Review: Zebra Airfit Jell 0.5mm

The Zebra Airfit Jell is a fantastic pen, and is warranting top five consideration (speaking of which, I need to post a current list).  It is so well designed and so comfortable, I have used it for days on end at work because it is such a pleasure to write with.  Now I did make one modification, swapping out the 0.5mm blue cartridge with an 0.4mm black one, but that really doesn't change anything about this pens performance.  The grip design is very cool, featuring a layer of air under the rubber.  You might think it is really squishy, but it is just the slightest bit tight, yet not overly firm.  I really like the yellow orange body style, and the barrel design itself is very comfortable.

When I did my written review, JetPens was out of stock on all colors, but I see they have reloaded.  At just $4.50 a pop I can see why they were flying off the virtual shelf.

P.S. - I noticed that I didn't highlight my highlighter test - oops!

Ink Links

-- One of my favorite bloggers is relocating to her own domain, so update your link to Spiritual Evolution of the Bean

-- Paper Mate Flair review  (Unposted)

-- Four Notebooks Reviewed Part 2  (Notebook Stories)

-- Uni-Ball Signo DX 0.28mm Sky BLue review  (Good Pens)

-- Sleek Slicci's, a disappointing G2, and some thoughts on pencils  (Thanh @ Vox)

-- Pen Review: Kuretake Fudegokochi Brush Pens  (Kataish)

-- More on the Sharpie Pen  (Thanh @ Vox)

-- Pentel Graph 1000 PG1005 Mechanical Pencil Review - those background photos kill me! (Dave's Mechanical Pencils)

-- Review: Pentalic a la Modeskin  (Spiritual Evolution of the Bean)

-- Review: Pilot Hi-Tec-C Putimo Gel Ink Pen - 0.4 mm  (Amateur Economist)

Review: Pentel HyperG Gel 0.7mm

The Pentel HyperG is tagged with Pentel's Triple Safe Ink seal, which markets the pen as People Safe, Check Safe, and Earth Safe, but too bad it is not Finger Safe, as I was quick to find out.  The pens look great in the packaging, but if I had noticed the little protruding fin near the tip of the pen, I would have never bought them.

Obviously not everyone writes the same, but when I put pen to paper, I tend to rotate the pen in my fingers a bit between strokes, and I imagine I'm not alone on this one.  Well, the Pentel HyperG added an obstruction for those who write like I do, making this pen nearly unusable.  If you enlarge the photo to the left, you can see what I am referring to.  The metal fin digs right into my fingers, making for a highly annoying writing experience.  That is really too bad, because this is a nice pen otherwise.

A funny aside: Once I knew I wouldn't be using this pen very much, I told my wife to take them to work and use them.  She came home that night and asked what was up with that little metal part stickng up - that's so stupid!  So there you have it.  Pentel HyperG: stupid.

Specs from Pentel:
    * Special low viscosity gel ink
    * Super smooth writing
    * Triple Safe Ink: People Safe, Check Safe, and Earth Safe
    * Smudge resistant
    * Permanent
    * Acid-free, archival
    * 0.7mm medium line delivers bold ink colors
    * Sophisticated sleek new diamond-cut design
      with silver barrel accents
    * Comfortable latex-free grip
    * Refillable with Pentel KLR7
      gel ink refill
    * Annoying metal bit that digs into your finger

( I added that last one :)