Average Reviews:
(More 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
basic words.
The desktop software that allows you to transfer your notes to your computer
can only be put on one computer at a time. This is a real mistake, IMO. Many
people have a desktop and a laptop and don't want to spend a lot of time
trying to figure out which they're most likely to want to use with the pen.
If you travel a lot, the laptop might win out. But whenever you're home, you
won't be able to transfer your notes to the desktop.
The software itself seems to work well, and it has lots of bells and whistles. It can upload
my notes to the Internet or share them with my classmates. For students, this is undoubtedly a great feature.
Since the pen uses a special kind of paper, Livescribe should offer it in
more than one form and size. It comes in a one-subject, spiralbound notebook
that is wider than an average college-ruled one. It would be helpful to have
the option of a non-spiralbound pad or one that is bound at the top, and to
have different sizes: steno-sized or even smaller, and perhaps a
three-subject full-sized notebook as well.
One final comment: this pen isn't going to be comfortable for anyone with
small hands to use for any length of time. It may not be all that
comfortable for people with big hands, either, unless they favor the fattest
fountain pen on the market. This isn't a pen-sized pen - it's a Cuban
cigar-sized pen. It's manageable, but after using it for half an hour, it's
a relief to switch to a regular pen. The Pulse is probably as small as it
can be, given the current state of technology, but if I were redesigning it,
I would go with a little longer and a little thinner and weight it so that
it's heavier toward the business end.
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Livescribe 1 GB Pulse Smartpen (APA-00001)Capture Everything:The Livescribe Smartpen records audio and links it to what you write. Missed something? Tap on your notes or drawings with the tip of your Livescribe Smartpen to hear what was said while you were writing. No Need to Lug the Laptop:The Livescribe Smartpen automatically captures everything as you write and draw. Transfer your notes to your computer, organize them, and even search for words within your notes. Find what you want in seconds. Share Your Notes:Transform your notes and audio into interactive movies. Upload your creations online for everyone to see, hear and play. The 1.3 oz. anodized aluminum Livescribe™ Smartpen records audio and links it what you write. The 1GB of memory can hold over 100 hours of recording.Actual time may vary. Requires Windows XP with service pack 2 or Windows Vista
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