Does anybody else use hardware writers (like a dedicated writing computer?) I used Alphasmart, Pomera and freewrite. Even today I went to a cafe waiting for my tires to get fixed and I brought dm100 with me to type. Not bad, I must say, not entirely good either - it has European keyboard, so some characters are in the wrong place, like : or ' or " and that made it a bit less smooth. Also occasionally I would switch to kanji and that didn't help either. So anybody using these as well? I am a big fan, although I still prefer to type on MacBook air 11. I just like the idea of a writing device, like a modern version of the typewriter.
I have an Alphasmart. It's a bit clunky, mostly the keyboard, but I like using it. I really like that it doesn't have internet or games or anything distracting, all you can do with it is write. It focuses you. And then I like the part where you attach it to the computer and watch as the words you typed show up, letter by letter, real fast. It records keystrokes, so if you type something and then delete it, it shows up on the computer screen and then deletes itself exactly the way you did it. It's fun, but it can get annoying because if you wrote a lot it takes a while to download. I do make a lot of mistakes though because of the clunky keyboard that I need to fix on the computer, but I think of it as a really rough first draft. Actually the clunky part might just be when I use it on my lap on the couch though, I think if it's on a table it's much better.
Oh, another Alphasmart user then! I have like three, mostly bought for around $5 on average in thrift shops. I can say the Neo2 is probably my most favorite one. Really decent keyboard. I have the AS 3000 so I know what you are saying, the keyboard on the 3000 is not very good, but the Neo and Neo2 have more like laptop keyboards (remember the IBM laptops?) with Neo2 having a nice texture on the surface. Strangely it is actually really pleasant to type on these. (but not as much on the 3000) Try to get Neo2. They are non-destructible, and in the worst-case scenario, you can use them to beat some hooligans spraypainting your garage door. Also what other computer device works 700 hours on AA batteries? I still have an old MacBook (like a real dinosaur old) in the basement so just I can update these machines with the latest firmware when I find them in the shops. And I totally have to give it to the developers of Alphasmart - the idea that transfer is to be done by emulating a keyboard is absolutely brilliant. Without it, the device would be dead as of now, but thanks to this little thing it is future compatible with anything. You can even use it on Chromebook. Brilliant. I want to actually try it with the iPad. It should work in theory. I'll try it tonight! Here are my two boys, the third one is under the bed.
You know what? I just tried it with ipad - it works! Not only it works as an external keyboard, but it also sends text to it. No problem! I wish more devices would be so future-proofed. Now Just for other people to be in the picture, Alphasmart 3000 is 20 years old! And it still works with the newest iPad. I tried both the 3000 and Neo2 -both works. Wow. Now I have even more respect for these.
Oh man, now I want to get the Neo2! If it has a better keyboard that's all I ask, plus it looks like the case is opaque rather than that translucent green, which always looked weird to me. I left mine sitting unused with the batteries in it for a few years, and when I checked it I expected the whole inside to be melted down, but it actually still worked fine!! It's some kind of magic I tell you! I plan to test this soon, since that's what my new laptop is.
I'm happy with my Dell desktop computer. If I'll be on a trip that I think will allow time for some writing, I can choose among a conventional notebook computer, a Microsoft Surface with a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, or a smaller tablet (Windows or Android), also with a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse.
I have, and occasionally use, a Tandy 102. Powered by AA batteries, with a great clicky keyboard. Only 32K of memory, and connects to a DOS computer via serial port, but it does have a built-in 300 baud modem.
I'm a Neo addict, too, although I don't actually use mine any more. They are great machines. The world needs more gear like the mighty Neo and the Tandy 100's. My workflow often included writing part of something, transferring it to my Neo with the manager software, and continuing to work over lunch. When the Neo manager fell out of support, I drifted away. An iPad and wireless keyboard replaced my Neo, and then I discovered it wasn't so bad carrying a Macbook Air in a backpack. Following that progression, by the time I end up with an iMac in a golf cart for mobile computing I'll look back at the Neo and wonder why I ever stopped using it. The Freewrite and Freewrite Traveller are replacements for some Neo users. Unfortunately, I'm not quite in their target audience.
