My online buddy Murderface has finished up his review of the Quo Vadis Habana notebook at the Reciprocal Crap Exchange. Now I just need to get off my bum and review the copy I have sitting right here on my desk.
Review: Uni-Ball Vision RT
I am a big Uni-Ball fan, but it seems that all of my favorites are imported from Japan, and are of the micro-tip variety. I recently met the Senior Product Manager for Uni-Ball USA on Twitter, and he sent this Uni-Ball Vision RT my way to try out - and maybe change my mind?
Right out of the gate, the design of this pen makes you take notice. The grip area is a comfortable rubber that morphs into accents for the rest of the barrel. Very nicely done. I also like that this pen is retractable, and in two ways at that: the standard button on the end of the barrel, and a safety net under the clip that if you slide into your pocket with the tip extended will retract the tip automatically.
Looks are great, but how does it perform? Not bad, especially for someone who prefers finer lines like myself. The bold line (0.8mm) is very solid, very smooth, and very dark - all things I like in a pen. Despite the width of the line, it doesn't bleed or feather on this Doane Paper, but I do need to try it on a few others to see how it does.
Overall, this is a solid pen. It doesn't jump to the front of the line, but I do see certain areas where it will come in handy. The only real complaint I have is that detailed information was tough to come by. I couldn't locate this pen on the Uni-Ball USA website (I think it has been out for at least 6 months), but I did find a little bit on the Uni-Ball UK site:
Uni-Ball’s most technologically advanced rollerball pen. The Vision RT is hassle-free, leak-free and cap-free. The Vision RT is the world’s first retractable liquid ink pen to feature “Airplane safe” technology, that helps to avoid those embarrassing ink leaks in shirt or suit pockets due to changes in cabin pressure.
Big thanks to Steve at Uni-Ball USA for providing this pen for review. You can find him on Twitter as UniBall_USA, so be sure to follow!
Ink Links
-- The Uni-Ball Jetstream corrects a design flaw (Brian Sweeting)
-- Marie with a great fountain pen post (Zquilts)
-- Are fountain pens green? (Recording Thoughts)
-- An excellent Doane Paper review (Office Supply Geek)
-- Lime Green Lamy's of the world unite! (Khursten Santos LJ)
-- JetPens December newsletter has lots of hot goodies (JetPens)
-- Review: Fabriano Venezia Book - Glorious! (Spiritual Evolution of the Bean)
-- More Uni-Ball Kuru Toga love (Lines and Colors)
-- Gift Guide: For the Unique Writer (Stickers and Donuts)
-- Sterling Silver Grand Fountain Pen - only $835.00 (Geeks Guide to Productivity)
-- Craft Design Technology Item 17 - "like smearing butter on glass" (Reciprocal Crap Exchange)
-- Wonderful Field Notes/Typography project (Field Notes)
-- Review: Exacompta Paris Journal 21 Daily Planner (Amateur Economist)
-- Even more Quo Vadis and Exacompta reviews (Quo Vadis Blog)
-- Q&A with Jason Kinziger from Myndology (D*I*Y Planner)
-- Several 0.7mm gel pen reviews (Toying With Light)
-- What's in Your Bag, What's in Your Dream (Scription)
-- Inventory: My Pencils (Pentamento)
-- Uni-ball Power Tank Ballpoint Pen - Part 2 and Part 3 (Office Supply Geek)
-- Mitsubishi Hi-Uni 10B premium wooden pencil and Pencil Extenders (Lung Sketching Scrolls)
-- Has your handwriting suffered from years on the keyboard? (Hacker News)
