It's no secret that with so many devices at our fingertips that allow us to easily take, organize and share notes, paper is slowly going the way of the dinosaurs.
But believe it or not, these devices can't always do it all. Sometimes, physically writing or drawing something with a pen and paper is the best way to get an idea out there. There are also still some people who just prefer the feeling of pen-to-page.
Smartpens like the Neo Smartpen N2 from NeoLab Convergence may be the perfect solution. I saw the aluminum and stainless steel pen at work during CE Week in New York on Wednesday, June 24. The writing tool has a camera at its tip that picks up whatever you write or draw on a specially designed N Notebook. This notebook contains Ncode technology of small black ink patterns all over the paper that tells the pen where on the page it is. The pen then transfers what's on the page to an app via Bluetooth technology.
In the app itself, your notes aren't just static PDFs. You can convert your handwriting into text, group your notes by certain keyword tags and customize the color.
Though all of your notes are saved in the Neo Smartpen's own app, you can also autosync everything with Evernote as well as upload and share your notes through Google Drive, moves which the company announced during CE Week. You can also use Google Drive to download your notes to other devices.
After a successful Kickstarter campaign last year, the Neo Smartpen N2 is now available in the U.S. for $169 on Amazon.
Watch NeoLab Convergence's Stephen Dix demo the Neo Smartpen N2 below.
CE Week 2015's consumer electronics and and technology exhibits run through Thursday in New York City. More than 175 participating companies showed what's new, with a program of over 35 conference sessions, keynotes and workshops, at the Metropolitan Pavilion/Altman Building.
