Ahhhh… technology. The geniuses at Plexifilm have spent the past two years developing a Sharpie pen that actually writes in Helvetica! This pen is so experimental that it’s priceless… literally. You can’t buy one, but you can get one free with any Helvetica merchandise purchase (DVD, T-shirt, etc.). Get your free pen while they last. It’s a great gift for that person in your life with sloppy handwriting…
(via Objectified Film)
— JonL said,
November 22, 2008 at 2:48 am ∞
ha, I would use it every day.
— Khayyam said,
November 22, 2008 at 9:28 am ∞
Nicely done. Can’t wait to watch it…
— Pelapapas said,
November 22, 2008 at 9:37 am ∞
Magic pen writes in Helvetica!
— Kyle Gallant said,
November 22, 2008 at 4:19 pm ∞
So tempted to buy something to get this, I’d love to know how it works.
— Scott said,
November 22, 2008 at 4:51 pm ∞
Not as cool as my Trajan Pro Marker
— JoeY said,
November 22, 2008 at 5:18 pm ∞
How does it work? Is a pen not simply a tool, bound to the whims of it’s creator? It would have to be controlled by an automaton for that to be possible.
— Sirk said,
November 22, 2008 at 6:42 pm ∞
Haha, doesn’t anyone realize its a joke? This pen doesn’t write in Helvetica, they just made the pictures look liek it did, its a joke, a.k.a not real.
— Kevin said,
November 22, 2008 at 7:06 pm ∞
I can’t tell if they’re using a spell or a potion.
— kittns said,
November 22, 2008 at 7:32 pm ∞
Joey it works through a use of technology thats been around for like almsot 10 years now.. its called photoshop
— Durr said,
November 22, 2008 at 7:54 pm ∞
Joey. You truly are a moron.
— cappinkirk said,
November 22, 2008 at 8:22 pm ∞
Joey – the fonts are installed already in the pen when it is shipped. That way you don’t need to download them for them to work (like on the internet).
I expect to see a lot of these soon.
— Really? said,
November 22, 2008 at 8:38 pm ∞
I’m hoping that you guys know that this is a joke.
— Xanth said,
November 22, 2008 at 8:52 pm ∞
It can’t possibly work that way, but it would still be great to have if it did.
— Humanity said,
November 22, 2008 at 9:16 pm ∞
The replies to this post make me very fearful for the future of humanity. Turn off your computers and enroll in a common sense class at your local community college.
— Robert said,
November 22, 2008 at 10:41 pm ∞
I call BS. I mean come on. What the hell is that about a documentary? Is it on how dumb people can be>
— lolKyle Gallant said,lol said,
November 22, 2008 at 10:50 pm ∞
*sigh*
— Jamie said,
November 22, 2008 at 11:38 pm ∞
Hey people, look closer and you will realize that it is not an actual pen, but a “Documentary Film by Gary Hustwit”.
— Napolux said,
November 22, 2008 at 11:41 pm ∞
Anyone knows if exists a “Comic Sans” version?
:P :P :P
— tar said,
November 22, 2008 at 11:41 pm ∞
if you’d look at the site that this is from, it’s actually just a custom-printed Sharpie. it’s a promotional item for a documentary film.
translation: it doesn’t write in Helvetica unless *you* can write in Helvetica.
— Fuzzles said,
November 22, 2008 at 11:49 pm ∞
I require a video.
— seth said,
November 23, 2008 at 12:09 am ∞
joey. seriously? not a real thing. it’s a gimic for the documentary
— DREW said,
November 23, 2008 at 12:23 am ∞
FAKE!
— anonymouse said,
November 23, 2008 at 12:25 am ∞
I call BS. I bet it’s just a pen branded Helvetica.
— nate said,
November 23, 2008 at 5:29 am ∞
i wonder what happens if you draw with it….
(btw it isnt real guys, the photos are all ’shopped!)
— john said,
November 23, 2008 at 7:40 am ∞
… should i reiterate everything that was already said in the first 10 posts like the last 13 or so did?
or say something worth reading?
ah what the hell.
JOEY…
YOU’RE AN IDIOT.
FAKE BS
IT SAYS DOCUMENTARY.
