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Miniature USB Flash Drive Stylus Review

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The idea of using a stylus with a smartphone seems a little bit old fashioned today. Steve Jobs never liked them, and they were originally meant to make it easier to use old resistive touchscreens. As smartphones evolved to catch up with Apple’s iPhone, the stylus mostly died out. However, Samsung started their Galaxy Note series, with the S-Pen advertised as the main selling point. The Galaxy Note II is currently one of the most popular smartphones among the Android crowd, and it easily matches Google’s Nexus 4 with popularity. Clearly, the stylus hasn’t completely died out, and there are still several uses for one.

Using a good quality stylus is one of the best ways to prevent fingerprints on the screen of your smartphone. A stylus can also be used to draw quick pictures on your smartphone or tablet, to save paper. One of the best uses for a stylus is for when you are wearing gloves. Finally, a stylus might be used by someone who wants to use a smartphone, but isn’t used to touchscreens. Although most mobile software today uses buttons big enough for users to tap with their thumb, some people still find a stylus to be a more accurate pointing device.

The first problem I found with this stylus is its length. The stylus is too short to be used like a pen or a pencil, and it is awkwardly shaped, meaning there is only one way to hold it comfortably. It is possible to get used to the length of this stylus, and it is meant to be small. However, if this stylus was around half the length of a pen, it would still fit into nearly any pocket, and it would be a lot more comfortable to use.

Another problem with this stylus is that it leaves prints on a smartphone screen. If you are looking for a stylus specifically to avoid fingerprints, you will find stylus prints instead, and they are just as bad. This isn’t a big problem, as the marks can simply be wiped off. However, it is something to keep in mind.

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The biggest problem with this stylus is how it is made. The part used to touch the screen is covered in a thin layer of smooth plastic, to make it easier to use the stylus for swipe gestures. That layer of plastic started to peel off in about a day of regular use and some time in my pocket. Because of that, with too much swiping, the rubber tip at the end falls off. This problem can be solved by covering the end of the stylus with a thin strip of paper or sticky tape, but that way of fixing the problem makes the stylus look a bit cheap.

The other end of this stylus has a built in USB flash drive. This flash drive has 16GB to store your data, and it operates at a reasonably fast speed, only taking a few minutes to transfer around 1GB of data. It has always been impossible to have too many USB flash drives, and that is especially true today. Because of that, the USB flash drive adds a lot of value to this stylus.

USB Flash Drive
I would recommend this stylus for someone who just wants an accurate pointing device for their smartphone, or for someone who wears gloves a lot. I would not recommend this stylus for someone who won’t use the USB flash drive. Overall, this stylus is a good idea, and with the £15 price tag, it has good value for money. However, it could certainly be improved. This stylus can be bought from MobileFun.co.uk, under Galaxy Note 2 accessories.

Posted on Tuesday 12th February 2013 - 3 comments