The Benefits Of Reading Printed Books Versus Ebooks

There have been countless debates around the subject of ebooks and books and which is better. But scientists agree that books are superior. They agree that the pros and cons of books outweigh those of ebooks. Books have many benefits, starting with the fact that they improve focus. Ebooks have a tendency to distract from the book with dictionaries and links. Books have no such thing. With books, our progress is tangible, which has a tendency to make people want to finish the book. Those late nights under the blankets with the flashlight, hiding from your parents? Acting asleep when they walk by the bedroom? Yeah, those sound familiar. 

Those nights where the book must give up all its secrets before sleep comes? Definitely remember those days. Not necessarily good for your sleep pattern but relaxing and comforting all the same. On the topic of sleep, An article titled Drop That Kindle says, “Print books are better for your health. A Harvard Medical School study last year found that reading a light-emitting e-book before bed interferes with your ability to sleep, with your alertness the following morning, and with your overall health.”

Print books last longer than ebooks or kindles. A book you bought five years ago is still readable today, and will still be readable 20 years in the future. However, an ebook or Kindle may not be compatible with technology 20 years in the future. Also, if you drop an electronic device in any body of water, they become unusable. If you drop a book in water, you can just dry it out, either by air-drying or blow dryer drying (Drop that Kindle!). Books are thief resistant. If a copy of A Wrinkle in Time is left in the car, there is about a 95% chance it will still be there after the trip into Walmart. Your kindle, ebook, or phone? Not so much security (Ferrer, Drop That Kindle!).

Print books can be taken anywhere, especially extremely long car trips. Personal experience there. Most ebooks, kindles, and phones require the internet to function properly.Not so great for going off the grid/dropping off the face of the earth (Ferrer). Books can be reused, regifted, or returned. They can be used as decorations, use them as gifts for friends, or donate them to the local library or community center. Ebooks are permanently stuck in your device (Ferrer). Books are also something personal. That little note in the margin from 3rd grade? Yup, remember that. That reference to another book at the top of the page from senior year of high school? That sounds familiar. Ebooks just don't allow the personalization and ownership that books do (Ferrer).

Books have far less problems than ebooks. Some of the problems of ebooks are listed here. This is a quote by David Ferrer: “Ebooks are hard on the eyes, at least when read from tablets, phones, or conventional computer screens. Regular books don’t cause eye-strain that ebooks do. Some E-Readers have “low light” and “no glare” screens. That’s good, but even these are hard to read in direct sunlight. With regular books, that’s not a problem.” On the subject of technology, books never run into tech problems, such as software updates, power failures, dead batteries or glitches. They also don’t need batteries or a charger (Ferrer). Ed Reinoso, a person who is pursuing a career in IST: Design and Development with a minor in Digital Entrepreneurs, said: “Ebooks have to run applications and devices, and these sometimes might be able to crash or freeze. Plus, for some other people it is really hard to focus on reading when they have the temptation to open up other applications and start doing something else. In the end, it is not productive.”

Ebooks aren’t as good for things like school projects. In an article by David Ferrer, he wrote, “If you are in the thick of a research paper and you need to have five different books open at once, physical books afford that option. But your E-Reader or your phone does not. On a tablet or computer screen, you can keep separate “tabs” for different books, provided they are all on different sites. But the more tabs you have open, the slower your computer will run, and the more likely it will crash. Physical books don’t have a hard drive, so you can “tab” as many locations as you want (i.e., dog-ear the corner), and they will never crash.”

But some people may argue that ebooks are better than books. Here’s some of the “problems” raised and solutions to the “problems” argued. Ebooks are thinner and lighter and fit better in backpacks, but most schools don't allow devices in class. Try spreading them out over your backpack, squeezing them into those little spaces, or sticking them in your lunch box. Been there, done that. Next “problem”.

People argue that digital dictionaries and things like that are helpful for when you don’t understand a word, but they can also be distracting (Ferrer). Look the word up in a dictionary or ask a knowledgeable adult. It will help keep you focused. This got covered earlier didn’t it? Next “problem”. E-books can be customized to make them easier to read, such as font size and style. Many people find this convenient. But this wasn’t always an option. It is better to read books and wear glasses if needed than to adjust font size and style and cause eye problems with the blue light. This one isnt necicarly a solution, but it’s better for your health.

Another argument is that once it gets dark, books become unreadable, but ebooks continue to shine. Grab a flshlight and crawl under those blankets. Blue light in the darkness hurts your eyes more than reading a book with a bright flashlight. As a quick recap, scientists agree that books are better than ebooks. The pros of books outweigh the pros of ebooks, and the cons of ebooks are more numerous than the cons of books, because the book cons have solutions. In Conclusion, put down the device and grab a paperback. It just might make your day.