One of the most recent Kickstarter projects to cross my path is the DUO Ballpoint Pen and Stylus. It’s a slim aluminum, twist retractable ballpoint pen with a stylus tip on the reverse end.
For my tech-savvy friends out there, the stylus is a 6mm Wacom Bamboo Stylus tip and actually works really well on my iPhone and iPad. I haven’t had a chance to put it to the test using any of my drawing apps yet but navigating through email, and regular touch interface worked fine. As someone who uses a Wacom Intuos Pro tablet and a Cintiq, I’m pretty picky about touch capabilities and the Bamboo Stylus worked well enough to not make me crazy. Often, my fingers are so cold that they don’t actually work on my touchscreens so having the DUO handy is actually a bit of a blessing.
The pen is slim and small enough to fit into a pocket, even some of those ridiculous “girl jeans” pockets. The anodized color is pretty without being flashy and is available in four colors: gunmetal grey, copper orange, satin black, and my peppy electric blue which is a lovely turquoise color. The etched crescent moon is the only branding on the pen which is subtle and makes me feel a bit like Sailor Moon.
The pen takes a standard Cross ballpoint refill. I’d say the Cross ballpoint refill is a fairly common refill but there are not a lot of options with this particular refill. It is a “ballpoint only” refill. There are not any gel or rollerball options available. Monteverde makes a version of this refill in Medium or Broad in their “soft roll” and the medium tip option is available in ten colors but that’s the extent of your options.
Most big box office supply stores (i.e. Office Depot, Staples, etc) or your local pen shop should have the Cross ballpoint refill in stock in some variation. Places like RefillFinder, Amazon, and Cult Pens list the Cross refill on their site. I know Vanness Pens and Anderson Pens stock the Cross ballpoint refill in store but don’t list them on their site so if you’re ordering from them, you may want to call in or email and ask to have them add a couple to your next order.
The DUO can be backed for £20 for one pen as an Early Bird for one pen and one refill and they estimate shipping in July of 2017.
DISCLAIMER: This item was sent to me free of charge by 529Studio for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
Monteverde makes Cross compatible refills in multiple colors. Our local pen store sticks them; not sure how many colors but in addition to the usual blue, black & red, I personally have bought green and brown.
Monteverde makes the refill in ten colors in medium only. In broad, its available in black and blue.
Maybe totally unrelated comment ever, but I LOVE your cellphone cover!!
Thanks! I used Casetify to upload my own artwork so I could customize my case to be whatever I wanted it to be. You can do the same thing!