Rating: 
Summary: Too many errors
Review: I wanted to like this Pen so much. I loved the portability and the versatility that it offered. But, it just didn't perform well enough to be useful. It is extremely slow. If you scan with pen as fast as you would a highlighter, your accuracy can vary anywhere from 25-50%. The highest accuracy I was able to get was scanning at about 3 seconds a line. But then there's another 2 seconds for the Pen register the information that's been scanned. The accuracy issue is pretty ridiculous. I tried a lot of different techniques to try and improve the accuracy, i.e. using a ruler, scanning slow, adjusting the angle at which I held the pen. But in the end, I found that it was faster to type the line rather than scan with the pen.If you're looking for a fast and accurate handheld scanner, I strongly recommend the IRIS II Executive (Not the Standard). I ended up returning my Quick Link Pen and getting the IRIS II Exec instead. It's incredibly fast and more importantly incredibly accurate. I can scan faster than I would with a highlighter and I rarely get mistakes. I'm a Biochem Grad Student and I scan a lot of words that wouldn't seem easily recognized, but the IRIS II works like a champ.
Rating: 
Summary: Read the instructions first...
Review: I was contemplating not buying this pen after reading all the reveiws. But i now that i took the plunge and have, i dont understand what all the fuss is about. I had no problems having my pen connect with my laptop - you just need to read the instructions (I have Windows XP) The accuracy rating is 97% according to the manual -- most of the time i have no errors at all, but fair enough sometimes there are a few small errors -"all" is sometimes scanned as "aU" I can scan like i would use a highlighter - super quick, and the accuracy level doesnt go down, and its transferred to my computer within 5 seconds. If you are a university student or you just need to scan alot of quotes out of books etc - i'd recommend this to you. Regardless what anyone says, I scan a lot faster with this pen than i type (and i type fast).
Rating:
Summary: Very impressive!
Review: I'm a PhD student. I have a lot of reading to do and need to take a lot of notes from scientific literature. I've had this scanner for all of 30 minutes and I'm already in love with it. I found the interface to be very intuitive and easy to use, and the pen hooked up to my desktop (running Windows 98 2cnd edition) without any trouble at all. Note: I first shut down the Microsoft ActiveSync I use to synchronize with my Pocket PC, and also told the QuickLink software that comes with the scanner to NOT run automatically on startup. I thought the Quicklink Desktop software was very easy to use. I would have liked the ability to copy to the clipboard from the notes page on the desktop, but it's no big deal - you can save notes to ASCII text or a Microsoft Word document. The "scan to PC" feature is very useful for when I sit down to read at my desk; it can copy stuff directly to Word or to a reference management program like Procite. Scanning quality is pretty good after only a couple of minutes of practice, about 1-2 errors per line. However, it feels like I can probably improve with some more practice. Finally, the pen comes in an extremely convenient plastic case that can happily coexist with other stuff in a backpack. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: I'm very pleased with the Quicklink Pen. My mother, who is not a "gadget" person, was even more amazed with it. We've done several scanners. We have a 4 inch hand scanner, a flatbed, even one that takes 81/2x11 sheets and scans them. They all work great for what they do, but the biggest pain is scanning in books ,especially when all you want is a couple of paragraphs. Enter the Quickpen. It takes a few tries to get the right angle for scanning, but that's like anything - there's a small learning curve. The best is being able to lay down in my hammock with a book in hand, and the scanner in the other. When I find a quote that I like, I scoop it up with the pen. Something I greatly look forward to is the memory expansion pak. I ordered it today, and have been longing for years for the ability to translate text on the fly, as I'm interested in other languages. I'll tell you how it goes!
Rating: 
Summary: Not as good as C-Pen
Review: I've used both this and the C-Pen 600, and I found the C-Pen to be significantly better, mainly because the C-Pen has a much better user interface. As well as being more awkward to use than the C-Pen, the QuickLink is noticably larger. The QuickPen does have the advantage of having a serial port as well as the I/R interface. The QuickLink Pen is also a bit cheaper, as to get the equivalant functionality with a C-Pen you need a C-600, InfraRed adapter for your computer, and carrying case, all of which must be purchased separately.
Rating: 
Summary: Promising-needs more work
Review: My husband after working with the pen seemed to get the hang
of how to use it- it does take practice and seems to have its
quirk. He also called tech support once-they answered the phone
quickly but didn't seem to know much about the product. After a few days the product didn't work consistently- the on
button didn't work and the screen didn't hold display. To be
honest I don't know if it was that we just got a lemon or
if the product needs more work before it should be brought to
market.
