SPRING//SUMMER 2018 69 It really is as if you were using a physical pencil or pen on paper. Notes and drawings can be stored online for display or editing on other devices, or sharing with colleagues. The design is clean and unfussy. It is easy to use, light in weight and very robust. The software is a bit basic but this will improve with development. Will it finally make paper obsolete? No. For anyone who values the aesthetic appeal of a casebound notebook with a classic fountain pen, a tablet just doesn’t cut it. But it is the closest thing to paper the computer industry has yet come up with. One thing the reMarkable cannot do is colour. For that you need a tablet, and the tablet makers have adopted styluses to enable artists to create digital art directly, notably Microsoft with its bestselling Surface range, which comes with a pen that links with the tablet using Bluetooth to enable pressure sensitivity and palm rejection. The Surface Pen interacts with the tablet in many interesting ways, including the ability to create shading simply by angling the pen down. Software such as Adobe Photoshop CC mimics many physical effects, such as realistic watercolour blending and blurring into paper, plus many things that you can’t do with paper, such as animate the images. The latest Surface Pen also has interchangeable tips of different shapes to make the experience closer to using real pens or brushes, including a tip intended to simulate an HB pencil and another, smoother tip that aims to replicate the feel of a fine ballpoint. The usability of the pen can be enhanced with Microsoft’s unique Dial, a wireless controller that sits on the tablet’s screen or next to it, under the artist’s hand so all the functions of the pen can be brought up instantly and intuitively. Apple itself recently revoked Jobs’s stylus ban and launched its own, called Pencil. It also has Bluetooth for pressure sensitivity and palm rejection, and works with a wide variety of apps including handwriting recognition in word processors, graphics apps and note-taking apps. Apple Pencil can only be used with the iPad Pro and has a rather limited battery life. If you want a Bluetooth stylus for your iPhone, you need Wacom’s Bamboo Fineline 3rd Generation, a stylish unit with a triangular shape so it does not roll off your desk. It also has a retractable pressure-sensitive nib. The only smartphone with a dedicated stylus is Samsung’s Galaxy Note8, which has a small stylus branded the S-pen, supplied by Wacom, concealed in its case. As with other tablets, the stylus does not replicate the feel of pen on paper but does a great job of recording handwriting and transcribing it into text. For tasks like taking down contact details, making diary entries, taking notes and so on, it is great but it is not a tool for artists. Samsung also provides larger S-pens with pressure sensitivity for its tablets. The industry is constantly searching to create the most authentic digital version of pen and paper. They appear to be making progress, particularly with the ReMarkable, but will they ever render paper and pens obsolete? They’re a way off yet. WILL IT FINALLY MAKE PAPER OBSOLETE? NO. FOR ANYONE WHOVALUES THE AESTHETIC APPEAL OF A CASEBOUND NOTEBOOK WITH A CLASSIC FOUNTAIN PEN, ATABLET JUST DOESN’T CUT IT. STATIONERY BIZ Microsoft Surface Apple Pencil Samsung Galaxy Note8 Royal Talen’s manufactures and supplies high quality painting, drawing and colouring materials for artists, creative hobbyists, designers, children and educational institutes. The company was founded in 1899 by Marten Talen’s, and is recognised globally amongst artists, hobbyist and beginners for its quality brands such as Talen’s, Rembrandt,Amsterdam, Van Gogh,Talen’s Art Creation, Cobra, Bruynzeel and for the Sakura products. Headquartered in Apeldoorn, Holland, we produce, distribute and promote in excess of 8,000 finished articles to more than 100 countries. We are part of the Japanese Sakura Colour Products Corporation, inventor of the oil pastel (Cray-Pas), gel pen (Gelly Roll), pigment fine liner (Pigma Micron) and pigment marker (Permapaque).The family owned Sakura group was founded in 1921 and is now a global leader in artists’, school, hobby & crafts materials, stationery and writing instruments. Please ensure to visit us to see our artists’ demonstrate our unique products like Ecoline Inks, Markers and Pigma Micron products. For all Sales enquires, Contact –Yogesh Karia 30 Portland Place London W1B 1LZ Tel 07555207575 E-mail: y.karia@royaltalens.com www.royaltalens.com Stand M738 LETTER IN G P EN CIL M oderr Calligraphh STAND M315 2018