BLAH BLAH BLAH BULLFUCKINGSHIT.
have a nice day! :)
— Napolux said,
November 23, 2008 at 11:19 am ∞
… I’m really impressed that someone didn’t get that this is a fake…
:|
— Octave said,
November 23, 2008 at 8:52 pm ∞
— Sharpieless said,
November 23, 2008 at 11:21 pm ∞
Documentary film promotion my a..
This is a real sharpie that writes in Helvetica.
Look at the proof.
“before and after”
So there
— hexidismal said,
November 24, 2008 at 11:58 am ∞
So.. how big of a total dork am I , that I think a short documentary about the history of typography might actually be pretty interesting ?
— james_j said,
November 24, 2008 at 5:03 pm ∞
Didn’t anyone notice the disclaimer?
* Warning: if you are John Downer or Marian Bantjes then the pen will actually write in Helvetica. Otherwise, your results may vary. Do not swallow. Keep away from open flame and co-workers. May cause drowsiness.
— DMC said,
November 24, 2008 at 7:41 pm ∞
It’s kind of depressing that some people didn’t immediately realise this was a joke, even more-so that some people are so convinced as to ask how it works.
Please do the world a favour and throw yourselves into the road.
On a lighter note, GREAT!
— Heidi said,
November 25, 2008 at 6:03 am ∞
Napolux, you will burn in hell for your desire for a comic sans pen!
— Lucky owner said,
November 25, 2008 at 8:34 am ∞
Yeah, got this baby yesterday. It really works!!
It totally really changed how I see the world. There is no going back now.. Shit, I even write my post-its in helvetica now.
How I ever got by one of these before is a mystery, I tell you man, a mystery…
— Lucky owner said,
November 25, 2008 at 8:36 am ∞
Edit^: How I ever got by by WITHOUT one of these…
— Styx said,
November 25, 2008 at 2:05 pm ∞
hahahahhaa.. i would put a counter code to the page above “Get your free pen while they last” and count the number of morons. hahahaha that’s funny..
— ArmyOfAardvarks said,
November 25, 2008 at 3:13 pm ∞
Shun the unbeliever!
— Kelly said,
November 25, 2008 at 5:15 pm ∞
Did you ever thing that MAYBE it was designed so well with such simplicity that no one thought to think that it could be a joke?
It’s a design success obviously.
— Cody said,
November 25, 2008 at 6:10 pm ∞
I actually own this Documentary and its awesome. Very interesting. My wife is not a designer or anything of that nature and she also found it interesting. The movie definitely gave me a new love for HELVETICA.
— Hector said,
November 25, 2008 at 10:51 pm ∞
Yeah, but, does that beauty work with OpenType? I mean… what if I wrote a cyrillic character?
— Ravi said,
November 26, 2008 at 12:01 am ∞
Would purchasers of this super implement have to pay the font creator on a per-word basis? I think the truth should be told.
I would also be interested in the pen that allows me to draw in the style of Patrick Nagel. Perhaps the inventor could let me know when that becomes available.
— Chrispy said,
November 26, 2008 at 1:07 am ∞
I want one!!!
— aMoss said,
November 26, 2008 at 2:18 am ∞
Dude, they should make IE and FF paper and see which one works best with it! FF, of course.
— Max said,
November 26, 2008 at 4:20 pm ∞
I’m holding out for Arial.
— Sudzy said,
November 26, 2008 at 7:20 pm ∞
It does write in helvetica. If you can that is.
It also does fine art line drawings Da Vinci style……..and take it apart..it does water colors. In black of course.
— Jimmythebone said,
November 26, 2008 at 8:49 pm ∞
When I looked in the mirror the smoke got in my eyes…..
— sian said,
November 28, 2008 at 1:09 am ∞
OMG there are pictures and its on the internet! so it must be true!
— vanshee said,
November 28, 2008 at 4:07 am ∞
”
kittns said,
November 22, 2008 at 7:32 pm ∞
Joey it works through a use of technology thats been around for like almsot 10 years now.. its called photoshop”
You’re kidding, right? There’s no Photoshop at work here, and Photoshop’s been around for a lot more than 10 years. If you’re going to try to be ’smart,’ at least do your research.
— modern maven said,
November 28, 2008 at 4:55 am ∞
hilarious! love it!
— pepe said,
November 28, 2008 at 4:26 pm ∞
i would go for it if it was Schmuck non-serif.
