Jot Stylus

[Yarrenbool]

Definitely shipping faster... I ordered on 9/14, and I received notification today of shipment. This will be my first stylus, so excited to give it a shot!

You're certainly luckier than me. I ordered mine August 29th, immediately got email from them that they had received my order, and an email from PayPal that payment was transferred. Since then, nothing!

No shipping notification, AND NO REPLY to an email asking about the delay.

You ordered two (2) weeks after me and yours has apparently shipped.

I wonder why an order placed two weeks earlier has not shipped yet and why they don't reply to emails?

 

[kanderna]

You're certainly luckier than me. I ordered mine August 29th, immediately got email from them that they had received my order, and an email from PayPal that payment was transferred. Since then, nothing!

No shipping notification, AND NO REPLY to an email asking about the delay.

You ordered two (2) weeks after me and yours has apparently shipped.

I wonder why an order placed two weeks earlier has not shipped yet and why they don't reply to emails?

Which did you order? I ordered the Pro in gun metal... not sure if that's the difference or what.

 

[Heaviside]

I too have had problems writing at a very low angle. I think it is an inherent limitation on the swivel nib-disk concept. It isn't a limitation that causes me to suffer too much, but I did make a comment about it on the Adonit web site. I think this is the reason you sometimes have to apply more pressure. Sometimes, too, when you start a stroke the disk is at a cockeyed angle and kinda' flops around a bit.

All small problems for me, though, and well worth putting up with for the gain in precision.

P.S. I just got a mass mailing through the Adonit Kickstarter program, and they said they have finished filling all their initial orders. With that backlog gone, maybe they will ship faster now?

 

[jsh1120]

I too have had problems writing at a very low angle. I think it is an inherent limitation on the swivel nib-disk concept. It isn't a limitation that causes me to suffer too much, but I did make a comment about it on the Adonit web site. I think this is the reason you sometimes have to apply more pressure. Sometimes, too, when you start a stroke the disk is at a cockeyed angle and kinda' flops around a bit.

All small problems for me, though, and well worth putting up with for the gain in precision.

P.S. I just got a mass mailing through the Adonit Kickstarter program, and they said they have finished filling all their initial orders. With that backlog gone, maybe they will ship faster now?

Thanks, buddy. Jury's still out for me but it's good to know my jot isn't faulty. As usual, it's user error.

BTW, I was not part of the kickstarter program and received my gunmetal Jot Pro in less than 3 weeks although when ordered the website had a 4-6 week estimate. So for those who haven't received theirs, I suspect the problem may be stocking issues of specific models and/or shipping to the remote parts of the world, e.g. Canada.

 

[edcm1]

I'm so glad I found this thread. I've been looking for a good stylus for my iPad. I had another one that made writing seem like a chore. I got my JotPro yesterday (ordered it from BiteMyApple.co on Thursday) and so far am loving it. Like others, I've been having the problem with it not registering sometimes when I'm writing, but I think as I get used to it, it will get better. My only disappointment is that I ordered the Pro because I liked the idea of the magnet, but I have a skin on my iPad so the magnet doesn't work. I think I'll just order the other Jot next time (I always like to have a backup).

Thanks again.

Esther

 

[Wookiee2cu]

I ordered a back up and another one for a co-worker on 9-20 and it shipped the 26th. Odd thing is my first one came via UPS and this order is coming via USPS, unfortunately the USPS tracking is horrible and updates are very late... it doesn't even give a date for estimated delivery.

 

[kanderna]

I've been using mine for a couple days and I've determined it's not really for me.

If I were a cursive writer, I would probably love it. But the fact that I quickly print my notes and am constantly lifting the stylus off the surface and back down, coupled with having to press harder with this stylus makes it difficult for me to use. Plus the constant tapping may just drive others in meetings with me bonkers.

Where's my next move? iFaraday, Bamboo, others?

 

[Heaviside]

I've been using mine for a couple days and I've determined it's not really for me.

If I were a cursive writer, I would probably love it. But the fact that I quickly print my notes and am constantly lifting the stylus off the surface and back down, coupled with having to press harder with this stylus makes it difficult for me to use. Plus the constant tapping may just drive others in meetings with me bonkers.

Where's my next move? iFaraday, Bamboo, others?

I print all my notes, writing pretty rapidly. Though I, too, experience the problem you mentioned, I don't think it is a killer.

I suggest waiting a while, get in a few days practice, then decide if you need another. As of now, I think the Jot's precision will weight the scales in its favor. Otherwise, go for the iFaraday: less precision, smoother flow.

I am currently waiting on an iFaraday Rx, andvwill post a comparison of the two. In the meantime, I think that jsh1120 has posted his reactions on this thread or another. Do a search on his user name.

 

[Yue923]

I've been using mine for a couple days and I've determined it's not really for me.

If I were a cursive writer, I would probably love it. But the fact that I quickly print my notes and am constantly lifting the stylus off the surface and back down, coupled with having to press harder with this stylus makes it difficult for me to use. Plus the constant tapping may just drive others in meetings with me bonkers.

Where's my next move? iFaraday, Bamboo, others?

For you i think bamboo would fit you best. I have both bamboo and jot. I use bamboo for taking quick note whereas jot is more for making a illustration, creating figure since I'm a researcher.

 

[jsh1120]

Received a couple of replacement discs for the Jot Pro yesterday to see if my problem with "missed strokes" was somehow related to a faulty disc. Now I'm puzzled as to how to replace the disc. Anyone have a clue?

Edit: It appears I should just grab faulty disc and pull it off the Jot. But before I do so I'm wondering if anyone has experienced a problem in doing so.

