Are the digital billboards better?

The number of digital billboards in the Des Moines area continues to grow -- they're along Grand Avenue, Ingersoll, Army Post, and I-235 on the east side now, among other places. The question is: Are they better than their printed contemporaries? On the positive side, they're more modern, in a sense, and they can be used to transmit emergency information like Amber Alerts and weather warnings if necessary. But on the negative side, they're incredibly bright, create noise, and can be distracting to drivers. They're definitely better than street spam, but it's hard to see how nostalgic we'll be about these gigantic slow-motion television sets in 50 years. They certainly won't have the same sort of "found" appeal that faded old painted signs offer today.