I've recommended both the NC and the original nook to relatives and friends, depending on what they've told me they want out of a device. So it's not that either device is better/worse than the other. I've also recommended Kindles, Sonys, and Kobos, depending on the person who was asking the question's needs as I understand them. (No, I do not work in a bookstore, but I do live in a small town and people who know me invariably ask my opinion when they're looking at buying an ebook reading device).
As I also mentioned, I am in customer service (at a grocery store). When someone asks my opinion on a product, I give it honestly. My customers appreciate it, and my boss has been standing behind me on a number of occasions. She's never reprimanded me, and in fact, has complimented me, even when what I have said has not been complimentary to both products being discussed. She knows that I value what my customer wants and/or needs above the corporate line, and she respects that.
"Corporate" as an entity, does NOT know everything, a lot of times they are so far removed from what goes on in the actual reality of the store, that they come out with "party lines" that are so out of touch with reality that we'd actually
lose customers if we followed them. This is a small town. I know my customers both inside and outside my work environment, and I value them as friends, acquaintances,
and customers. (Except for the occasional one I'd like to strangle, but that's another post!)
Now, I also realize that bored teenagers or young adults in a minimum wage job that they find boring may not go to this level in customer service, and I have no way of knowing which camp the young lady in the OP's post falls into. And since we have no way of knowing her exact wording or her tone, I don't think we have enough information to judge her.