The role books play in our life is so vital and at the same time obvious, that there is no need to explain it. However, the question of what type of book to choose – an eBook or a traditional paper one – has been actively discussed all over the world for the past years. One of the most common arguments voiced is that owning print books feels different from owning eBooks. You might agree with this statement or not, but there are multiple advantages of ebooks.
What Is an EBook?
You might be surprised, but an eBook is just the same good old book everyone is used to, but in a new form – electronic. After its emergence, the life of bookworms who can’t imagine a day without reading has changed forever. Today, the eBook is gaining serious traction on a global scale. Initially planned for special e-readers like Kindle, today this format is compatible with a wide range of different devices. Besides, modern technology even allows designing your own electronic books with the help of eBook creator to suit any purpose you may have. And now let’s see what are other advantages of eBooks.
1. EBooks Save Trees
Indeed, this is a truly eco-friendly option, and not only because of trees. Electronic books make a significant contribution to lowering the environmental impact publishing houses, and printing industry in general, make. And the more people would switch to the eBook, the more benefits for nature it would bring.
2. Portability and Convenience
To read an eBook, you can use an eBook reader, smartphone, tablet or PC: no matter what variant you choose, it’s small and lightweight. It easily fits into your pocket or backpack, so you can take it along wherever you go.
3. Good for the Eyes
Many people have their specifics in terms of reading and eyesight. With eBooks, you can select a reading mode that is the most suitable for your eyes. For instance, you can set font type as well as increase or reduce its size; choose a single or double space test format, adjust brightness etc.
4. Capacity
One printed book is heavy enough. And what if you need to carry five books or, say, even 10?
EBooks provide a very convenient solution for this situation: now, you can carry a whole library in your pocket and no need for extra luggage during your trip any more.
5. Saving Shelf Space
Those of us who are not proud owners of big houses with a separate spacious room serving as a library, are very well familiar with the problem when they literally have no space for their books. When you switch to the electronic format, this problem automatically disappears.
6. Cost Efficiency
Sometimes, traditional physical books are very expensive without any apparent reason. It happens that the high price of a book makes it unaffordable for many people worldwide. eBooks require fewer resources to produce than physical books: no paper printing, no paperback covers, no packaging cost and no shipping cost. As a result, they are much cheaper.
7. Mastering Foreign Languages
Many people enjoy reading books in languages other than their mother tongue. However, there are two major problems here. Firstly, in some places finding a foreign book is a mission impossible. Secondly, looking up unfamiliar words in a dictionary takes too much time and is extremely inconvenient for the process of reading. EBooks easily eliminate both these issues. This is one of the major advantages of ebooks.
8. Free Books
First thing’s first: book piracy is a very bad thing, both from moral and legal perspectives. And we strongly advise against resorting to it under any pretext. Yet, on the Internet, there are loads of different books that are legally available for free.
9. Unlimited Access to Books
Probably, anyone can think of a time when they desperately needed a concrete book and were not able to find it in bookstores or libraries. With eBooks, you can find and download any book you need in a couple of seconds regardless of geographical location or country of origin. The electronic format has opened the door to the global book collection without any limitations.
10. Maximum Comfort
Let’s be honest – we all enjoy reading in bed or while eating something tasty or simply drinking a morning cup of coffee. While you need to be cautious with printed books not to stain or damage them, with eBooks you can relax and enjoy reading without having to worry about such things.
Final Words
Recent surveys show that the majority of readers globally still prefer traditional books over electronic ones. Yet, there appears to be a clear-cut tendency towards the growing number of those who switch to the electronic format. The key point is that conventional books don’t seem to have any real advantages over eBooks other than the sentiment we associate with them, which wears off very quickly after the transition. Our preference for physical books is nothing more than an old habit.