Kokuyo Campus Twin Ring Notebook Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

Affordable, dependable, and delightful. That's how I describe the Kokuyo Campus Twin Ring notebooks. I honestly don't know why it took me so long to try one of these notebooks, but I'm sure glad I did.

These notebooks come in at a whopping $5.50 a piece, with your choice of 6 or 7 mm rule and an assortment of colors. At a price like that, it's hard to argue that this is a high value notebook.

I went through a phase recently where I didn't want anything to do with spiral notebooks. No idea why, but it happened. That's no longer the case, as I really appreciate the versatility of a spiral notebook – particularly how they lay completely flat and don't require any sort of stabilizing pressure to keep pages down while writing. Other types of bound books also have their perks, so it's just a question of mood or needs for the job when it comes to picking one based on binding.

The binding in the Kokuyo is twin ring, which means there are two rings for each hole in the paper. This creates a strong spiral that resists being deformed when put in a bag with other large objects. I always hated how my notebooks in school would exhibit a harsh slant in the spiral binding after a couple of weeks of class. With the Kokuyo notebooks, this isn't as much of an issue due to the smaller diameter of the spiral, and the extra reinforcement. As another bonus, the double spiral also means there are fewer accidental tears. It seems like single spiral notebooks loose pages more frequently because it's easier to rip them out.

The front of the book has two covers in a way – a semi-rigid translucent front cover, and a normal cover with the branding and information just after that. I'm assuming the translucent cover on the front is to add a bit of protection to the book, but I'm confused as to why there's only one. Why not a little protection on the back? Given the price, it's hard to complain.

So, it's a notebook that you write in. How does it handle inks? Really well.

This isn't a premium paper, so you can easily find notebooks that feel smoother and handle show-through much better, but you'll pay much for them, especially if they are similarly sized. The semi-B5 size is a great step up from the standard 5.5" x 8.5" notebooks that are really common. It's not so big as to be unusable on small desks, but it's also quite spacious.

Writing with fountain pens in this book is smooth. The paper is a great quality and I'm really happy with it. It does show through a bit to the back of the page, but not so much that it renders the back page unusable. It's only a minor problem in my opinion, and even when using wide nibs I've not had any problems using the back page.

I haven't seen any feathering with the inks I've tried, but I wouldn't be surprised if some of the inks that are infamous for feathering showed a slight amount of feathering on this paper. Dry time is pretty quick as the paper is fairly absorbent. The ink doesn't lay on top of the page very long. Overall, it's a fantastic paper for the price.

The notebooks only come in ruled format, but you can choose between 6 mm and 7 mm spacing. The 6 mm ruling comes in a green or red cover, and the 7 mm books are available in yellow or blue covers. Like most Kokuyo paper, there's an area at the top for the date and other information for your notes. Every fifth line is denoted with a tiny dot at the beginning and end of the line. I've never used this, but it's worth mentioning.

Honestly, I wouldn't expect this book to live long in a harsh environment (like a backpack with textbooks), but the good news is that it fits the Kokuyo Systemic cover. The cover will keep everything inside pristine.

Overall, I can't recommend this book enough if you're looking for a semi-B5 or B5 sized notebook that handles fountain pens well. It's not in the same performance category as others (Clairefontaine, Rhodia, Mnemosyne, etc.), but it also isn't in that price category either. It's a great budget book for taking notes and carrying daily.

Kokuyo Beetle Tip Dual Color Highlighter Review

I don't do too many highlighter reviews because I don't have many situations where a highlighter comes in handy. My highlighter replacement tends to be a multi pen like the Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto where I can mark up or underline in a range of different colors. On the occasion where a highlighter is required there is only one brand for me though, and that is Kokuyo.

The original Kokuyo Beetle Tip 3way was the first, and probably only, highlighter to make me say wow. In one tip it has three different highlighting modes, and I can't imagine anything else I would ever need from a highlighter.

Since my experience was so positive with the 3way, I wanted to give the new Dual Color Highlighter a shot to see how it stacks up. The selling point of this highlighter are the two adjacent color tips. You can start with one color, rotate the pen 180 degrees, and pick up with the other color. You can also create a double underline by using the two tips at once right down the middle.

