Nowadays the first thing most of us do as soon as our alarm clock goes off is to grab our phone. Sadly, that’s how our human sensations are slowly stolen away. Don’t get us wrong, as a digital communication agency offering digital solutions, we strongly believe in the power of digital platforms, but we also think print offers a multi-sensory experience which cannot be derived from the electronic version. Here is five reasons why we should never give up on traditional print:
1. Sight
The visual aspects of a physical book convey much more information than we actually realize. A book’s shape, size, cover, typography, weight give us guidance and tell us something more about the story we are immersed in. The novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Barnes and Noble beautifully illustrates the importance of an unique and divine cover.
2. Smell
We love the irrational things about books including its wonderful, magical, transportive smell which adds character to the story and helps us to connect emotionally with it. It’s definitely better to read ink on paper than to read on a screen.
3. Touch
No matter how hard ebooks try to imitate the tactile experience of holding a book in one’s hand, we definitely do not feel those cisp pages turning in our hand neither the soft touch that print books have. Paper makes without any doubt reading physically much more pleasurable.
4. Note taking
It’s easier for us to scribble in the margins of a print book, dog-ear the important pages and underline the key sentences with a pencil. Although there are digital tools available to do that, there is no real connection between physical gestures and cognition as we have with print and which furthermore helps us to understand and remember better.
5. Reading comprehension
When it comes to reading comprehension, several studies show printed books are still a better choice. Reading on screen may distract us easily and lowers therefore the reading comprehension.