Should You Get a Tablet or E-reader? | Pros & Cons

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Ever since the e-readers came into existence, users have found themselves in a continuous state of confusion, whether to get a tablet or opt for an e-reader. The answer to this query lies within the desired usage. Let’s get it straight, tablet, on the whole, is a more functional device. It is designed to help users deal with numerous activities. On the contrary, an e-reader is a dedicated portable digital reading solution.

In case you’re just out there looking for a simple device that can help take your regular digital reading sessions to a whole new level, going for the e-readers will be a promising choice. However, if you wish to own a portable solution to multiple daily life tasks, including convenient online reading, a tablet is definitely the one you need to go for.

Tablet vs E-book Reader

Let’s have a quick look at the pros and cons of having an e-reader and a tablet. There are various differences between e-readers and tablets the main one is functionality. If your intentions are only buying a device for reading and nothing else the choice is probably easy and you wouldn’t need to read this article, but there are some very useful functions the tablets can offer that e-reader can’t – games, movies, video calls, chats, social media, etc. Let’s dive a bit deeper into this:

Pros of owning an E-Reader

Lightweight
More affordable
No distractions
Long battery life
Pricing
Free books(e-books)
No glare-screen

Cons of owning an E-Reader

Limited functionality
You can’t share e-books
Black and white (not that great for reading magazines)

Pros of owning a Tablet

Rich in functionality
Bundled with apps and elements
Better display(color & resolution)
Useful to entertain children

Cons of owning a Tablet

Generally costs more than an e-reader
A bit heavier than the competitor in focus
Shorter battery life

So which one should you pick? Tablet? E-reader? It’s up to you. The main questions we suggest you answer to yourself before making a decision: Can you focus on reading? How are your eyes? How much extra functionality do you need? When you get to the bottom of these questions the decision will be clear.

Also, another important thing to mention is battery life. On average top e-readers have 30-hours of reading time and tablets on average last around 10-hours, you can, of course, adjust the setting to increase the battery life, but these are the average numbers.

What are the Disadvantages of E-Books?

Yes, it is a true fact that e-books bring home a number of promising advantages, but at the same time, you cannot under look the disadvantages that come along. Having said that, let us quickly look at the list of discomfort that you can expect with a habit of reading e-books.

Not a Great Habit for Visual Health

“Staring on an electronic screen for an extended period can harm your eyesight” we’ve been hearing the same old thing numerous times, and rightly so. Many researchers have come to the conclusion that individuals who stare at a screen all day long run through a series of visual discomfort, and the same is obvious with reading e-books.

Losing your File is a Real Issue

Technical errors are pretty common with electronic devices. In such a situation, if any user fails to back up his/her file, the chances of losing them become more evident.

Worrying Continuously About Battery

It’s designed to last for weeks, but in reality, it lasts 28-30-hours of reading time. Do you remember the last time when you’re forced to plug your physical book to walk through the most exciting part of the story? Sounds irrelevant, right? Well, the scene is common while reading E-Books, something really disrupting. Although they on average last around 30-hours you can increase battery life with some battery-saving tips, like brightness deduction, Bluetooth, etc.

Can Never Get the Book Satisfaction

There is always something special about reading physical books. Whether we talk about turning pages in anticipation or marking out a page for future references, everything feels different and, to be honest, better while you’re holding a book for real.

Are Tablets Good for E-Book Reading?

Although e-book readers indeed excel at minimalist design and simple display, which corresponds to a promising reading experience, the computing power of tablets makes them a good choice for reading as well. There are many brilliantly built tablets that pack amazing displays to allow users a comfortable digital reading session.

Now the thing that keeps users from choosing tablets over e-book readers is that sometimes the former might cost three times more than the later. But then, expectations exist. You can easily find budget-friendly tablets that can help you read books efficiently and do a number of other things at the same time.

Is Reading on a Tablet Bad for you?

Prolonged usage of tablets, smartphones, or any other similar device is harmful to your eyes in one way or the other. However, thanks to modern-day manufactures, companies have started to install brilliant displays. These feature-rich displays are well capable of playing an overall promising role in the health of your eyesight to some extent.

Additionally, you’ll have all that anti-glare screen protectors which help users avoid their eyes from getting stressed. But again, everything is healthy until you’ve got a proper routine and use a standard usage period.

Can I use Kindle as a Tablet?

The answer is a straightforward no. Although it bears a similar kind of design, Kindle in no way resembles a tablet in the functionality section. It is just a simple device engineered to help readers with a better digital reading experience. Tablets feature a more complex and comprehensive mechanism.

Besides reading e-books, you can use a tablet for a whole lot of reasons. Whether you wish to engage yourselves in movie watching sessions or deal in editing kinds of stuff, the tablet will let you do those in every possible manner. At the same time, there is no way you can get your Kindle apart from reading your favorite pieces of stuff digitally.

Are Books Free on Kindle?

Kindle is an e-reading device developed and marketed by Amazon. It is well-designed to let users efficiently browse, buy, download, and read newspapers, e-books, magazines, and everything similar digitally. Kindle brings in a vast library of free and premium content. So if you’re wondering if the books on Kindle are free, then partly yes. You can navigate your way to the free section and access the available content there for free. However, if you wish to walk through the entire library, well, then the story is a bit different.

Amazon features a subscription-based plan for its e-readers. Once you opt for the service, you can forget about paying individually for each book. Instead, paying the single cost, you’ll get access to the entire library for a month.

Do E-Readers Have Internal Access?

E-readers do feature internet access for a better experience. For instance, if we consider Kindle, the device bags three models, two of which drive Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity. Thanks to the connectivity, downloading books and other essential content becomes super convenient and easy.

The e-readers also bring in a special kind of web browser. Users can use it to browse the internet in various ways. Again if we take Kindle as an example, it lets a user use the inbuilt browser in four ways:

Firstly, clicking any within the text you are reading will let you directly into the browser.
Secondly, you can choose and click on the “launch browser” option from the Experimental screen.
The third method of getting the browser access is simply typing a word that will redirect and open the menu screen located at the very bottom of the page. You can simply click “google” or “Wikipedia” and let your e-reader launch the browser.
Fourthly, you can go ahead and enter a Web address in the available Search box. After that, select the “go-to” option and launch the browser on that page.

Wrapping Up

If you’ve been finding it hard to choose between an e-reader or a tablet for reading pieces of stuff digitally, I hope the same wouldn’t be the case anymore. Once you walk through this article entirely, you’ll have a fair idea about each element that users should keep in mind before owning the appropriate device. There are some questions you need to answer yourself and the choice should be easy. The biggest difference will be the battery life, functionality, color, visual media, and of course pricing.

Personally – I own an iPad Pro 2020 and I never felt a need to buy an additional e-book reader, since it has all the same functions and a bit more. It has become my laptop, my iPad, my e-book reader, my phone, and sometimes even feels like it has become my life. I don’t want to influence your decision, because it’s all preference at the end of the day.

Some other articles you might be interested in:

Tablet vs iPad

Is it Better to Get an E-Reader or a Tablet?