By Elizabeth Lopatto , a reporter who writes about tech, money, and human behavior. She joined The Verge in 2014 as science editor. Previously, she

Why can’t I buy a refillable version of my favorite pen in the US?

submited by

Style Pass

2024-02-09 16:00:03

By Elizabeth Lopatto , a reporter who writes about tech, money, and human behavior. She joined The Verge in 2014 as science editor. Previously, she was a reporter at Bloomberg.

Last night I discovered there’s a refillable version of my favorite pen available outside the US and I am heartbroken. Why can’t I have nice things?

I have been writing with the Pilot Precise V5 and the Pilot Precise V7 for at least the last 25 years, possibly longer. They’re great pens! (I have also been assured by Alex Cranz that pens counts as gadgets. They are, at minimum, technology, albeit old technology.) Anyway, the Pilot Precise pens are available at most drugstores, cheap; I usually buy them by the dozen. They are very smooth, even on bad paper — I don’t have to press on them to write.

That last part is crucial. See, there are days when I take extensive handwritten notes — many courtrooms do not allow electronic devices — and so I need to be able to write for several hours without my hand cramping. That rules out all ballpoint pens — absolute trash! If you need quick-drying ink, use a Zebra Sarasa Dry — and an awful lot of other ones besides.