Given that it’s a new year, and
many of us received tech gadgets for Christmas, I wonder just how many asked
and got an eBook reader. There are many versions by which you can access
eBooks; Kindles, Tablets, Mobiles, and many more versions of ‘Kindle-type’
formats.
For several years now there has
been a discussion about whether to read printed copies or eBooks. Many argue
that eBooks are more practical in
the modern day to carrying a heavy book, whereas some say that there’s a comforting feeling about the smell and
feel of a paper book. Here, this post will weigh up the pros and cons of the
eBook.
Pros
1. Portability. An eBook reader is super light and can store
hundreds of books. Taking your ten favourite hardcover books on holiday with
you is not so easy but it is no challenge at all when having the electronic
versions of them.
2. Environment. When printing books there are a lot of resources
used, such as paper, ink, electricity and more. For producing an eBook you
simply need a few computers to edit the document and it’s done.
3. Free books. Many websites offer a whole load of eBooks at no
cost. So for those looking for anything to read, the eBook could be for you.
4. Sharing via
social media. We tend to share a lot these
days on pages like Facebook, Twitter and Google+. When an eBook reader is
connected with the Internet your friends can “read” along with you.
5. Technology. It evolves drastically and rapidly. How wonderful is
it that so many books are available electronically? You can do the same things
with an eBook reader as with a normal book: underline, mark and annotate.
Cons
1. It’s already
been done. By this I mean, there are
already quite a few companies that have entered this market already with all
their different gadgets and eBooks and formats.
2. Costs. Many readers can cost from £60-200. You have to have
a reader to make it possible to read your eBooks.
3. Real books
give ease of access. For
example, if you are trying to read many books at once, for work, university and
more, then opening and closing several books on an eBook reader can take time. A
little fiddly.
4. Connection. Sounds simple because you can buy and download it
directly from the eBook reader. But you need an Internet connection to do so.
If there is none available, well then, you can’t read! Hm.
5. A real book
lasts a lifetime. A real book
won’t break. It doesn’t need to be charged. You can’t erase any pages or do
anything else wrong with it.
The decision was definitely
difficult but at the end of the day the comforting and traditional aspect of a
paper book won me over. Although eBooks give you the ease of access to many
books at once, there’s nothing like holding a real book and losing yourself to
the book.
What do
you think about eBooks? Do you have an eBook reader already or is that
something you would never consider to buy?
Written by Megan McCoig
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