Think of the basic parts to a pen. A tub and some ink. We use to use feather quills and an ink bottle. Now it’s highly engineered mechanisms with an endless choice of ink cartridges. Where’s the happy medium? Looking for a minimal, yet well-design led me to take a look at the Ensso Uno, a no frills writing pen + pencil that’s about as minimal as you can get without tossing the tube to use the ink cartridge alone.
If this pen sounds familiar, it’s because this is actually the second iteration of the widely successful Pen Uno. This version features a 5.3mm diameter space-grade aluminum housing with a cap/holding barrel about the width of a normal pencil. This larger barrel is also the twisting mechanism used to expose the pen for writing and retract when not in use. Ensso chose Hi-Tec’s popular C Coleto gel ink cartridge (in 0.25mm, 0.3mm, 0.4mm, and 0.5mm lineweights), a popular brand among pen users.
What’s unique in the design and engineering of this version of the Pen Uno is how it transforms into a pencil, simply by swapping out two parts–the end cap (replaced with a mechanical push-button end) and the ink cartridge. In pencil mode, it uses standard 0.5mm pencil lead refills, which can be found almost anywhere.
Ensso CNC-machined the Uno from a solid piece of aluminum. It comes in several different anodized colors, including space-grey, red, black, gold and rose gold, essentially matching most every iPhone color on the market. Those who would like to purchase Ensso’s Pen/Pencil Uno can head over to the Kickstarter campaign page and pledge $25 for the Pen Uno, in the color of your choice, or $35 for the Pen + Pencil conversion kit.
