Freak369's Full Review: Bic Atlantis Retractable Ballpoint Pen Medium Poin...
Being a pen junkie, I couldn’t resist picking up a pack of the Bic Atlantis retractable pens when I was at Wal-Mart stocking up on school supplies. I’d seen the adverts for them at the office supply store and knew that eventually I’d get around to trying them out. The big problem was that I hate blue ink, almost every pen that I own is black ink with the exception of the gel pens and the Sanford Sharpie markers. Part of my love of black is that I’ve yet to come across a blue ink that is dark enough to suit my tastes. Some of them are light in hue and look a little washed out when you are writing on lined paper or loose leaf. I won’t say that the Bic Atlantis is the best pen that I’ve ever written with - not even close - but it does offer you a quiet clicking mechanism, rubber comfort grip and a solid ink flow with no skipping or spitting. Even so, as much as I hate to admit it, I think I finally found a Bic product that I’m going to pass on in the future.
Bic Atlantis Retractable Ballpoint Pen Medium Point Blue Ink
In a lot of ways the Bic Atlantis is comparable to the Pilot Easy Touch Retractable and the Zebra F-301 Retractable in design; these two pens do have a heavier ink flow and look a lot nicer on paper than the Atlantis but at the end of the day - it’s all personal preference and what you are looking for from a pen that makes it or breaks it. Bic doesn’t have any information about whether these are refillable or not but I have to lean towards the yes side of things because you can unscrew the barrel and remove the ink stick from it. The last time I checked their website [www.bicworld.com] they didn’t have anything listed about refills but they are always updating the site. Even if they are refillable; they are so inexpensive that if you do lose them or manage to break them, replacing them won’t cost you an arm and a leg. The barrel is clear for the most part - that is until you hit the rubber comfort grip. This makes seeing how much ink you have left a little hard but you can unscrew the barrel and remove the ink stick to see exactly how much ink you are working with.
While I like the ink flow of the pen it seems like it is a little skimpy for a medium point. I like thick lines from my ballpoint pens and this is between a thin and medium. If you are someone that likes thick lines this version of the Atlantis might not be the best pick for you. I do have to admit that the ink doesn’t skip, smear or spit when you are writing nor does it bleed through the page when writing on thin vellum sheets. The rubber comfort grip on the bottom part of the pen is nice if you do a lot of writing or note taking but for some reason the Atlantis grip seems to attract dirt like a magnet. Everything from dust to lint sticks to it and while it is easy to clean with a wet paper towel, it is annoying when you reach for it and it is covered in dirt and grime. The grip area is nice and it does provide you with a lot of comfort when you are writing, I just wish the designers would have picked a better rubber blend for it.
You can pick these up at most major retail stores like Wal-Mart and Target in the single serve sleeves or in multi color packs [black, blue, green and red]. The four pack was selling at Wal-Mart for $2.97 but I opted to go with the ten count pack of blue pens for $3.79. I have no idea why these were priced so low when the four pack cost a dollar less than this larger size. When I went back to see if they had any black ones they were completely sold out of the larger packs but there was a whole shelf of the multi pack ones. If this sounds like a pen that you might like to try out, look for the individual packs; these sell for a little over a dollar and allow you to try it out to see if is going to be something that you will want to use - this way if you hate it you won’t be stuck with a whole package of them. You know the drill - when you have a pen that you hate no one seems to walk off with them but when you find one that you love - they disappear quick.
The Bottom Line
The Bic Atlantis is a nice pen, there is no doubt about it but the blue ink just isn’t for me. I like black ink and that’s all there is to it. I picked up the blue ones first because I knew that if I didn’t like them the boys would snag them up. I gave them an honest chance but just didn’t like the color. When I purchased the black ink ones I liked them better but the rubber comfort grip attracts dust and dirt if you leave it sitting around. I’ll use the ones that I have but chances are I won’t buy any more of them unless they are on sale or in the clearance bin. Bic makes a wide variety of products and they stand behind them. If you aren’t happy with anything that they make [in the way of pens that is] you can return it to them for a replacement or a refund. To me that means a lot - if a company is going to offer you a money back guarantee then they have a lot of faith in what they are manufacturing and selling. To check out all their products visit their office website at www.bicworld.com.
Retractable ballpoint pens feature a triangular shaped barrel made of smooth plastic. Barrel color matches ink color and includes a plastic clip for s...More at Discount Office Items
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