Lately, I have read and listened to multiple conspiratory theories about “ebooks dying”, so I wanted to ask around if people thought that it was true or not. Happily, I got some reassurance that we are good and that ebooks are still a thing. (Thank God because I have like 55 yet to read).

Then, after I tweeted about my “concern”, I read an article on Medium trying to prove that ebooks are not good at all, and I got some comments stating that ebooks are the paria of reading, which at no point was the question. However, I am glad for all the comments and to see what readers like and dislike. I even got an author telling us what they thought about ebooks and DRM.

I don’t get why people fight about this, but it is a constant pushback about why paper books are better than ebooks. So, I would like to go through some “arguments” regarding this constant and illogical fight.

Do you really think that ereading and ebooks… are dying??#FridayThoughts #FridayFeeling

— 👑Inkish Kingdoms 🦄🦌⚜️ (@inkishkingdoms) August 2, 2019

#1: You can break your ebook if you drop it

I don’t believe that I can physically break an ebook since it is not tangible. I think they meant my “ereader”. Yes, if I drop my ereader it might get damaged but I think that plastic is a bit more resilient than paper, which has been a problem.

#2: It can run out of battery a book won’t

Yes, you are completely right. Although it will take around 3 weeks to die, and I don’t think that any of us will regularly take 3 weeks to finish a book without realizing that the battery is low.

#3: It can get too hot, it’s part of the “plastic/electronic” problem

I have never ever experienced an “overheating” of an ereader. Have any of you? Like the device is quite simple and design to open and download files that weight around 3 MB… so why would it overhead?

#4: You can read a book in the sun

True… and I can read in the sun with a “glare-free” ereader. All the Amazon ereaders have that.

#5: It’s burnable

Well… yes… most ereaders are plastic, and I think that if I put it on a hot surface and head it to a 100 degree (Celcius) it will burn, and if I am not mistaken… a physical book is made of paper which is way more burnable than an ereader. They even used them to lit bonfires… the horror…

#6: Ereaders are not lighter than a paperback book

Excuse me but they are! The Kindle Paperwhite weighs 182 g and, again, ebooks don’t have a weight since they are not tangible. I also google the average weight of a paper book and I found this:

The weight of a book depends on how large the book is. A standard paperback novel is about 6 by 9 inches. Assuming a length of 300 pages, that equates to about 15.6 ounces on average.

15.6 ounces is 442.25 g., so a book weights double the weight of a Kindle. These are just the facts.

#7: You are “locked” to one machine & if you forget it, you have no books.

This is so true! If I get out of my house without my ereader, I will have nothing to read! Unless, I use my reading app on my phone that syncs with my ereader (You know plan B). And if I only read physical books and I forget my book, then I will still have nothing to read… except for Plan B.

#8: You can ALWAYS buy books everywhere.

Yes, as long as I go to a bookstore, I can get a book! Hopefully, I live next to the bookstore, if not, I will have to take an Uber, bus, taxi, or train to get there. I can order it online and wait for USPS to deliver it too! Or I can just buy it on my phone and start reading the ebook right there and there.

#9: You’re staring at an “electronic” device. You’re always “connected”.

True, I will be staring at an electronic device as we all do with our phones, TVs, and tablets. I will always be connected unless I use the plane mode and have some self-control and decide to read and be happy with it.

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Those are the arguments that I was given and my counter-arguments, but bottom line… who cares what is better and what is worst? What matters is that we all read.

How you do it is not important. The important part is enjoying the adventure of reading, not sweating about what is better and what is worst and trying to prove it.

I read all kind of books. I am a book junkie, so you like only paper books? Well, that is fine! You only read ebooks? That is fine too. As long as you read or listen that is what we all should give mind too…

Edited and re-uploaded.