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Handwriting notes, calendars, and grocery lists are just a few areas I’ve resisted switching tomobile or tablet appsto replace my preference for pen and paper. My desk andmonitor screenare constantly covered in post-it notes to line up my next tasks and keep reminders in my eye’s line. The act of handwriting my thoughts encourages my memory, creativity, and progress. However, I abhor creating more waste in the world.
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When possible, I try to make the majority of my kitchen, cleaning, and clothing purchases from reusable or sustainable sources. So, when one of my colleagues here at Pocket-lint posted a fall 2023 Prime Day deal on a reusable smart notebook, the Rocketbook Fusion, I was immediately interested.
While I’ve never been able to make the full leap to note-taking apps and tablets for my quick thoughts and planning, the idea of a more low-tech notebook with washable pages I could physically write on, that utilizes an app to bring my thoughts into cloud storage, was an enticing concept. I spent December with the Fusion version of the Rocketbook smart notebook to see if it could replace all my paper notebooks.
Rocketbook Fusion Smart Notebook
The Rocketbook Fusion Smart Notebook is a low-price alternative to costly note-taking tablets and e-writers. This smart notebook allows you to write on the notebook’s many template pages, snap a photo within the app to easily digitize your notes, then erase the notes to use again and again. But can it compete with its high-tech counterparts? We bought the Fusion Smart planner and notebook model to test it out over the past month.
Design and writing quality
The notebook itself is sturdy, the spiral binding is firm, and the pages are smooth to the touch and relatively easy to write on. The Rocketbook Fusion comes in two sizes, a Letter size (8.5 x 11 inches) and an Executive size (6.6 x 8 inches), both of which have the spiral style binding. The Rocketbook store includes a diverse selection of sizes and formats, if the standard notebook size reviewed here isn’t your favorite.
Each of the seven symbols listed at the front of the notebook (arrow, diamond, apple, bell, clover, star, and horseshoe) can be designated for specific destinations. Whether that be email accounts, folders, or note-taking apps, I found the inclusion of the quick symbols to be a great addition to each template page. At the bottom of every page all seven symbols are listed, and a quick circle of one will tell the camera/app where to send the notes, calendar, or planning sheet. The symbols need to be assigned destinations within the Rocketbook app (Apple App StoreandGoogle Play Store).
One drawback to writing itself is the included FriXion pen. With erasable or washable paper, many pens have trouble showing up fully, or they experience letter-loss, where pieces of letters don’t show up. The included FriXion pen did the job, but I’d like to upgrade to a higher quality model, to avoid some of the missing letter parts I experienced when jotting notes quickly. The Rocketbook store recommends the FriXion brand for its notebooks, and it has otherhigher quality FriXion penslisted on its site to check out, too.
Like many erasable pens/paper models, the ink may take a few seconds to dry, or you will notice smudging on your page and dominant hand.
Slow down your writing, apply less pressure to the pen than on standard paper, and be careful with penmanship - this can help you avoid missing small pieces of letters. Overall, the pen wasn’t a dealbreaker for me, but it is an area that I hope Rocketbook and FriXion improve over time. I’ve experienced similar letter-loss when using a lower quality stylus on a touchscreen or tablet, and in many reviews for the Rocketbook system, once folks upgraded their pens, they were much happier overall.
Templates and page features
The Fusion version of the Rocketbook smart notebook comes with the front cover destination symbol mentioned above and seven template pages in the notebook. The template pages include a project management outline, two weekly calendars, one monthly calendar, two different idea-generating pages, 18 dot pages, and 18 lined pages.
Between my partner and I, we found a use for every template. I favored the calendars and lined pages, whereas he preferred the project management and idea-generating pages. I enjoyed the ability to share one notebook between the two of us, decreasing further waste. The Rocketbook site includes additional downloadable free pages and other paid templates if you need more options. I am particularly interested in picking up the index card variety next.
Erasing: the pen and microfiber cloth
The erasing (and washing) sold me on this notebook the first time I tested a full sheet. There was no echo of the text after washing, and the entire page was wiped clean with the smallest bit of water on the microfiber cloth. I tested removing a few lines with the FriXion pen’s eraser and was also impressed. I’d advise using the pen’s eraser for adjusting your notes as you go, but use the entire cloth for full page erasing.
The monthly calendar template was a favorite of mine to share with my partner. He wrote out a month of relevant dates for the public school he works at, then sent the calendar to his work email. I quickly wiped that calendar clean with the cloth to write out our shared travel calendar for the busy December holiday month and I had it sent simultaneously to our personal emails. The pages dried incredibly quickly, the turn around time between cleaning the calendar paper and writing on it again averaged less than two minutes, and each time I started with a clean slate.
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The smarts behind the Rocketbook work especially well when you have multiple places of work, whether that’s an in-person office building and a home-office or classroom. Instead of having notes in every location that you may forget to bring with you, all of your notes are where they should be, in your digital folders or email inbox for quick access.
App and software functionality
The Rocketbook app is straightforward and user-friendly. The scans come out clear and transcription is done quickly and - in all of my tests - accurately. The transcription or searchable function is very useful once the notes are scanned into your destination as a quick CTRL+F or search bar allows you to locate past notes in a snap.
The scans are transmitted as either PDF, JPEG, or GIF file formats, but if you bundle multiple scans into one, they will automate to PDFs. I made use of the destination automations and symbols mentioned previously. The Rocketbook app is integrated with many cloud-based storage solutions and popular note-taking apps. There’s also a helpful section of the Rocketbook site foreducators who use Google Classroomas to how best to use it to streamline their tasks.
The app can send your scans to thefollowing destinations:
The ability to seamlessly send notes or calendars or to multiple destinations or recipients is hugely underrated. My cloud system of preference is Google Drive, but I also tested OneDrive as an automated destination, and both delivered without problems.
Some of the coolest aspects of the Rocketbook app include shortcuts for scanning. Using two hashtags (##) at the top of a page just before and after the title of the document, for example ##Family Holiday Calendar##, will automatically name the file Family Holiday Calendar when sent to your preferred destination. ThisSmart Titlesshortcut worked about 90% of the time I’ve tested it, ensuring I’m following solid file naming conventions for my notes.
If you use certain project or time management apps or written lists, you may love the therapeutic action of checking off tasks from a list. Rocketbook has a shortcut for that too. Using square boxes on a Rocketbook template (I recommend the dot pages), you can transform that list into a Rocketbook Smart List. Usingoptimal character recognition(OCR) the app will turn your scanned handwritten notes into a checklist in the app. You just need tocheck your app to ensure the Smart List settingis enabled.
Can the Rocketbook smart notebook replace an e-writer or a tablet for note-taking? Well, no, but it’s not exactly intended to do so. It does, however, rank excellent at replacing stacks of paper notebooks. It gives those who hesitate to fully identify themselves as lower-tech an efficient way to streamline scattered post-it notes, grocery lists, and that one receipt you’re sure you wrote your idea on for the next great American novel.
I truly enjoyed my month testing the Rocketbook. The app automations, sturdy notebook, and scanning quality exceeded my expectations. The standard pen is either its one pain point or a steep learning curve for some buyers, but overall, I stand by this purchase and would recommend it to anyone looking to decrease their paper waste while upgrading their tech-savvy.
