• May 15 How to Spot Red Flags in a Relationship in 2023
  • May 11 Into the Spice Cabinet
  • May 11 See Why Students Enjoy Gunderson in 2023
  • Close Menu Search
  • Read The Print Issue

The Student News Site of Gunderson High School

The Paw Print

Books Vs. Phones: Which Is Better?

Which one is the best

Which one is the best

Chinna Nguyen and Delaney Hopp January 10, 2019 | 5,850 Views

Here at Gunderson, reading for leisure is a lost art. These days, people tend to use their phones more than ever. There are solutions to this crisis, though. To increase reading activity, the school should implement a designated SSR time, like brunch, so people can enjoy the thrill of visiting new worlds or learning about new places or people. During GLC, students have the opportunity to read or do homework during the first half of the period, but, unfortunately, some teachers are ignoring this rule or not encouraging it, leading to little or no impact on increased reading.

Though many don’t know, there are many benefits to reading every day. Reading physical books is even better. Physical books provide context during reading, giving the reader a better understanding of the text, according to a study conducted by UC Berkeley. Reading books also increases vocabulary, especially in children. Reading heightens intelligence in general. According to The Huffington Post , reading increases memory function. Reading a real book before bedtime helps one sleep better while bright screens cause one to stay awake longer and not sleep as well.

There are many reasons one should read. Reading reduces stress, and according to a study conducted by Yale University, it can increase one’s lifespan. Reading increases language skills and increases empathy and creativity, and these benefits have proven higher test scores.

Though too many people use their phones too much, they should be aware of the side effects of long-term phone use. Cell phones produce a small amount of radiation when being used. Case companies claim their cases stop radiation, but this isn’t the case, according to the World Health Organization. Cell phone radiation can cause brain cancer from too much exposure. Cell phones, as well as most bright screens, cause retinal damage because of all the bright blue lights embedded in the screens, said Gary Heiting OD. Using technology too much has horrible consequences as well. Back and head pain can occur from one staring at their screen and being in an unnatural, hunched position causes spinal strain. Overuse of phones can also cause mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety, according to Science Direct. If the district would comply, everyone would benefit from reading instead of excess phone use. Students should read more because of the overall benefits that come from it.     

Students shouldn’t have to read books to learn more information. Even though there are many times cell phones have been seen as a distraction. Phones can be really helpful in many situations, you can learn as much information from your phone as you can at school. Also, if you want to read a book but are too lazy to stand up and travel to some other destination to get a book, you can just start reading immediately with just a touch of a screen.

Cell phones are one of the most important tools we need in life. They can be helpful throughout school and they can also be helpful when you are in a dangerous situation, even if you are rarely in bad situations phones can REALLY come in handy whenever you are in one. Even though phones have a bad reputation for new and old generations, people never really dig deep enough to know how beneficial a phone can be and would just believe what would be shown in articles and the news about how bad technology can be, which can be viewed from your phone .

From personal experience, ever since I’ve started using this device, I’ve been able to research for my projects while going out and about, find out about new books to read about and find how important I can be to other people that I’ve met through the internet world which can be accessed just through my phone. Many other people have the same experience as I have had throughout these few years of using this technology, for example; I’ve seen many netizens come together to help people in their troubling times and supported them through it all, from what I can see, phones are more beneficial than what others think of it.

If you think that you can’t learn anything by using your handheld device, then you’re wrong. Many articles can be accessed through the internet, and all you have to do is tap a button. Additionally, many schools rely on students to use any device; specifically, phones and PCs to access homework and classwork, for example, many teachers want their students to use a laptop to obtain data for their project, instead of having to go through many papers and books just to find a simple piece of information. Besides, books can take up too much paper and there are too many trees that are being chopped down just to create paper-based items such as novels. Furthermore, devices such as phones are overlooked and should be more known to be a beneficial tool.

Photo of Delaney Hopp

Monthly Facts: March

Battle of the boba: A bubble tea review

Battle of the boba: A bubble tea review

the obsessed artist trope in film

How Much Sugar Is In Gummy Candy?

Mr Chew - A Dive into the ADs duties

Mr Chew – A Dive into the AD’s duties

Club Controversy

Club Controversy

The Diversity of Ethnic Studies

Grizzlies of Gunderson

Bathroom Bylaws

Noise Cancelling Headphones

Decreased Enrollment

Decreased Enrollment

Senior Goodbye

Senior Goodbye

Gunderson’s Athletic Awards

Mask mandate is lifting march 14

Recapping the new bell schedule

The Student News Site of Gunderson High School

  • Mission Statement

The Student News Site of Gunderson High School

Students learn better from books than screens, according to a new study

Students take notes from their iPads at the Steve Jobs school in Sneek August 21, 2013. The Steve Jobs schools in the Netherlands are founded by the O4NT (Education For A New Time) organisation, which provides the children with iPads to help them learn with a more interactive experience. REUTERS/Michael Kooren (NETHERLANDS - Tags: SOCIETY EDUCATION SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY)

Limiting students to a purely digital world may not be helping all students to learn effectively. Image:  REUTERS/Michael Kooren

.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo{-webkit-transition:all 0.15s ease-out;transition:all 0.15s ease-out;cursor:pointer;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;outline:none;color:inherit;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:hover,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-hover]{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:focus,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-focus]{box-shadow:0 0 0 3px rgba(168,203,251,0.5);} Patricia A. Alexander

Lauren m. singer.

essay on books are better than mobile phones

.chakra .wef-9dduvl{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-9dduvl{font-size:1.125rem;}} Explore and monitor how .chakra .wef-15eoq1r{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;color:#F7DB5E;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-15eoq1r{font-size:1.125rem;}} Youth Perspectives is affecting economies, industries and global issues

A hand holding a looking glass by a lake

.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}} Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:, youth perspectives.

Today’s students see themselves as digital natives , the first generation to grow up surrounded by technology like smartphones, tablets and e-readers.

Teachers, parents and policymakers certainly acknowledge the growing influence of technology and have responded in kind. We’ve seen more investment in classroom technologies , with students now equipped with school-issued iPads and access to e-textbooks. In 2009 , California passed a law requiring that all college textbooks be available in electronic form by 2020; in 2011 , Florida lawmakers passed legislation requiring public schools to convert their textbooks to digital versions.

Given this trend, teachers, students, parents and policymakers might assume that students’ familiarity and preference for technology translates into better learning outcomes. But we’ve found that’s not necessarily true.

As researchers in learning and text comprehension, our recent work has focused on the differences between reading print and digital media. While new forms of classroom technology like digital textbooks are more accessible and portable, it would be wrong to assume that students will automatically be better served by digital reading simply because they prefer it.

Speed – at a cost

Our work has revealed a significant discrepancy. Students said they preferred and performed better when reading on screens. But their actual performance tended to suffer.

For example, from our review of research done since 1992 , we found that students were able to better comprehend information in print for texts that were more than a page in length. This appears to be related to the disruptive effect that scrolling has on comprehension. We were also surprised to learn that few researchers tested different levels of comprehension or documented reading time in their studies of printed and digital texts.

To explore these patterns further, we conducted three studies that explored college students’ ability to comprehend information on paper and from screens.

Students first rated their medium preferences. After reading two passages, one online and one in print, these students then completed three tasks: Describe the main idea of the texts, list key points covered in the readings and provide any other relevant content they could recall. When they were done, we asked them to judge their comprehension performance.

Across the studies, the texts differed in length, and we collected varying data (e.g., reading time). Nonetheless, some key findings emerged that shed new light on the differences between reading printed and digital content:

Students overwhelming preferred to read digitally.

Reading was significantly faster online than in print.

Students judged their comprehension as better online than in print.

Paradoxically, overall comprehension was better for print versus digital reading.

The medium didn’t matter for general questions (like understanding the main idea of the text).

But when it came to specific questions, comprehension was significantly better when participants read printed texts.

Placing print in perspective

From these findings, there are some lessons that can be conveyed to policymakers, teachers, parents and students about print’s place in an increasingly digital world.

1. Consider the purpose

We all read for many reasons. Sometimes we’re looking for an answer to a very specific question. Other times, we want to browse a newspaper for today’s headlines.

As we’re about to pick up an article or text in a printed or digital format, we should keep in mind why we’re reading. There’s likely to be a difference in which medium works best for which purpose.

