Livescribe 1 GB Pulse Smartpen (APA-00001)

 (87 customer reviews)

Let me start out by saying this is a cool product, and I do recommend it with the reservations mentioned, below.

On the plus side, it's a cool toy. If you want to record ephemeralities
rather than writing a lot of stuff out, it's great.

I don't know whether I would really want to use it to record entire
lectures, though, but that has to do with learning styles. I am not
an auditory learner - I prefer reading and writing. The more I write myself,
the more likely I am to remember the information. For an auditory learner,
however, this would be wonderful.

Some of the features need work. The advertised "translation" function is
not that great. Here are the languages it can translate: Arabic, Spanish,
Mandarin, and Swedish. Not much use to us German-, French-,
Italian-speaking folks. But then, it's really not much use to anyone else,
either, because it only has a capacity for a relatively small number of...Read more

This is my second Pulse Smartpen. I have already reviewed the 2GB model the Livescribe 2GB Pulse Smartpen (APA-00002). To say that I was enthusiastic is an understatement.

But what about the smaller version-the 1GB smartpen? The difference between the two pens is about $50. The other model gives you twice the recording capacity. The fifty buck difference seems to makethe 2 gig pen the better bargain.

But is it?

First of all there is no difference in the performance or capabilities of either pen except in smart pen storage. this pen holds about 100 hours of recorded and compressed audio. But that doesn't tell the whole story. Few us need to record more than 100 hours straight, assuming the battery life is that long. When the pen is cradled it uploads automatically the contents of the pen and images on the...Read more

We all pretty used to technology promising something then having to deal with the fact the promise was more hype than reality. The manufacturers want to get us into a frenzy, thinking their product will revolutionize transportation, or entertainment, or phone calling. But, when the frenzy dies down it seems there are a lot of problems, and unfulfilled expectations that even eager fans will quietly admit are weaknesses.

This is especially true with a product that seems so entirely revolutionary and different. It's certainly too good to be true, right?

So, let me start off by addressing that. The Livescribe is the real deal. It actually does what it says it can do. And it does it simply.

The Smartpen works. And I'm not being hyperbolic when I say this might revolutionize note taking.

I'm not in class now, so didn't have a real world opportunity to test this out. Instead, I wanted to make sure I got the hang of it before I began to...Read more