Reprint of AOL PDA Community's Pocket Press for 10/28/00

Review - TrueTip Stylus
by: Susan Gustafson

The package from TrueTip arrived at an opportune moment. I'd just discovered that my favorite Palm stylus was missing. Even its fluorescent orange tip wasn't bright enough to guide me to it.

So I opened the package eagerly and found a three-pack of finger stylii in assorted colors. The colors were especially appealing at that moment considering my propensity for burying a slender black stylus under a stack of papers. Even the shape of a finger stylus makes that less likely to happen.

Testing the TrueTip stylus, made of "almost indestructible" nylon gave me a chance to do something I never dare do when testing PDAs. I gave it a torture test. I had three stylii, so I put one on the floor and gleefully jumped up and down on it. I picked it up and it resumed its shape. Then I tossed it in the clothes dryer and after high heat tumbling retrieved it in perfect condition. Boy, that was fun.

But on to more serious matters. The one-piece stylus slips on your index finger. It consists of a split band, adjustable to your finger size, and a slender but sturdy strip that curves from the band to the stylus tip and under your fingertip. The nylon is smoothly finished so the stylus is comfortable to wear. The photo on the package shows the strip from band to tip on the top on the finger; however I found it more stable when I reversed it, placing that strip underneath my finger. Your finger size and style of writing will determine which position is most effective for you.

The band adjusts to smaller fingers by squeezing it for a few seconds. The nylon seems to have a memory so once squeezed, it stays squeezed. I'd questioned the developer about how the stylus would work on smaller hands. In response, he presqueezed two of the stylii; they remained smaller than the third during shipping. The split band opens automatically when slipped onto a larger finger.

The proof of a stylus, of course, is in the writing. I can write easily, comfortably, and accurately with the TrueTip. The nylon tip glides on the screen but doesn't slide around. I can use it with my hand in a natural position. The band and strip (underneath my finger) provide the stability I didn't find in a finger stylus I tried last year.

If you are a sedate and organized person who uses one antique fountain pen, handed down from your grandfather, you can probably get by with a single stylus--probably one that is elegant and expensive. But if you have a desk drawer of pens and pencils and if you use your PDA here, there, and everywhere, you may find it extremely handy to have an extra stylus in your pocket, hooked around a belt loop, or perched on your computer.

A package of TrueTips, available in black, white, or multicolors sells for $9.99 at www.truetip.com.