To add a bit of fuel to the fire, Barnes & Noble announced on Monday that Nook would soon be updated to firmware version 1.5. The firmware will work on existing Nooks, but it's possible that it also clears a path for new devices.
Barnes & Noble has also expanded its Nook library into the app ecosystems of mobile platforms like Android. Combine Nook library pervasiveness with customers' nostalgia for visiting bookstores, and Nook seems like a solid idea on paper. Tie the future of e-reading to those bastions of paperback literature, and you're tugging at some deep-rooted sympathy strings.
Nevertheless, the Nook hasn't experienced the smoothest possible sailing over the year, but it did manage to ride some decent waves. According to Barnes & Noble's first quarter report, the Nook was, at least in part, responsible for helping B&N increase revenues by 21% in 2010.