This all works great, but I had one annoying issue with the highlighter. The width of the barrel and the low profile of the highlighter tips caused me to tilt my head like a curious dog to see the line I wanted to highlight. It was awkward and I tired of doing that quickly.

Aside from that, the colors are on the light end of the scale, which I prefer, and the barrel quality itself is nice. Plus, I thought that was a Rebel Alliance symbol on the barrel the first time I looked at it. The Kokuyo Beetle Tip Dual Color Highlighter is not Empire approved.

(JetPens is an advertiser on The Pen Addict and I received this product at no charge.)

Kokuyo Systemic Refillable Notebook Cover Review

In the endless search for the perfect notebook, I've acquired several softcover notebooks that don't hold up very well to every-day abuse and carry. While the soft cover usually makes the notebook more affordable (not always), they just don't seem to hold up for very long in my bag.

Turns out, Kokuyo has a product to solve my problem, plus a few more. The Kokuyo Systemic refillable notebook cover is a durable canvas cover that can hold two notebooks of your choice. Finally, a way to protect the various soft cover notebooks that I have. This means I'm much less picky about which notebooks I choose to carry about, because this cover essentially transforms the soft covers into a durable folio.

I ordered a semi-B5 cover from JetPens because I really enjoy the semi-B5 size that Kokuyo, Apica, and others sell. It's not huge, but it's still spacious. Of course, Kokuyo also sell a A5 and A6 size, and they all have two colors to choose from. The A5 and semi-B5 come in either Gray/Black or Gray/Red, and the A6 is available in Khaki/Brown or Khaki/Navy. Each cover includes one notebook, which is a nice bonus.

So, how does it work in practice? Awesomely.

The build

The cover is built well and should take years of abuse. The stitching is tight and accurate, and the transparent plastic sleeve that holds the notebook cover is thick enough to last a long time, but still pliable enough to make switching out notebooks a breeze.

It's difficult to tell in the product photos, but the two-tone color scheme is actually more than just an aesthetic touch – The top color (in my case, the gray) is a pocket on the front and back of the notebook cover. A deep pocket that has plenty of room for a smaller notebook, paper, or a couple of pens. I've really enjoyed have the outside pockets. This has been an awesome meeting companion.

A major downside for me is the elastic closure. Elastic closures are a big plus in my book for notebooks (ahem), but this one is weak. If you've ever used a Moleskine or a Rhodia, or any other notebook that has an elastic band to keep the book closed, I doubt any of them were as weak and wobbly as this one. I hoped that I might be able to tighten it if it were just tied to itself on the inside of the cover, but the ends are actually sewn into the outer seam. Bummer.

Apart from being weak, it still manages to hold the notebook shut – mostly. Don't put any loose papers inside thinking they will stay as you transport it.

Apart from that negative, I've been really pleased with the build of the cover. It also has a twin bookmark ribbon at the top so you can bookmark each book. Unlike a lot of notebooks that I've seen lately with ribbons, this one is nicely trimmed at an angle and finished (slightly burned, melted, singed, etc.) to keep from unraveling.

In use

From a practicality standpoint, the cover operates just like a folio. It lays flat on the desk or table (your lap works, but it's a little awkward since it doesn't have a stiff backing) and allows you open one of the two books. I've found it a bit awkward when first opening the cover because it always turns to the first page of the first notebook, and it takes a moment or two to open the second notebook. Not a big deal, and probably an error on my part due to clumsy fingers.

Unfortunately, the cover does not do well when turned back on itself. I've tried to do this a few times in the interest of saving space, but it just isn't comfortable to write on. The spine is thick and stiff and doesn't lay flat when it's folded back, so the writing service isn't level or steady. For some writers, this isn't a problem, but others I imagine it's a deal-breaker.

Like I said earlier, each cover comes with one notebook. In the semi-B5, it's a plain, black notebook that looks and feels like the standard Kokuyo bound notebook–like the Campus notebook.

It's a great paper. It isn't as great as Kokuyo's premium papers, like the MIO paper, but it's still a well-behaved and smooth paper for writing. Of course, it's also lined, so there's also that to consider.

Overall, this notebook cover is a home run for my use. If you're interesting in a sturdy cover for your soft notebooks, bound or spiral, check out the Systemic system.

(You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution, Twitter, and App.net.)