In other words, there’s no “one medium fits all” approach.

2. Analyze the task

One of the most consistent findings from our research is that, for some tasks, medium doesn’t seem to matter. If all students are being asked to do is to understand and remember the big idea or gist of what they’re reading, there’s no benefit in selecting one medium over another .

But when the reading assignment demands more engagement or deeper comprehension, students may be better off reading print . Teachers could make students aware that their ability to comprehend the assignment may be influenced by the medium they choose. This awareness could lessen the discrepancy we witnessed in students’ judgments of their performance vis-à-vis how they actually performed.

3. Slow it down

In our third experiment, we were able to create meaningful profiles of college students based on the way they read and comprehended from printed and digital texts.

Among those profiles, we found a select group of undergraduates who actually comprehended better when they moved from print to digital. What distinguished this atypical group was that they actually read slower when the text was on the computer than when it was in a book. In other words, they didn’t take the ease of engaging with the digital text for granted. Using this select group as a model, students could possibly be taught or directed to fight the tendency to glide through online texts.

4. Something that can’t be measured

There may be economic and environmental reasons to go paperless. But there’s clearly something important that would be lost with print’s demise.

In our academic lives, we have books and articles that we regularly return to. The dog-eared pages of these treasured readings contain lines of text etched with questions or reflections. It’s difficult to imagine a similar level of engagement with a digital text. There should probably always be a place for print in students’ academic lives – no matter how technologically savvy they become.

Of course, we realize that the march toward online reading will continue unabated. And we don’t want to downplay the many conveniences of online texts, which include breadth and speed of access.

Rather, our goal is simply to remind today’s digital natives – and those who shape their educational experiences – that there are significant costs and consequences to discounting the printed word’s value for learning and academic development.

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Related topics:

The agenda .chakra .wef-n7bacu{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-weight:400;} weekly.

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

.chakra .wef-1dtnjt5{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-flex-wrap:wrap;-ms-flex-wrap:wrap;flex-wrap:wrap;} More on Youth Perspectives .chakra .wef-17xejub{-webkit-flex:1;-ms-flex:1;flex:1;justify-self:stretch;-webkit-align-self:stretch;-ms-flex-item-align:stretch;align-self:stretch;} .chakra .wef-nr1rr4{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;white-space:normal;vertical-align:middle;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:0.75rem;border-radius:0.25rem;font-weight:700;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;line-height:1.2;-webkit-letter-spacing:1.25px;-moz-letter-spacing:1.25px;-ms-letter-spacing:1.25px;letter-spacing:1.25px;background:none;padding:0px;color:#B3B3B3;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;}@media screen and (min-width:37.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:0.875rem;}}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:1rem;}} See all

essay on books are better than mobile phones

This is how to help young people navigate the opportunities and risks of AI and digital technology

Simon Torkington

January 31, 2024

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Why we need to rebuild our social contract with the world's children

Catherine Russell

January 17, 2024

essay on books are better than mobile phones

How global leaders can restore trust with young people

Natalie Pierce

January 13, 2024

essay on books are better than mobile phones

A Children's Peace Prize winner's lessons on building trust between generations

Rena Kawasaki

December 20, 2023

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Speaking Gen Z: How banks can attract young customers

Bob Wigley and Rupal Kantaria

November 17, 2023

essay on books are better than mobile phones

What will the future of volunteering look like?

Johnny Wood

November 3, 2023

  • Best Of The Best
  • Alcohol News
  • Animal & Wildlife News
  • Astronomy News
  • Beauty News
  • Cancer News
  • Children News
  • Drug & Medication News
  • Education News
  • Environment News
  • Exercise News
  • Happiness News
  • Historical News
  • Intelligence
  • Law Enforcement
  • Longer Life News
  • Marijuana News
  • Mobile Phones News
  • Parenting News
  • Psychological News
  • Social Media News
  • Sports News
  • Weight Loss News
  • Workplace News

© 2024 41 Pushups, LLC

reading book outdoors

Survey: Most people prefer reading paper books over digital books on tablets, phones

LONDON —  Digital books on tablets, smartphones, and devices like Amazon’s Kindle are certainly convenient, but according to a new survey most people still prefer a good old fashioned paper book. There’s just something satisfying about turning the page and holding a physical book in one’s hands, as over two-thirds of adults say they always opt for a real book over digital reading.

Put together by Oxfam , researcher polled 2,000 respondents in the United Kingdom regarding their thoughts on paper books versus digital books. Close to half (46%) enjoy physically turning pages and 42 percent prefer the feel of a physical book in their hands. One in four say they love the smell of paper books. Meanwhile, another 32 percent feel like they become much more immersed in the story while reading a paper book and 16 percent go for traditional books because they remind them of libraries.

The look and feel of books is still special

Interestingly, over a third of respondents (35%) enjoy buying paper books because that allows them to proudly display them on their bookshelf as a background during Zoom meetings.

All in all, only 16 percent of adults prefer digital books and a meager eight percent who favor audio books. On average, the survey finds most adults own 49 books and read for three hours per week.

“People prefer to read physical books because they offer something more tangible and grounded. There’s something that can feel more “permanent” about real books over digital for mats,” says Dr. Elena Touroni, a consultant psychologist and co-founder of The Chelsea Psychology Clinic, in a statement. “Reading offers us a for m of escapism. It provides us with a break from our everyday lives, and often also, an opportunity to learn something new and expand our minds.”

What’s old is new again

Over half the poll (58%) read to relax, while 46 percent usually read as a break from the real world. More than three in 10 like to read as a means of learning something new and 39 percent read to feel happier. Close to half (45%) have been reading more ever since COVID lockdowns began. Moving past the pandemic, 84 percent plan to take a few books with them on vacation this year.

Three-quarters say they’re considering donating books they’ve finished and 72 percent usually buy used books themselves. Moreover, this research suggests that books are the top item most adults are willing to buy used. Seventy-one percent say they buy used books because it is cheaper and 52 percent do it because it is better for the environment.

Nearly one in five (18%) just like the smell of used books, while another 18 percent like the texture of a second-hand book. Fifteen percent of respondents just love the idea that they might find a note or letter written inside a used book. Nearly one in two people (45%) like to ponder where their old books have been before landing in their hands.

Generally speaking, 49 percent of adults often buy second-hand items, with goods such as books, clothes, CDs, DVDs, and cars topping the list. Six in 10 adults believe buying used items is just as good as buying new.

The survey was conducted by OnePoll.

You might be interested in our articles on:

  • Colleen Hoover’s Best Books
  • Best Stephen Kings Books

Related Studies

Man thinking about money and finances

Time Is Money: Americans Say Their Day Is Worth $134 February 23, 2024

Angry man texting or using social media on smartphone

Is Everyone Angry? Toxic ‘Outrage Culture’ Consuming Society Like Never Before February 22, 2024

multitasking

Hardest-Working Cities in America: Who Puts in the Longest Hours? February 20, 2024

Leave a reply cancel reply.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Watch CBS News

Books vs. e-books: The science behind the best way to read

By Amy Kraft

December 14, 2015 / 6:00 AM EST / CBS News

While browsing the bookstore to buy a gift for that special someone (or yourself), you may be faced with a tough decision: e-books or the old-fashioned kind? Each one has its pros and cons, and choosing the best option depends on a number of factors.

Some of the practical advantages of going digital are obvious: A portable little e-reader can carry an entire library wherever you go, which is great for travelers or those who always want a choice of reading material.

On the other hand, research has been stacking up to show that reading on paper has a number of benefits, too. Plus, there's the nostalgia factor .

"First and foremost, consider the person and their lifelong preferences," Dr. Matthew H. Schneps, director of the Laboratory for Visual Learning, a collaboration between the University of Massachusetts Boston and MIT, told CBS News in an email. "Some people absolutely love the look, smell, and feel of the classical book held in the hand, and such people may not want to give up the sensory experience of reading from a paper book. If the recipient of your gift is someone who is adventurous when it comes to gadgets, but otherwise doesn't read much using traditional books, giving the gift of an e-reader can be a life-changing experience for them."

Here's a look at some of the science to consider before you spring for a Kindle, a Nook or a stack of new hardcovers.

