E-Books VS Paper Books. Is one really superior to the other?

So are you a fan of paper books or Ebooks?

We’ve always been trumped by this question. Is one clearly better than the other?

Now your personal preference may be paper or electronic books or maybe you like a bit of both. The general consensus that we have observed is that paper books are still the winner and favourite among people and surpass the demand for ebooks. Why is that? When every other aspect of the word is shifting to digitalization every second of the day? Let’s take a look and see whether there is an actual difference between both kinds.

The Ebook VS paper book standoff!

First, let’s take a look into the more popular choice: paper books.

Why Choose a Paper Book:

1. Physicality: I think we can all agree that the best thing about a paper book is its physicality, the ability to hold it in your hand while reading. To admire the beautiful and richly illustrated covers and don’t forget the smell of paper itself! Also, nothing can beat a beautifully displayed bookshelf. What’s the point of a book collection if you can’t show it off?

2. Share with a friend:

How many times have you shared a book with a friend? Isn’t that one of the best things about reading that once you are done with a book that you fell in love with, you can actually lend it to others. In the case of E-books that isn’t always possible for legal reasons. Another advantage is if you’re looking to let go off some of your collection, lending them to a library is one of the best things you can do.

3. Economical: You may think that an E-book would be cheaper than a paper book and although that is generally true, you have to take into consideration the upfront cost of buying an ebook reader, as a kindle or a tablet perhaps. In the long run, if you’re an avid reader, an e-book may be cheaper, but if you’re an occasional reader, then paper books are the way to go. Also, let’s not forget you can have access to thousands of books through libraries or just borrow from a friend.

4. Annotations:  Are you one of those readers that love making notes in the margins? Or do you have a habit of underlining a difficult word or simply highlighting your favourite excerpt? Although both forms of books will allow you to do this the satisfaction of adding annotations in your own handwriting is something you can’t get with an ebook.

5. No Device Required: No need to worry about buying an ebook reader or more importantly charging your device. Imagine being engrossed in a read and your device running out of charge at the plot twist! Just grab your book and you’re good to go for hours of endless entertainment.

Lets put a hold on the benefits of paper books right here and answer, are ebooks better than paper books?

How does an ebook compare?

1. Accessibility: You can’t deny that with an ebook the biggest advantage is the accessibility. You can download thousands of books without running out of space, no physical storage or a bookshelf required. And you can take your entire collection with you on the go! Imagine taking a hundred books with you on vacation or even your daily commute. Well, reading ebooks gives you that exact flexibility.

2. Immediately Available: Want to read something new? Get it at your fingertips within minutes. With a paper book, you’d have to physically go to a store or wait for it to be delivered but with ebooks, you can buy it right away and start reading. And they never go out of stock!

3. Ease of Reading: There are a number of functionalities available with an ebook reader. you can adjust everything to the brightness of your screen, the font size of the text and much more. No more worrying about reading the tiny text your book has been printed in. And as long as you don’t mind making digital notes, you can add in whatever annotation you desire, bookmark a page or even look up the meaning of difficult words.

4. Cheaper than Paper Books:

Are ebooks cheaper than textbooks? The answer is Yes. As long as you are an avid reader this will be the cheaper option for you. Once you’ve invested in a good e-reader, each book that you purchase will be cheaper than a paperback and now there are a number of websites that actually let you lend ebooks too!

5. Environmental Friendly: Although ebooks and paper books have their own share of adverse environmental impacts but it can be limited to a great extend with shifting to ebooks. Imagine all the paper required to produce a single copy of a book! Although paper can be recycled but that too can make an adverse impact. With an ebook its just the production of the device itself that is affecting the environment, the books themselves are absolutely safe.

So after concluding this debate what is the final verdict? Is one actually better than the other? We don’t think one can be labelled as better than the other. In reality, it would vary from person to person. So what do you prefer? Ebooks vs paper books? Are you now considering shifting to the other type? 

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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