Livescribe 4 GB Pulse Smartpen

The most atrtactive feature of this product is the ability to digitize your written notes and audio, and later "play" them through the Livescribe Desktop application. To me this meant having access to this content through my laptop.In my case this has not worked consistently. I have recorded lectures, transferred them to my computer, but now they will not play. The audio from my pen also misteriously disappeared. So now I have no audio to playback through the pen, and no way to play it back through the Livescribe application on my laptop.So this is what I bought: A very expensive pen that records audio, but sometimes looses it (no way to recover it).I'd get more out of a cheap pen and tape recorder.They save "never miss another word," well here's one that describes the product- crappy.

I have to admit, I fell in love with the gadgetry of the Livescribe Pulse Smartpen. My boss used it at a meeting, and I did all I could do not to drool right there in the room. I love gadgets!This pen works well. 1) I can write notes with it, 2) I can record sounds with it, and 3) I can draw and play a piano with it.The bone of contention lies with the Livescribe Desktop that must be downloaded from the Livescribe website (don't worry; it's free).After recording my students' presentations and writing their names and corresponding grades in the Starter notebook, I docked the pen and opened the Desktop (the instructions tell me that Livescribe Desktop will open automatically when the pen is docked, but this is not true (even after choosing that option)). The latest software was automatically installed on my pen (this is a plus), and my notebook's pages appeared on the screen. However, when I chose to look at the Audio section, no recordings were listed. They were on the pen, but they were not transferred or copied to the Desktop.Livescribe Desktop gives the option of uploading pages to an online account. I tried it, but the only page that would upload was the first page (I scribbled on the first page shortly after my pen arrived in the mail). Fortunately, I was able to save the student presentation pages as pdf files, which was a great relief to me (I saved each page individually and as a set).I have read and reread the instructions, but I still do not know how to transfer or copy the recorded presentations onto Desktop. According to the manual, both the pages and audio are supposed to transfer to the Desktop when the pen is docked. I played the sessions on my pen and recorded them with one of my digital voice recorders. I know that I can upload them to my computer via the voice recorder.I searched the Forums for answers to my questions and discovered I'm not the only one with this problem.Also, the battery life is not as good as I'd like it to be. My digital voice recorders last longer than this pen does.I have a feeling I should not have bought this pen, but it IS a gadget, and I love gadgets!!! I will continue to explore and experiment with this pen in hopes that someday a decent update will occur and fix these glaring flaws.Suggestions that maybe a Livescribe developer will see:1) Two (TINY) ink cartridges come with the pen. Either one of them should be a stylus or one of them should be designed as a two-in-one; that is, on one end is the ink pen point and on the other end is a stylus OR provide a cap for the pen so that it can be used as a stylus;2) I wish my pen had a storage compartment for the extra cartridge (and the extra cartridges I bought when I bought the pen). This compartment could be at the top or possibly as a pop-out on the side of the pen. A pop-out on the side might also prevent the pen from rolling off the table because there would be a lip on the pen - that a user could pull open to retrieve extra cartridges;3) This pen needs a non-slip grip of some kind. I hope I'm not sweating when I use this pen because it will slip right out of my hand.4) I'm waiting for more apps to appear on the Livescribe website. The copyright at the bottom of the website shows this pen has been in existence for 2 years. I would've thought more apps would be available since the idea for this pen is two years old. I'd like to have an American-English dictionary app on the pen (my pen came with a piano app and a translator app on it).If you like gadgets, you'll probably buy this pen despite my review. Maybe you're like me, and you have to see for yourself.

I started using the 4GB Livescribe Pulse Smartpen on 1 February 2010. All my lecturers granted permission for me to record the audio of their lectures - "for personal note-taking purposes", as I explained to them.The first lecture was in a conference room. I used the 3-D Recording Headset (earphones with built-in microphones), letting them hang around my neck. Before the lecture started, I turned on the pen and wrote down the course description and date. When the lecturer was ready to begin, I tapped the "Record" icon on the bottom of my Livescribe Journal page and the display on the pen indicated that it was recording.I wrote down headings and keywords. At the end of the lecture, I tapped "Stop" and packed up. At home, I transferred my notes to my PC using the free Livescribe Desktop software. The audio playback was clear, despite the fact that there were 4 fans on in the venue. My notes are searchable in the Livescribe Desktop. I was amazed that the software could decode my handwriting. The pen can record handwritten notes without audio linked to it, audio only, or a combination of notes with linked audio. Recording can also be started by pressing the "on" button for 10 seconds, in case you don't have a notebook or control stickers handy.The second lecture was in a smaller classroom, so I tried the pen's built-in microphone. The lecturer walked around a lot, so I was a bit nervous, but I had nothing to worry about. The audio playback was clear as a bell.Thus far I have recorded 12 lectures. I am still using the original ink cartridge that came with the pen, which has lasted for 12 and a half pages of the large journal and 2 pages of the starter notebook that comes with the pen. I have recorded 15 hours of audio on the highest quality setting. I still have 2.98GB of free space available on the pen.I have become extremely reliant on my Pulse Smartpen. Having an entire lecture at your fingertips is an incredibly powerful tool. Navigating through the audio playback using the controls on the pages is easy and effective. The latency period that helps the audio synchronise with your writing works like a charm. Your notes can be saved as a PDF file and your audio can be exported in one of 5 different formats, including MP4 and WAV.The product is not perfect, however. The Livescribe Desktop software can be glitchy. One of my Statistics lectures transferred and the writing stopped about 3 sentences before it was supposed to. The entire audio track is there, but that bit of writing is missing. It still works in the book, though, tapping on it results in perfect playback on the pen. The Livescribe Online sharing function is also not worthwhile, unless you have very short clips to upload. My lectures are generally over an hour long and when I tried to share them online, the audio wouldn't load, only the notes. (Edit: Brian from LS Customer Support has been extremely helpful in solving these issues - see comments below. I am thoroughly impressed with his dedication.)To circumvent that problem, I exported the audio as MP4 and uploaded it onto a file-sharing site, and shared the link with my friend. That way, she could listen to the audio, without having the benefit of being able to click on my notes to find what she wanted. An hour-long lecture is about 30MB big, so I couldn't send it as an email attachment.More niggles: due to the lack of a pen clip, the pen rolls around and can fall off a desk easily. Livescribe also launched a Beta version of their application store, where you can buy apps for the pen...but only if you live in the US, UK, Australia or Canada. I don't.Nonetheless, I can't imagine student life without the Smartpen. The Livescribe Desktop is not necessary to reap the benefits of the pen. While waiting for lectures, I listen to the previous lecture using the earphones and by tapping my notes. The audio recording quality is excellent, despite ceiling fans and noisy students, in small venues and the biggest lecture halls (although I always sit near the front). The microdot paper is of high quality and thick enough so that even pressing down hard does not mar the other side of the page.I've gone from being an always slightly confused student to the most organised and in-the-know person in my classes. I have no regrets about this pen and would buy it again.

I have been a Livescribe user for many years and the product is fantastic when it works. However, the last two pens that I had (the last being the wifi model) both had the screen fail where the instructions were no longer visible making it unusable, and the issue was not related to the brightness feature. I contacted Livescribe customer service which was useless since they told me that it is my problem since the warranty has expired. Since I still wanted to use the technology (and also make use of the many supplies I still had), I asked a price reduction for a new or refurbished pen given my experience with the last two. They granted me a discounted price but to my surprise, it was more expensive than Amazon's regular price (that is why we love you Amazon!). So my advice is to go ahead and buy one of these pens if you want a great product but be prepared for it to mechanically fail if your experience is similar to the last two pens I purchased.