I think your comparison is more than a little narrow. The Nook and the iPad are marginally similar but not really comparable devices. There's a reason why one has been far more successful than the other, and no, I'm not referring to any sort of "magic" or ephemeral voodoo.
But there's a larger point to be made in that I think your comments reflect a common attitude among many nerds - this obsession with specs. Most consumers don't make purchasing decisions based on a giant list of specs. Maybe you feel they should and they're stupid for not doing so, but that just isn't the reality of the market. And many manufactures, as well as Google, are starting to realize they simple can't put a faster processor and more memory in their products and expect to compete with Apple. Google in particular is putting a lot more effort in to the "polish" and overall "experience" of using Android devices. I know these are dirty words for some, but they reflect the market realities of how consumers make purchasing decisions. And I think it's a good move that will help Android increase it's market share even further.
I am not denying the "experience" factor. You are right that most consumers don't care about specs at that detailed a level - they do care in general at high level about it, i.e. screen sizes and storage space etc. but that is besides the point.
What I am pointing out is that it is possible to produce and sell a device that can compete with the iPad on specs and experience - the original article said nobody else could sell a device matching the specs of the iPad at $500. It clearly is possible and with Honeycomb improving the experience the software part is also covered - mostly for free to Android tablet device makers.
But there's a larger point to be made in that I think your comments reflect a common attitude among many nerds - this obsession with specs. Most consumers don't make purchasing decisions based on a giant list of specs. Maybe you feel they should and they're stupid for not doing so, but that just isn't the reality of the market. And many manufactures, as well as Google, are starting to realize they simple can't put a faster processor and more memory in their products and expect to compete with Apple. Google in particular is putting a lot more effort in to the "polish" and overall "experience" of using Android devices. I know these are dirty words for some, but they reflect the market realities of how consumers make purchasing decisions. And I think it's a good move that will help Android increase it's market share even further.