Young, reluctant readers prefer e-readers

A 2014 study published in the journal Library & Information Science Research found that out of 143 10th grade students, most preferred e-readers . Boys and those who did not care much for reading also shared a strong preference for e-readers.

"An e-reader has more in common with the electronic devices that young people use all the time, like smartphones or iPads, than a paper book, when it comes to turning of pages, the possibilities of adjusting font size, etc.," lead author of the study, Åse Kristine Tveit, told CBS News in an email.

Reading on paper may boost retention

Several small studies suggest that reading on paper instead of an electronic screen is better for memory retention and focus. The Guardian reported on an experiment from Norway where people were given a short story to read either on a Kindle or in a paperback book; when they were quizzed later, those who read the paperback were more likely to remember plot points in the right order.

"When you read on paper you can sense with your fingers a pile of pages on the left growing, and shrinking on the right," the lead researcher, Anne Mangen, of Norway's Stavanger University, told the Guardian. "You have the tactile sense of progress ... Perhaps this somehow aids the reader, providing more fixity and solidity to the reader's sense of unfolding and progress of the text, and hence the story."

Paper suits readers with sleep problems and eye strain

High levels of screen luminance from an electronic device can contribute to visual fatigue, a condition marked by tired, itching, burning eyes.

There are also potential considerations for those reading e-books on light-emitting e-readers at night (although a number of e-readers do not use light-emitting screens), Dr. Margaret K. Merga, a reading and education specialist in Australia, told CBS News in an email. "Artificial light exposure from light-emitting e-readers may interfere with users' ability to sleep , ultimately leading to adverse impacts on health."

A 2014 study published in the journal PNAS found that reading an e-book before bedtime decreased the production of melatonin, a hormone that preps the body for sleep. E-books also impaired alertness the following day.

E-books help the visually impaired

Individuals with poor eyesight or reading disorders like dyslexia can benefit more from e-books because they provide a range of options for changing the text size and spacing of lines. A 2013 study in the journal PLOS One observed reading comprehension and speed in 103 high school students with dyslexia. The study found that people with dyslexia read more effectively, and with greater ease, when using the e-reader compared with reading on paper.

Schneps, who was the lead author on the paper, said, "What made the difference was the ability of the device to display lines of text that were extremely short (about two or three words per line), as well as its ability to space out the text. When these people read using the modified formatting, their reading instantly improved."

His team has a website where people can preview the effects of some of these features before making a purchase. Try out the interactive tips at readeasy.labvislearn.org .

A fondness for books

Many book-lovers still prefer the traditional option and value the tactile sensation of a bound paper book. "Paper books are, as a rule, very well designed, they look and smell good, and they carry with them a more human touch," Tveit said.

In Merga's experience with students in Australia, avid readers also tend to prefer reading on paper. While conducting the West Australian Study in Adolescent Book Reading (WASABR), Merga and colleagues found that students preferred reading paper books. "One student described this attitude as a preference to 'own something (rather) than just use it,'" Merga said.

More from CBS News

  • Brain Development
  • Childhood & Adolescence
  • Diet & Lifestyle
  • Emotions, Stress & Anxiety
  • Learning & Memory
  • Thinking & Awareness
  • Alzheimer's & Dementia
  • Childhood Disorders
  • Immune System Disorders
  • Mental Health
  • Neurodegenerative Disorders
  • Infectious Disease
  • Neurological Disorders A-Z
  • Body Systems
  • Cells & Circuits
  • Genes & Molecules
  • The Arts & the Brain
  • Law, Economics & Ethics

Neuroscience in the News

  • Supporting Research
  • Tech & the Brain
  • Animals in Research
  • BRAIN Initiative
  • Meet the Researcher
  • Neuro-technologies
  • Tools & Techniques
  • Core Concepts
  • For Educators
  • Ask an Expert
  • The Brain Facts Book

BrainFacts.org

Reading on Paper Versus Screens: What’s the Difference?

  • Published 28 Jul 2020
  • Author Kerry Benson
  • Source BrainFacts/SfN

Children reading

During the coronavirus pandemic, students worldwide shifted from the classroom to remote, online learning. Many swapped hard copy textbooks and worksheets for websites and other digital resources. Digital books have been with us for a decade — but how well are we absorbing it all?

Turns out print is easier to comprehend than digital text.

“[Print reading] is kind of like meditation — focusing our attention on something still,” says Anne Mangen, a literacy professor at the University of Stavanger in Norway. “And it’s a whole different kind of immersion than responding to [digital] stimuli. I think it’s healthy for us as human beings to sit down with something that doesn’t move, ping, or call on our attention.”

Print is visually less demanding than digital text. It provides spatial and tactile cues to help readers process words on a page. Mindset may also be a factor. If people associate screen time with casual web-surfing they may rush through without fully absorbing the text.

Do you think you’re the exception? Most people do. Studies found digital reading breeds overconfidence.

“We read digital [text] more quickly, [so] we think we must understand it better,” explains Lauren Singer Trakhman, who studies reading comprehension at the University of Maryland, College Park. “It’s one of the best parts of our digital world — everything is at our fingertips and we can get the headlines in a second — but it may also be one of the pitfalls. Everything’s so quick and accessible that we may not be truly digesting [what we read] anymore.”

Both scientists agree digital is fine to scan news headings for main ideas, but longer, complicated texts are best read in print, especially to retain the details.

TL;DR: Digital Reading Equals Shallower Processing

In 2016, Singer Trakhman examined undergraduates’ reading comprehension after they read digital and print versions of articles. Format didn’t affect their grasp of the main idea, but students missed details when reading on screens.

Digital reading impairs comprehension, particularly for longer, more complex texts, says Mangen. This may be because of the shallowing hypothesis — constant exposure to fast-paced, digital media trains the brain to process information more rapidly and less thoroughly.

“There’s not much [neuroscientific research] on the reading of actual texts,” Mangen says. However, existing research does offer some clues. In a 2009 study , the marketing research company Millward Brown found the brain processes physical and digital materials differently. Participants viewed advertisements on a screen and on a printed card while undergoing an fMRI scan. Print materials were more likely to activate the medial prefrontal cortex and cingulate cortex , both involved in processing emotions. Reading print also generated more activity in the parietal cortex , which processes visual and spatial cues.

Keep Scrolling or Turn the Page?

Scrolling through digital text may impair comprehension by creating spatial challenges. A 2017 study found participants’ reading comprehension suffered when they scrolled through a comic book’s individual panels instead of seeing them all at once. When we read, our brains construct a cognitive map of the text, like recalling that a piece of information appeared near the top, left-hand page of a book. But imagine drawing a map of something with constantly moving landmarks, like a webpage. It’s harder to map words that aren’t in a fixed location, because we lose important “visual placeholders,” says Singer Trakhman.

Scrolling demands more from our working memory, she adds. “In our working memory, we can hold about seven items at a time, so the goal when reading is to take away as many demands as possible. When we have to remember what we just read and we don’t have spatial [cues] to help, that’s taking some of our bandwidth.”

In addition, the LED screens’ constant flickering glow creates more work for our eyes, causing visual and mental fatigue.

However, e-readers, like Kindles, don’t require scrolling and reduce eyestrain with e-ink technology. Those are likely superior to other digital-text formats, Mangen says. But they lack an important aspect of the reading experience: turning the page.

In one of Mangen’s studies , participants read a story either on a Kindle or in print and then underwent comprehension tests. The texts were identical, but Kindle readers pressed a button to progress through the book, while print readers turned pages. Print readers were more likely to accurately recall the story’s chronological order. Mangen says this may be because print provides sensorimotor cues that enhance cognitive processing. When holding a book, we receive reminders of how many pages we’ve read and how many remain. We can flip pages to reread text as needed. Some research suggests we process information more effectively when we recruit multiple senses, and multiple brain areas, during task learning — seeing the words, feeling the weight of the pages, and even smelling the paper.

What Happens Next?

Instead of getting better at digital reading, we may be getting worse. A study examining reading comprehension research between 2000 and 2017 indicates it’s harder to comprehend digital text. The researchers found print’s advantages are greater now than in 2000. In other words, this digital-reading problem isn’t going away.

