[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] DeBoX:
a short story

Ok a short update / review:

I have ranked the 3 pens and tested them with 4 different apps.

The score:

based on 1-10 ( 1 = super crap , 10 the mother/father/brother of all pens thus far)

Quality

: build quality from the handle to the tips. Potential durability

Accuracy

: this is based on the "limited time" l have had to play with them, as well as the fact that l haven't yet tried to tune the screen etc

Speed

: How fast can you ink with realistic accuracy

overall feel

: how does it feel to use etc

total score

: guess what this means....

Misc: other factors that might have en impact, both positive and negative. Note this one does not impact the overall score.

The targus and pogo sketch it pens l have rated as 6,5/10 .

Quality

: 7 / 10

Accuracy

: 6 / 10

speed

: 6,5 / 10 ( you have to ink slower then feels natural)

overall feel

: 7 / 10

total score

: 6,5 - 7 / 10 depending on use

Both were ok, and decent enough for browsing and quick sketch, but note taking was a bit awkward in the long run. Quality was about the same, l got both second hand so wont go into detail.

Pens

Wacom Bamboo standard softtip

Adonit Jot swivel hard tip

Dagi swivel hard tip on a spring

For review sake l also got a pen from targus and sketch it ( both soft tips)

apps

supernotes

Freenotes

Writepad Stylus

Lecture pad trial

The app l had the most success with was actually the supernotes. Though the writepad stylus was a close second. This is based on accuracy and useability on the default settings. With that said writepad and freenotes have a lot of customisation functions, while supernote is rather basic. The lecture pad was by no means bad, it's very similar to freenotes , but has a lot more "lecture functionality" that l didn't test. The focus was on the pens and not the apps.

In short

out of the box, supernotes.

if you ahve time to tinker and play around with it then any of the other three will do just fine. The main difference is what you need it for and what extra functions , such as "notebooks" and save to pdf, jpeg ..other formats, are available.

Impressions of the pens.

Note these impressions are based on about 2 + hours of use with each pen. testing writing , notes, sketch and basic drawing ( l suck at the last part, but gave it a go non the less) I will mention accuracy , but will not provide any picture just yet ( having problems with rooting my tab and havent tuend the screen yet)

Wacom

Is one of the best soft tip pens l have tested. It has a good feel and solid gripp and the smalest soft tip of the 3 soft tip ones. Feels like a quality kit, though l can imagine the tips wear down fast if used a lot.

With that said the tip is a tad too soft. As in it caves in on it self , and for best effect you have to press harder then with the targus or sketch it ones.

Rating

Quality

: 8 / 10. Fells like a good piece of kit, might have issues with the tips of the pen in the long run. 2 spares included.

Accuracy

: 6,5 / 10 , ok for sketch but notetaking is too impractical. Needs a lot of preassure to register. Actually more then the pogo and targus.

Speed:

: 7 / 10 , it takes some pressure for it to register and that slows you down, as well as the lack to sensitivity. Might be screen / app related-

overall feel

: 7,5 / 10 , sits well in hand , there is enough resistance while inking that it has a sort of paper feel to it, and the tips are soft so no risk of screen damage.

total score

: 7,5 /10

Misc: Questionable if it's worth the extra cash in comparison with targus, griffin or pogo. Spare tips are expensive

******

Adonit jot.

Very diferent from the other pens l have tested. Take a look at the site and you'll see what l mean. It's a sort of small glass plate attached on a ball joint that sort of swivels . Interesting and novel concept. It gives you a smaller "tip" and at the same time gives you a better view of what you are trying to draw/ write. An example is when you are drawing a box, hitting the lines exactly spot on is much harder when you can actually see what part of the tip is actually registering .with the see through plate you can hit the exact point ( more or less) and allows for much greater precision. Big bonus.

Overall quality is rather impressive. though on the web page they keep talking about a magnet in the pens so you can attach it to the side of the tab. that does NOT work on Transformer prime, though it did work with an ipad l borrowed.

The tip seems sturdy and you don't have to apply much pressure for anything to register on the screen. though l am a tad worried about scratching the screen. Guess that depends on how much you push. it comes with tip cover that is screwed on so the tips isn't exposed when it's not in use.( think old school pens with a smal cap on the tip)

Score

Quality

: 9 / 10, feels like a premium piece of kit, high quality materiials used.

Accuracy

: 8,5 / 10 , the see-through helps a lot, and you don't need to press down so hard. it glides quite easily over the screen

Speed:

8,5 / 10 sort of same reason as above, but you still have to move a tad slower then feel natural. again might be screen or app related.

overall feel

: 9 / 10 one of the best l have tried thus far, sits well. easy to use. Good quality

total score

: 9

Misc: Quick delivery, but no extra glass plates / tips for the pen?? not a big issue but still...

****

Dagi

It's based around the same concept as the Adonit jot, but instead of a ball joint it's connected to a rather stiff mini spring system. That in it self requires somewhat more pressure, and makes it a tad cumbersome to write and draw on and angle. Note, the tips are softer ,thig less glass and more rubberised plastic, still see through.It doesn't glide over the screen as smoothly as the adonit jot, but the extra friction does make it feel more like a pen. It's up to personal preference.

Quality wise it's very similar to the adonit jot, but the jot has a tad more premium feel to it. I'de say it a tad lower on the scale. One cool feature is that it got a pen clip function so you can attach it like a real pen. This is more look and feel the practicality. but it makes it easier to attach to a note book or in a case with a pen holder.It also comes with a pen cap / cover thing that you can screw on to protect you tips.

Quality

: 8 / 10 , still good quality , but the jot feels a tad more high end. Still rather fancy. The tip is sturdier , and stiffer, but might be more prone to breaking / falling off. Though you do get 3 extras.

Accuracy

:8 / 10 , it's somewhat stiffer and a tad more awkward to use at angles. It keeps wanting to straighten up. the increased friction of the tip might make it a tad less accurate.

Speed:

: 8 / 10 the rubberised tip increases friction, but sensitivity isn't affected much.

overall feel

: 8 / 10 , it sort of comes down to personal preference between this one and the jot. if l didn't have the jot to compare with then well then this one would have been the king of the hill.

total score

: 8 / 10 not much to say really.

Misc, not much to say here either. It is a good little stylus. Relatively accurate , easy to get used to. I even got an extra gift from dagi ( no clue why), a mini iphone pen, same principle but much smaller .

Last Word.

Even with the best stylus, l had issues with snesitivivty and accuracy. And of course the wriggly lines ( when you try to draw a straight line). The straightness of the lines were direcly related to speed. the faster l drew the lines the more straight it got, but l still feel the accuracy was lower then on the ipad.

This doesn't have *that much effect on note taking. The biggest issue here is the sensitivity issue, and general accuracy when it came to note taking, ie writing legible letters. Even with the best one, l had to write slower and larger for it to be legible. I haven't don much inking on other tabs , but l do have a lenovo x210 tablet at home with a built in wacom pressure board. And trust me BIG difference. Lenovo = as good as a pen and paper , Transformer prime = pen and fat white board marker . ( ok maybe not *that bad, but close enough)

Hope this helps, I'm trying to root the pad and calibrate the screen. then l might take the time to do a point to point comparison test of accuracy and speed one again.