Some of the most frequently used pens in my collection are my many Jinhao 82s. For such inexpensive pens they’re really reliable writers, and they come in a seemingly endless variety of fun colours (not to mention, that all the pieces are interchangeable, so you can even build your own pen if you have a few of them!). 

So when I saw that there was now a cute, pocket-sized version available, I knew I had to have one, and I chose this pink and green one, called ‘Guava’. Unfortunately, the colour choice with the mini version of the Jinhao 82 is a lot more limited, most of them being white/cream, with a coloured barrel. They all look super cute, but I’d love to see a lot more colour variety, and I’m sure we will, once they’ve been around longer. 

I do really love this ‘Guava’ colour scheme though, and was so excited when it arrived and I got to try it out. I inked it up with Diamine Deep Magenta, and was glad to find it wrote just as smoothly as my regular Jinhao 82s (more so, in fact, since I got this pen with a Medium nib, as opposed to Fine or Extra Fine, like many of my other Jinhaos). 

The only problem I found with this pen is that even for a pocket pen it’s extremely small and thin, and so not overly comfortable to write with. The Jinhao 82 is already quite a small, thin pen, and so when shrunk down even further, it seems especially tiny. 

In my head, I’d imagined that posted it would be about the size of a posted Kaweco Sport, but not only is it shorter, but it’s also thinner, and feels more flimsy. I really enjoy the aesthetics of the pen, and the writing experience is smooth as far as the nib goes, but I find that it isn’t overly comfortable to write with for long periods of time. 

This is, of course, just personal preference, and if you like smaller pens then this may be perfect for you, especially for such a low price point. But for me, I’ll probably stick with my regular Jinhao 82s for now, which are a lot more comfortable for me to use. 

It is a really cute little pen though, and I’ll be keeping it in my collection as a small, cheap pen to take around with me when I need to jot down notes on the go. 

So what do you think of the Jinhao 82 Mini? Do you like small pens? What’s your favourite pocket pen?