Tag Archives: writing

Minimal, portable writing device is designed to let you disconnect and focus

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As someone who writes for a living, the Internet can be my best friend and my worst enemy. Whether I’m writing for work or trying to finish my manuscript, being online is sometimes necessary but also so, so distracting. One minute I’m finishing an article and the next minute I’ve fallen into a blackhole of YouTube and social media. So a writing gadget that can also help me focus and keep me offline would be a pretty useful tool.

Designer: Freewrite

Traveler is basically a sort of laptop that you can use if you want to focus on writing, at least in the initial drafting stage. It cannot connect to any Internet browser or app so you can do away with all those that may distract you. It can still connect online but only so far as to back up what you’re writing on the cloud so you can access it later on for the editing and maybe some of the research parts. It also has no other frills or features so you get a minimalist design and functionality.

It has an e-ink screen that can also help with reducing eye fatigue which is another common problem for when you’re in front of the computer or tablet for long periods of time. And because it’s e-ink, you get a whopping 4-week battery life. It’s also pretty portable since it weighs just 1.6 lbs and the intenal memory is also pretty great as you can store up to 1 million words. The full-size keyboard seems to be pretty fast and highly responsive.

The writing screen seems to be pretty small as it only takes up a small part of the entire screen/cover. So if you’re already suffering from bad eyesight like me, this might be a challenge. But everything else sounds pretty appealing, especially the part where I won’t be distracted by the Internet. Now if only I would stop picking up my phone and scrolling in the guise of “research” while I’m using the Traveler. The idea is to just let you write your first draft and concentrate on the actual writing.

The post Minimal, portable writing device is designed to let you disconnect and focus first appeared on Yanko Design.

How this AI-powered ballpoint pen brings the joy of analog writing to the digital world

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The pen is mightier than the sword, and that aphorism remains true even in this highly digital age. In fact, there has been a renaissance of interest and even passion for handwritten notes, giving birth to a myriad of paper-based productivity systems and beautiful notebooks, as seen on YouTube. Unfortunately, it’s also hard to deny the advantages and conveniences of digital notes, particularly in terms of organization and searching. Fortunately, there is no longer any need to choose between the two when you can have the best of both worlds thanks to this innovative AI-powered ballpoint pen that turns your handwritten scribbles into digital notes, whether you’re writing on craft paper or on the back of an envelope.

Designer: Nuwa Innovation

Click Here to Buy Now: $234 $360 (35% off). Hurry, only 237 left! Raised over $150,000.

There is a certain appeal to the age-old art of writing things by hand, not to mention the cognitive and psychological benefits that the practice brings. Unfortunately, it’s also no longer possible to ignore the drawbacks of paper notes, especially ones that get lost or are hard to decipher months or even just weeks later. There are quite a few products trying to bridge the gap between analog and digital, but these often require the use of special paper that doesn’t feel like paper, special pens that may be discontinued in the unforeseen future, or both.

The Nuwa Pen is a revolutionary solution that approaches the problem from a different angle. You can use your favorite stationery or grab any piece of paper within reach, and standard D1 ballpoint refills are never going away. Instead, the Nuwa Pen employs an innovative TRIDENT imaging system to see what you’re writing and harnesses the power of AI to digitize those ink marks that can be saved to a digital file. The result is complete freedom to write what you want on whatever kind of paper you want, confident that you’ll be able to easily search through them as if you had typed the notes directly.

Searchable Notes: Keep track of your notes

Text Conversion: Exact copy of your notes

Augmented Notes: Stay connected

This AI-powered Ballpoint Pen, however, does more than just digitize your handwritten notes. Although the pen itself has 2Gb of built-in memory, you can also send your notes to the Nuwa Pen App for unlimited cloud storage. And with the Nuwa Pen+ subscription, you’ll be able to convert your scribbles into searchable text and, soon, connect those notes with over a hundred apps, including Google Calendar, Todoist, emails, and more. With its built-in battery, you can write non-stop for 2 hours before needing to charge the Nuwa Pen in just 15 minutes. The included charging case lets you do that five more times, giving you nearly unlimited freedom to put your thoughts on paper and, in the long run, on the cloud.

Starting at $234, not only do you get the well-designed ballpoint pen and its charging case, you also get a one-year Nuwa Pen+ subscription. With the AI-powered Nuwa Pen, you no longer have to choose between the joys of writing and the conveniences of digital notes. Write on your favorite paper, digitize your notes, and sync with the cloud to let your thoughts and ideas take you to new heights and new worlds.

Click Here to Buy Now: $234 $360 (35% off). Hurry, only 237 left! Raised over $150,000.

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A Japanese joinery method integrated in these reusable pencils helps utilise those tiny pencil stubs

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Tsugite is a reusable pencil system that uses a Japanese joinery method called tsugite.

Sometimes the most innovative and long-lasting designs are rooted in simplicity and tradition. Trusted to construct temples, shrines, and homes in Japan, Tsugite is an ancient joinery method that connects pieces of timber together without nails. Cut into artful finishes, each end of timber links together with its corresponding timber end by sliding into place, like a plug into a socket. Inspired by this masterful craftsmanship, Korean designer Jaewan Park created a collection of pencils called Tsugite that uses the joinery method to replace pencil tips.

Designer: Jaewan Park

Once pencils are too short to use, we have DIY solutions that offer temporary relief, but usually, we end up just reaching for a new pencil. Sticking a pen cap to the pencil’s eraser end helps give the pencil some length, but at that point, you might as well use the pen. In an effort to reduce the waste collected from finished pencils, Park conceptualized a reusable system. Tsugite is essentially made up of two pieces: the pencil’s body and the pencil’s detachable tip.

Park conceptualized Tsugite to come in a pack, stored with around twelve pencil bodies and their corresponding ends. The pencil body was crafted to form an arrow-shaped end piece that links into a horseshoe-shaped pencil tip. Once the pencil’s tip is too dull for use, the same body can still be used and another tip piece can be attached. While no hardware or joinery pieces are required to join the two modules together, users can rest assured the pencil tip and body are secure in place considering this same crafty joinery method is relied upon to build homes.

Park conceptualized Tsugite to come in a pack of 12 pencils.

Both ends of the pencil’s shaft will have slots for other end modules to attach.

If it weren’t for the different wood gradients, the two pieces would form a seamless connection. 

Once the modules are connected, the pencil tip is securely fastened and won’t go anywhere.

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This simple ergonomic tool makes it easier for left-handed people to write without any smudging

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Over 90% of the world is right-handed, and the way we write is strongly informed by that fact… but it makes it difficult for the people who use their left hand to write/draw with. The minute you write with your left hand, you risk smudging the text with your palm every single time. The FELEF caters to a relatively small group of people but solves a large problem for them.

Created as a simple extension of the pen’s cylindrical design, the Felef helps offset your writing instrument, maintaining a safe distance between your palm and your pen’s nib. By putting the palm below the nib rather than beside it, the FELEF makes sure your palm’s always resting against the blank paper, preventing any accidental smudges.

The FELEF works with any pen, simply fastening to it using a tightening screw. Its organic design offers a more comfortable gripping experience and the fact that it is ambidextrous means you can use it with your right hand too, especially if you find your hand cramping, or if you’re working with text that’s written from right to left!

Designers: Aakash Dolas, Shruthi Iyer & Tanay Dhongade.

Google Docs is adding Spanish-language grammar suggestions

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Over the past few years, Google has been using its expertise in machine learning and artificial intelligence to help English speakers write better. It's now doing the same for those who write in Spanish. Starting today, Google Docs will make grammar...