My Freewrite Alpha just arrived. While I’ve barely started using it, these are my first impressions.
Cool
- The device is even lighter than it looks.
- The keys are really nice. That’s one of the main reasons I got it, so yay!
- Cloud sync is quick.
Uncool
- I see why other complain about the unlit LCD display. It needs a fair amount of light to be remotely legible. I’d be nervous typing in the dark and worrying that it has turned off or other otherwise stopped accepting my words.
- It only allows 31 character WiFi passwords. That’s shorter than our home’s. That’s… fun.
- It only remembers the password of the last WiFi network you connected to. No quick bouncing between home (actually our guest network; see above) and phone hotspot.
- It can only connect to my iPhone if I put the phone in slower Maximize Compatibility mode.
The WiFi annoyances are my biggest gripes at the moment. Most of those can be fixed in software though. It’s a neat little device overall and I’m excited to put it to use!