Can Tablets Replace E-Readers in 2024?
Some people will say that tablets are bad for your eyesight and will ruin your sleep quality compared to e-readers; I say that a book’s content has more of an affect on how soon I fall asleep or had me strain my eyes because a certain piece of writing was too compelling for me to put it down.
Reading on my phone back in 2015 got me into reading books from start to finish again so I am always exploring the best digital devices to carry around with me, although I have learned that technology advancements and my preferences don’t always align. I explore and compare the things I have learned from owning various reading apparatuses and also multi-purpose handheld devices that allow me to read as a standard function.
Are Tablets Worse to Read On?
Tablets are still relatively complicated to e-readers as you need to set up many more accounts to get started with reading, and you might be underutilising a tablet if it’s only for reading. E-readers are purpose-built with the necessary and optimal applications for reading and managing books in different formats (e.g., epub, mobi, azw3, pdf, etc.) while tablets rely on available marketplace applications to support these.
Battery and Displays on E-Readers and Tablets
The average e-reader screen size is roughly 6 to 8 inches and about 205 grams*.
The average tablet screen size is more variable small (7 inch) to large (12+ inches*) and popular models can be 461 grams and greater*.
The main difference is the display since e-readers that use paper-like displays don’t emit their own light and therefore, the display uses less power than any other light emitting screen while displaying text and images (albeit most are monochrome). Still, frustratingly, some lighting would be necessary for reading with a non-backlit display and not everyone has conveniently placed lights that are gentle, warm, dimming, or wireless — myself included.
More expensive e-readers are now backlit that retain the benefits of e-paper displays and are more flexible to use than common backlit displays (mainly: LCD, OLED, AMOLED, or IPS) in either overly bright or dark environments.
Screen glare is the main problem of reflective displays because you combat bright environments with increasing the display brightness to match, thus having to use more power to overcome this issue. For these reasons, I’m usually indoors when I want to be out, but with these devices requiring ambient light, I can often use it anywhere.
The “feel” Compared to Paper Books
More weight means it’s harder to hold a book for lengthy periods of time in one hand, and smaller screens means more repetitive page turns, so both have to be tolerable.
To read The Alchemist in paperback it weighs half as much as hardback (i.e., 227g vs 454g) so you could justify your preferences by what physical books you can hold for long periods of time. As a comparison: the paperback falls near the weight of a typical e-paper Kindle paperwhite (205g) device and a hardback is similar to the latest and lightest iPad air (461g) from 2022.
Ultimately, I think a person should start with a small and basic e-reader for consuming novels and some non-fiction and graduate to a larger e-reader or tablet device for scanning through non-fiction or PDF document files.
There is no “best of both worlds” for some people as I couldn’t see myself carrying an iPad or laptop to read on public transport, but I find a phone or e-paper device quite comfortable for inquisitive reading and when I’m at my most reading-centric mood (i.e., bored) or I’m too physically tired to do anything else.
Reducing barriers from reading really helps me to concentrate on what I’m looking at without being taken out of the flow of things, so unavoidable notifications and small annoying issues within the software could also become a deal-breaker for me when exploring different products.
Durability
Sometimes the less likely something is to break or change, the more I miss it when I voluntarily let it go. I had a few large screen devices and electronic paper readers I would love to have back again because of how sturdy they were built. I think technology has improved the speed of the internals but has not resulted in much change for its other physical qualities like weight, feel, and tactile reliability.
Book readers are known to be careful because you see yellowed and intact novels in second hand stores that have seen a few owners, but have suffered no real damage. The way I’d put down an iPad versus a Kobo on any surface is very different because e-readers are flexible and light while phones are sold like glass shoes — the type of bag I’d need to protect a “precious” iPad versus an affordable, replaceable tablet is entirely different in my imagination. I think purchasing something as either rucksack-proof or beach-proof would be a good and yet unmeasured indicator.
Scratches still often appear on a tablet’s display and I also find that these digital paper readers have much more durability than more other digital screens you find on tablets and phones, or they are less noticeable without a backlight.
Ten Pros and Cons
- Tablets are heavier and don’t have as long of a battery life
- E-readers (electronic paper display) have smaller screens
- Standard tablets always have an adjustable backlighting while e-readers don’t
- Good e-readers are generally more affordable than lower-end tablets
- E-readers usually have more physical buttons
- E-readers are usually easy to hold because they have more edge to screen ratios
- Tablets often have more choice than e-readers in what to install
- Tablets get more frequent updates
- Better connectivity and accessibility options on tablets (most of the time)
- Tablets have greater sharing and backup options using cloud storage
Summary
- Choose something that reduces small complications and frictions in simple, daily reading (relating to notifications, software, portability)
- Having accessible and expendable devices are mentally easier to use daily (like can you throw an e-reader in your bag like a bottle of water?)
- Consider any problems that restricts you from reading on a digital device for long (portability and display type)
- Make digital books as similar to reading a physical book as possible (dimensions and ease of use)
