These past few years, we can constate a significant increase in the use of e-books. For some people it is an important step forward, whereas other people argue the contrary. The essay try to balance the advantages and disadvantages of this phenomenon.
To begin with, it is a well-known fact that nowadays more and more people are using e-books. The thing is that their accessibility is easier and usually free. Indeed, there are many platforms on which you can download for free the book you want to read. For instance, as a student I have access to special websites to do my readings, without having to pay for it. Furthermore, with the improvements of new technologies, there is now specific items to read e-books such as Kindle. It is really practical because you can transport it with you wherever you want. This tool is usually really light to transport, thus you can have with you as much books as you wish without having to care about the weight, whilst it is more complicate for printed books. These are some benefits and reasons to use e-books.
On the other hand, the rise in e-books consumption outlines also some drawbacks. Indeed, it first has a serious impact on bookshops and libraries. With the access of online books, people are buying less printed books. This why – today – many bookstores are closing. Additionally, by using e-books people are spending more time on screens, which represents a danger for people’s eyes. It is quite evident that spending too much time at watching online content can have a negative and irreversible impact on people’s view. Therefore, these disadvantages in the use of online books jeopardize their benefits. As far as I am concerned, I would say that the advantages do not outweigh the drawbacks. It is actually the reverse.
To conclude, even if the development of e-books reading contains many positive aspects, there are substantial disadvantages to their use, which show that the negative aspects of their use outweighs the advantages.