Well, I’m not going to lie, it hasn’t been easy. When it first came, the box looked like it took a beating during delivery. A few keys were knocked out, and there was a couple of small dents on the chassis.
For $700, I wasn’t a fan of that — but I decided to stick with it. Then it started rebooting, randomly. Like it would be on, untouched, and then it would shut down completely and restart.
Astrohaus, was a little slow to respond to email, however — even though it was just over a month they were kind enough to exchange it with a completely fresh one.
So, I’m not going to judge the old Freewrite. It was a lemon, and Astrohaus made it right by me. So let’s give them the mulligan.
The New Freewrite – Take Two
When this one came in, the box looked like it was in a better condition, and when I opened it all the keys were in place — except for the capslock. I popped it in and started it back up.
Surprise, Surprise, it looked like the firmware was completely up to date — and then some. As far as I can tell, the version that’s been released was 3.02, my firmware is 3.07. I’m not sure why that is, but it is.
It took a few attempts to connect to Postbox, but when it did my Freewrite started to work exactly as it should — and I’m really loving it. The Smart Typewriter’s software is good, although I think it’s missing a couple of things — like subfolders — but it’s simple. It’s basically notepad, and that’s fine. When I work on a typewriter, there’s no fancy formatting or whatever, and that’s what this this is supposed to be, a typewriter.
Although occasionally there’s an odd quirk, like it won’t change the backlight settings for some reason. After you force a reboot it’s back to normal. When it all works though, it works. It gets out of your way, and lets you work.
Really that’s why you get one of these things.
The hardware is pretty decent. The e-ink screen is easy on the eyes, The chassis is solid, and it just feels nice running your fingers along it. Also, with whatever paint they used fingerprints don’t seem to stick.
I’m not a fan of the big switches though, functionally and aesthetically they’re fine. They do the job. But they’re plastic, and I just feel that they should be the same material as the chassis.
The best thing about the Smart Typewriter is the keyboard. It just feels amazing. The keys feel like they fit your fingers perfectly, and the CLACK they make when you’re typing is just MUAH! They feel so good I could work on my Freewrite for hours.
I think the important thing about the Freewrite is that it’s greater than the sum of it’s parts. Every one of it’s aspects, there’s something stopping it from being perfect — but with everything together it just works. With it just working, it lets you work.
It’s basically replacing my typewriter — at least for grad school, because I love how it doesn’t try to rewrite as you’re writing — nor does it judge or algorithm you.
For that alone, it’s worth the $700 or so.