 

[Heaviside]

Received a couple of replacement discs for the Jot Pro yesterday to see if my problem with "missed strokes" was somehow related to a faulty disc. Now I'm puzzled as to how to replace the disc. Anyone have a clue?

Edit: It appears I should just grab faulty disc and pull it off the Jot. But before I do so I'm wondering if anyone has experienced a problem in doing so.

I received a video via their Kickstart mailing list that covers this issue. Probably its on the Adonit web site somewhere, but I don't have the link to post.

Here's what they say to do: hold the stylus vertically with the disc on a flat surface (say a desktop). Place one finger on top of the disc on each side of the nib. Pull up the stylus firmly, but slowly until the nib pops out. Reverse the process for installation.

So---short form---ya got it right!

By-the-bye, I just tried it and it works fine. I was a bit surprised at the amount of force required, but that's probably a positive sign for the reliability of the mount. Not so great is the implication of the result: my jot was beginning to be very unresponsive as the disc degraded, and the new one has significantly improved the response. Adonit said nothing about the discs being "new and improved" or anything like that, so I assume these will degrade also.

P.S. Received my iFaraday Rx a few days ago and like it a lot. But I also ordered a Dagi that is based on the same principle as the Jot---but has a spring on the tip. I am thinking that maybe this will solve the skipping problem of the Jot. I'll post a comparison of all three after a bit of testing.

 

[jsh1120]

Thanks, Heaviside. Figured I could count on you for the info. Not having been part of the Kickstart funding group I haven't been getting updates from Adonit. I think I'll sign up for the "clever" email group and see if that improves the information available. I did check the Adonit website fairly thoroughly and found precious little to answer the question. In fact, I'm not much impressed by the Adonit website from a support perspective. (Not that many manufacturers pay much attention to their own "support" pages on their websites; it's a common sin.)

And as long as I'm venting, I'll add another complaint. In order to generate a login for the Adonit website you have to give a user handle and a password. Fair enough. But the d**n password has to include upper AND lower case letters AND one or more numbers AND a non-letter, non-number character! Jeez...We're not talking about the danger of hacking a national security site! Rant off.

Edit: Well, replacing the disc hasn't solved the "missing strokes" problem. I really like the look and feel of the Jot Pro but the iFaraday (at least for me) is far more reliable as a writing instrument. I've found that if I use the "zoom" box available in Notes Plus and Note Taker HD (i.e. a magnified window on the screen that enables the user to write larger letters that are inserted on a small section of the screen) I can achieve better results with the Jot. And as I've found in the past, if I write cursively so the tip of the stylus stays on the screen, the results are improved.

Nevertheless, I still find my iFaraday styluses to be more reliable writing (and sketching) instruments overall. If I were to design a perfect stylus for myself, I'd have the Jot Pro body combined with the tip of the iFaraday.

I don't mean to discourage others from trying the Jot. When it works, it works very well. Feels more like an expensive fountain pen than anything else I've tried. And at least in my experience, Adonit has improved their customer service in response to customers reporting broken discs. I received two discs in about a week free of charge after requesting them. (Of course, the relatively fragile discs have to be factored into that issue.) If being able to see the precise contact point of the stylus on the screen is important to you, the Jot (or perhaps the Dagi Stylus) may be your best bet. (Although the Amazon reviews suggest it may suffer from the same "missed strokes" problem as the Jot.)

 

[Heaviside]

Jsh1120,

After hearing what you had to say about the Adonit website, I went to it and tried to look or that video. Wow! Nothing but complaints from customers about the discs! And their website is in a state of neglect.

On the basis of this, it looks to me like a small company in trouble.

Too bad---even with the materializing problems we have been discussing, I still prefer it for its accuracy. (When it doesn't skip.)

BTW: Didn't realize Amazon was carrying the Dagi. It's a bit less expensive there I think.

 

[Glenn]

I took my adonit on the road along with my faraday artist and a stock faraday. Due the (6) 3 hour presentations I made, I always had a few people in the audience that were using note programs an on an ipad and at the beginning of each meeting, I gave them the 3 styluses and told them to interchange their use during the presentation. I probably did this with 8 people over three days, and the results were all the same: although they liked the adonit, some suffered missing strokes - they all picked the artist hands down with the reg faraday second, but not enuf heft in their hand. Everyone did comment however, that the adonit was the most precise....

Waht I thought was interesting is virtually everyone I did this with was using a targus to start with - ahhh - the power of best buy...

 

[jsh1120]

Great contribution, Glenn. I find the iFaraday Artist is my favorite, as well. And have the same complaint about the lack of "heft." On a related topic, I've not given up on the Jot Pro. It's such a nice instrument to hold I keep trying to make it work. I think I've found one problem that may be unique to us poor handicapped southpaws whose method of holding a writing instrument looks like we've suffered torture in a Latin American prison.

I find that if I take notes with the iPad in portrait mode but turned about 20-30 degrees clockwise from vertical (iPad lying flat on a desk) I can minimize the missed strokes. This means that I'm writing "down hill" but it's not an unfamiliar writing style for me. Right-handers may find this description difficult even to understand, much less to try, but it does improve the performance of the Jot.

(Most right-handed people write with their arm beneath the text they're entering and use the muscles of their forearm to write. Southpaws tend to "crook" their hand above the text and use just the muscles of their fingers to write. It's one reason that handwriting is more tiring for southpaws.) I suspect that missed strokes may be especially problematic for left-handers because we tend to pause briefly when we're writing to allow the muscles in the hand to recover.

Don't know if this will help any other southpaws out there. Just my experience.