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date: 09-12-2012
e-pl1
kit lens

Paper♥♥Mate Inkjoy Review (unique identifier code: w3x9y711)

First and foremost, I must thank Papermate since they are gracious enough to provide so much free pens to users out there for review. From what I gather, there is 200 lucky users including myself who managed to get the free inkjoy pens for review.
Let's see... 200 x 24 = 4,800 Inkjoy pens to be sent out.
Via courier nonetheless, so kudos to the marketing department of Papermate for embarking for on this kind of marketing campaign, which I feel the first of its kind for pen manufacturer (in Malaysia at least).


Being trained in engineering, I find no better way to do this review than to do it the best way that I can ... ie to review it like from engineering point of view and also as an end user of this writing instrument.


Before I start the review proper, I would list down the top few factors what would influence my choice of pen:



1. No leaking in shirt  and no blotting on paper
2. Quick drying on smooth paper
3. Smooth writing from "cold" start
4. Comfortable grip / not rolling easily
5. Ink level visibility and ability to insert with new ink refills (environmentally friendly)

These are  the top 5 factors which will be used to rate the Papermate Inkjoy pen series.

So without further delay... here is my KISS review on Papermate Inkjoy


Detailed Breakdown (sorry, this is engineer's habit):
Four different types of Papermate Inkjoy pens:
700RT - retractable with metal clip - 2 pens
300RT - retractable with metal clip - 10 pens
100RT - retractable with plastic clip - 6 pens
100 - non-retractable with normal cap - 6 pens

Papermate Inkjoy 700RT

Papermate Inkjoy 300RT 

Papermate Inkjoy 100RT

Papermate Inkjoy 100

Out of the four, I have only managed to unscrew 700RT and 300RT. So I would guess that if there is a refill being sold in the market, then these 2 series is your best bet. So sorry, haven't been shopping for stationeries lately to confirm this.


Inkjoy series comes in 3 different size of pen tips:
1.0M - M for medium - 8 pens
0.7F - F for fine - 8 pens
0.5XF - XF for extra fine - 8 pens


I find that I enjoy 0.7F tip the most, as 1.0M tip tend to blot while 0.5XF is a wee bit too fine for me. Of course architects might beg to differ. But then again, I am an engineer. :-)

From top to bottom: 1.0M tip, 0.7F tip and 0.5XF tip

0.7F tip (left), 1.0M tip (center) and 0.5XF tip (right)

Different colors sent:
Black - 8 pens
Blue - 8 pens
Red - 5 pens 
Purple - 1 pen
Pink - 1 pen
Light Blue - 1 pen

Sorry about the quality of the photo above... I actually scanned the pens on my scanner (too lazy to take pictures)

Sample writing indicating pen series, tip size, ink color and the bar code imprinted.
(bar code for pen #18 is missing due to my own mistake)

Verdict:
1. No leaking in shirt and no blotting on paper - rating: 6/10
So far so good, none leaking on my shirt / pants pocket. However, there is a few times when the pen just blots when I am writing. And you certainly would not want that to happen if you are writing / putting your signature for a very important document.


2. Quick drying ink on smooth paper - rating: 4/10
I did a quick smudge test and found that all Inkjoy pen suffer from this, albeit not that much considering that this smudging will only happen if one happens to swipe their hands across their own writing within few seconds after the words are written. I think this problem will be more prevalent among Southpaws or left-handed persons. Nonetheless, I hope Papermate can improve on the ink formulation so that the ink can dry quickly even when used on the smoothest (non-absorbant) paper.


3. Smooth writing from "cold" start - rating: 7/10.
Papermate still have another 3 more points to improve to get a full mark 10 out of 10 rating. Like a car engine, all pen basically suffer from the same problem. You may want to scribble your Inkjoy pen elsewhere before starting to write proper.



4. Comfortable grip / not rolling easily - rating: 7/10
300RT is most comfortable but may be seen if rubber grip can outlast the ink or the other way round, since for most other pens the rubber grip just gives way after long usage, probably due to the combination of heat, sweat and chemicals on the rubber material.
Shape of 100RT and 100 is a bit too odd combined with no rubber grip, therefore reducing the comfort level somewhat.
I also find the shape of 700RT a bit odd, tapering down the middle, giving me this impression that the pen is a bit heavy on the top.

Shape of Inkjoy 100 series

Shape of Inkjoy 100RT series

Shape of Inkjoy 300RT series

Shape of Inkjoy700RT series

Side-by-side comparison for Inkjoy series - from left to right:

100, 100RT, 300RT, 700RT

5. Ink level visibility and ability to insert with new ink refills (environmentally friendly)
Rating: 4/10
Only 700RT and 100 have ink level visibility. However you can only see the ink level in 700RT if you unscrew the bottom metal cap and pull out the ink.
300RT have no ink level visibility, ditto for 100 RT.


Individual ratings for Inkjoy Series:
(based on my "gut" feeling + combination of factors above + price per pen) 
700RT: 5/10
300RT: 7/10
100RT: 6/10
100: 5/10


Overall average ratings: 5.8/10


Overall verdict:

Pros: smooth to hold, can be refilled, relatively cheap
Cons: might blot, smudge


I WILL buy 300RT if I run out of pen to use
... and I WILL buy 300RT refill if there is one


Apologies to fans of 700RT, 100RT and 100, different people different taste!


To end my review, I would like to leave one question to the good people of Papermate... it baffles me why pen manufacturers never embark on recycling  initiative for pen bodies. I have seen previously that a certain fizzy drink manufacturer pays a certain amount of money to the end user to collect the used glass bottle. These glass bottles are then washed, then reused and refilled.
Can the same concept work for used pen bodies?

  

12-11-11

12-11-11

what do you see?

can you see superman flying in the sky?

captured on 07-11-2011, e300 on sigma105/f2.8

edited online on flickr's picknik, lomo effect.

Brand new start ... 11-11-11

captured on 07-11-2011, e300 on sigma105/f2.8

my abstract potrayal of today's date...

11-11-11

also happens to be birthday to my dearest mum.

Happy Birthday Mum!

coming soon...

11.11.11

relaunching of monkeyshoots.blogspot.com

ps: ok, ok some spoilo might say nah... it is 11.11.2011. but who cares? it is MY photo blog ok? hahahah 

Project 365-day 34

Series: Cat - day 4

expressions of a cat
pic 1: annoyed

epl1, m14-42 kit lens

note: well I will be annoyed too if someone suddenly take a photo of me with flash without warning me...

pic 2: angry - "are you done yet with your flash?"

epl1, m14-42 kit lens

Project 365-day 33

thousand apologies... backdated posting for 07 July

Series: Cat - day 3
expressions of a cat
pic 1: curious
epl1, m14-42 kit lens

note: was hiding behind a pillar and moving a cardboard up n down the pillar to get this shot

pic 2: surprised

epl1, m14-42 kit lens

note: i guess too much sound from the cardboard rubbing the pillar scares the poor cat