Rating:
Summary: TIME SAVER
Review: OBTAINED OVER A YEAR AGO IT HAS BEEN EXCELLENT TOOL WHEN RESEARCHING, ONCE I LEARNED POSITION TO SCAN CORRECTLY AND RATE OF SCAN (SPEED OVER INFORMATION) IT WAS A BREEZE. UNTIL THAT POINT SOMEONE COULD GET DISCOURAGED. TAKES TIME TO TRANSFER TO COMPUTER AND CONVERT, BUT STILL LESS THAT IF INFO TYPED IN. HIGHLY RECOMMEND, USE WHEN ATTEND CONFERENCES TO HIGHLIGHT AND SAVE FROM A SYBULSS. WISH I HAD WHEN I WAS A STUDENTS STUDYING, COULD OF SAVED A LOT OF SORE FINGERS. DON'T HESITATE OF THINK OF PURCHASING, WELL WORTH THE PRICE.
Rating:
Summary: Which scanner pen??????? Wizcom, Cpen or something else
Review: Rating **** for concept ** for Wizcom. So you know where I am coming from I am a research scientist who wanted a tool for collecting information from journals and books without photocopying and the need for retyping and I now seem to have one. Scanner pens seem a great idea on paper but choosing and getting one is not so easy. The technology has been around a few years but try as I might I could not find one anywhere here in Sydney (pop 4 million) to physically examine and trial. Apparently they have got a bad reputation with distributors as none of the 10 major shops I contacted stocked them or even had them on their books. So I went on line and lo and behold there were at least 4 distinct products and lots of hyperbole from the companies producing and a very mixed reaction from the reviewers. Pressing on I did my best to read between the lines (a bit like reading chicken entrails as they used to do in Ancient Rome). But in the end it appeared that the basic choice was between the Wizcom system and the C Pen system in that these were most frequently encountered and seemed to have a number of convincing reviews. I was tending toward the Wizcom system but when I contacted the local Sydney distributor where I might see the product I found that they had dropped Wizcom a year ago and the Wizcom had not bothered to update their web site. I contacted Wizcom and received a basically have a 'Have and Nice Day' reply - in which none of my questions about viewing an actual pen etc. were addressed. So the ** rating for Wizcom reflects poor service by a company that did not seem to provide good support. The second outcome was that I decided to take the plunge and try the C Pen sight unseen (a Swedish built competitor). The marketing entrails were better this time though. The interstate distributors told me by phone they used to stock Wizcom but had dumped it as old technology. And they had the basic C Pen 600 on special so I jumped. To finish up I have some general observations:
* I am pretty happy with the pen I have and see the concept as quite sound and the technology maturing rapidly.
* The two current pen designs ARE different in their scanning system - the Wizcom uses a roller, the C Pen an optical scanning system.
* I dont know how Wizcom performs per se but I expect they and their competitors are playing leapfrog. So I strongly suggest before buying from Amazon you physically have a look at the models available.
* The comments by other reviewers about slowness are still valid e.g. in respect to character interpretation time which slows the scan process but its not that bad. And the OCR software seemed pretty accurate on standard typing so I have a feeling that with a few major upgrades as processor power increases the product concept will become very impressive.
* I'm happy with the CPen system given my initial skepticism and hence have given the concept ****. But I will probably upgrade when they get a more powerful model when it becomes available.
* There are a range of useful ancillary functions like address keeper, word translator etc. Transfer is easy by cable or infrared. Transfer direct to your PC of personal organiser if you have it in front of you is easy too. From what I can see Wizcom is similar except I couldnt see a translator.
* I have tried a Palm Pilot personal organiser recently and definitely prefer the pen - it feels like a tool rather than a demanding master and is conceptually simpler to use.
Rating:
Summary: Worth about half it's price.
Review: The accuracy on this thing is just pitiful. Especially when you can spend $30 more to get a very accurate handheld scanner from Iris. The portability is the only thing this scanner holds over the competition. But I can 'write' in the information on my PDA faster than getting this thing to scan correctly.
Rating:
Summary: Great Idea, Little Action
Review: The idea behind this product is terrific, but the execution needs much improvement. I found that the accuracy was much less than advertised, and the pen required considerable testing to get at the proper angle to scan material. The system for selecting a function for the pen is confusing and requires several hours to master. This item needs much refinement before it deserves major marketing. It remains more of a toy than a tool.
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