I’ve had this dilemma for a while now–do I buy an e-book or not? Then I went to Google IO and got a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and installed the Kindle app, thinking it would be a good substitution for a Kindle. I even purchased my first e-book (Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage for only $0.99) and started reading books in bed before going to sleep. And it’s the perfect substitution–almost.

Even with a great tablet, there are a few reasons I’d still get a Kindle if the opportunity presented itself:

Advantage #1: Battery Life

First of all, the idea of a two month battery life is really cool. Being able to hold a charge that long would get you through just about anything–including my summer vacations to the wife’s family cabin in Maine. The tablet has an OK battery life (usually 3 or 4 days with moderate use and always connected to WiFi), but it’d be nice to be even more mobile than that.

Advantage #2: Size and Weight

Compared to carrying about a stack of books, the Kindle is nothing. Imagine carrying around 30 books in your suitcase on a trip–or just your Kindle in a nice leather case. Not that you’d read all 30 books, but as I would say to my dad about having all my music on one device–it’s nice to have the options.

Advantage #3: e-Ink

The resolution on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is even better than the iPad 2. It’s crystal clear, but it still causes eye strain, even in night-mode with the brightness turned down. It’d be nice to have a more natural reading experience with the e-Ink technology. As the technology progresses, I wouldn’t be surprised if someday you’ll have a device that can switch seamlessly between e-Ink and a regular display. But for now, give me the book-like feel when I’m reading a digital copy.

Despite the advantages, there are still a few reasons I’m hesitant to stop buying print books altogether and only buy e-books:

Disadvantage #1: Proprietary Format

Something about the fact that Kindle books aren’t in a universally compatible format makes me nervous. I don’t know what would happen, but it hearkens back to the days when the only way to get music purchase on iTunes onto a non-Apple device (bypassing DRM) was to burn the CD and rip it to your hard drive again. I’d prefer if all e-books came in a standard ePub format, but I guess that might be asking too much from companies who are trying to increase (and force) loyalty.

 Disadvantage #2: One-use device

Some might call this an advantage, but until I can get one device that can do both LED screen AND e-ink, I’ll put this one under the disadvantage category: it can only really do one thing. Sure, it might have a browser, but who is really going to browse Facebook in e-ink? For the minimalist trying to reduce the number of devices you take around, having a laptop, a smartphone, a tablet, and an e-reader might seem like a lot. A dedicated device for reading isn’t a bad thing–it’s just an extra thing.

Agree? Disagree? Head to the comments.