eBooks Versus Printed Books
The Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, part of the New York Public Library system, holds about 15 million items, including medieval manuscripts, Japanese scrolls, other historical texts, plus contemporary books.
Despite misleading reporting to the contrary, printed books aren’t disappearing. In fact, in the United States, print books far surpass eBooks in popularity. Some analyses put the total sales revenue for print books as high as 75% compared to eBooks.
The eBook versus printed boom debate has raged since the introduction of eBooks. Without taking a position as to which format is “better,” let’s look at some of the realities in terms of the pros and cons of each format.
eBook Pros
Skimming. eBooks are well-suited for scrolling through without spending much time devoted entirely to the text.
Usability. Some users find the ability to increase the font size a big plus. But screen quality does very greatly from device to device. See eBook Cons #11 below.
Links. With some types of subject matter, the links to other sources can be useful (see eBook Cons #3 below).
Multimedia. eBooks can provide multimedia features and elements that obviously cannot be provided in a printed book.
Storage. According to the AmazonDeveloper website, the largest Kindle Fire (an e-reader device) has 32 GB of usable storage space. This can hold (roughly) 16,000 books. This means that a device about the size of one small, printed book takes up 16,000× less space than the same number of printed books. And carrying an e-reader or phone around is certainly easier than carrying a printed book.
Eco–Friendly. Obviously for printed books you need paper, which requires the trees used to create the paper. No such concerns with eBooks.
Instant Availability. eBooks lend themselves to spontaneous purchases: Suddenly need to plan a trip to the Maldives? Go online, find a book, buy it, and you’re set. No waiting for delivery of a printed book.
Lower Cost per Unit. Compared to printed books. eBooks are typically 50–60% lower in price, but see eBook Cons #15, below. Also, there is an initial investment for the device itself, which can get pricey depending on the features.
eBook Cons
Where am I? There really isn’t a practical way of knowing how close you are to completing the book since it’s really just one huge file (see Printed Book Pros, #1 below). Devices generally show either a percentage or an arcane or otherwise undecipherable screen number.
Random Notes. While there are generally ways of inserting bookmarks, with some devices there is no option for inserting notes or comments.
Links. With some types of subject matter, links to ads or other sites can be a real problem, adding unnecessary distractions. This is particularly problematic with complex text.
Lending. With rights and permissions issues, it can be difficult or impossible to “lend” a book to someone else since often the holder of the license can only use it on their own device. You technically do not “own” eBooks (see eBook Cons #11 and Printed Book Pros, #3 below). And if you change devices, the eBook may not be transferrable to the new device.
Usability. Although many devices have screens with settings for low light or that are intended to reduce glare, experts unquestionably agree that eBooks contribute to eye strain.
Functionality. With a printed book, the top of page 165 will always be the top of page 165. This is not the case with an eBook. If the user is reading on a phone, turning it sideways or changing the font size can cause the pages to shift, making finding specific places more difficult than with a physical book. What was on page 165 yesterday might not be there today. This is a hot topic among eBook fans, since there are often ways of bookmarking text. And while there are also searches that can be done, neither of these processes is perfect (see Printed Book Pros, #1 below).
In-Depth Study. Similar to social media and online activities in general, eBooks present the user with too many potential distractions to allow for focused, in-depth study for long periods of time (see Printed Book Pros, #4 below).
Academic Use (Authors). A major gripe among scholarly authors is that citing a page in an eBook for a reference is a problem, since the pages aren’t static and the numbering can change from device to device.
Are You Off the Grid? Using any type of e-reader will at the very least require charging capabilities and in some cases the user may have to be online. Using an e-reader might not be easy depending on your location (see Printed Book Pros #5 below).
Safety. This aspect is two-fold. First, losing a printed book is bad, but losing a device holding thousands of books is obviously far worse. Second, most devices must be connected online to access the eBook, which increases the possibility of your user information being shared indiscriminately.
Ownership. When you pay for an eBook, you are merely buying a license to use it: you do not actually own it. There may be limitations with regard to on which devices it can be used. Losing your device could cause a lot of problems in terms of accessing what you have paid for. According to Amazon’s Kindle license agreement, Amazon “reserves the right to modify, suspend, or discontinue” their service “at any time” without “liability.” This means that books can actually disappear from your Kindle without notice.
Lifespan. The format isn’t really mature enough to have an accurate idea of how long any given device will last. And even if you can afford to replace a device, in many cases you may lose the content from the old device, as the license might not be transferrable.
Founded in 1925, Argosy Books in New York is a world-famous source for old, rare, out-of-print, or otherwise hard-to-find titles in all subjects. It is a great place to browse.
Printed Book Pros
No Computer Skills Required. Although devices have become more user friendly over time, there will always be a segment of the population who has difficulties navigating any type of device. Printed books obviously present no such challenges.
Where am I? With a printed book, one can get a sense of where they are in terms of progress. When I read a very long book, it seems daunting at first. But as I continue reading I can gauge where I am by how many pages I see are left. Another aspect of this involves visual–spatial memory. Often readers are aware that they can find a particular passage based on where it appeared in the text, like “near the top of page 165 below the picture of a tree.” This visual–spatial memory also helps us remember aspects of the text itself. This isn’t possible with an eBook.
Random Notes. Many people like to write comments or underline text in books as they read. With a printed book this is possible.
Lending. Once a user buys a book, it’s theirs to keep, lend, give away, or even sell (the used book market is big business all over the world).
In-Depth Study and Comprehension. Unlike eBooks, printed books are better suited for focused reading, which may be required with complex text or while studying. According to a study performed in Italy in 2014 (cited on mindfloss.com), readers of print books “absorb and remember more of the plot” than readers of eBooks. In another study, readers of a short story on an e-reader were less engaged and had a “harder time remembering the exact order of the events.”
Are You Off the Grid? Reading a physical book requires no additional equipment other than the light needed to see the page. No chargers, Wi-Fi, batteries, or phone signal are required. You can read to your heart’s content no matter where you are.
Tactile Experiences. One of chief arguments of advocates of printed books has always been that they “like to feel the page.” I would add to this the sensation of cracking open a new book, which has a newness and attraction that is due in part to a high-quality typesetting and print job. A printed book seems more important than an eBook, which is just another file, and which usually looks identical to the last one you read.
Printed Book Cons
Not Eco-Friendly. Although most books are now printed on paper obtained from sustainable sources or on recycled paper, it’s still a bit of a stretch to maintain that anything printed is actually eco-friendly.
Delivery. Although retailers such as Amazon have greatly increased the speed with which they deliver, there will still be a waiting time to dive into the latest book you bought. Whether it means traveling to a book store to make a purchase or ordering online, there will be a waiting period. This is not the case with eBooks, where delivery is instantaneous.
Storage and Portability. Anyone who lives in a relatively small home with limited storage is aware that bookshelves can be filled quickly (see eBook Pros #3 above). Lugging around a big book can also be an issue.
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