What's new

Any way to improve handwriting on Surface Pro?

mitchellvii

Well-Known Member
My handwriting has never been great, but it has been legible. I always picked the fattest ballpoint pen I could find because it created more drag on the paper and allowed my hand to write more cleanly.

With the Surface Pro, MS has provided us with a pen that has only one very hard plastic nib and no replacement options. Writing on hard glass with hard plastic is a recipe for handwriting disaster. Try writing on a glass table with a ballpoint pen. It's hard - you have no control. Samsung includes rubber tipped stylus nibs with their Note Line tablets to give the pen more "bite" on the glass screen and it really helps. As is their way, MS believes we don't need no stinking options - we get one option, the one they chose for us, hard plastic. No aftermarket nibs.

So, since we have no choices other than to buy an expensive aftermarket stylus (I hate paying $1000 for a new device only to have to pay more for aftermarket products just to make it work right), what do we do? The Bamboo Stylus Feel looks very promising but that's $40. Anti-glare screen protectors provide more of a "paper" feel but they ruin the beautiful screen image. HD screen protectors help slightly but not much - also they also are harder to clean than the glass.

The perfect solution would be a clear HD screen protector with some texture to give a paper-like feel but I haven't seen anything like that. I heard from Wacom that they will be releasing nib replacements for their Bamboo Feel product later this month and they will include the rubber tip. The rumor is that Bamboo Feel nibs fit the SP pen and work. I know that older Wacom nibs do not.

---------------------

So, what does everyone else do to improve their handwriting on the SP? Are there any great products you can recommend?

---------------------

P.S., I would LOVE to be able to get rid of the little dot that appears beneath my pen whenever I want to write. I find it very distracting. I've been writing with a pen on paper for 40 years without the aid of a dot to remind me where my pen was. In the Samsung Note products you can turn the dot off. But this is MS, once again, no options. They like the dot so you will learn to like the dot, period (pun intended).

Does anyone know of a hack that makes the dot go away? One of the things I miss about Android was that there was a hack for almost anything. In MS it seems like there isn't a hack for anything. It is what it is.
 
Last edited:

tonyz3

New Member
I did read in another forum that people are having major problems with the bamboo feel pen. It is cracking easily. The plastic version and they are recommending the carbon one. Have you tried the aftermarket Samsung pen it comes with a few different nibs from plastic to rubber.
 
OP
mitchellvii

mitchellvii

Well-Known Member
The best pen in the world is not going to help bad penmanship. Sorry:sorry:

Well that isn't true at all. My handwriting on my Galaxy Note 10.1 was far far better than it is on the SP. The rubber nib makes all the difference in the world.

Really on the Bamboo Feel? That's too bad. The Carbon is over $100. Yes, I tried the Note stylus and it was much better but the calibration is very different and hard to correct. The pen writes about 1/8th an inch above where you touch. I would really like a clear screen protector with an anti-glare, paperlike feel.

** For those interested, you can get an aftermarket Note 10.1 pen from Bestbuy for under $20 since they price match with Amazon. I may get one and see if I can fix the calibration. just hate having to MacGyver this. My SP is already held together with paper clips, chewing gum and desperation - lol.

macgyver2.jpg
 
Last edited:
OP
mitchellvii

mitchellvii

Well-Known Member
OP
mitchellvii

mitchellvii

Well-Known Member
I think I'm just going to wait for the Bamboo Feel replacement nibs to come out and give those a shot. I really like the big mouse button on the SP pen so want to keep that if I can make it work. The Note pens have such a small flat button it is hard to press.
 

riggi

Member
I think I'm just going to wait for the Bamboo Feel replacement nibs to come out and give those a shot. I really like the big mouse button on the SP pen so want to keep that if I can make it work. The Note pens have such a small flat button it is hard to press.

If you like the bigger button, you should check out the S Pen holder.

I use it for my Surface Pro and it is a lot easier to use. It's more comfortable for writing - better weight, size and grip.
The button is bigger, but more important; the pen is thicker, so it doesn't feel so fiddly when trying to press the button.

I have a Note 2 and the button on that pen is difficult because it's so thin - but I can forgive Samsung since thay had to fit the pen in the phone.
The MS Pen is a bit thicker, but it's still pretty thin and not comfortable. Plus, they didn't stow the pen in the tablet, so they could have made it a better size...
 
OP
mitchellvii

mitchellvii

Well-Known Member
If you like the bigger button, you should check out the S Pen holder.

I use it for my Surface Pro and it is a lot easier to use. It's more comfortable for writing - better weight, size and grip.
The button is bigger, but more important; the pen is thicker, so it doesn't feel so fiddly when trying to press the button.

I have a Note 2 and the button on that pen is difficult because it's so thin - but I can forgive Samsung since thay had to fit the pen in the phone.
The MS Pen is a bit thicker, but it's still pretty thin and not comfortable. Plus, they didn't stow the pen in the tablet, so they could have made it a better size...

You mean this thing?

Amazon.com: Samsung Galaxy S-Pen Stylus with Stylus Holder for Galaxy Note: Cell Phones & Accessories

Not a bad idea. But that one doesn't have interchangeable tips, right?

41MYtvtL0bL._SL1000_.jpg
 

riggi

Member
^^^^
Yes, that is the one I have.
No interchangeable tips though. It's still plastic like the MS pen.

See if you can try one in a Samsung store.

The Samsung store here in Thailand let me try it before I bought it.
 
Top