be exact -- a change significant enough that seasoned Simple Touch users might actually notice if they were to compare the two. Really perceptive folks might also pick up on the screen, which feels slightly more textured. This is due to the anti-glare technology screen overlay B&N added to compensate for the differences in screen. All of which brings us to the main thing distinguishing the two devices.

The centerpiece of the Nook SimpleTouch with GlowLight is, naturally, that illuminated screen. The reader uses a patent-pending technology Barnes & Noble built in-house, which shines a light from over the top of the screen. The illumination is triggered by holding the "n" button down for two seconds. You can adjust the brightness by clicking the button again and sliding the dial on a Quick Settings screen. Half brightness should be enough to keep you reading in a dark room. You can also turn the light off here or just hold down the "n" button again.

The light is actually quite well distributed on the display. You'll notice a bit of a gradient at the top, near the light source, but after reading for a bit, odds are you'll completely forget about it. We used it for a bit in a darkened room, and it's really a pleasant reading experience, staying true to most of the benefits of e-ink. We asked Barnes & Noble reps how the resulting eye strain compares to a back-illuminated device like the iPad, and while they refused to say anything conclusive, they conceded it should be "equal or less" to what you'd experience on such a device.

Battery life, on the other hand, is much better. The Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight should give you an estimated month of reading time, according to B&N's numbers, compared to two months with the light off. That second number matches the rating for the standard Simple Touch -- the battery, like the rest of the hardware, is identical. The price, however, is a bit of a jump. At $139, it's $40 more than Simple Touch, and will be sold alongside that device (albeit in a darkened case that gives you a better idea of its powers). That premium might be a bit rich for some people's blood, though keep in mind that that price is the same as the WiFi Kindle Touch once you drop the "Special Offers." If the rumor mill is to be believed, however, Amazon's likely got some competition on the way.

In the meantime however, it may well be worth the $40 investment to make sure you don't get booted out of the bed again any time soon.