Hasta La Gadget!

With tablets these days and apps such as Evernote and Paper, we guess the need to use pen and paper might soon be a thing of the past, but at the same time there is just something about writing with a pen and paper that is comforting and familiar, not to mention sometimes a tad more efficient when you need to quickly jot down something where writing on a piece of tissue is faster than pulling out your phone or tablet and launching an app. This is where the Livescribe 3 smartpen comes in. The Livescribe 3 smartpen is essentially a pen that allows the user to write down notes on a piece of paper, after which the information written on the paper will be transferred to your mobile device as a digital copy via Bluetooth.

This is thanks to a special Livescribe dot paper that can record what is being written, transferring the information instantly as you write it to the Livescribe+ app. The pen itself will also sport a built-in microphone, allowing the user to dictate notes or capture audio when writing is not possible or when it will not be fast enough. Available in two variations, the Livescribe 3’s first option will be priced at $149.95 which will include the pen, a 50-sheet Livescribe notebook, a USB charging cable and an ink cartridge. The more expensive package, priced at $199.95, will include the pen, a 100-sheet hardbound journal, a charging cable, extra ink cartridge, along with a one-year subscription to Evernote Premium. The Livescribe+ app is currently iOS-only, but an Android version is currently in the works. [Press Release]

Livescribe 3 Smart Pen Announced original content from Ubergizmo.

Now that we’ve got those naming suits out of the way, it’s time to get down to brass tacks. With “brass tacks” involving a new smartpen, in this particular instance. The Livescribe 3 has just made itself known in a public FCC filing today, showcasing a svelte writing utensil whose main purpose in life is to digitize your handwritten notes. It’s equipped with Bluetooth in order to pair with your iOS device and the accompanying Livescribe+ app, and once you start doodling in your Livescribe notebook, those very scribbles will appear in the app. There’s a micro-USB connector on top for recharging it, and a handy twistable handle that turns the unit on. (Oh, and if you’re curious, we’re told that “more supported devices” will be added soon.)

For the power users, there are Pencasts — said to be “interactive documents containing audio that is synchronized to your handwritten notes.” As is always the case with FCC reveals, pricing and availability are nowhere to be found; that said, an FCC submission generally signals that it’s just about ready for store shelves in the US. We’ll watch as you attempt to digitally write about the art of containing your excitement.

Filed under: Peripherals

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Source: FCC

Livescribe v BSkyB was one of the stranger trademark battles we’ve seen recently, because the two companies operate in such different spheres — one makes smartpens, the other runs TV and internet services. Nevertheless, the English High Court has now ruled in favor of BSkyB, forcing Livescribe to recall all stock bearing the offending three-letter word and to re-baptize its “Sky wifi smartpen” simply as the “wifi smartpen”. Suddenly, the packaging left over from our review of the device just feels so naughty.

Filed under: Peripherals, Internet, HD

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Livescribe is a been around for a while and can take your handwritten notes and allow you to transfer them to computer as digital files. One limitation up until now is that you had to connect the pen to your computer using a cable to upload stored notes. Livescribe has a new product called the Sky that has integrated Wi-Fi.

The new device said to be the first digital pen to integrate Wi-Fi technology and cloud services. Using the Sky and, users can take handwritten notes and then have those notes automatically uploaded to a Evernote account. The notes can be searched based on keywords and other parameters and can be shared with others.

The Sky pen is available to purchase online and in stores right now. The 2 GB version supporting about 200 hours of audio sells for $169.95. A 4 GB version is available for $199.95 and an 8 GB version sells for $249.95.

Short version: Livescribe is refining its smartpen once again. The two major changes are the addition of WiFi and Evernote integration. Now, the pen uses and depends on Evernote for syncing and archiving notes.

Features:

• A ball pen
• Microphone
• WiFi
• 2, 4 or 8 GB
• $169.95, $199.95 or $249.95
• Product page

Pros:

• Record and take notes at the same time
• No USB syncing needed
• See your notes on your computer, phone and tablet

Cons:

• Large and tiring pen body
• Evernote is mandatory
• Expensive

Long version:

Like or hate it, the new Livescribe pen is all about Evernote. When CEO Gilles Bouchard came to work for Livescribe, the company was already working on a WiFi version of its smartpen. He met Evernote CEO Phil Libin ten days after starting his new job. It was the best way to bring Livescribe to a tablet.

“Tablet is the best thing that has happened to us. What was missing was filling the gap between paper and tablet,” Bouchard said.

Yet, the Oakland-based company’s focus hasn’t changed. The core idea remains using the qualities of paper to take notes and bringing them to a computer, a tablet or a phone. It’s just now easier to take advantage of Livescribe’s key feature.

As a writer, I’m a natural user for this kind of device. When I do an interview, I usually take notes and record the audio with my iPhone. Listening to the audio file is the most painful process when it comes to writing a post afterwards.

The Livescribe pen, the notes and the recording are not only handled by the pen, but are synced together. When playing back your notes on your computer or tablet (the player uses HTML5), you can click or tap on a certain sentence to jump instantly to the corresponding audio part of the interview. It’s a timesaver.

For avid Evernote users, it will be the perfect evolution. After receiving the new Livescribe pen, I tried using Evernote as my main note taking app for about two weeks. A few days ago, I switched back to Simplenote and Justnotes, because I couldn’t handle Evernote’s bulkiness and slowness.

Livescribe notes don’t count toward your Evernote quota as you can upload 500 MB of Livescribe content before starting eating up your quota. It represents around 50 hours of audio and written notes. The most expensive Sky WiFi comes with one year of Evernote Premium — a $50 value.

Evernote is now only my Livescribe repository. Those who deal with hundreds of notes and tags in Evernote will be glad to find their Livescribe notes in it. But it won’t be the case for me.

More integrations and services will be released in the coming weeks, such as Dropbox and Google Drive integration. The company will release an SDK so that mobile app developers will be able to take advantage of the pen’s data. Bouchard was excited by the possibilities and evolutions that will become available to Sky WiFi owners.

The battery is quite good. As an occasional user, I only had to plug the pen every couple of days.

Finally, you still have to use Livescribe’s paper. The pen comes with an A5 notebook and new notebooks aren’t expensive. But I like to be able to use whatever paper I want with my pen without having to look for my “device” (in this case, a notebook and a pen). I usually keep my pen in my pocket, an inexpensive Pilot Hi-Tec-C that I throw away when there is no ink left. I wouldn’t do that with a Livescribe pen. The simplicity of pen and paper is lost along the way.

Heavy note takers and/or Evernote users should consider using a Livescribe pen, because it’s a great device. I may continue using it occasionally for interviews, but for my personal notes, I’ll keep using a simple pen.

If you do a lot of interviews without your computer, attend math classes or like the novelty of a digital pen, then you are a potential customer. The initial investment is high, but the flexibility of paper brought to the digital environment is impressive and actually useful. I look forward to seeing the potential third-party apps and services that will pop up in the coming months.

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