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OS X or Windows, either works with the Smartpen.
About a week ago, news broke that the University of Missouri’s journalism program was going to “require” its students to purchase an iPhone or an iTouch for the fall semester. The news obviously struck a chord with many readers because there was an outpouring of responses both in favor and against the initiative.
A significant number of you sided with the school and saw no problem with the program trying to get these products to its students. On the other hand, a lot of readers expressed some concern with the policy and in doing so, pointed out several alternatives to the iPhone and the iTouch that might better suite students in the lecture hall.
This will certainly be an ongoing debate, especially if more colleges follow the University of Missouri down the same road.
Now a great many of you suggested that “requiring” Netbooks might be the answer. They are cheap, they are efficient and they certainly have become all the rage. These are certainly a viable substitute to Apple’s products, but I think they present a likewise problem. Remember, the purpose of the requirement was to help students on financial aid have access to these products.
The difficulty with the Netbook is their recent shift towards using 3G data plans which are vastly superior to using Wi-Fi connections. You can use them that way, but it’s not recommended. Sure it’s easy to “require” students to purchase these for discounted prices, but what about the contracts that they will need to enter into in order to get the most out of them?
For instance, if a school “required” Netbooks for its students and they went on AT&T’s 3G unlimited data plan it would ultimately cost them an extra $1400 over the span of two years. Netbooks would be on par with the iTouch and the iPhone in that regard.
So, if not Netbooks, then what?
Well there was one email that stood out among the rest; partly because it took a different approach and partly because you could tell that this was a product that they truly believed would make a difference for students. And guess what they recommended to me? A pen.
A pen?
You read that correctly.
This is no ordinary pen however. It has its own power button.
Livescribe, based locally in Oakland, released their Pulse Smartpen last year and it has received rave reviews across the board. It definitely has great purpose in both the workplace (especially for Journalists) and in the classroom. If you haven’t heard of it, let’s run down a few features.
You can use it to write down notes like any other pen, however, using Livescribe’s Dot Paper, an infrared camera on the tip of the pen tracks everything you write or draw using DPS (Dot Positioning System). It sounds complicated but it takes the ease of note taking to a whole other level.
It has a built-in microphone that students can use to record lectures that, combined with its noise-cancelling on-board technology leaves the user with crisp and clear recordings. This is perfect to drown out that kid in the front row who is constantly giving his two cents.
The Smartpen also comes with a set of headphones, called the 3D Recording Headset. These feature ear buds with attached microphones that are able to help capture additional sound in large, noisy environments that the regular microphone might have trouble picking up.
Now comes the unique part. When you upload what you have written to your computer, Livescribe’s software will synchronize what you wrote with any audio it recorded. So if you missed something, all you have to do is tap the appropriate word on the Dot Paper and it will bring you to the audio section for you to listen to.
Also, on board the pen is a speaker for instant playback and an OLED screen that you can use to navigate the Smartpen and Pulse applications that you can download. And all of these are not even the best part.
When the Pulse Smartpen was first released it only supported users with Windows which obviously was a letdown for Mac users who wanted to get their hands on one.
This is not the case anymore.
As of March, Livescribe has included software for users of OS X 10.5.5 or higher. It was also voted “Best of Show” at the Macworld Expo 2009 with eight other products.
The Smartpen is available in two forms, the 1GB model which holds about 100 hours of audio and retails at $149 and the 2GB model which costs $199.
It does not feature an expensive contract or a data plan locking you in for years at a time. Once you make the initial investment, all you have to do is periodically buy the Dot Paper and new ink cartridges.
That’s it.
No data plans, no distractions.
When there are gadgets like this in the world, and the University of Missouri is trying to push the iPhone and iTouch onto its students, it is really difficult to believe that they have their students’ best interests at heart.
Even Apple thought it was great.
For more info: Contact Adam: admillios@gmail.com
Comments
This is ludicrous. Let's take an iPhone equivalent to the 2GB Livescribe smartpen -- it offers 8GB of storage and an unlimited number of apps that could serve an unlimited number of pedagogical purposes. All this pen does is record lectures and time them for when you were writing. While that is a very useful function, and I wish I had one of these desperately in school, there is simply no comparison between the utility of this pen and the iPhone.
Agreed with the above. The iphone has so many more posibilities and advantages.
From my read of this article, the comparison dealt with financial concerns and was not touting any functional superiority of the Livescribe over an iPhone.
As a pure classroom tool, the Pulse is clearly better. I'm sure the above people have never used one before. iPhones or iTouches are meant for general usability and yes, they would be superior. But the purpose of a university putting this into place should not be so students can have a fun gadget, but a useful one for learning.
The Pulse not only allows you all the basics you need - statistical, financial, and scientific functions for calculations as well as basic translation features for Spanish, Swedish, Arabic, and Mandarin - it also makes sure you don't miss a word when you're taking notes. It's great to not have to skip through a podcast trying to find when the professor was talking about just the thing I want to listen to, since all I need to do is tap on the part of my notes where I missed something to hear what was being said at that time.
Let's not even get to how sharing the notes online after you've uploaded them can help with study groups and for classmates who were sick that day. It's far more efficient to read through notes, listening to select parts of the lecture you want clarification on than to have to listen to an entire podcast, losing focus as it drones on.
And of course, the financial benefits are great. You don't even need to buy the notebooks since you can print dotpaper from a laser printer and those ink cartridges last forever (plus you get three to start off with).
I've got nothing again the iPhone or iTouch (in fact, just bought myself one today), but when we're talking about financial aid meant for education, it can be better spent.
I have both, the iPhone is cool but it does not record. The Smartpen records, example speeches and at the same time will record your written text. Perfect for business meetings, school, Toastmasters and simple, then just upload. Also you may send a link to who ever to view or listen.Then no costly AT&T plans.
That you have to upload to your computer seems to imply the hidden cost of a computer.
And as for "getting the best out of" a Netbook required an expensive 3G contract - remember that contract does not have to be signed, and without signing, you can still do a lot more with a netbook than an iPhone or iTouch.
I have a livescribe smartpen, a laptop, and an iPhone. Each has its place. However when you are in a lecture and are trying to collect and record all that is being written on a board or from a presentation and at the same time gather all that is being said, the iphone, netbook and the laptop leave a lot to be desired. In a lecture the goal is to gather the most information in the most efficient manner. Without a doubt the smartpen is superior for that single purpose, which is what a student needs. The only better alternative is to have a video of the lecture which can be distributed to the students. Otherwise, it is pencil, paper and a great memory.
Mary Qin wrote:
"The Pulse... [offers] basic translation features for Spanish, Swedish, Arabic, and Mandarin..."
I just bought a Livescribe Pulse and I agree it's a great resource for students or anyone needing to capture notes at fast paced meetings. However I had to comment on Mary's quote above, which sounded more like a marketing press release than a real world endorsement.
While the Pulse's great features and usefulness are widely acknowledged, the included translation app is a complete joke - obviously meant more as a fun demo of the interface than as a real world tool. The "translator's" vocabulary is limited to a handful of words (i.e. hello, goodbye, etc) and is utterly worthless for any real world translation usage. Even if you were to purchase a full blown translation dictionary, this is hardly the best interface for this sort of thing.
Let's admire the Pulse pen for what it is - a great note taking tool - period.
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