Saturday, April 27, 2013

Review: Nu Elite B5 PU Notebook - Pink

Thank you to Nuco for sending me the pretty Nu elite PU range notebook to review! Let's get down to business and check this baby out.
Nu Elite PU Range Appearance
ABOUT

Size: B5
Color: White
Ruling: Lined
Sheet Count:160
MSRP: £5.99
Where to buy: See Nuco
(also Office Works in Australia, UAE & Wal-Mart in Canada)

APPEARANCE

This notebook is pink, with a soft feel front and back cover. There is pink stitching around the edges of the covers, and a matching hot pink satin bookmark. The covers are quite firm but not completely rigid. "Nu: elite" is embossed on the cover - it looks very cool. The inside covers are also pink. There is a lot of pink! The pages are lined, with margins. The lines are greyish and easy on the eyes.
Nu Elite PU Range Ribbon
PERFORMANCE & FEEL

I was looking forward to testing out this notebook after my positive experience with the Nu: elite Polypropylene range notebook. I was surprised to find this particular range was quite different. Even though the paper has the same specifications - 100gsm - the paper is significantly less fountain pen friendly. The reason for this must be because the paper does not have the same coating as the Polypropylene range has. The paper does not feel as smooth to the touch, and the paper does not feel nearly as heavy. I really don't understand how this is 100gsm paper, it feels more like 80gsm to the touch (think Moleskine).

Fortunately, it performs better with fountain pens better than Moleskine paper does. With gel pens, there is no feathering, but with fountain pens, feathering was very random. It is not extreme, but it is enough that it can ruin something nice that you have written. Bleed through and show through is definitely an issue. Of course, the saddest thing for me is the gorgeous green sheen that can be seen on dried Sailor Grenade ink on fountain pen friendly paper is not seen at all on this paper.
Nu Elite PU Range Writing Sample
On the bright side, as with non coated paper, drying times are usually very fast. The paper is absorbent so ink gets sucked into the paper and dries almost instantly. Even wet pens and inks dried within seconds. This can be useful at times.
Nu Elite PU Range Writing Sample Scan
PROS
  • Available in A4, B5, A6, and A7 Jotter.
  • Notebook lies flat.
  • Aesthetically appealing.
  • Firm cover protects pages.
  • Paper has had woody lignins removed - paper will therefore not yellow and become brittle with age. (Whether this could be described as archival, I cannot say for certain because I have not tested it!) 
Nu Elite PU Range Blank
CONS  
  • Binding is weak and started to break near the front already. 
  • Not inexpensive, considering paper performance.
  • Not 100% fountain pen friendly.
    • Some feathering
    • bleed through
    • show through
    • no sheen
Nu Elite PU Range Binding
OVERALL 

I am disappointed by the paper's performance and the quality and construction of this book. After opening this notebook only a few times, the binding was already falling apart. I cannot imagine the binding will last the lifetime of the notebook. That combined with the fact that the paper is not fountain pen friendly is enough for me to not recommend this notebook. I would highly recommend you check out the Nu: elite Polypropylene notebook instead.

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This notebook was provided to me for review by Nuco International, free of charge. I was not compensated monetarily. All opinions you read here are 100% my own!

2 comments:

Lily W said...

That´s a gorgeous-looking notebook. Too bad it´s not fountain pen friendly:( That´s always a let-down. Thank you for your thorough review!

Azizah Asgarali said...

I know right? Such a bummer. Needs some quality control work too, it seems. Thank you for commenting :)

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