Monday 27 July 2015

Ebooks or physical books?

Ebooks verses real books, possibly the most controversial debate in the book lovers' world. Personally, I love both for different reasons. It is simply just a matter of what suits you best. Here is my break down of the two and the pros/cons for each...



EBOOKS:

(Pros:)
Convenience: Buying the book becomes so much easier. You don't have to go out to a bookstore and search for the book, with the chance of the book not even being there. All I have to do is search the title, buy it and it is there to read within seconds. 

Portability: I have to travel back and forth between my parent's houses most nights. This makes it really difficult to carry around a couple of books at a time. Ebooks take away the weight and space a real book would require. The device holds thousands of books while being compact and light. 

Reading in the dark: I love to read most while I'm in bed at night. With my ereader, I can adjust the screen brightness and lay in the pitch black, while still being able to read. Plus, I can be lazy and not have to get up and turn the light off. 

Ebook prices: Ebooks are almost always cheaper than real books(with some exclusions obviously). There are also a lot of pretty good free books.

The temptation to skip ahead: I have always been the type of person to read ahead of where I am up to. Reading an ebook eliminates my urge to skip ahead and ruin the surprise for myself. I feel like this way I can enjoy the content of the story more and keep the agonising but thrilling suspense alive.

(Cons:)
The initial cost: Ereaders can be pretty pricey. My Kobo was $230. Although it's an investment with the cheaper ebooks, it still takes a while to save the money you initially spend on the device. 

Battery dependant: When I am in the middle of a riveting chapter, the last thing I want is for my Kobo to die. I give it some credit, the battery life is incredible. But at some point it needs to be charged. Whereas, real books don't require energy.

Black and white: Most ereaders contain no colour, taking away the beauty of the book covers. It doesn't bother me that much, but I know it bothers some people. 


PHYSICAL BOOKS:

(Pros:)
The feel and look: Although it's not a big deal to me, I love actually holding a physical book. Turning the pages, seeing your progress in physical form rather than statistics, the overall feel of holding a book is amazing to some people. Ebooks don't give that sort of satisfaction.

Book covers: Actual books do the covers justice. You get to see the beautiful colours in all their glory. 

More durable: You don't have to be as careful with a hard copy than an ebook device. With a physical book, you don't have a screen that can break or a electronic device to damage. It's a whole lot easier and cheaper to replace one book that a pricey ereader. 

(Cons:)
Can be bulky/take up space: It becomes quite difficult to travel with too many books. If I'm going away, I don't want to be book limited because I can't fit them or they are too heavy. 

Sometimes expensive: I prefer the look of hard back to paper back books. I feel like they are so much nicer and not as breakable. With that said, they are often more than $30 here in Australia. I don't want to pay that much unless I absolutely love the book. 



What do I prefer?

BOTH!!! It doesn't matter how I am reading, just that I AM reading. Whether it be ebook or hard copy, it is still the same story. 



Do you prefer ebooks or real books?


∆ Keep reading, Bri xx



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