“This [finding may] have to do with the shallowing hypothesis,” Mangen says. “The habits that we acquire when we read on screens are spilling over, and we’re trying to cope by reading faster and more superficially.”

Mangen and Singer Trakhman agree we shouldn’t ditch digital reading; instead we should consider the situation when choosing our reading medium.

“I’ll never say that everyone should be reading print all the time,” says Singer Trakhman. “People are always shocked to hear that I have a Kindle, and I love my Kindle. But I only use it when I’m reading for pleasure.”

To retain on-screen text information, Singer Trakham and Mangen suggest slowing down and handwriting main takeaways. (Typing works, but handwriting is likely a superior memory tool.) 

When you need a break from the digital world, don’t underestimate the power of paper and ink. Consider turning off your electronic devices, getting a book, and curling up to turn the page.

About the Author

kerry benson photo

Kerry Benson

Kerry Benson is a writer and neuroscience enthusiast who received a neuroscience degree from Connecticut College in 2016 and a master’s in science writing from Johns Hopkins University in 2018.

CONTENT PROVIDED BY

BrainFacts/SfN

Discussion Questions

1) What are the advantages of print reading over digital?

2) What areas of the brain respond when we read print text?

3) Why do researchers think it’s getting harder to comprehend digital text?

Delgado, P., Vargas, C., Ackerman, R., & Salmerón, L. (2018). Don’t throw away your printed books: A meta-analysis on the effects of reading media on reading comprehension. Educational Research Review, 25 , 23–38. doi: 10.1016/j.edurev.2018.09.003

Garland, K. J., & Noyes, J. M. (2004). CRT monitors: Do they interfere with learning? Behaviour & Information Technology, 23 (1), 43–52. doi: 10.1080/01449290310001638504

Hou, J., Rashid, J., & Lee, K. M. (2017). Cognitive map or medium materiality? Reading on paper and screen. Computers in Human Behavior, 67 , 84–94. doi: 10.1016/j.chb.2016.10.014

Lauterman, T., & Ackerman, R. (2014). Overcoming screen inferiority in learning and calibration. Computers in Human Behavior, 35 , 455–463. doi: 10.1016/j.chb.2014.02.046

Mangen, A., Olivier, G., & Velay, J.-L. (2019). Comparing Comprehension of a Long Text Read in Print Book and on Kindle: Where in the Text and When in the Story? Frontiers in Psychology, 10 , 38. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00038

Mangen, A., Walgermo, B. R., & Brønnick, K. (2013). Reading linear texts on paper versus computer screen: Effects on reading comprehension. International Journal of Educational Research, 58 , 61–68. doi: 10.1016/j.ijer.2012.12.002

Mayer, K. M., Yildiz, I. B., Macedonia, M., & von Kriegstein, K. (2015). Visual and Motor Cortices Differentially Support the Translation of Foreign Language Words. Current Biology, 25 (4), 530–535. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2014.11.068

Millward Brown Case Study—Using Neuroscience to Understand. (2009). Retrieved from https://www.millwardbrown.com/docs/default-source/insight-documents/case-studies/MillwardBrown_CaseStudy_Neuroscience.pdf

Singer Trakhman, L., & Alexander, P. (2016). Reading Across Mediums: Effects of Reading Digital and Print Texts on Comprehension and Calibration. The Journal of Experimental Education . doi: 10.1080/00220973.2016.1143794

Smoker, T. J., Murphy, C. E., & Rockwell, A. K. (2009). Comparing Memory for Handwriting versus Typing. Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 53 (22), 1744–1747. doi: 10.1177/154193120905302218

Yan, Z., Hu, L., Chen, H., & Lu, F. (2008). Computer Vision Syndrome: A widely spreading but largely unknown epidemic among computer users. Including the Special Issue: Internet Empowerment, 24 (5), 2026–2042. doi: 10.1016/j.chb.2007.09.004

Also In Tech & the Brain

NASA astronaut and Expedition 66 Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei

Popular articles on BrainFacts.org

https://www.brainfacts.org/-/media/Brainfacts2/Diseases-and-Disorders/Mental-Health/Article-Images/Depression-and-Memory-Thumbnail.png

BrainFacts Book

Download a copy of the newest edition of the book, Brain Facts: A Primer on the Brain and Nervous System.

Check out the latest news from the field.

Educator Resources

Explain the brain to your students with a variety of teaching tools and resources.

Facebook

SUPPORTING PARTNERS

Dana Foundation logo

  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Manage Cookies

Some pages on this website provide links that require Adobe Reader to view.

November 1, 2013

12 min read

The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: Why Paper Still Beats Screens

By Ferris Jabr

One of the most provocative viral YouTube videos in the past two years begins mundanely enough: a one-year-old girl plays with an iPad, sweeping her fingers across its touch screen and shuffling groups of icons. In following scenes, she appears to pinch, swipe and prod the pages of paper magazines as though they, too, are screens. Melodramatically, the video replays these gestures in close-up.

For the girl's father, the video— A Magazine Is an iPad That Does Not Work —is evidence of a generational transition. In an accompanying description, he writes, “Magazines are now useless and impossible to understand, for digital natives”—that is, for people who have been interacting with digital technologies from a very early age, surrounded not only by paper books and magazines but also by smartphones, Kindles and iPads.

Whether or not his daughter truly expected the magazines to behave like an iPad, the video brings into focus a question that is relevant to far more than the youngest among us: How exactly does the technology we use to read change the way we read?

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing . By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

Since at least the 1980s researchers in psychology, computer engineering, and library and information science have published more than 100 studies exploring differences in how people read on paper and on screens. Before 1992 most experiments concluded that people read stories and articles on screens more slowly and remember less about them. As the resolution of screens on all kinds of devices sharpened, however, a more mixed set of findings began to emerge. Recent surveys suggest that although most people still prefer paper—especially when they need to concentrate for a long time—attitudes are changing as tablets and e-reading technology improve and as reading digital texts for facts and fun becomes more common. In the U.S., e-books currently make up more than 20 percent of all books sold to the general public.

Despite all the increasingly user-friendly and popular technology, most studies published since the early 1990s confirm earlier conclusions: paper still has advantages over screens as a reading medium. Together laboratory experiments, polls and consumer reports indicate that digital devices prevent people from efficiently navigating long texts, which may subtly inhibit reading comprehension. Compared with paper, screens may also drain more of our mental resources while we are reading and make it a little harder to remember what we read when we are done. Whether they realize it or not, people often approach computers and tablets with a state of mind less conducive to learning than the one they bring to paper. And e-readers fail to re-create certain tactile experiences of reading on paper, the absence of which some find unsettling.

“There is physicality in reading,” says cognitive scientist Maryanne Wolf of Tufts University, “maybe even more than we want to think about as we lurch into digital reading—as we move forward perhaps with too little reflection. I would like to preserve the absolute best of older forms but know when to use the new.”

Textual Landscapes Understanding how reading on paper differs from reading on screens requires some explanation of how the human brain interprets written language. Although letters and words are symbols representing sounds and ideas, the brain also regards them as physical objects. As Wolf explains in her 2007 book Proust and the Squid , we are not born with brain circuits dedicated to reading, because we did not invent writing until relatively recently in our evolutionary history, around the fourth millennium b.c. So in childhood, the brain improvises a brand-new circuit for reading by weaving together various ribbons of neural tissue devoted to other abilities, such as speaking, motor coordination and vision.

Some of these repurposed brain regions specialize in object recognition: they help us instantly distinguish an apple from an orange, for example, based on their distinct features, yet classify both as fruit. Similarly, when we learn to read and write, we begin to recognize letters by their particular arrangements of lines, curves and hollow spaces—a tactile learning process that requires both our eyes and hands. In recent research by Karin James of Indiana University Bloomington, the reading circuits of five-year-old children crackled with activity when they practiced writing letters by hand but not when they typed letters on a keyboard. And when people read cursive writing or intricate characters such as Japanese kanji , the brain literally goes through the motions of writing, even if the hands are empty.

In most cases, paper books have more obvious topography than on-screen text. An open paper book presents a reader with two clearly defined domains—the left- and right-hand pages—and a total of eight corners with which to orient oneself. You can focus on a single page of a paper book without losing awareness of the whole text. You can even feel the thickness of the pages you have read in one hand and the pages you have yet to read in the other. Turning the pages of a paper book is like leaving one footprint after another on a trail—there is a rhythm to it and a visible record of how far one has traveled. All these features not only make the text in a paper book easily navigable, they also make it easier to form a coherent mental map of that text.

