Tech Tools: Phree turns the world into a digital notepad

Draw, doodle or sketch on almost any surface with high-tech ‘pen’

Phree: costs $198
Phree: costs $198

There are a few pens out there that will allow you to take notes on special paper and have your scribbles appear on your phone or tablet. But the key thing there is the special paper – it can be expensive or just inconvenient to keep replacing. The Phree may change all that. The device allows you to “write” anywhere, on anything, and its optical tracking will translate that into digital writing on your mobile device. So you can write, sketch, doodle...almost anything that takes your fancy. And the surface doesn’t matter either. You can write on a notepad, but the Phree will work just as well if you use the car dashboard as your doodle pad. Even the back of your hand will suffice. It’s compatible with a range of apps, including Office, OneNote, EverNote, Acrobat, and messaging app Viber. It also has an integrated screen that will flash up messages when they arrive to your phone, and if you really need to it will work as a headset. otmtech.com