Novium Hoverpen 3.0 Review: A Gravity-Defying Pen With Real Trade-Offs

Introduction

Most pens ask to be picked up and used. The Novium Hoverpen 3.0 asks to be picked up, admired, placed on a magnetic landing pad, and spun like a fidget toy. It is a very different proposition from a standard fountain pen or rollerball, and whether it makes sense for you depends on how much you value the novelty factor versus pure writing practicality.

What Is the Hoverpen 3.0?

The Hoverpen 3.0, branded as the Future Edition, is the third version of Novium’s magnetically suspended pen. It launched through a crowdfunding campaign that attracted well over 1,500 backers, and it arrives with one significant change compared with earlier versions: an optional fountain pen setup alongside the traditional rollerball.

The core concept is unchanged. A magnetic base works with a magnetic rim to hold the pen in place, letting it hover at an angle and spin freely like a desk toy. There is rubber on the bottom of the base, so it stays put on a desk rather than sliding around.

Design and Build Quality

The pen itself is made from aircraft-grade aluminium and is fairly light, with a satin finish. It is offered in Deep Black and Frosted Silver. The design is straightforward: a rounded tip, straight cap and barrel separated by a silver-colored band, and an aluminium piece at the back of the barrel that affixes to the magnetic base.

The magnetic axis on the base has been raised compared with the 2.0 Interstellar Edition, which reduces the resting angle from roughly 60 degrees to about 45 degrees. In another change, the pen now sits with the back of the barrel attached to the base rather than the tip. That means picking it up involves removing the cap and turning the pen around before writing, which can feel slightly unnatural compared with the grab-and-go flow of earlier versions.

The pen is long enough to use unposted, which matters because the cap is not designed to post. The balance is noticeably back-weighted thanks to the magnets and metal at the rear, though not to the point of discomfort.

Under the snap-off cap sits a Schmidt stainless steel nib, available in extra fine, fine, or medium. It is a cartridge-converter pen that accepts standard international cartridges, and a Schmidt converter is included.

The Fountain Pen Conversion Option

The headline change for 3.0 is the ability to convert between fountain pen and rollerball setups by swapping the section. The rollerball section has a slightly different shape, and swapping is simple enough to do in a few seconds.

There is a practical catch, though. If you swap sections while the converter is loaded with ink, you now have an inked converter sitting unused, which you will need to clean out promptly. A small storage tube for the spare section would have addressed this elegantly, and while Novium does offer a case that fits the entire pen, it does not solve the inked-converter problem.

Things to Consider Before Buying

The hover experience has quirks worth knowing about. Placing the pen on the landing pad requires intention: hold it too loosely and the side magnets will pull it around, making you wrestle it into position. Spinning needs a gentle touch as well, because an aggressive spin makes the pen wobble and stick to one side of the base.

More importantly, spinning is a bad idea when the pen is set up as a fountain pen with ink. An inked nib that has been spun will creep ink, and some of it ended up inside the cap. If you choose the fountain pen version, treat the spinning feature as a rollerball-only pleasure.

How It Writes

The stainless steel Schmidt nib puts in a respectable performance. It has a fair amount of feedback, enough that you can feel it, though it is not unpleasant. Line variation is possible with a light touch, and the nib writes more like a fine than a medium. Ink flow is very good, the feed keeps up with fast writing, and reverse writing is a little sharp but serviceable.

Buying Advice

Pricing at launch is $109 for the rollerball-only version, $119 for the fountain pen version, and $179 for a version with both sections plus some additional inclusions. The rollerball version is the safest choice if you mainly want the hover-and-spin novelty. The fountain pen version suits writers who want a functional daily pen with a distinctive party trick, as long as they resist spinning it while inked. The dual version makes sense for anyone who genuinely wants both setups in one pen.

Conclusion

The Hoverpen 3.0 is an interesting novelty with genuine writing capability, and it is not without its faults. The reversed orientation, the fiddly landing process, and the no-spin rule for the fountain pen setup are real compromises. Still, if you want something a little different on your desk, or you are hunting for a memorable gift, it is well worth a look.