In contrast, most digital devices interfere with intuitive navigation of a text and inhibit people from mapping the journey in their mind. A reader of digital text might scroll through a seamless stream of words, tap forward one page at a time or use the search function to immediately locate a particular phrase—but it is difficult to see any one passage in the context of the entire text. As an analogy, imagine if Google Maps allowed people to navigate street by individual street, as well as to teleport to any specific address, but prevented them from zooming out to see a neighborhood, state or country. Likewise, glancing at a progress bar gives a far more vague sense of place than feeling the weight of read and unread pages. And although e-readers and tablets replicate pagination, the displayed pages are ephemeral. Once read, those pages vanish. Instead of hiking the trail yourself, you watch the trees, rocks and moss pass by in flashes, with no tangible trace of what came before and no easy way to see what lies ahead.

“The implicit feel of where you are in a physical book turns out to be more important than we realized,” says Abigail J. Sellen of Microsoft Research Cambridge in England, who co-authored the 2001 book The Myth of the Paperless Office . “Only when you get an e-book do you start to miss it. I don't think e-book manufacturers have thought enough about how you might visualize where you are in a book.”

Exhaustive Reading At least a few studies suggest that screens sometimes impair comprehension precisely because they distort people's sense of place in a text. In a January 2013 study by Anne Mangen of the University of Stavanger in Norway and her colleagues, 72 10th grade students studied one narrative and one expository text. Half the students read on paper, and half read PDF files on computers. Afterward, students completed reading comprehension tests, during which they had access to the texts. Students who read the texts on computers performed a little worse, most likely because they had to scroll or click through the PDFs one section at a time, whereas students reading on paper held the entire texts in their hands and quickly switched between different pages. “The ease with which you can find out the beginning, end, and everything in between and the constant connection to your path, your progress in the text, might be some way of making it less taxing cognitively,” Mangen says. “You have more free capacity for comprehension.”

Other researchers agree that screen-based reading can dull comprehension because it is more mentally taxing and even physically tiring than reading on paper. E-ink reflects ambient light just like the ink on a paper book, but computer screens, smartphones and tablets shine light directly on people's faces. Today's LCDs are certainly gentler on eyes than their predecessor, cathode-ray tube (CRT) screens, but prolonged reading on glossy, self-illuminated screens can cause eyestrain, headaches and blurred vision. In an experiment by Erik Wästlund, then at Karlstad University in Sweden, people who took a reading comprehension test on a computer scored lower and reported higher levels of stress and tiredness than people who completed it on paper.

In a related set of Wästlund's experiments, 82 volunteers completed the same reading comprehension test on computers, either as a paginated document or as a continuous piece of text. Afterward, researchers assessed the students' attention and working memory—a collection of mental talents allowing people to temporarily store and manipulate information in their mind. Volunteers had to quickly close a series of pop-up windows, for example, or remember digits that flashed on a screen. Like many cognitive abilities, working memory is a finite resource that diminishes with exertion.

Although people in both groups performed equally well, those who had to scroll through the unbroken text did worse on the attention and working memory tests. Wästlund thinks that scrolling—which requires readers to consciously focus on both the text and how they are moving it—drains more mental resources than turning or clicking a page, which are simpler and more automatic gestures. The more attention is diverted to moving through a text, the less is available for understanding it. A 2004 study conducted at the University of Central Florida reached similar conclusions.

An emerging collection of studies emphasizes that in addition to screens possibly leeching more attention than paper, people do not always bring as much mental effort to screens in the first place. Based on a detailed 2005 survey of 113 people in northern California, Ziming Liu of San Jose State University concluded that those reading on screens take a lot of shortcuts—they spend more time browsing, scanning and hunting for keywords compared with people reading on paper and are more likely to read a document once and only once.

When reading on screens, individuals seem less inclined to engage in what psychologists call metacognitive learning regulation—setting specific goals, rereading difficult sections and checking how much one has understood along the way. In a 2011 experiment at the Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, college students took multiple-choice exams about expository texts either on computers or on paper. Researchers limited half the volunteers to a meager seven minutes of study time; the other half could review the text for as long as they liked. When under pressure to read quickly, students using computers and paper performed equally well. When managing their own study time, however, volunteers using paper scored about 10 percentage points higher. Presumably, students using paper approached the exam with a more studious attitude than their screen-reading peers and more effectively directed their attention and working memory.

Even when studies find few differences in reading comprehension between screens and paper, screen readers may not remember a text as thoroughly in the long run. In a 2003 study Kate Garland, then at the University of Leicester in England, and her team asked 50 British college students to read documents from an introductory economics course either on a computer monitor or in a spiral-bound booklet. After 20 minutes of reading, Garland and her colleagues quizzed the students. Participants scored equally well regardless of the medium but differed in how they remembered the information.

Psychologists distinguish between remembering something—a relatively weak form of memory in which someone recalls a piece of information, along with contextual details, such as where and when one learned it—and knowing something: a stronger form of memory defined as certainty that something is true. While taking the quiz, Garland's volunteers marked both their answer and whether they “remembered” or “knew” the answer. Students who had read study material on a screen relied much more on remembering than on knowing, whereas students who read on paper depended equally on the two forms of memory. Garland and her colleagues think that students who read on paper learned the study material more thoroughly more quickly; they did not have to spend a lot of time searching their mind for information from the text—they often just knew the answers.

Perhaps any discrepancies in reading comprehension between paper and screens will shrink as people's attitudes continue to change. Maybe the star of A Magazine Is an iPad That Does Not Work will grow up without the subtle bias against screens that seems to lurk among older generations. The latest research suggests, however, that substituting screens for paper at an early age has disadvantages that we should not write off so easily. A 2012 study at the Joan Ganz Cooney Center in New York City recruited 32 pairs of parents and three- to six-year-old children. Kids remembered more details from stories they read on paper than ones they read in e-books enhanced with interactive animations, videos and games. These bells and whistles deflected attention away from the narrative toward the device itself. In a follow-up survey of 1,226 parents, the majority reported that they and their children prefer print books over e-books when reading together.

Nearly identical results followed two studies, described this past September in Mind, Brain, and Education , by Julia Parrish-Morris, now at the University of Pennsylvania, and her colleagues. When reading paper books to their three- and five-year-old children, parents helpfully related the story to their child's life. But when reading a then popular electric console book with sound effects, parents frequently had to interrupt their usual “dialogic reading” to stop the child from fiddling with buttons and losing track of the narrative. Such distractions ultimately prevented the three-year-olds from understanding even the gist of the stories, but all the children followed the stories in paper books just fine.

Such preliminary research on early readers underscores a quality of paper that may be its greatest strength as a reading medium: its modesty. Admittedly, digital texts offer clear advantages in many different situations. When one is researching under deadline, the convenience of quickly accessing hundreds of keyword-searchable online documents vastly outweighs the benefits in comprehension and retention that come with dutifully locating and rifling through paper books one at a time in a library. And for people with poor vision, adjustable font size and the sharp contrast of an LCD screen are godsends. Yet paper, unlike screens, rarely calls attention to itself or shifts focus away from the text. Because of its simplicity, paper is “a still point, an anchor for the consciousness,” as William Powers writes in his 2006 essay “Hamlet's Blackberry: Why Paper Is Eternal.” People consistently report that when they really want to focus on a text, they read it on paper. In a 2011 survey of graduate students at National Taiwan University, the majority reported browsing a few paragraphs of an item online before printing out the whole text for more in-depth reading. And in a 2003 survey at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, nearly 80 percent of 687 students preferred to read text on paper rather than on a screen to “understand it with clarity.”

