Nyon Estylo stylus review

When you’re in the product review biz like we are around here, you know there are going to be some lemons mixed in with the diamonds. But it’s even more disappointing when you spend your own money on something and it turns out to be a dud. That’s what happened to me when I recently bought the Estylo stylus from Nyon. I had high hopes, but unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be…

Note: Images can be clicked to view a larger size.

I’ve been looking forward to trying this stylus for more than 2yrs since one of our readers talked it up in the comment section of one of my other stylus reviews. I wrote to the company (back then they were called Plai) and asked for a review sample, but they didn’t respond. At that time, you couldn’t order one. Then they had a Kickstarter project for v1.1 of the stylus which was fully funded. Early this year, they came out with v1.9 and I finally placed an order.

Called “The Pencil of Now”, the Estylo is made of wood like a pencil and is available in 8 colors. The diamond shaped handle is also magnetic, so it is designed to stick to the edge of the iPad when it’s not being used. I ordered the blue one you see here.

I received the stylus…and…it didn’t work…at all. Nada, nothing, zero, zilch. So I emailed them a complaint and they said they’d send me another one. They didn’t have any blue ones to send, so the 2nd one I received was black. It barely worked, so I complained again and they sent me a 3rd one…

Here are the three Estylo styluses that I’ve been sent. The bottom one (I marked it with an orange dot in the bare wood area near the tip) is the newest one. It’s odd, but they are all slightly different lengths…

As I mentioned, the stylus is made of wood with a painted handle and a matching colored capacitive tip that is slightly spongy in the center. I seriously didn’t think any of the styluses worked, but I kept trying and trying and finally was able to get the newest one to work – sorta.

I figured out that the Estylo needs to be held at a specific angle and with some extra pressure in order for the touch to be registered. I did all my testing with my iPad mini and various sketching apps like Paper, and SketchBook Pro.

Guess what, the opposite end can also be used as a stylus tip. At least in theory…

Yet again, the stylus tip only works when it’s held a specific way, which is when it’s flat against the display like I show here. And even then, you’re lucky if you can  draw consistant lines.

Also the magnetic handle feature is too weak to be useful. It barely sticks to the iPad and will fall off with very little jostling.

When it comes down to it, regardless as to which end/tip you try to use, the Estylo is the worst performing stylus in my collection. Of the 3 styluses that were sent to me, only one works – barely. But even when you hold it just right and press harder than normal, 25% of the lines you try to draw aren’t registered and you have to try the stroke a 2nd time. This gets really frustrating, and for that reason I’d never recommend the Estylo.  Save your money. Trust me… And if you want more info/opinions, just check out the comments on their Kickstarter project.