I saw the NOOK color!!

NOOK color is in the stores, Peeps!

If you have an opportunity, stop by a B&N and check it out!
I recalled last night that a store rep had called to tell me it was in stock and they would hold one for me for 48 hours. The store was abuzz!

I only had to wait a few minutes for my chance to see the demo.
I had our daughter, Marlo, with me.

It weighs noticably more than the original NOOK. It is fairly sleek and attractive. More attractive than I expected. The silly little corner piece for NOOK charms didn't bother me as much as expected, either.
The color is a nice dark slate with a slight sparkle to it without being truly shiny.

The screen is very nice. It's big. They've managed to allow the product to be mostly screen actually.

I really wanted to see an "interactive" child's book in action. The only real problem is that B&N has not provided training for the store agents so they only know what they know from playing with the product themselves or from reading the owner's manual (and did they??). When I asked to see a child's book I was told "no problem, great". We looked at a couple of them. Cute. But I was not quite impressed enough with the "interactivity" to think "I have to go home with this product!"

Upon arriving at home our son, Matthew, asked where we'd been. I told him. He had not been aware of a color version being marketed. He immediately wanted to know more. I told him to run find it online and I would look at it with him. He returned to me and we looked at the B&N site together. He managed to find an interactive child's book on their site and there was a demo for it!
http://tinyurl.com/NOOKColorInterativity
Go down to where there is a NOOK with a bear in the picture and a button that says "Read To Me".
Click there for a nice demo.

That demo makes me think "Gee, I want to go home with that product!"

Before I left the store last night I told the agent that I was not making a purchase that night but that I'd be happy for her to place my name on the waiting list for the next shipment that is due in a few days. She did so.

Of course a big part of ME wants the NOOK Color now; I'll admit that. But I also want this for Gigi, our
4 1/2 year old who is now reading 3 and 4 letter words on her own. She loves books more than almost anything else. This would be an amazing gift for her and it is one that could continue to grow with her which is very important in a gift for a child.

Matt really likes what he saw too. I told him that there really wouldn't be much interactivity in books for kids his age (but what do I know, there could be, actually). He also knows that the NOOK original (Wi-FI-i) is going to be on sale on Black Friday at B&N for just $99. Our budget is stretched since we have five children. I wonder if we will add any NOOKs to our household this Christmas.