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Back in mid-January, Google decided to gift all Pixelbook owners with a free accessory to hold the not-included Pixelbook Pen when not in use.
As I said in the article about this fun freeby back then, part of the user experience with pens like this is the availablity of the writing utensil at any given time. If it is handy and quick to get to, users are more likely to actually take advantage of it.
If, on the other hand, it is always tucked away in a bag or laptop case, the frequency of use declines pretty rapidly. For me, I currently keep my pen in the back pouch of my laptop case, so I try to remember to keep the pen out and handy when I get out my Pixelbook.
As we reported not long after the original pen loop article, there is a relatively weak magnet on the back of the Pixelbook’s screen that can hold the pen in place once you are up and running in a location. I wouldn’t try moving the device with the pen on the back, but its a handy storage solution for now.
The pen loop Google is supplying is meant to remedy all this and was made available with a landing page in January. Filling out the form gave only a quick confirmation that the accessory would be on its way soon. Nothing more.
Worse yet, no follow-up email was sent. Many users have been questioning what exactly happened with the whole thing as no one has heard a peep from Google since the pen loop landing page went up.
Now Shipping
Up until yesterday, my answer to these questions has been a simple shrug of the shoulders. Without any official word from Google, we’ve bascially been sitting on our hands waiting for a shipping notification or confirmation email.
Without either of those things, Google apparently has begun shipping out the free pen loops. Google+ user +Michael Thomas posted on February 10th that his pen loop simply arrived in the mail. No prior notification or warning: it just showed up.
According to his post on Google+, he ordered the first day it became available, so we should all be able to roughly gauge when the pen loop will be showing up for us as well.
As expected, it seems the loop has a sticky side that adheres to the bottom of your Pixelbook. No worries on wobbling as the two silicone feet offset the middle portion of the Chromebook enough to give space for the thin square to attach without propping up the device.
From the post, another user reports having received his pen loop as well, so this isn’t just a unique incident. I’ll be on the lookout for my pen loop over the next few days and will report back if too much time goes by before I receive it. Once I have it in place for a few days, we’ll respond with a quick little review.
