E-book or real book – Which is better?

An E-book is a major breakthrough that has made reading much easier for book lovers. Now, readers do not need to visit a book shop to buy their favourite books. Instead, a few mouse clicks can help them to read books easily. Indeed, the invention of the e-book has renewed the habit of reading. Furthermore, with the advent of various electronic reading devices such as Kindle, Nook and i-pad, e-book’s popularity has gained momentum.

Many avid readers love reading books while travelling. However, it is not always easy to read a voluminous book while travelling. First of all, it is hard to carry a book all the time and most importantly, it is not always possible to hold a book firmly and read it, especially when a person is travelling in a crowded bus or train. Now, all such reading devices have given such voracious readers a reason to cheer. These devices are usually very handy and therefore, carrying them is not a big deal. Furthermore, these devices come with many features, including an expanded memory that can store as many as 1500 books at a time, easy book searching and downloading options, easy navigation systems for turning pages and increasing the font size and many more. Some people also think e-books are a better option than real books as they are environment friendly.

No doubt, all these advancements have given our reading habit a new lease of life.

Now the question is – whether the popularity of the e-book has sounded the death knell for the printed version? While it is true that the electronic reading devices can lead to a decrease in the publication of books, but it may be noted that these devices consume energy and tend to increase the consumption of electricity. Thus, e-books are not completely environment friendly.

It does not seem that e-books will soon take the place of real books in India where many people are still computer illiterate and internet connection is yet to become a reality in a number of places. The steep price of e-books is another matter to contend with. It is doubtful whether it will be possible for common Indians to afford electronic reading devices just for reading books.

No doubt, we need to wait and watch whether e-books can take precedence over real books in our country. However, there is no denying the fact that nothing compares with the joy of reading a real book lying on the bed.