The Uni Alpha Gel Switch Mechanical Pencil asks one of my favorite reviewer questions: Why? In this specific scenario, the “why” is why would you want both a standard pencil mechanism and a Kuru Toga pencil mechanism in the same barrel, with a toggle to switch between the two?
The short answer to the question is “I have no freaking clue!” But let’s explore the Alpha Gel Switch a little deeper, shall we?
First off, this is a fantastic looking mechanical pencil. I’d expect nothing less from Uni. The Alpha Gel is a classic in its own right, taking Uni’s traditional writing experience and adding one of the softest, most cushioned, writing grips on the market. That type of feel isn’t for everyone as it does add to the diameter of the grip, even accounting for the added squishiness. It is a popular and well-loved feature across several of their product lines.
Set in the Kuru Toga position.
Set in the Hold position.
The Kuru Toga is even more loved and more respected, as it changed mechanical pencil technology when it launched. For those unfamiliar, the Kuru Toga uses a mechanism inside the barrel to slightly rotate the lead every time you pick it up from the page. This allows your pencil tip to wear evenly and write consistent-width lines. My review from 12 (!) years ago shows a test where I didn’t rotate the pencil in my hand for an entire page to see if the technology actually worked. Spoiler alert: It did.
And it continues to do so to this day. I think it has made writing with mechanical pencils better, and sent the competition scrambling for something new they could compete with.
That said, you may not need what Uni is selling you in the Kuru Toga. From a note-taking and writing perspective, it’s great. But what if you are an artist or designer and need different line widths, edges, and shading density? Then the Kuru Toga isn’t going to fit your needs as well as a traditional mechanical pencil.
Notes on my writing sample: I used the Alpha Gel Switch with four different grip types. From top to bottom: Kuru Toga setting with fixed grip, Hold setting with fixed grip, Kuru Toga setting rotating the pencil in my hand, Hold setting rotating the pencil in my hand. As you might guess, if I work the graphite into an angle using the Hold setting and then switch to the Kuru Toga setting, it will take a couple of lines to normalize the shape of the lead again. This begs the overarching question of this entire product - why?
What if you could have both? The lead rotation of the Kuru Toga and the fixed writing of a traditional pencil are both available in the Uni Alpha Gel Switch. The issue I’m having is that I haven’t discovered the use case for that combination yet.
For starters, if the Alpha Gel grip is the big selling point, you can already buy it in a standard Kuru Toga model, as well as a standard mechanical pencil model. If you need the lead rotation of the Kuru Toga without the Alpha Gel grip there are dozens of options out there, too. What is the use case for both systems in one pencil? The student artist is all I can think of, and that is even a stretch. To me, it feels like this:
Despite the fact I cannot figure out the perfect use case for why this pencil exists, I do know one thing about me and what I look for in products: I’d buy the Uni Alpha Gel Switch again 10 out of 10 times. I just don’t know what I am going to use it for.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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