I've had a few Nook readers myself. I feel like the decline was continual from the time I got into the ecosystem (about January 2011).
My first e-reader of any sort was the original Nook Color tablet, which I enjoyed at the time. Primarily because I was able to root it and access either the B&N part, or an Android tablet part. This allowed me to expand the usability of the tablet to a great extent. What stopped me from upgrading? Well, the
inability to sideload apps and (easily) root the upgraded tablets was a deathblow as far as I was concerned. B&N just didn't offer many apps, and that was a lot to pay for such a limited device. By the time they partnered with Samsung, I'd decided I wanted a iPad instead, and was pretty much done with B&N anyway (more on that below).
My next device was the Nook Simple Touch Reader. The 240MB memory/
split partition nonsense upset me, but thankfully there was still an sd card slot to allow me to get my content on there. I encouraged my whole family to get them -- it was my first e-ink reader and I was incredibly excited about it. While I never had any
major problems with my device (mainly just some qualms related to sideloading and ease of use), my sister's Nook STR was a complete dud. It kept locking up, wouldn't hold a charge, wouldn't turn on half the time... My father's started having these problems later. The
(lack of) customer support they received
really started putting a bad taste in my mouth with regards to B&N.
However, I still upgraded the the Nook Simple Touch Reader with Glowlight shortly after they released it. It was my first frontlit e-reader, and I was still excited about it. I admit, I did have hesitation about buying another device from the company, but at that time, inertia kept me with them. I could still use the device for what I needed, and the frontlight let me use it a lot more without having the need for any silly booklight attachment.
I had this STRWGL until Amazon released the Kindle Paperwhite, which I jumped on as soon as it was announced. I'd been thinking of switching to Kindle for a good bit, but hadn't been ready to give up my frontlight. Why was I so quick to abandon B&N at this point? By then, the hits against them had really built up:
- Their customer service was deplorable.
- They were completely out of touch with what the consumer wanted -- I would go so far as to say that they were actively working against the desires of their customers.
- They just weren't keeping up. The huge upgrade in the quality of the device (going from Glowlight to Paperwhite) was just astonishing. Almost everything about it was better. The light, the screen, the dictionary, the user interface, the ease of use, etc.
Since then, I haven't once regretted my decision. While Amazon certainly doesn't provide me everything I want, Barnes & Noble has
taken away everything I would want.
Taking away the sideloading of apps, fighting the ability to root, taking away the sd card slot on their e-ink devices (effectively removing the ability to sideload much of anything).
Taking away the ability to download the books from their site. Yes, as far as I'm concerned, I am well done with Barnes and Noble on the electronics front.