• PDApoint: $7
• PREMIERpoint: $25
• SLIMpoint: $13

• Always have a pen with you
• PDApoint and PREMIERpoint offer larger bodies for more comfort
• SLIMpoint fits nicely in the stylus holder
• All can use over the counter refills
• All offer reset pins

• None

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PDApoint
The PDApoint was ttools' first product and is a nice low-cost stylus replacement with a built-in pen. It looks like a regular pen with a stylus tip. A click of the top button, though, exposes a good-quality ball point tip with black ink. The black plastic shaft is slightly shorter than most pens and it has been ergonomically shaped to be a pleasure to hold. Unscrewing the top button exposes a reset pin. The most most interesting part of the PDApoint, though, is the clip. This can be used to hold it in your shirt pocket like any other pen but it has been specially designed to fit in the stylus slot on most PDAs, especially Palms, so the PDApoint can be "docked" onto your handheld. There is even a nice rubber tip so it won't slide out unless you want it to. Clipping an almost full-sized pen onto your Palm adds a bit of bulk but it is far better than trying to keep track of both a stylus and a pen. The PDApoint sells for about $7.

ttools is quite proud of the fact that Vice President Gore bought a bunch of PDApoints to distribute to a select group of attendees at the 2000 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles.

PREMIERpoint
The PREMIERpoint is the upscale version of the PDApoint. It is the same general shape and function, except in a snazzy brushed chrome instead of plastic. It is clearly aimed at users who want a stylus that really goes with their Palm Vx.

There are a few small changes from the PDApoint. The clip lacks the rubber tip, which ttools pointed out means it is a little less secure in the stylus slot. This is true, but I had to hold my Palm IIIx upside down and shake it a bit to get the PREMIERpoint to slide at all. And the fact that the PREMIERpoint is metal means it is a touch heavy for my taste. It will set you back $25 but makes a nice gift for a busy Palm-using executive who is really hard to buy for.

SLIMpoint
Last, and not at all least, is the new SLIMpoint, which quite simply is the best stylus I have ever used or even heard of. I've been using it for a while now and I like it more every day. It is much smaller than ttools' other products and fits in the stylus slot. Despite that, it still has an integrated ball-point pen and a reset pin, too.

The SLIMpoint looks a lot like a standard stylus except that it is in black metal with a plastic tip. It works like any any other click-top pen; there is a button on one end that, when pushed, exposes a ball-point pen with black ink. On one side is the "breaking button" that holds the SLIMpoint securely in the stylus slot.

The end opposite the writing tip unscrews to expose the reset pin. My only complaint with the SLIMpoint, and it is a minor one, is that the reset pin is too short to actually reset my IIIx. But the IIIx is an odd beast with a large internal space for the expansion slot that I have my axxPAC in so I doubt users of other handhelds will have this same problem.

The Company
All of ttools line is available under the Fellowes brand name at major computer and office retail stores like Circuit City, Office Depot, and Target. They are also for sale online at Smaller.com.

Launched in 1998 by husband-and-wife team Tracy Leigh Hazzard and Tom Hazzard, ttools, LLC is a privately owned company based in Providence, RI. Led by the two seasoned industrial design experts, the company's home office is tucked away on the third floor of an early 1900s Providence colonial. ttools, LLC is currently working on a line of office furniture, textiles, carpets and business accessories that they hope will change the way people think about technology, design, productivity and comfort.