Beyond pragmatic considerations, the way we feel about a paper book or an e-reader—and the way it feels in our hands—also determines whether we buy a best-selling book in hardcover at a local bookstore or download it from Amazon. Surveys and consumer reports suggest that the sensory aspects of reading on paper matter to people more than one might assume: the feel of paper and ink; the option to smooth or fold a page with one's fingers; the distinctive sound a page makes when turned. So far digital texts have not satisfyingly replicated such sensations. Paper books also have an immediately discernible size, shape and weight. We might refer to a hardcover edition of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace as a “hefty tome” or to a paperback of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness as a “slim volume.” In contrast, although a digital text has a length that may be represented with a scroll or progress bar, it has no obvious shape or thickness. An e-reader always weighs the same, regardless of whether you are reading Marcel Proust's magnum opus or one of Ernest Hemingway's short stories. Some researchers have found that these discrepancies create enough so-called haptic dissonance to dissuade some people from using e-readers.

To amend this sensory incongruity, many designers have worked hard to make the e-reader or tablet experience as close to reading on paper as possible. E-ink resembles typical chemical ink, and the simple layout of the Kindle's screen looks remarkably like a page in a paper book. Likewise, Apple's iBooks app attempts to simulate somewhat realistic page turning. So far such gestures have been more aesthetic than pragmatic. E-books still prevent people from quickly scanning ahead on a whim or easily flipping to a previous chapter when a sentence surfaces a memory of something they read earlier.

Some digital innovators are not confining themselves to imitations of paper books. Instead they are evolving screen-based reading into something else entirely. Scrolling may not be the ideal way to navigate a text as long and dense as Herman Melville's Moby Dick , but the New York Times , the Washington Post , ESPN and other media outlets have created beautiful, highly visual articles that could not appear in print because they blend text with movies and embedded sound clips and depend entirely on scrolling to create a cinematic experience. Robin Sloan has pioneered the tap essay, which relies on physical interaction to set the pace and tone, unveiling new words, sentences and images only when someone taps a phone or a tablet's touch screen. And some writers are pairing up with computer programmers to produce ever more sophisticated interactive fiction and nonfiction in which one's choices determine what one reads, hears and sees next.

When it comes to intensively reading long pieces of unembellished text, paper and ink may still have the advantage. But plain text is not the only way to read.

Scientific American Magazine Vol 309 Issue 5

Short Essay On Books Vs Mobile Phones

Books and mobile phones are two very different forms of technology. Both have their own advantages and disadvantages. Books have been around for centuries and have been a reliable source of knowledge and entertainment. They can be used to learn about virtually any subject, from history to mathematics. Books can also be used to relax and escape from the stresses of everyday life.

On the other hand, mobile phones are a relatively new form of technology. They offer a wide range of features, from communication and social media to gaming and entertainment. Mobile phones are convenient and easy to carry around, making them perfect for those who are always on the go.

When it comes to books vs mobile phones, there is no clear winner. It really depends on the individual and their needs. For those who enjoy reading and learning, books are still the best option. They provide a wealth of knowledge and entertainment that cannot be found on a mobile phone. For those who are more interested in entertainment and communication, a mobile phone may be a better choice.

Both books and mobile phones have their own unique benefits and drawbacks. Books can be expensive to buy and may require regular trips to the library. They can also be heavy and bulky to carry around. Mobile phones, on the other hand, are relatively cheap to purchase and easy to carry. However, they can be distracting and it is easy to become addicted to them.

In the end, it really comes down to personal preference. Some people may find that books are the best way to learn and relax, while others may prefer the convenience of a mobile phone. No matter which one you choose, it is important to be aware of the pros and cons of each so that you can make an informed decision.

Share this Post to Help Fellow Students

Facebook

Useful Posts For Students

20 Best Laptops For Students

How I Won Eiffel Scholarship to Study For Free

16 Online Degree Programs From Top Universities

Should I Consolidate My Federal Student Loan?

8 Best Tablets For Students

Post navigation

Previous post.

No comments yet. Why don’t you start the discussion?

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

error

E-Books VS Printed Books: An Argumentative Essay

The norm for school reading is heavy, expensive textbooks. But some have proposed that e-textbooks, available through school tablets or laptops, could be a better alternative. A textbook is a book used to formally define concepts in education. An e-textbook contains the same material, but is not bound to a single physical object. A typical print textbook is not only expensive, costing 50 US$ or more, but also cumbersome to house and maintain. E-textbooks, on the other hand, are easily accessible with most devices and are much less expensive. In this paper, we’ll be discovering why e-textbooks are a better investment than cumbersome print textbooks.

One of the largest factors of resource decisions is the cost, and this applies to textbooks in addition to many other things. Print textbooks are a big investment for a school. The price of print textbooks is high simply because of the amount of materials required to make them. E-textbooks, however, are priced solely on their content, and tend to be much less expensive than print textbooks. Another factor is the costs going forward after the initial purchase. A print textbook is vulnerable to rips, stains, and mildew, and because of this print textbooks must be cared for carefully. If a print textbook falls victim to one of these mishaps, often a new textbook is required. E-textbooks, though, are accessible to all of the school upon purchase, and cannot degrade or be damaged. As a result, E-textbooks are very low maintenance.

The accessibility of the material is also important. With a print textbook, there is only a few copies, or sometimes only one, in circulation. Only one student can use a given book at a time. These problems are eliminated in e-textbooks, which can be accessed by anyone with an authorized device, even simultaneously. In addition, print textbooks are sometimes not allowed to leave the school, forcing students to read at school. However, with an e-textbook, a student can access the textbook from anywhere with an Internet connection.

Something that might not be considered as much is engagement. Many print textbooks look dull and boring just from their size, their rough paper, and their minuscule type. E-textbooks have the advantage of not being associated with a physical weight, and being presented through a screen that can be zoomed in to focus on the content. Print textbooks also have a stereotype applied to them that claims that they are flat, dull, and long-winded, which is only reinforced by their physical medium. But e-textbooks? They are accessed through an electronic device, the same devices that are used to plan outings with friends and chat with fellows. Simply by being accessed through a device that is often considered useful, or even fun, e-textbooks have the advantage of being associated with that usefulness.

Some might say that this is a disadvantage, and that being on a such a device would distract the student’s attention from the textbook. This point becomes moot if the device is issued by the school and does not allow access to distracting services such as social media. Others may claim that print textbooks make the student connect more with the real, physical world. It might do so, but since the connection is through a print textbook, the students might end up associating the dullness of such a book with the physical world.

Related Samples

  • An Appeal to the Senses: The Development of the Braille System in Nineteenth-Century France
  • Purdue University Application Essay
  • The Argument Against Longer School Days Essay Example
  • My High School Experience Essay Sample
  • Opinion Essay on Learing Outside Courses
  • Scholarship Application Letter Example
  • Essay Example on COVID 19’s Grip on Education in America
  • Schools Should Not Have Dress Codes Argumentative Essay
  • School Uniform Discursive Essay Sample
  • Essay Sample about Types of Research

Didn't find the perfect sample?

essay on books are better than mobile phones

You can order a custom paper by our expert writers

Essay on Mobile Phone for Students and Children

500+ words essay on mobile phone.

Essay on Mobile Phone: Mobile Phone is often also called “cellular phone”. It is a device mainly used for a voice call. Presently technological advancements have made our life easy. Today, with the help of a mobile phone we can easily talk or video chat with anyone across the globe by just moving our fingers. Today mobile phones are available in various shapes and sizes, having different technical specifications and are used for a number of purposes like – voice calling, video chatting, text messaging or SMS, multimedia messaging, internet browsing, email, video games, and photography. Hence it is called a ‘Smart Phone’. Like every device, the mobile phone also has its pros and cons which we shall discuss now.

essay on mobile phone

Advantages of Mobile Phone

1) Keeps us connected

Now we can be connected to our friends, relatives at any time we want through many apps. Now we can talk video chat with whoever we want, by just operating your mobile phone or smartphone. Apart from this mobile also keeps us updated about the whole world.

2) Day to Day Communicating

Today mobiles phone has made our life so easy for daily life activities. Today, one can assess the live traffic situation on mobile phone and take appropriate decisions to reach on time. Along with it the weather updates, booking a cab and many more.

3) Entertainment for All

With the improvement of mobile technology, the whole entertainment world is now under one roof. Whenever we get bored with routine work or during the breaks, we can listen to music, watch movies, our favorite shows or just watch the video of one’s favorite song.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

4) Managing Office Work

These days mobiles are used for many types of official work From meeting schedules, sending and receiving documents, giving presentations, alarms, job applications, etc. Mobile phones have become an essential device for every working people

5) Mobile Banking

Nowadays mobiles are even used as a wallet for making payments. Money could be transferred almost instantly to friends, relatives or others by using mobile baking in the smartphone. Also, one can easily access his/her account details and know past transactions. So it saves a lot of time and also hassle-free.

