BirdForum is the net's largest birding community dedicated to wild birds and birding, and is absolutely FREE!

Register for an account to take part in lively discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jim M." data-source="post: 3615522" data-attributes="member: 60675">Agree.  There are many advantages to paper field guides which I don't see going away soon.  I can always find a bird much more quickly in a paper guide than on a device.  And paper guides are much more capable of withstanding abuse and difficult weather conditions--and much cheaper to replace if they are damaged.  Plus I can fit most paper guides in a pocket; tablets are big and unwieldy.However, in situations where you aren't going to be referring to a guide much because you already know the birds well, I can see where having a paper guide would be unnecessary simply because you won't be using it much.  But for frequent reference, or if you are in a new region where you are still learning the birds, paper guides cannot yet be beat in my opinion.  But my personal preference in such situations is to carry both when in the field--songs are one big reason.  But I opt for the phone app for portability reasons.</blockquote>