[Pen/Pencil Review] Monteverde Telescopic Ballpoint Pen With Stylus
Jimmy and I were taking advantage of a sale at Fry’s Electronics last week when we saw this week’s pen (in a two-pack) in their Office Supply Section. This week’s pen is part of Monteverde 365 Everyday Collection. It’s the S-102 Telescopic Ballpoint pen with stylus – also part of the One Touch Stylus line. We picked up the red barrel ones in a two pack – Jimmy’s favorite color.
Jimmy’s a fan of the telescopic pens and pencils for the simple fact he can clip it on a small notebook and have it all fit in his pocket. There’s definitely a benefit there. These are 4.25 inches long compacted and just over 5.25″ long fully extended. That makes this pen long enough to be comfortable in use and small enough to lose in a purse.
This pen is well constructed and attractive. The barrel is etched chrome plated metal for a stylish ribbed look leading to the tapered tip. There are a few ridges, but mostly they’re rounded for a pretty comfortable feel in the hand. It has a good diameter. The “cap” comes in four colors, we picked up red, which may ding and scratch – but so far so good. The clip is sturdy metal – it’s not going to snap off. The pen retracts by sliding the ink and barrel into the red cap. The stylus works as it should on tablets and smart phones.
This pen has a medium point black ink, which is fine. It feels like a 1.0mm – which means more potential for smearing and glops. I would LIKE to make it a 0.7mm, but I haven’t found refill information on it yet. So, I’m not sure it’s refillable. I HOPE it is, that would make this pen AMAZING.
The numbers:
1. How does it work? – 1 – It works just fine. The ink is dark and rich. The mechanism telescopes and retracts. The stylus operates touch screens just fine.
2. Grip and feel – 1 – This is not designed to be “ergonomic”. So the grip is smooth and metal. But that gives it the right design to retract into the barrel cap – so the trade off works. It’s well balanced and long enough to be comfortable.
3. Material – 1 – This is well made, especially for the price. It’s all metal and strong. It’s attractive. And the stylus is good quality rubber.
4. Overall Design – 0.5 – The reason I’m giving this a bit of a knock, is that ON MINE (and it could be just this one), I have to retract it more with a jiggle to make sure the ink retracts all the way. And the point seems a bit big for the design. I would put a finer point in it – IF I know it was refillable, which I can’t verify. And with the stylus, if you’re trying to avoid germs, you’ve got options.
5. Price Point – 1 – They’re not expensive, especially for being metal and a specialized design. These pens run about $6.99 for a two pack – making them $3.50 a piece. Not a bad price even if they aren’t refillable. The ink should last a good time. And at this price – and in two-packs, if you lose one in a pocket or off a desk, they’re replaceable.
That’s 4.5 of 5 bronze pencils.
