1 Signo DX 0.38 - Orange

   

Product: Uni-Ball Signo DX (UM-151) Gel Ink Pen - 0.38 in オレンジ (Orange)

Where to buy: jetpens.com for $2.25

Color thoughts: So bright and pretty! It's slightly more red than what I would expect orange to look, but I think I prefer this shade a lot more. This is actually the first orange pen I own because I always thought that orange would look really flat and one-dimensional. However this color really pops off the page. I wouldn't use it for long paragraphs of writing because it gets hard to read, but I love it for writing short things!

General thoughts: So I've heard so many great things about the Signo DX line, so I decided to try it out. when I first used it, it put out blobs of ink all over the place - I was using it to write really tiny Japanese for the days of the week in my planner and half of the words were unreadable because of the blobs! However, after using the pen for a while, the blobbing problem lessened. It still appears sometimes, like in the smiley face in my writing sample. It seems to only happen when I hesitant in writing or wait too long to put the pen to the paper. Other than the blobbing problem, I really like this pen. The grip is great and doesn't attract particles like the Zebra Sarasa Clip does. I love the fine tip (for people who have this pen, did you notice that the sticker says .4 オレンジ as opposed to 0.38? I thought that was kind of interesting). This is probably one of the pens that I will use when making cheat sheets! One weird thing that I did notice though is that sometimes I see air bubbles in the ink barrel. How does one get rid of them? They seem to pop up and disappear spontaneously...

What I use it for: Highlighting important sentences or words in my notes when going over them. The orange color really attracts the eye. It's a great alternative to highlighters since some of my highlighters tend to bleed through the paper.

Pros:

• Really fine tip
• Super bright and pretty color that really catches your attention
• Nice solid line
• No skipping

Cons:

• Ink blobs...
• Not good for writing long paragraphs - will tire out eyes when reading
• Weird air bubble problem
• It doesn't feel as "solid" as the Zebra Sarasa Clip... Maybe because the Signo DX is thinner and thus gives the illusion of fragility?

Recommend?: Yes! It's a great little pen and the color really brightens up my mood. =)