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Cross Matrix: Combining Style With Function
Accessory Reviews
By: pdaBlast! Staff
November 04, 2002


(view image)

If you use a PDA with a touch screen your stylus is one of the most important accessories you can own. If you're a busy business executive it is equally important to have a good pen. If you're a mobile business executive using a PDA then it is always nice to find a high-quality, stylish stylus/pen combo. A.T. Cross recently added a new model, the Cross Matrix, to their line of stylus/pen combos. How well does the Matrix compare to other stylus/pen combos? Read the full review to find out.

First Impressions
When I received my Cross Matrix from StylusCentral.com I was surprised at the rather large box that the unit ships in. After opening the box I realized that the Matrix was definitely a unique multi-pen. The box contained the multi-pen and a highlighter refill (more on this later).

The Matrix is actually a four-in-one device. It includes a stylus tip, two ball-point pen tips, and another tip which can be switched out to fit various attachments. This default tip is a rolling ball pen, but the highlighter that comes in the box works in this section as does an optional fountain pen attachment. The stylus-tip end of the device pulls out of the barrel to reveal the hidden rolling ball pen.

When I first took the stylus out of the box I felt that it was a little fatter than I like most of my styli. It wasn't overly large, but I have fairly small hands I prefer thinner styli. If you're someone who prefers to have a pen/stylus with a larger diameter the Matrix will feel great in your hands. Although it seemed a little fat for my hands I quickly adjusted and found the matrix to be quite comfortable for long period of stylus use. I found that the clip on the barrel of the pen got in the way when I was trying to use the ball point pens. The device was obviously designed for the rolling-ball pen/stylus end of the device to be used most often.

A quick look at the stylus tip revealed a stylus that was smoother and blunter than most other styli. I thought that this blunt stylus tip would be difficult to use accurately, but I found that it was very easy to use, and the tip was ultra-smooth. I had absolutely no fear of scratching the screen on any of my devices with this stylus tip.

Each of the pens wrote with the same quality that you would expect from any A.T. Cross pen. They were smooth, dark, and wrote very cleanly. One improvement I wish for would that a cap was provided so that the rolling ball end of the unit could be exposed without worry of ink getting all over or the pen drying out.

Conclusions
The Cross Matrix is an excellent stylus. I like the ingenuity which was shown in the design of the Matrix. Cross chose to stay away from the traditional approach of putting multiple tips into a single pen/stylus combo. The pens are great, the stylus is smooth, and the unit looks classy enough to be used by the world's top professionals. I give the Cross Matrix 4.75 out of 5.

The Cross Matrix can be purchased from StylusCentral.com by clicking here.  


Related Links:
Cross Matrix




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