Listen, I have a Nook Color and do enjoy it, but you are absolutely kidding yourself here.
First off:
They are both very good Android units and the only 2 viable Honeycomb devices on the market now.
Nookie Honeycomb is nowhere near being "viable". It is a work in progress, and while decent, it is extremely buggy, and many features don't work. Definately a niche developer market willing to put up with the alpha build status.
I had a Xoom in my hand at BestBuy on the 24th and just could not convince myself to pay $800+ just to surf the webz, check e-mail and play some Angry Birds or SNES/NES ROM's (the NC is great for running Emulators). Different strokes for different folks.
This I'll agree with you. The Xoom, or iPad, or Sony Vaio ultraportable laptop, or Acer netbook, or Alienware XPS super roswell edition are all products that cater to different people. Some feel certain products are worth more, other don't. Sounds like your activity doesn't warrant the increased price of a higher end tablet, for YOU. But that doesn't mean that others will agree with you. Try to see opinions from other angles. Even if you just want to do the activities described, keep in mind the Xoom will deliver a better experience with lightning quick performance due to dual processors, more memory, better GPU, etc. If a better experience seems worthwhile to spend more money, then maybe a Xoom would be a better choice. After all, 15 million people sprung to buy iPads, partially because the overall user experience is very positive. Even though they have basic same functionality as a rooted Nook Color.
I think alot of Xoom owners are getting very defensive about their purchase as the newness has wore off and they may be having buyers remorse right now. It's a cool device but the NC does the basic functionality at a fraction of the price, IMO.
I also think many may have envy towards an obviously superior product.
The Nook Color is a fantastic value, but also not viable for most consumers as an Android tablet. It only has this capability after rooting and installing hacks to enable some basic functionality that should be present in many other tablets (Softkeys, for instance). That is not a knock on the product, just the facts. Most consumers aren't going to even consider this as an option. The mod community loves this kind of stuff, but support is only there while it's hot.
So lets stop the bickering and realize that while the Nook Color is a great value, it's also a crippled out of the box, and some pretty great functionality can be enabled with some modifications.
The Xoom on the OTH, costs up to 3X more, but has higher res bigger screen, dual processors, more memory, HDMI out, LTE upgrade, better software implementation, and much better out-of-the box functionality, comes complete with manufacturers support and updates, along with full warranty. Only you can decide if those extra features and performance is worth the extra money.
I don't sometimes understand peoples defensive nature. A netbook and high end laptop also do the same basic functionality, but the high end laptop costs 3x-4x more. Do people bicker over that, too?
Disclaimer:
I have a Nook Color and will be buying a Moto Xoom Wifi when available, unless another tablet catches my eye by release date.
