In Review

Pogo Sketch Stylus

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5 stars - 'Smashing'
Ten One Design
Pogo Sketch Stylus, $14.95

Pogo Sketch Plus Stylus, $14.95

Available in 4 colors
VERDICT:
"Smashing"
Worth checking out for those seeking improved accuracy for iPhone input, or for those who draw.
Review by Cy Ashley Webb
Pogo Stylus, a well designed stylus that helps improve precision when using touch screen enabled devices.

The whole idea of using a stylus reminds me how effortlessly Palm graffiti worked. In some ways, the Palm stylus and graffiti seems easier than the iPhone’s keyboard, which I’m invariably fat-fingering. The Palm’s stylus was not without a catch, however, as it was invariably getting lost, forcing me to grab whatever was at hand, be it a tooth flosser, chopstick or other random tool.

We must not be that far from the old days of the Palm because a plethora of stylus-type devices is on the market to help us compensate for fat thumbs, fragile fingernails or arthritic joints. These are worth checking out.

Pogo’s regular stylus is a hollow metal tube, constructed of light-weight aluminum alloy, with a bit of foam stuck in one end. The 5 mm foam head measured 7 mm when flattened out. It came with two plastic clips – one to clip the stylus to the phone and the other to serve as a stand for the phone. While the stand was completely dysfunctional, the clip for attaching the stylus to the phone was reasonably sturdy. It fit directly over my naked G4 – and also fit snugly over the case as well.

After a two-week trial, this thing grew on me. My cell phone’s calculator gets a heavy workout every day, and this provided a degree of accuracy over thumbs. I haven’t lost it yet, as the plastic clip works quite well. This one’s a keeper.

Pogo also offers a slightly more upscale stylus — the Pogo Sketch Plus ($14.95) — which is a little bit longer:

Unlike the regular pogo stylus, the tip of the Plus was a thin sheaf of rubber over a fine point. This makes it more precise, and perhaps better for drawing. The downside is there’s no way of keeping it clamped to the phone. It does come with a pen clip, which is useless unless you keep your tools and phone in a shirt pocket. I tried using this one, but it kept getting lost among my pocket and backpack cruft.

Cy Ashley Webb
Cy spent the ‘80’s as a bench scientist, the tech boom doing intellectual property law, and the first decade of the millennium, aspiring to be the world’s oldest grad student at Stanford where she is interested in political martyrdom. Presently, she enjoys writing for Stark Insider and the SF Examiner, hanging out at Palo Alto Children's Theatre, and participating in various political activities. Democracy is not a spectator sport! Cy is a SFBATCC member.