After trying a whole bunch of pocket notebooks, the Apica A7 has become my go-to.
It’s 2.8 x 4 inches (10.2 x 7.1 cm), which is quite a bit smaller than your typical Field Notes-sized notebook. However, I’ve come to really like it better at this size. I’m rarely writing prose in these notebooks; I’m always writing short lists. So I usually don’t take up a full line anyway. This tiny size leaves less wasted space on the page. It’s also small enough to fit in a shirt pocket, whereas Field Notes often doesn’t.
I’ve also been using the regular old Fisher space pen with it. I usually prefer something I can use one-handed, like a clicky or bolt-action, for my daily pocket pen, since it makes jotting things down that much quicker. But the size and simplicity of the space pen’s design is just really satisfying sometimes.
Could you expand a bit on the “great writing features” it provides?
My grandpa always had a similar notebook on him and he was always pulling it out on conversations to draw something or takes notes.
Daiso?
I love Apica notebooks — especially their CD Premium line. Use the A5 for journaling. I have to look into the A7 notebooks.
Same, I’ve been using Apica almost exclusively lately. I’ve been really liking the two extremes: an A7 is in my pocket, and an A4 is on my desk. It’s huge, but I really like having the space for little boxes and sidebars.
Just yesterday I saw that they now have dot grid versions of their Premium CD notebooks (https://www.jetpens.com/search?q=apica+notebook+dot+grid&v=3), although not in the A4 size. I might have to make one of those my next notebook. I’ve also been curious about the square(ish) one, too. Not a standard size, but might be nice on a small desk.
I found the Apica A4 notebooks to be really nice, but a bit on the pricey side given how many notebooks I go through. I found that Kokuyo has their Campus notebooks in a B5 size that’s only slightly smaller than an A4. And, the nice thing for me is they have a 6mm rule instead of the 7mm rule, meaning I can get more text on the page.
The Campus notebooks are a bit lighter weight of paper, but they work well, and are fountain pen safe.
Maruman also has some nice spiral bound notebooks that are semi-B5 in size, and have perforated pages. I was looking for an A7 from them, but I could only find ones that had a spiral across the top, instead of on the side.