Disadvantages of Mobile Phones

1)  Wasting Time

Now day’s people have become addicted to mobiles. Even when we don’t need to mobile we surf the net, play games making a real addict. As mobile phones became smarter, people became dumber.

2) Making Us Non- communicable

Wide usage of mobiles has resulted in less meet and talk more. Now people don’t meet physically rather chat or comment on social media.

3) Loss of Privacy

It is a major concern now of losing one’s privacy because of much mobile usage. Today anyone could easily access the information like where you live, your friends and family, what is your occupation, where is your house, etc; by just easily browsing through your social media account.

4) Money Wastage

As the usefulness of mobiles has increased so their costing. Today people are spending a lot amount of money on buying smartphones, which could rather be spent on more useful things like education, or other useful things in our life.

A mobile phone could both be positive and negative; depending on how a user uses it. As mobiles have become a part of our life so we should use it in a proper way, carefully for our better hassle-free life rather using it improperly and making it a virus in life.

Customize your course in 30 seconds

Which class are you in.

tutor

  • Travelling Essay
  • Picnic Essay
  • Our Country Essay
  • My Parents Essay
  • Essay on Favourite Personality
  • Essay on Memorable Day of My Life
  • Essay on Knowledge is Power
  • Essay on Gurpurab
  • Essay on My Favourite Season
  • Essay on Types of Sports

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Download the App

Google Play

essay on books are better than mobile phones

10,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. Take the first step today

Meet top uk universities from the comfort of your home, here’s your new year gift, one app for all your, study abroad needs, start your journey, track your progress, grow with the community and so much more.

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Verification Code

An OTP has been sent to your registered mobile no. Please verify

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Thanks for your comment !

Our team will review it before it's shown to our readers.

Leverage Edu

  • School Education /

Essay on Mobile Phone: 100 Words, 300 Words, 500 Words

' src=

  • Updated on  
  • Feb 21, 2024

essay on my mobile phone

Mobile Phones are portable electronic devices used to make calls, browse the internet, click pictures, and do several other tasks. However, the mobile phones discovered in the early 1970s were quite different from the compact and slim devices we use today. Cell phones were invented by John F. Mitchell and Martin Cooper of Motorola in 1973.

As modern humans, we all use mobile phones for our day-to-day functioning. At academic and higher education levels, students are given the task of writing an essay on mobile phones. An essay on mobile phones requires a comprehensive and detailed study of their history, major developments and the purposes it serve. In this article, we have provided essays on mobile phones for class 6,7,8.9, 10, and 12th standard students. Students can refer to these sample essays on mobile phones to write their own. Keep reading to find out essays on mobile phones and some fun facts about the device.

This Blog Includes:

Sample essay on mobile phone (100 words), sample essay on mobile phone (300 words), sample essay on mobile phone (500 words), essay on mobile phone: 5+ facts about smartphones.

Also Read: The Beginner’s Guide to Writing an Essay

Also Read: Essay on Importance of the Internet

Here we have listed some of the interesting facts about smartphones. These facts can be added to the ‘essay on mobile phones’ to make it more interesting. Below are the 5 interesting facts about smartphones:

  • The most expensive smartphone in the world is the Falcon Supernova iPhone 6 Pink Diamond. It is worth  $48.5 million.
  • The cheapest mobile phone in the world is the Freedom 251. It just cost INR 251.
  • Apple is the world’s most popular smartphone
  • The first phone greeting was “Ahoy-hoy, who’s calling please?” 
  • The first smartphone was invented by IBM. It was released by IBM in 1994. The original screen name of the 1st smartphone was “Simon.” 
  • The first text message in the world was ‘Merry Christmas’

Also Read: Holi Essay: Free Sample Essays 100 To 500 Words In English

A mobile phone system gets its name from diving the service into small cells. Each of these cells has a base station with a useful range in the order of a kilometre/mile.

Mobile phones have become extremely important due to the ease of communication it has brought about. Moreover, it can perform several major tasks easily and effectively. For example, a calculator. Aside from this mobile phones can help a user connect to the internet, and use social media applications, and other applications. Mobile phones can even assist in online payment. 

The full form or the meaning of a Moble is Modified, Operation, Byte, Integration, Limited, Energy”. John F. Mitchell and Martin Cooper of Motorola discovered the device in 1973. An essay on mobile phones can include the mobile phone full form.

Related Articles

Mobile phones have become an indispensable part of our lifestyle. There are several advantages and disadvantages of having a smartphone. However, the pros outweigh the cons. A mobile phone essay can be written by including both the advantages and disadvantages. To discover more articles like this one, consult the study abroad expert at Leverage Edu.

' src=

Blessy George

Blessy George works as a content marketing associate with Leverage Edu. She has completed her M.A. in Political Science and has experience working as an intern with CashKaro.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Contact no. *

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Connect With Us

essay on books are better than mobile phones

25,000+ students realised their study abroad dream with us. Take the first step today.

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Resend OTP in

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Need help with?

Study abroad.

UK, Canada, US & More

IELTS, GRE, GMAT & More

Scholarship, Loans & Forex

Country Preference

New Zealand

Which English test are you planning to take?

Which academic test are you planning to take.

Not Sure yet

When are you planning to take the exam?

Already booked my exam slot

Within 2 Months

Want to learn about the test

Which Degree do you wish to pursue?

When do you want to start studying abroad.

January 2024

September 2024

What is your budget to study abroad?

essay on books are better than mobile phones

How would you describe this article ?

Please rate this article

We would like to hear more.

Have something on your mind?

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Make your study abroad dream a reality in January 2022 with

essay on books are better than mobile phones

India's Biggest Virtual University Fair

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Essex Direct Admission Day

Why attend .

essay on books are better than mobile phones

Don't Miss Out

  • Mobile Phones

Essay on Mobile Phones

500 + words uses of mobile phones essay.

Mobile phones, chiefly used to make voice calls to people, are also popular as cell/cellular phones. The current technological developments have made our lives more comfortable. We are becoming more and more dependent on mobile phones for our communication. From calling to emailing or texting and even making purchases online, the uses of mobile phones are numerous. For this reason, mobile phones are also known as “smartphones” now.

Mobile Phones Essay

The fact that we should also avoid overdependence on mobile phones is also discussed in this essay on the mobile phone. This mobile phone essay in English discusses the advantages and disadvantages of mobile phones. Learn from this essay how to write a persuasive essay on mobile phones for students and help them ace essay writing.

Advantages of Mobile Phones Essay

This section of the mobile essay talks about the advantages of mobile phones. See here what this mobile phone paragraph has to say.

  • Stay connected: – Mobile phones are the best way to stay connected with your friends and family living away from you. Voice calls, video calls, emails, messages and texts- thus, the communication modes via cell phones are multitude.
  • Mode of entertainment: – As technology advances, you can now find the entire entertainment industry at your fingertips on your mobile. There are apps on mobiles to watch films, series/ shows, documentaries, news, read books, listen to music and much more.
  • Managing office work :- With working from home becoming more popular now due to the Covid-19 pandemic, mobile phones can also simplify our work. From creating and getting reminders about meeting schedules, online meetings, sending and receiving emails/ files, giving presentations, setting alarms and applying for jobs to setting up a calendar to do jobs, mobile phones are beneficial for working people. Instant messaging and official emails via mobile phones also flow forth to connect with office people.

Disadvantages of Mobile Phones Essay

There are also cons to using mobile phones. Find here the disadvantages of mobile phones.

  • Become overdependent on mobile phones :- It is seen that people tend to become overdependent on mobile phones, thus wasting their time. With technological advancement, the use of mobile phones has increased, making people addicted to them.
  • People become more non-communicable :- They use mobile phones more as a mode of communication or to entertain themselves, thus meeting people less or talking less. As time goes by, they become rather incommunicable.
  • Privacy loss:- Loss of privacy is another primary concern on the rise due to over usage of mobile phones. It is now possible to get personal details like where you live, details of your friends and family, job and education and so on via mobile phones.

