I stopped using physical books, and my reading experience has improved significantly.

      If you are a book purist, you may hesitate when I suggest using an e-reader instead of acquiring physical books, and I understand your skepticism. The charm of the scent of pages, the weight of a book in your hands, and the entire reading ritual are indeed compelling.

      However, if you permit me to persuade you, there are compelling reasons to favor e-readers over physical books. Allow me to present the case for e-readers; once you recognize what you’ve been missing, it’s difficult to revert.

      Your entire collection fits in your bag

      This is the most apparent benefit, but it rarely receives adequate acknowledgment. I tend to read multiple books concurrently, and toting around two or three physical ones isn’t practical. Hefty books can be a nuisance to carry.

      With an e-reader, you can hold hundreds of books in a compact form. Switching between titles takes mere moments. If you travel often, this alone makes a strong case for switching.

      A thousand-page hardcover is wonderful for your bookshelf but cumbersome for your commute.

      Heavy books are more of a workout than a reading experience

      If you enjoy fantasy novels like I do, you know how unwieldy they can be. You’re constantly adjusting your grip, trying to keep it open, and attempting to stay comfortable. Slim books are manageable, but when a book reaches a certain thickness, it starts to work against you.

      An e-reader has a consistent weight whether you’re reading a short novel or an expansive fantasy series. That’s the beauty of it. Whether I’m delving into The Count of Monte Cristo or another entry in Brandon Sanderson’s The Stormlight Archive series, my Supernote Nomad remains light.

      Reading at night without disturbing anyone

      I do much of my reading at night, which is where physical books fail me. Lamps and book lights never feel just right. The lighting is often off, and sharing a room complicates things further.

      Most e-readers, including Kindles, come with a built-in backlight that can be adjusted to your preferred brightness. You can even switch to a warm light mode to ease eye strain.

      I’ve read at 3 AM with the brightness set low, and it felt completely normal—no need for a lamp or squinting.

      Look up any word without losing your place

      English isn’t my first language, and even native speakers often come across unfamiliar words mid-chapter. With a physical book, you can either grab your phone to look it up—which usually leads to distractions—or skip it and miss out on understanding.

      On a Kindle or most other e-readers, you simply tap the word, and the definition pops up immediately. You can translate it, add it to a vocabulary list, and return to your reading within seconds. I look up far more words now than I did with physical books, and my comprehension has genuinely improved.

      Taking notes you’ll actually utilize later

      I used to make annotations in physical books with a pen, and those notes would remain on the page, rarely revisited. Putting them somewhere useful required more effort than I was willing to invest.

      With my Supernote Nomad, I can utilize its Digest feature to clip what I’m reading and easily add handwritten notes. I can then export those notes to Obsidian for further processing.

      Highlighting a passage and adding a note on any e-reader takes just a few seconds. Additionally, most e-readers compile all your highlights and notes in one location, making it easy to sift through them without flipping pages.

      With physical books, my notes faded into the pages. With an e-reader, they transform into something I actively use.

      Books are more affordable and easier to obtain

      Purchasing physical books is invariably pricier than acquiring their digital counterparts. Furthermore, as most publishers move away from mass-market paperbacks, we’re left with trade paperback and hardcover options, which may look more appealing but also carry a higher price tag.

      E-books don’t face this issue. I’ve bought several titles for less than half the cost of the physical versions. Often, e-books are on sale, making them even more budget-friendly.

      Moreover, if you find a book you want to read at midnight, you don’t have to wait for delivery or make a trip to the store. You can purchase it and dive in right away. The convenience is hard to overstate once you get accustomed to it.

      Should you switch?

      If you cherish the experience of physical books—the covers, the smell, the aesthetic of your shelf—that's entirely a valid reason to continue with them. There’s nothing wrong with that. I’m personally curating my own bookshelf, and there will always be a place for those cherished books.

      However, for convenience, ease of discovery, and reading, I encourage you to consider investing in an e-reader. It’s currently an excellent time to buy, with good options available around $100.

      As e-readers, they don’t require frequent upgrades like