E-book vs real book

E-book vs a real book

Is it better to read on an e-book reader or using a real book instead? This problem is really common nowadays as more and more things are  replaced by electric devices. Both of them have advantages but disadvantages as well so listing them precisely and comparing can help to choose between the two.

First of all, portability must be mentioned. Real books can be really heavy, especially when more than one have to be carried and they contain hundreds or thousands of pages. They can be damaged easily, even from a small force (a dropped bag or a collision with a person). However, and e-book reader is much lighter and thinner. A protective case is highly recommended for the device, as this way it is safe to carry it anywhere.

Secondly, financials are a really important point of choosing between the two. An average book costs about 3000 to 4000 forints. If someone is an average bookworm, who likes to read but not obsessively then he or she reads about 2-3 books in a month, which means minimum 6000 forints per month. The lowest price of an e-book reader is about 20000 forints and thousand books can be downloaded to it, which means its cost returns fast. But an important disadvantage is that there are still a lot of books which can not be found in an e-book format, unfortunately.

Last but not least, there is an aspect that is really important for pure book lovers, which is the feeling. Buying a new, crunchy book, holding it as carefully as people hold a newborn baby, opening it for the first time and inhaling that ’’book smell” are things which are too gentle to leave behind for a long time. That one second of pushing the power button on an e-book reader can not be compared to this.

All in all, the reason why it is really hard to choose between the two is that both of them have really strong and significant benefits but also disadvantages, but by listing them, it becomes more clear which one is better for a person’s needs.

Hellenpárt Anna & Gór Eszter