One of the biggest problems I have with highlighters is that they tend to smear the ink that you are going over or the tips get dirty and could cause overlapping on subsequent lines. Nine times out of ten you can remedy the situation if you rub the tip on a clean piece of paper but that doesn’t always work. I started using more highlighters when I started taking classes in preparation for my CDL. The books I was given by a friend had most of the major and or important things already underlined or highlighted in fluorescent yellow but some of the paragraphs and lines faded. Since I needed to highlight larger sections of text, I knew that I needed to go shopping for some new highlighters to get the job done. I was hoping to get some funky new colors to work with but three weeks into summer vacation isn't exactly the best time to go school supply shopping.

Sanford Text Accent Highlighters

These come in four basics colors; yellow, pink, blue and green. You can purchase them individually or in the four pack; if you like the way that these write or have tried them out in the past and like them, getting the four pack will save you about two dollars over buying them individually. Staples sells the individual highlighters for $1.39 each or you can get the four pack for under four dollars. To save even more, buy them when they are on sale or when they are having their back to school special offers. If you are going to shop online for these make sure you look for the Text Accent series as Sanford has, at present count, over sixty different types and colors of highlighters in their product inventory.

What sets these apart from other highlighters? First off, the ink dried quickly and rarely smears. This is nice to know if you have large sections to cover and don't want the underside of your palm covered in ink. One problem that almost all highlighters have is going over things written in pencil; sadly this one too fails when it comes to highlighting anything written in any type of lead. I have used this in textbooks as well as on notes that I have taken and haven't had a problem with the tips becoming ruined. They are chisel tips so you can lay down a thin or thick line simply by rotating the barrel.

One thing that I really like about these is they are flat; that means no rolling off the table or losing the lids. These aren't for everyone; the shape of them can take a little while to get used to but if you have used the Data Checker from Pentel you won't have to get adjusted to holding or highlighting with this. There's no rubber comfort grip on this but it is still comfortable to use for five to ten minutes at a time; highlighters aren't usually designed to be used for hours on end so most companies don't bother to add the comfort grip to them unless they are a combo writer that has a pen on one side and a highlighter on the other.

These are great for students that want to highlight notes or who need to use alternating colors; this is where buying the four pack comes in real handy. The ink is non-toxic so it can be used by kids of all ages without having to worry about the ink harming them or there being any harmful fumes coming off the markers. If you have kids that aren't 'recappers', these highlighters might just cure them of their bad habits. You hear a loud click when the cap is reattached to the barrel and that helps to cut down on accidents inside a backpack or knapsack. They added the oversized pocket clip a few years ago so if you want to slip this into your pocket protector or loop in your briefcase, you can do so knowing that once it is in place, it isn't going anywhere until you reach for it.

Maybe I'm weird but I can't stand noisy highlighters; the ones that squeak and squeal across a page and drive you crazy. These are quiet for the most part but some of the noise level depends on the type of paper that you are writing on. Slick pages and photographs are usually the ones that make the most noise with any type of pen or marker and this highlighter is no exception. My best advice, avoid those types of paper because there really isn't a cure for the squeaks.

The Bottom Line

All four colors are nice to work with and so far I haven’t seen any of the four shades dull in the least when they have been exposed to natural or artificial light. If I had to pick on thing to improve these it would be to have them packaged in some type of a plastic case or holder. That doesn’t have anything to do with the actual highlighter but it would be a nice selling point for the set. If you are looking for some nice dependable highlighters that have almost no smell to them, aren’t noisy and have non-toxic ink then the Text Accent is well worth checking out. For less than four dollars you can get the multi color set and be ready to hit the books with style!


As always, thanks for the visit…

~^V^~ Freak ~^V^~

© 2007 Freak369

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The Ultimate Back To School List



Recommended: Yes