All [insert plural for 'stylus'] are clearly(?) not equal....

[Cassady]

Hello all...


At the risk of stating the obvious, some styli(??) are clearly better than others...

I use handwriting recognition apps almost all the time on my Ipad, instead of typing/keyboard in meetings. I use Note Taker HD, which is a fantastic little app... Before taking the plunge on buying a new stylus, given that I had made the silly decision of buying a bluetooth keyboard before even receiving my Ipad, I thought I would try things out by making my own...

Whereas I wasn't convinced I would ever use it, as soon as I started, it quickly became my preferred means of interacting with the tablet (despite what Steve thought).

It wasn't long before I decided to stop using the homemade one, and buy one. The PRIMARY reason for this, was that the stylus was not flowing smoothly over the screen, especially after I had bought and installed the ZAGG(?) screen protector... At the time, I assumed this would improve once I bought a proper stylus, since it not being smooth really hindered my use of the handwriting apps - simply put, I could type faster than what I could write, which should not have been the case...

Popped in to the local store, and bought a Capcase stylus, since it was the only type in stock - about R250.00. All started well enough, but after about a week or so, it too started sticking... Bought an iKlear cleaning kit, but despite my best efforts - no improvement....

So there I was, thinking this must simply be how it is - since not a single stylus review on the net even came close to mentioning anything about stickiness (or smoothability(?)) of various stylus types - which had me presuming that since it's not a factor worth distinguishing, they must all be like that?.... I know - not exactly my brightest moment, but so be it...

Anyways, finally lost my patience about 2 weeks ago - went in and bought another stylus (the Capcase one was already looking very shoddy, with its silver-coloured paint peeling off the middle part of the stylus)... Spent another R250 on a Griffin...

WHAT A HUGE DIFFERENCE!

Writing has become an absolute pleasure, with me now realising that I wasted plenty of cash on the bluetooth keyboard, since I am unlikely to use it...

Bit of a long story to get to this part, but - despite very few (if any) of the countless reviews about styli(??) making mention of the writing smoothness - keep in mind that if you're not happy with your stylus, you might need to try a different one. Whereas the tips all look (and feel) to be made of the same stuff - they clearly are not, and are not all equal...

 

[CAPS LOCK]

Enjoyable read, thank you. Where did you purchase the Griffin from? I may want to invest in one too.

p.s wiki has either "styli" or "styluses" as the plurals for stylus

 

[cerebus]

My handwriting is an atrocity. This wouldn't work for me.

 

[CAPS LOCK]

Cassady, What happens if part of your hands rests on the ipad when writing with the stylus? Or, must no part of the hand touch the screen?

 

[Cassady]

My handwriting is an atrocity. This wouldn't work for me.

Uhm - apologies - I wasn't very clear with explaining my use of handwriting! I wanted the Ipad to replace having to print out attachments/agendas etc. everytime I had to attend a meeting... I also used to use plain moleskine notebooks to make notes of the meetings, and with all my writing, over the past few years, I regularly need to go back to one of 3/4 books, to find what was said at meeting X on day Y...

The Ipad has changed all of this. Agenda's are either read as a pdf in Note Take HD, allowing me to 'write over' the document, in my own handwriting. The agenda and my notes are then stored as a new pdf, which I then email myself and save in such a manner so as to allow me to search for it (Microsoft OneNote is fantastic in this regard). Alternatively, I scribble away in Note Taker HD, as if I am writing in my old notebooks - these 'notes' are then also converted into pdf's, which are then also saved on my workpc...

So it doesn't matter how bad my handwriting is - it's not 'recognised', but simply converted to pdf. I do believe you get the apps that convert writing into text, but I've never had the need to look at them. I like being able to draw/scribble/circle/underline as I please, to emphasize/link stuff as I make notes - the Ipad lets me do this, without ever having to take anything along with me to a meeting, except the tablet. Even if I slip up, and leave a document on the work computer, I can use Splashtop to remotely access my pc, from inside the meeting, and then quickly email the attachment to myself, for me to then open up on the Ipad, in the meeting... Works like a charm!

Cassady, What happens if part of your hands rests on the ipad when writing with the stylus? Or, must no part of the hand touch the screen?

I'm a lefty - and I was convinced this would be a problem for me, since I'm effectively 'writing over' my handwriting... It's not a problem at all. Apart from the fact that a decent app will allow settings to be adjusted for that very thing - it's called a 'hand-guard' or something, I simply made a slight adjustment to how I write... In fact, I'm just more conscious of where my hand is, rather than adjusting anything - and it's not an issue....

 

[Cassady]

Enjoyable read, thank you. Where did you purchase the Griffin from? I may want to invest in one too.

p.s wiki has either "styli" or "styluses" as the plurals for stylus

Thanks! I've seen the Griffin in plenty of stores - it's very plain, but works like a charm. The Apple store in The V&A had them, but I've seen them at quite a few IC's as well. Bought mine at Buro in Stellenbosch...

 

[CAPS LOCK]

Thnx for the feedback. I'm a lefty too, a rare breed