Caran d'Ache 888 Infinite Ballpoint Pen Review
The best pen in the world!
I purchased this pen whilst in transit at Zurich airport in 2023. I was looking for something nice, but cheap, to carry with me at all times so I can jot down any ideas or thoughts in my pocket notebook. I deliberately didn’t want anything too expensive in case I lost it.
I had never seen this pen before so I picked it up and instantly liked the quality, heavy weight, and excellent build quality of the pen.
After a quick test on the notepad nearby, I purchased it for around 6 EUR ($7.00 USD).
My Verdict (10/10)
I never expected that not only would this turn out to be a great pen for daily use, I personally think this is the best pen ever made.
Most ballpoint pens are pretty bad. Parker’s standard G2 ballpoint refills in their Jotter range are notoriously bad (especially from a cold start), and I have found that other brands aren’t that great either, such as Waterman and Paper Mate.
However, the SwissRide ballpoint refill for this 888 Infinite pen is absolutely brilliant. It writes like silk on every paper I’ve tried it on. It is wet enough to glide along the paper like a Uniball Jetstream, yet dries rapidly as you would expect from a ballpoint. I really don’t know how they have created such a fantastic refill. It is far superier to Caran d’Ache’s Goliath ballpoint refill which goes into their very popular 849 range of ballpoint pens.
The SwissRide costs approx £2.60 GBP ($3.50 USD), whereas the Goliath costs approx £8.00 GBP ($10.70 USD). In my opinion there is absolutely no contest, the SwissRide is the best ballpoint I have ever used. To be honest, it the best pen I have ever used.
Here it is in action:
I’ve purchase at least 4 of these pens in different colours to have around the house, and even more as gifts for members of my family.
Do you use the Caran d’Ache 888 ballpoint pen?
Comment below!