Review: Can this weird little pen improve my horrible handwriting?

The humble pen must be one of humanity's simplest tools. We've been using them to communicate with for generations, so do they really need reinventing?

Apparently so. A company called Yoropen has designed a new type of pen which they claim makes writing easier. Its ergonomic design, with a distinctive "kink" has won awards for innovation.

But does it work? I swapped my posh Parker for a Yoropen for a few weeks to see if it could correct by bad handwriting, which was never great to start with but has, over the years, become polluted with shorthand. It's now barely legible.

Distributors Pen Heaven sent me two types to try, the original Yoropen Superior, and the Superior MkII. I preferred the Superior, with its lightweight frame, slim body and comfortable rubber grip.

Priced at £12 for a pack of three, they're obviously more expensive than a bulk pack of ball-points, but it's certainly not a pricey pen. At £4-a-piece, it's actually pretty cheap. The bulkier gel-based Superior MkII costs £7 per pen, and you could, if you're feeling a bit posh, go for a swanky metal version - at £40. There's also a pencil available in the same design.

The ergonomic tripod grip is aimed at lifting your hand away from your writing, which is great for people who write left-handed. Yoropen claims it is also useful for people with RSI, dyslexia, dyspraxia, Parkinsons' and rheumatism. And, because it lifts your hand into what is said to be a more natural writing position, it's also aimed at those who suffer from arthritis.

The nib is angled away from the rubber grip at 45%, which means, depending on how you hold it, it places the nib straight down as you write.

In practice, it certainly takes some getting used to. I had to spend a while figuring