Do you need the manager to download what you've written to the computer? Or is it more used the other way, to move stuff from the computer to the Neo? I really only need it to go the one way.
This thread is enabling my gadgetitis. I've now looked into the Freewrite, Freewrite Traveler, and the Freewrite Hemingway Edition (a thing of beauty, in a small case like some typewriters have). It's pretty pricey and seems to be sold out on the Freewrite Store itself. One thing I like about the Freewrites is apparently they'll automatically connect with your computer wirelessly and upload to Evernote, Google Drive, or something else I don't remember (and don't use). I forget if it connects via wifi or bluetooth or what. But I don't need all that. I'm good with something like the Neo2. Looked into it briefly, and it sounds like the manager isn't a necessity if all you want to do is download what you've written to the computer—you can just use a USB cable like with the original Alphasmart. The manager might be necessary to update the firmware, but I don't think that's a necessity, is it? I never updated it on my old Alphasmart and it works fine.
I use an Alphasmart Neo2 too. It’s a fantastic little machine. I thought mine was dead when the lithium battery pooped out but then I found out that I could replace that myself pretty easily so it’s back in action. The only problem is that it lost all the stuff I had on it and didn’t give me a warning. Those Freewrite things look pretty nice but the price is crazy. It would be great if Alphasmart started producing again:
I have the freewrite (not the hemingway edition, but nonetheless similar looking). I bought it used as a Christmas gift for myself because I couldn't figure out anything else. It is both good and bad. The good thing is: it is pretty and the keyboard is good. It does have the feel of having a typewriter. The bad: It is buggy (not just mine, but in general) Some people will lose documents. The company has no intention of fixing it, rather will make a new version but will not let update the old version. Many people I know received their already nonfunctional - which is freakingly bad. Sure the company will replace it but there is mailing involved and it is just a bad image if they can't test their own machines. The questionable: The e-ink latency may not work with everyone. I look at the keyboard because I can't touch-type, so it is fine. When I look up, it is already on the screen. But if you look at the screen and type you will get more or less feel of vertigo from the delay. It is that noticeable. Also, I am not convinced that writing this way (that is you can't edit, only delete) is superior - as they claim, in a Hemingway way - to spill out the draft in one breath, then edit later. Well, while it may work for a good writer with well-formed and coherent thoughts I am not one of them. And I don't mean fixing typos, just often I would disagree with a previous sentence, and just can't leave it there in that state otherwise any further typing would be useless. As with everything, there is no good or bad way, just what works. And I talked to a lot of users and it seems in 2021, this approach is not that valid. Would I buy it again? No. Do I want something like this - but actually working well, yeah. My 2 cents, if you are thinking about that. And don't touch the traveler version - that has even more issues.
Well, technically that is the concept behind Freewriting. Write now, fast, and don't edit or change anything. Then later you make corrections and edits etc. The idea is to separate the creative and the destructive aspects of the mind, engage only creativity in the first part and then the negative, destructive part afterwards as a separate operation. It isnt' how I would do all my writing, but it's excellent for certain things like freeing your mind up to work creatively, like doing warmups, or for laying out ideas (brainstorming) and sometimes, yes, I work on stories that way. But I see Freewriting as a spectrum, with full-on automatic writing at one end (most people think this is the only way to freewrite) and progressing through more thought and more sense while still working rapidly and without a thought of editing. I guess I learned this kind of approach from doing gesture sketches in visual art. You work through timed sketches designed to free you up and loosen the restrictions on your creativity, first taking only 5 seconds to draw a figure from a photograph or posed in front of you. Do a few of them, then do some at 10 seconds, then 20, then 30. Then I sometimes take as long as 2 to 5 minutes or even a luxury splurge of 10 minutes, which feels like I could stop, take a little nap, make lunch, and still come back and finish a nice drawing in time. But this is a certain type of exercise you do in the morning and then you're all warmed up and freed up creatively and ready to start in on the real drawings. And I approach writing the same way. Not sure I'd want a machine totally dedicated only to freewriting, especially one that costs so much. I prefer the ability to use the arrow keys on the Alphasmart and go back and edit out sections if you want to, though it's still sort of clumsy. You can't just highlight a whole block and delete it, it must still be done a letter at a time. But at least you can position the cursor where you want and start deleting. But then, I can also see the utility of freewriting most of the time (for a first draft) and then correcting on the computer afterwards. Once you start using freewriting it can become addicting and you'll allow yourself to think of ideas and write things you wouldn't if you had engaged the inner critic already. He doesn't like to let you think very freely, he's a limiter.
