Reprint of AOL PDA Community's Pocket Press for 2/16/02

Review - TrueTip Pen Cap Stylus
by: Susan Gustafson

Price: Four-pack for $9.99
Available: www.truetip.com

Whenever I write about a stylus, I hear from a physician who subscribes to
Pocket Press. He uses nothing but a fingernail to write on his PDA and
wonders why I don't do the same. He must have longer fingernails; I need a
stylus. No, I take that back. I need lots of stylii because I want them right
here, right now. The brass replacement stylus for my Palm is great, but it's
in the silo. If I leave it out on my desk, I'm sure to forget it when I drop
my Palm in my pocket. So I also need something that's always handy, something I can grab quickly when I want to jot down a phone number or appointment. For all but the most elegant among us, it's not a Mont Blanc fountain pen that's always in easy reach; it's a Bic or some other disposable pen.

The TrueTip Pen Cap Stylus replaces the cap on most disposable pens and pencils. I found it to be a little bit loose on some real cheapies and a
little bit tight on one of my better pens, but it fit most in my pencil cup.
It looks much like a standard cap with a pocket clip and comes in many
colors. Because the stylus tip makes the pen taller than the others in my
pencil cup, I can usually grab it on the first try.

The Pen Cap Stylus is well finished. The plastic tip is very smooth, so it
writes well and won't scratch your PDA's screen. The barrel is more
comfortable to hold than the built-in stylus because it's larger. In the two
weeks that I tested this stylus, I found that I was consistently grabbing it
rather than fishing the stylus out of my Palm. I'm glad they come in a
four-pack because I'll continue to use them. The only problem is that
disposable pens are also losable pens and stealable pens. You'll have to give your coworkers stern looks as you train them not to touch any pen with a Pen Cap Stylus.

The product is available at www.truetip.com. If you want to visit with the
developer, stop by the PDA chat room. Karl is a frequent visitor.