Review: Sidekick Pen Holder (PenLoop)

Thanks to Vadim for sending the Sidekick (formerly known as the PenLoop) over for review!

ABOUT

Price: $5.00USD
Where to buy: GrandSt.

APPEARANCE

The Sidekick is black plastic pen holder, printed from a 3D printer. As such, you can expect a fairly unrefined, rough printing job - no sharp corners, but not polished looking. The "loop" is a Goody Ouchless hair elastic, as far as I can tell (the very kind I use, in fact!). It's fairly large, in my opinion, but it is practical.

PERFORMANCE

The Sidekick is quite useful given what it's designed to do. It attaches snugly to notebooks that have hardcovers. While it could attach to a soft flexible cover, the cover flexing would bend away from the adhesive. Although it is considered a hardcover, I do have concerns about "puffy" covers like the Rhodia Webbie notebooks. So far, it has affixed well to mine but when the notebook is finished, I wonder what damage I'll do peeling off the adhesive..!

It held pencils, ballpoints, gel pens, and fountain pens well. I wouldn't put anything very expensive in there because it's very exposed. I could be deficient, but trying to wrap the loop around thicker pens as swiftly as shown in the animation above was not as easy for me. It required two hands and a lot of coordination. I suspect I'm just useless.

PROS

• The elastic is actually a Goody Ouchless elastic - available at many department stores. If it gets lost, you can easily replace it. Or you can replace it with a more fun colour should you want to spice up your Sidekick!
• Accommodates pens of many sizes, unlike elastic loops like the Leuchtturm 1917 loops.

CONS

• Not the prettiest to look at. I think it would only look good on a black notebook.

• Bulky. Causes notebook to sit very high off the paper where it's attached.

IMPROVEMENTS?

• Attaches by adhesive pads. Velcro would be better; it could then be reused as you move notebooks, all you would need is some more velcro. (Of course, you can tear it off your notebook once it's full and attach some yourself.)
• Since I'm a bit obsessed with recycling and "going green" (as much as possible), having this made of recycled or recyclable plastic would be great. 
• Different colours to match your notebooks?

OVERALL

The Sidekick has a lot of potential; with a few small changes, I think it could be a keeper. It offers some advantages over other pen loops, and it lacks a few things, but it's on the right track. At only $5, it's worth a shot to see if it may be the pen loop (or Sidekick) for you.

I received this office supply free of charge for the purpose of this review. I was not compensated monetarily for my review. Everything you've read here is my own opinion. There are no affiliate links in this review.