I hand write first drafts, generally. I like my paper and fountain pens, but recently got a Supernote A5 to write on when on the go and I don’t have my other supplies with me. So far, I liked writing on it a lot. I got the Lamy stylus to match my Lamy fountain pens.
The manager is used to set options on the Neo and to move content from the computer to the Neo. It's handy to have, but not necessary for communicating work from the Neo to your computer. Regarding the Freewrite, I learned about the device after their Kickstarter campaign ended and before they had really fleshed out their web site. At the time I ordered, I didn't realize editing and cursor navigation was not going to be supported. Those details were added to their web site after it was first published. I really wanted the Freewrite to be a new-generation Neo. It wasn't. At the time I got my unit, you not only couldn't edit your text, you couldn't delete files you didn't want anymore. I gave mine to a reviewer.
You can't still delete the files. You have to go to a website and delete it from there which will send a command to the free writer to delete it. It is that stupid. People are deleting their files by holding backspace for a few minutes. They "fixed" it by saying the next generation (due to anytime) will have file management (like it is on their traveler version) while also saying, they will not add this to the current version because we all suck and are basically annoying bastards who want stuff from them for $500 bucks. At least that is how I interpret it. The traveler has a bunch of issues with files disappearing etc, so I have no faith that the next generation of freewrite would be better. Funny thing is, this is the most simplified editor you can imagine (not even calling it editor) that just does one thing and yet, they managed to make it buggy. They must be some real brains sitting in their offices. Sorry, I am a programmer and was also making embedded systems similar to this (basically a programmable SOC board with a processor and memory) and this level of programming incompetence is just beyond me. You have to work hard to make such a simple program that does nothing really, just writes text, so buggy. Anyhow... enough. I do like the hardware and the idea, but I am never going to pay $500 for a firmware update that may be full of new bugs. Although there seems to be an army of apologists who don't see any issue with this approach and they are probably already lining up with their $500 wawing in hands. So I guess the company will do this as long as they can sell everything they make, and so far they can. I have to get my hands on that Tandy 102.
Wow, I'm glad you explained all this!! It sounds like they're more interested in making money than in making a good product or a satisfied customer base. I'll be avoiding this company like the plague.
Thanks for the details, Oscar. Definitely makes me feel better about my cheap but very functional Neo2.
One more question—can you use the USB cable from the 3000 with the Neo2? I already have the cable for my 3000, and it looks like the ends are identical, but apparently the cable that comes with the Neo2 is about an inch long (only a few centimetres).
Both 3000 and Neo use the typical USB cable that comes with printers etc... I have a box where I toss them, and now it is full of those.
I also think that for the money, Neo2 is a total winner by far. It looks a bit uncool - bring it to a café and people will think you use some leapfrog device for kids. But still better than bringing freewrite to cafe - then you will be labelled as a total hipster and they will only serve you kombucha. I personally use pomera DM100 for cafe and stuff, as it looks "normal" and nobody gives you two glances about it. The only thing is, typing on it is not very enjoyable due to the messed-up keyboard layout and smaller keycaps. Still, the freewrite people did have a good idea to pursue this area, it just the result isn't worth the trouble and money. As I was typing this my freewrite that sits next to me on a bed just rebooted itself - all on its own. I didn't even touch it. It does that at least once a week - just for the fun, I assume.
I just learned about a device that seems to be a continuation of alphasmart, it is called Writer Fusion and even has TTS and word lookup, thesaurus, spell-checker. It has the same system of sending files as a keyboard emulator or to save them to USB key. And I learned about it just now.
