Livescribe Pulse Smartpen (1GB)

Pros: Most effective technology for recording and playback of meetings, lectures and discussions yet produced. The Pulse smart pen effectively eliminates the problems of recording audio information for later reference.

Cons: Requires a paradigm shift in thinking to make the most use of it, as it is not really a digital pen for turning hand written text into ASCII characters.

Summary: The Pulse smart pen is a paradigm-shifting product for recording verbally communicated information - it is not really a good device for digitising hand-written information. The product is designed to counter the difficulties of recording audio and later on trying to get to specific points in the audio.

Consequently written notes no longer become the record of the communicated information. Now you only write down key words and phrases to mark points in the audio that you may want to get back to easily. There is no need to write quickly - more important to write clearly so the handwriting recognition works reliably.

When retrieving information later you raise the playback speed to counter the issue that you generally read faster than people can speak. High playback speed doesn't completely counter this, but it helps a lot.

To use it as a means to transfer hand written notes onto a computer is to misunderstand its purpose. It is an OK device for this, but that is not its real strength.

So if you often need to take notes in situations with mostly verbal information communication, this is the best product in the world!