Barnes & Noble Shipping Nook Second Edition E-Reader Early

Barnes & Noble is shipping its Nook The Simple Touch Reader, otherwise more informally referred to as the Nook 2nd Edition, ahead of its expected launch schedule on June 10th. In its press release, demo units should be in stores today and the Nook Simple Touch Reader has already begun to ship to customers who have pre-ordered; those who haven’t pre-ordered can swing by their local Barnes & Noble retail store and pick one up this weekend, in time for Father’s Day in the U.S.

Barnes & Noble had made major design changes to the original reader on the second edition Nook that improved performance and usability. Gone is the dual-screen form factor and the bottom LCD touchscreen panel has been eschewed in favor of a singular e-ink display that overlays a touchscreen on top. The e-ink display now uses the new Pearl technology for increased contrast and battery life is now much improved at a stated 2 months before requiring a recharge. The WiFi-only model will be priced at $139.

The Nook Simple Touch Reader is powered by the Android 2.1 operating system, like the first edition reader and the Nook Color tablet, the latter of which was recently upgraded to Android 2.2.