eBooks vs. Printed Books, The Pros and Cons
Clearly Reef Road Publishing is in favor of printed books over eBooks. Nonetheless let’s consider the pros and cons of both eBooks and printed books. Let’s begin with our favorite.
Print/Paper Books
Pro’s
- Books don’t need the internet or a power supply
- Books get you away from all that screen use, the light from an eBook is known to affect a person’s ability to sleep at night.
- Reading books make for a tangible experience (you feel the paper, the cover, the spine, and can smell a book for a memorable and enjoyable experience)
- Books benefit the writer as authors get a higher royalty for their craft
- Books are less likely to get stolen than a tablet or a phone
- Books can be used to decorate a nightstand and/or a coffee table
- Books can be read easily on the beach, no glare from the sun
- Books eliminate the ability to multi-task (reading an eBook can be disrupted by email and social media notifications)
Cons
- Books do take up a lot of space and can be heavy
- Reading books sitting down and not moving for long periods of time can cause health problems such as obesity or diabetes
- Books can become outdated
Ebooks
Pro’s
- eBooks are portable and good for traveling
- eBooks don’t require physical storage space
- eBooks generally cost less than a printed book
- eBooks are easily updated
- eBooks have a read aloud feature
- eBooks can be interactive/augmented reality
- eBooks are accessible on multiple devices
- eBooks are environmentally friendly
Cons
- eBooks can be pirated / hacked
- Screen reading requires more mental energy, and it can make eBook content harder to retain or memorize
- E readers can be unreliable and could stop working unexpectedly
- eBooks can have licensing restrictions
- eBooks don’t last forever, in the year 8000 will eBooks be able to read by historians?