To help parents buy the best list of school supplies , Profeco analyzed the quality of notebooks, glue sticks, plastic rulers, colored pencils, pens, erasers, glue, scissors, and plasticine sticks.
Although the little ones are still on vacation, going back to school is inevitable. In fact, some universities such as UNAM will already start face-to-face classes from August 15. That is why it is important to know which are the best quality notebooks, pens and erasers.
For this reason, Profeco carried out a study that was recently published in the August Consumer Magazine .
What did the study consist of?
There are cheaper products and others from more luxurious brands. But, in general, the Federal Consumer Protection Office qualified three things:
– Performance according to the use for which they were created.
– Features related to its useful life.
– Specific content, depending on the type of product.
In addition, “in each product, its presentation and information to the consumer declared by the manufacturer and/or marketer was evaluated,” Profeco said.
The best pens according to Profeco
In the case of blue ink pens, Profeco analyzed the holes to identify defects such as burrs. The quality of the writing was also evaluated to see if there were ink bleeds or stains during use.
Linear meters of writing and performance were measured and the useful life of each pen was analyzed, after 1,000 cycles of use.
These were the results:
In the case of pens with a retractable mechanism, the one that has a button to store the tip under the casing, the best were the following:
The BIC/Crystal classic
Priced at $49 for 12 pieces, it is a pen with no finishing flaws, excellent writing quality, and achieved optimal performance after 3,308 linear meters of writing.
Bolex/medium
It is a Mexican brand with a model very similar to that of BIC, but also with performance and writing quality qualified as excellent by Profeco. The price of these pens is $34 for 12 pieces. A price that has to be paid to access 1,891 meters of linear writing for each pen.
Bolex/GRIP
This presentation is also flawless and its quality and performance qualify as excellent for Profeco. Of course, they last a little less, since they can write 1,747 linear meters. Although this is offset by a lower price of 24 pesos for 12 pieces.
Pentel
But if we are talking about cheap pens, there is this Mexican brand rated as excellent in quality and writing performance. It is enough to write 1,909 meters for a price of only 17 pesos for 12 pieces.
OfficeMax / Midpoint
Another option is the Chinese-made brand, with excellent quality and writing performance, but with fewer linear meters of writing, only 1,515 for an average price of more than $54 for every 12 pieces.
In the case of pens with a retractable mechanism, no options rated as excellent were found. Although the Zebra brand did get a Very Good rating on write performance. These pens cost $299 pesos for 12 pieces.
The worst rated pens were the Office Depot and MAE brands, one for not reaching 700 meters of linear writing and the other, made in India, for having the lowest writing performance.
the best notebooks
When choosing notebooks, there are two options, laminated or unlaminated. Profeco analyzed the quality of both products but focused on these aspects:
- Finishes without stains or lack of color
- Content as number of sheets and paper weight
- Resistant paper when erasing something with an eraser
- Resistance of the leaves and the pasta inside their ring
- Resistance to water in its pastes, for non-plasticized ones
These were the results of the non-laminated 90 and 100 sheets:
Best: Scribe/Mega Plus 7510 brand
This product costs 25 pesos and obtained a rating of Very Good quality, with good water repellency in its pastes, verified grammage of 50.50 g/m2, good resistance to erasing and excellent resistance in sheets and pastes.
Worst: U-PAK
In contrast, there is the 100-sheet U-PAK brand that was rated as barely sufficient quality for more than 35 pesos. It has less resistance in sheets and pastes than the Scribe option and does not indicate the weight of the paper. In addition, he presented ink stains and drips on his materials.
Laminated notebook marks
stitched notebooks
The Norma and Estrella brands of 90 and 100-sheet laminated notebooks were the best positioned in the Profeco quality study. Norma, for a price of 69 pesos per notebook, offers excellent resistance to erasure and in the binding of sheets and covers.
Estrella is a little cheaper, with an average price of 50 pesos, but it has a slightly lower quality in terms of resistance to erasing.
Worst laminated brands
The Norma Girly Notes model, with laminated and spiral pastes, as well as the Norma/UNO brand, were rated as having sufficient quality by Profeco. Well, they have less resistance in sheets and paste, although with excellent resistance in erasing.
But the worst of this type was the Nine To Five brand, because for 32 pesos it offers barely enough quality in resistance to erasing and in sheets and paste.
