Ebook sales are at an all time high, and the numbers keep rising. It seems in this world that people are either completely for or completely against ebooks and ereaders. Personally, I read both physical books and ebooks, whatever is more convenient for me at the time. Of course, there are pros and cons to each. Below is a list that details just some of these aspects. Read these over, then hit the comments with your own pros and cons!

Print

Pros

• The texture and feel of a book. This is one of the biggest arguments I hear for the perseverance of physical books. “I just like they way they feel in my hand!”

  

• They fill a library, which can be both decorative and a great conversation piece. I love my massive bookcases. They’re the first thing you see when you come into my house, and they never fail to get a reaction.
• THE SMELL! I love the smell of a new book. Come’on, admit it. You can’t go into a bookstore without taking a deep whiff either.
• You can buy used books. I LOVE going to yard sales and flea markets and perusing the books. There’s something happy about filling up a plastic shopping bags with paperbacks and only paying 3 bucks.
• They’re conversation starters. You see someone is reading the same book that you just finished, and you start talking about it. This is one way us nerdy people make friends

Cons

• Books can be cumbersome. I read a lot of epic fantasy. These books can sometimes weigh in at a multiple pounds (1200 pages, AUG!). That’s a couple of extra pounds in my bag that’s weighing down my shoulder.
• Books take up lot of room. Unless you have a nice place to store books, you can’t keep them all. Not everyone has the room or can afford to maintain a library.
• They’re made of paper. Paper tears. Paper wrinkles. Paper gets eaten by mischievous little puppies (Twinkie, our middle child, had an affinity for eating paperbacks when she was a puppy).
• People will judge you for what you’re reading. “Oh, you’re reading Twilight? That’s so three years ago. You should be reading Hunger Games! It’s like 47 times better.”
• They’re conversation starters. Wait, what? Didn’t I list that as a Pro? Well, it’s true that this can be a con as well. Sometimes, I just want to read. If you see that I’m reading and you want to talk to me about that book, there might be a good chance that I just grunt at you because I JUST WANT TO READ. Don’t talk to me.

Ebooks

Pros

• The books are relatively cheap, sometimes even free! My Kindle is loaded with stuff that I would have never bought otherwise.

  

• They’re portable. It’s nice that I can just toss one in my bag and it’s not too heavy. They’re great for long trips where all you have to take for entertainment is your ereader, and you’ll have multiple books to read!
• They’re anonymous. You can read whatever you want in public and no one will judge you for reading Fifty Shades of Grey (though if you blush easily, that may give it away).
• E-ink/E-paper is great. I love being able to adjust my fonts. When I’m working out on my stationary bike or treadmill, the HUGE fonts I can use make for a more enjoyable workout.
• Instant gratification. If a friend tells you about the awesome book they just finished and you want to read it immediately, but don’t live near a big box bookstore, then you’re out of luck unless you have an ereader. You just download the book and begin reading. Maybe your friend doesn’t have the greatest taste. Heck, you can even download a sample for free first to see if you want to purchase the book.

Cons

• The ereaders themselves are a bit pricey. While the prices of the Kindle has gone down with each version, they’re still $100+
• Although durable, they are breakable. I’ve been lucky. I have dropped my kindle and only cracked the case, but it could have been catastrophic. Also, you have to make sure that they are nice and secured when traveling with them. Screens can get crushed, and then you’re out not only your reading materials, but out of money as well. This goes back to the con about price. They are pricey to replace.
• You will get questions. This situation doesn’t happen as much as it used to since more and more people are getting ereaders. But it still happens. I usually get something along the lines of “Oh my, is that a Kindle? Do you like it? I don’t think I’d like it. I like reading REAL books too much. What do you think about it? Does it give you headaches? I’ve been thinking about getting one for my nephew. He’s seven, do you think he’ll like it?”
• There aren’t page numbers on all ereaders, and it’s more difficult to flip back and forth between “pages.” Perhaps you wanted to reread the prologue after something happens in the main story? You can use the table of contents to jump back and forth, but you may lose your exact place and spend several minutes pressing the “next page” button trying to figure it out.
• One-Click buying. Ebook dealers make it almost too easy to purchase books. If you have no control over your spending, you can easily go over your book budget. And sometimes, those books are just going to “sit” there. Click Responsibly.

The truth of the matter is that neither of these mediums is going anywhere soon. You are free to prefer which ever, but please don’t be critical of others who chose the other.

Do you have additional Pros and cons for print or digital books? Hit the comments and tell us!