I liked the concept, but it didn't work out too well.  I'm talking about the LiteRite Pen and Highlighter Combo from Zebra.

The concept was awesome - a black ballpoint pen on one side, and a yellow fluorescent highlighter on the other end.  You only need to carry one writing tool, and you get double the usage from it.

I love highlighters, and I have to say that the highlighter portion of the pen has worked well, since day one.  The ink flows smoothly, doesn't bleed through standard papers, and the underlying words can be clearly read through the bright yellow color.   The tip is fairly narrow, allowing for thin, smooth lines.  Perfect for underlying words, circling words, or crossing through words.  But the tip is a bit small, if your intention is to highlight entire paragraphs.  For that, I suggest getting a much wider-tipped highlighter.  But this one works well for those smaller jobs - like highlighting transactions in a checkbook, or noting one row of a report. 

The cap snaps tightly, and fits snugly onto the back of the pen, so when you're using the highlighter, you don't have to worry about losing the cap.  There's very little odor when using this marker, and it seems to resist fading over a long time.  Furthermore, I've had mine for years, and the highlighter continues to work well, without a hint of drying up.

And now the bad news - the pen side.

My experience with the pen side has been the opposite of the highlighter.  The pen never worked great, even from day one.  And at this point, it doesn't work at all.  It's not that the ink dried out from over-use, because I hardly ever used it.  I never liked the feel of the pen, or the way the ink came out so unevenly.  It has an ultra-fine point, that should have made nice, thin lines, but just never worked particularly well.  Even when it was brand new, the lines were inconsistent - dark in some spots, and light in others. 

The cap fits on the highlighter end, so you don't have to worry about losing it.  And it has a pocket-clip attached to it.  And even after all these years, I've managed not to break the pocket-clip (a minor miracle, given how many I tend to break). 

Of course, the real reason the clip is intact is quite simply that I hardly ever reach for this pen.  I use the highlighter occasionally, but honestly, I have so many other highlighters, and there's nothing special about this one that would make me reach for it, specifically.  And I certainly don't reach for the pen - ever.  No wonder the pocket clip hasn't broken!

Too bad it didn't work out - it's a case of a great concept becoming a disappointing product.


Avery Highlighter

Recommended: No