— Natovr said,
November 29, 2008 at 11:59 am ∞
Great! I need one! :D
But how the hell does it work? Does it have wheels in the tip or something that guides it? O_o
By the way, your security code is a bit hard to read >_<
— Dan said,
November 29, 2008 at 5:18 pm ∞
You guys are neat. Do you not realize that the before picture has the word “before” and the after picture has the word “after”. Clearly not the same word, clearly not a magic pen, and clearly no need for photoshop.
— tone said,
November 29, 2008 at 7:31 pm ∞
If you’re not being sarcastic, Natovr, then you’re the biggest ignorant ever.
— Bels said,
November 30, 2008 at 6:18 am ∞
Oh, internet trolls, with your magical hate-inspiring dust, how I love and admire you!
<3
— LoanMAE said,
November 30, 2008 at 7:01 am ∞
Kudos to Max for picking up the Arial joke waiting to be made here.
— Neotrix said,
November 30, 2008 at 1:37 pm ∞
That was cool!
— Dave C. said,
November 30, 2008 at 7:22 pm ∞
I’m waiting for the Comic Sans version so I can play practical jokes on my designer friends.
— Affordable Web Design said,
November 30, 2008 at 9:03 pm ∞
Helvetica writing marker – I only wish lol. Great posting!
— Bob said,
November 30, 2008 at 10:46 pm ∞
chuck Norris can write in Helvetica
— Brian. said,
December 1, 2008 at 1:46 am ∞
you don’t have to photoshop that just print out a picture and put a customized sharpie to it and bang boom.
— MissingWaldo said,
December 1, 2008 at 3:21 am ∞
wow that would be so useful:(
— HA! said,
December 1, 2008 at 5:39 am ∞
T0t4lly shopped.
I know – I work with photoshop, and I can see all the picksels.
‘Shopeed.
— Cody said,
December 2, 2008 at 8:49 am ∞
hahaha
— mohan said,
December 3, 2008 at 1:54 am ∞
this is what I want..u know my handwriting is the one i don’t like with me..and this pen would change it….thanks guys….
— Jemma Pope said,
December 3, 2008 at 3:26 am ∞
HA! ohhhh I love it, I would take it round the world with me! “this is me and my helvetica pen at a cafe in venice…this is us with some kids in Cambodia…”
All class! Nerds 4 life.
— Imavista said,
December 3, 2008 at 5:50 am ∞
hehe that’s really cool… if only………….
— Dominic said,
December 4, 2008 at 3:56 am ∞
Funny stuff. Hello future.
— Ditte said,
December 5, 2008 at 2:31 am ∞
Guys.. Helvetica is the old name of Switzerland.
“Warning: if you are John Downer or Marian Bantjes then the pen will actually write in Helvetica. Otherwise, your results may vary.”
John and Marian both live in Switzerland/Helvetica so of course they will always write in (the country) Helvetica.
Having lived in Switzerland for 1½ years myself, I can only strongly suggest to go there for a vacation. The country is beyond Beautiful.
— Stel said,
December 5, 2008 at 2:33 am ∞
This pen really made my day!
This is how it works:
You write “Helvetica pen” in any search engine you desire and you’ll find a lot of url’s with really funny posts: naive ones (from people who believed it), Aggressive ones (from people who maybe believed it too at first), and amused ones. A nice discussion. So it works, doesn’t it, yeah?
— Nom_de_Guerre said,
December 11, 2008 at 10:52 pm ∞
John: Both Helvetica and Chuck Norris have the power to cure cancer. Coincidence?
— free cpanel hosting said,
December 23, 2008 at 4:14 pm ∞
I like your post can I link it to my site ?
— Valery Kashin said,
January 13, 2009 at 2:15 pm ∞
I think that where this tehnology will actually, people don`t use paper)) We will use brain for write.
— ara133photography said,
March 14, 2009 at 1:33 pm ∞
Hahahaha Oh my gosh, that’s awesome!! I want one!! :) Bob, I love your Chuck Norris comment!
— Lana said,
May 22, 2009 at 4:49 am ∞
Who cares how it writes (although I dare say it won’t look much different to my handwriting!) as long as it looks good on my Rhodia note book! Sharpie + Rhodia = Happy Designer
— clipping path service said,
May 22, 2009 at 5:13 am ∞
Done nicely!!!
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