The much anticipated Google writing tool, Google Pen, is now available to the general public after an intensive invite-only beta testing process. I’m going to give you an in-depth review of what seems to be another piece of Google-world-domination puzzle.
The pen comes in several bright flavours: orange, pink, purple, green and blue. Whilst Google didn’t buy Bic, they have licensed its retractable medium point technology, and basically rebranded it as Google. It sports a milky white rubber grip aimed to assist in holding this oversized wide-body pen.
The Google brand certainly doesn’t fall short. In big, ugly and serif letters, a stenciled version of the Google logo is printed on the wide-body. Even on the enormous wide-body, the Google logo doesn’t fit on a single curved surface, instead to view the entire logo, you have you rotate the pen by nearly 10 degrees in the vertical directions. If you thought that wasn’t enough, Google insists that you never forget their URL, and in smaller black letters, “www.google.com” is printed on the clip. I was surprised to find that the pen didn’t mark “Google this word” under each word you write.
The quality of the black ink is somewhat disappointing. On paper, the ink appears fairly faded compared to generic Bic pens. When you start writing, the ink is coarse and unsaturated, however this improves gradually as you continue writing.
The clip appears very tight and fragile. You can lift it perhaps 5mm before the tension in the plastic builds up to breaking point. The retractable clicker is small and round, forcing an uncomfortable force in to your thumb ever click. The noise is also above acceptable levels, in my opinion, it would certainly not pass any ARPCNA (Anti Retractable Pen Clicker Noise Association) certifications.
In conclusion, Google delivers another average-quality rebranded product that will send the world into a frenzy and signal another wave of Anti-Microsoft hatred.
Obligatory photos:
april fools, perhaps?