If you haven’t read The Wirecutter or The Sweethome, both are sites that tell you exactly a thing to buy with a lengthy . Need an ice tray? Get this one. Need an air conditioner? This is the one to get. I use these examples because I’ve bought these things and been very satisfied with the results.

This past week, they put together a review on the best pen. I’m a bit of a penophile (ouch, yep, I said it) so I was excited to see what they put together. To give you some idea:

What we want from a pen is smooth writing: a uniform line, even flow, and no skipping. It has to dry quickly so that it doesn’t smear, a need for left-handers. We want one that doesn’t feather (spread into the paper) too much or spot through to the other side, doesn’t require excess pressure, and is comfortable to use. And it has to be reliable—if you fish it out of the bottom of your purse after a couple of months, you have to know that it will still be good.

They got together a panel of experts on pens, then a series of tests to consistently judge them, then tell you what variations to consider if you are a special type of writer in one way or another. It’s an interesting read, and just goes to show that the unexamined life is not worth living.

Go read the whole thing here »

So what’s your favorite pen? I’ve still gotta give it up for The Uniball Vision Elite.

One final note, there used to be a site called Kallow that was this for technology that both Marty and I loved. It disappeared a couple years ago, and I never found out who was behind it. But I love the approach of just cutting through the BS and telling me the best thing.