Thus, see how there are pros and cons to using a mobile phone, from these advantages and disadvantages of mobile phones essay. Seeing as how mobile phones are now an integral part of our lives, it’s up to us to know how to use them properly to lead a hassle-free life without misusing them.

Also Read: Social Media Essay | Essay on Health is Wealth | Essay On Constitution of India

Frequently Asked Questions on Mobile Phones Essay

Who invented the mobile.

The mobile phone was invented in the year 1973 by Martin Cooper.

What is the role of mobile phones in our lives?

Mobile phones are a part of our lives now. Some of its main roles are storing data, instant communicative purposes, digital cameras, etc.

How can a mobile phone be of use to the student?

Students can use mobile phones for various study and research purposes. An abundant amount of information which is useful for students can be accessed through mobile phones.

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your Mobile number and Email id will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Request OTP on Voice Call

Post My Comment

essay on books are better than mobile phones

  • Share Share

Register with BYJU'S & Download Free PDFs

Register with byju's & watch live videos.

close

Counselling

Live Support

IMAGES

  1. Books are better than mobile phones

    essay on books are better than mobile phones

  2. Books vs Smartphones

    essay on books are better than mobile phones

  3. Essay on Books

    essay on books are better than mobile phones

  4. Using Mobile Phones Essay

    essay on books are better than mobile phones

  5. Curriculum Notes: Book Versus Phone

    essay on books are better than mobile phones

  6. E-Books Vs Paper Books : Which is better for reading?

    essay on books are better than mobile phones

VIDEO

  1. Phone VS Book 😱#shorts #viral

  2. 5 Books Better Than The Movie

  3. Is Roblox flight simulator better than mobile?

  4. Tv is better than mobile phone #tvisbetterforkids #momlife #kidslife

  5. Evil Nun The Broken Mask Van Escape Full Gameplay (Xbox Remote Play)

  6. Essay In English : Books and mobile phones

COMMENTS

  1. Books Vs. Phones: Which Is Better?

    Reading physical books is even better. Physical books provide context during reading, giving the reader a better understanding of the text, according to a study conducted by UC Berkeley. Reading books also increases vocabulary, especially in children. Reading heightens intelligence in general. According to The Huffington Post, reading increases ...

  2. Book vs Mobile: When To Use Each One In Writing

    For example, built-in screen readers, adjustable font sizes, and text-to-speech capabilities make it easier for visually impaired individuals to access and enjoy written content. While books can be adapted for accessibility, mobile devices provide a more versatile and customizable experience. 6.

  3. Students learn better from books than screens, according to a new study

    Patricia A. Alexander Professor of Psychology, University of Maryland, University of Maryland Lauren M. Singer , Today's students see themselves as digital natives, the first generation to grow up surrounded by technology like smartphones, tablets and e-readers.

  4. Survey: Most people prefer reading paper books over digital books on

    Survey: Most people prefer reading paper books over digital books on tablets, phones July 21, 2021 Add a comment by John Anderer LONDON — Digital books on tablets, smartphones, and devices like Amazon's Kindle are certainly convenient, but according to a new survey most people still prefer a good old fashioned paper book.

  5. Books vs. e-books: The science behind the best way to read

    "An e-reader has more in common with the electronic devices that young people use all the time, like smartphones or iPads, than a paper book, when it comes to turning of pages, the possibilities ...

  6. Modern Technology Vs Books Compare And Contrast Essay Example (500

    Category:, Last Updated: Essay type: Pages: Download One of the most important marvels of modern technology is the Internet, which has not just revolutionized the process of information retrieval, but also, dramatically changed the way people seek information.

  7. Reading on Paper Versus Screens: What's the Difference?

    Instead of getting better at digital reading, we may be getting worse. A study examining reading comprehension research between 2000 and 2017 indicates it's harder to comprehend digital text. The researchers found print's advantages are greater now than in 2000. In other words, this digital-reading problem isn't going away.

  8. The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: The Science of Paper versus

    "The implicit feel of where you are in a physical book turns out to be more important than we realized," says Abigail Sellen of Microsoft Research Cambridge in England and co-author of The Myth of ...

  9. The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: Why Paper Still Beats Screens

    In the U.S., e-books currently make up more than 20 percent of all books sold to the general public. Despite all the increasingly user-friendly and popular technology, most studies published since ...

  10. Debate: Books vs. Screens

    Debate Books vs. Screens August 29, 2022 Do you love turning the pages of a book? Or do you like swiping across a screen as you read? These days, a lot of books have electronic versions, called e-books, that you can read on a laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

  11. 5 COMPARISONS OF BOOK V/S MOBILE PHONE

    4 min read · Aug 8, 2022 Hey, guys today I woke up and saw my mobile phone beside my pillow. It made me think I spent half of the day on it, but what I achieved from it. Oh, it quickly took me...

  12. Physical Books Are Better Than Electronic Books Argumentative Essay

    The importance of a book to help us learn and understand things cannot be justified. Some people believe that electronic books are better for reading because of convenient reasons. From my point of view, physical books have many advantages that are better at reading than electronic books.

  13. Short Essay On Books Vs Mobile Phones

    Home Essay Examples Posted in Essay Examples Short Essay On Books Vs Mobile Phones Posted in Essay Examples Books and mobile phones are two very different forms of technology. Both have their own advantages and disadvantages. Books have been around for centuries and have been a reliable source of knowledge and entertainment.

  14. Ebooks or Paper Books: Your Best Arguments

    August 26, 2014 With the advance of phones, tablets, and ereaders, ebooks have become a popular reading standard. Still, there's something about the feel of an old-fashioned paper book. We...

  15. Mobile phones: Impacts, challenges, and predictions

    The mobile phone is stimulating one of the most important technological revolutions in human history. This statement is not hyperbole. There are more mobile phones in use today than there are people, but measuring quantity alone trivializes the importance of the mobile phone to those who rely on it.

  16. E-Books VS Printed Books: An Argumentative Essay

    E-Books VS Printed Books: An Argumentative Essay. The norm for school reading is heavy, expensive textbooks. But some have proposed that e-textbooks, available through school tablets or laptops, could be a better alternative. A textbook is a book used to formally define concepts in education. An e-textbook contains the same material, but is not ...

  17. Printed Books are Better than E-Books

    Reading an E-book or a printed book has its own merits and demerits. For some people holding a book and sitting on the couch is all the comfort they want; for others holding their phones and reading e-books while lying on their bed is best. Written by Mayank Vikash. Published on 16th April 2023 at 23:55 IST.

  18. Smartphone use and academic performance: A literature review

    The reported coefficients range from a correlation coefficient of −0.380 between total phone use in class and self-reported grade point average (GPA) in Kim et al. (2019) to a correlation coefficient of 0.047 between the problematic mobile phone use scale of Sert, Yilmaz, Kumsar and Aygin (2019) and self-reported GPA. When considering only ...

  19. Essay for books is better than mobile phone

    Answer: Books are Better than Mobile Phones A few decades ago, children were keener towards devoting their time in reading books but in a matter of few years the drastic change has been noticed.

  20. Essay on Mobile Phone for Students and Children

    Essay on Mobile Phone: Mobile Phone is often also called "cellular phone". It is a device mainly used for a voice call. Presently technological advancements have made our life easy. Today, with the help of a mobile phone we can easily talk or video chat with anyone across the globe by just moving our fingers.

  21. Books are better than mobile phones

    Books are better than mobile phones

  22. Essay on Mobile Phone: 100 Words, 300 Words, 500 Words

    Sample Essay on Mobile Phone (500 words) Mobile Phone is a portable telephone that performs a variety of functions for its users. The smartphone can be used to text, call, watch movies, listen to music, and even use social media applications. This cellular device has its own advantages and disadvantages.

  23. Essay on Mobile Phones for Students in English

    As time goes by, they become rather incommunicable. Privacy loss:- Loss of privacy is another primary concern on the rise due to over usage of mobile phones. It is now possible to get personal details like where you live, details of your friends and family, job and education and so on via mobile phones.

  24. The Fourth Option on Instagram: "LOVE STORY PART 13 Seven long weeks

    304 likes, 6 comments - the.fourth.option on February 25, 2024: "LOVE STORY PART 13 Seven long weeks after submitting my mission papers, I opened my call at Camp..."