The Pen Addict

Review: Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.5mm Fluorescent Orange

Color me very very surprised by this one - in a good way of course.  The Pentel Hybrid Technica is a pen I have used before with varying degrees of success, but this fluorescent orange model really impressed me.  The way the ink performs on the paper is great.  The gel ink is neat and clean, making for some impressive lines, and the ink color is FLUORESCENT ORANGE!

Now, there are plenty of other bright ink pens that may works as well as this pen (there is a Uni-Ball Signo DX in pink that comes to mind), but this Pentel is just downright fun to use.  I don't know that I would use it for strictly note taking, but as a highlighter alternative, it is just about perfect.  I am an underliner as opposed to a highlighter anyway, so this pen fits my needs.  In fact, this pen is part of the "Go Team" that I carry with me in my main pen case.

Fluorescent pink and yellow will be on their way from JetPens shortly.

Click here for the XL review.

Review: Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.5mm Black

I wrote this review many months ago, and somehow it got lost in the shuffle of my Flickr page (by the way, for new readers of The Pen Addict, you can find all of my photos right here).  The Pentel Hybrid Technica is what I like to classify unscientifically as a basic pen.  No fancy features, no Super Ink, nothing other than a good working pen that you can break out and just go to town with.  The Pilot G-2 falls into this category for example, as does the Pilot VBall RT.  What I look for in a pen like this is really just ease of use.  Can it get the job done without annoying me in some way?  The Hybrid Technica comes thisclose, but there is one minor issue I can't overlook - the grip.

The issue here is that the grip is not attached to the pen, via adhesive, or any other way.  I know other pens do this as well, but this one seems especially slick, so much so that the grip actually rotates as I write.  It is like I am at one of those rotating restaurants at the top of a fancy downtown hotel or office building.  Here comes the pen clip...and there it goes again.  Big Ben, Parliament.  It is a really odd felling.  I'm sure I could add some super glue myself if I were so inclined, but I have enough other pens to choose from thank you very much.  It's too bad really, because this pen writes very nicely and I would love to use it more.

Click here for the XL review.

Review: Pentel Hybrid Technica Multi Pen + Pencil

After not liking and then coming around on the standard single cartridge Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.35mm gel ink pen, I had moderate hopes for the multi pen 0.5mm version.  Unfortunately, I am still in the not liking it boat with this model.  I feel like that when writing, I have to exert too much effort.  The line isn't always clean and sharp, so I am gripping and pressing harder in an effort to correct that, which in turn tires out my hand.  This obviously just goes for the black and red gel ink cartridges - the pencil is just fine.  In fact, this pen may be relegated to a pencil if the ink cartridges don't turn the corner.  That's really too bad, because this is one of the best multi pen barrels I have used.

(Update: A reader correctly pointed out that I was calling this pen a Pilot when it is fact a Pentel, as it says right on the barrel. Sorry for the mix-up and thanks for the correction George!)

Review: Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.3mm

Another decent pen from Pentel, but the Hybrid Technica line is still not quite up to par with the Slicci line, or with the Pilot Hi-Tec-C or G-2 lines.  The best part about this pen is that the Slicci cartridge is a perfect fit - no modifications required.  So for those of you wanting a wider barrel for your Slicci, here it is:  Perfect Pentel Slicci Hack

Labels: G-2, Hacks, Hi-Tec-C, Pentel Hybrid Technica, Reviews, Slicci

Review: Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.35mm Needle Tip

(Click on image above for larger view)

This is a decent pen, but I'm not really in a hurry to buy more of the same anytime soon.  The best thing the Pentel Hybrid Technica has going for it is the barrel design.  It is slightly heavier than a Pilot G2, and is very sturdy.  It writes ok, but is not in the class of some of my favorites like the Pentel Slicci.

Labels: Hybrid Technica, Pentel, Reviews