E-books vs. Paper Books

Do you enjoy reading books? There are two ways to read a book. One of them is reading e-books, and the other is reading paper books. I will explain the advantages and disadvantages of each way.

Here are some of the advantages of reading e-books. First, e-books are very cheap. The prices of e-books are 50%~60% lower than those of paper books. Second, they are eco-friendly. They don’t require any trees to create. We can save 8 million trees and many animals in the forest, if we all start using e-books. Third, you can easily use the search engine on your tablet without leaving your desk! You don’t have to move your body, just move your fingers to search for anything you want on the tablet. Fourth, they take up less space. You don’t need to buy a bookshelf to store e-books. You can download as many books as you want on a small device as thin and small as a children’s book.

However, there are some disadvantages as well. First, LCD screens cause eye strain. The pain will distract us from fully focusing on our tasks. Second, we cannot appreciate a book cover or enjoy the smell of a paper book. Many people still prefer traditional paperbacks to enjoy the tactile sensation, which cannot be delivered through e-books. Third, we need to charge the tablet. It’s a hassle to have it charged every day.

Paper books have their own pros and cons too. First, it’s easier to read thicker and darker words in print. Also, our eyes are less exposed to harm when we read a paper book. Second, we can enjoy the illustrations in the book. They help us to understand stories better as well. Third, we can share the books we have. If we use e-books, it will be harder to share them because we will have to lend our tablets to others or give out our accounts. Fourth, we can use books to decorate our rooms.

There are more than three disadvantages of using paper books. First, they are heavy to carry around. You can’t bring many books with you when you go on a trip. Second, organizing books in a bookshelf can be dreadful. Organizing all the books you have is tiring and takes a long time. Finally, we need a bright place to read a paper book. Reading paper books in the dark can make your eye sight worse.

These are some of the facts I found out about e-books and paper books. What are your opinions on them? And which ones are more familiar to you?