Pocket-Sized Notepads That Will Stay Open, Or Can Be Propped Open?

[notahipster]

I love Rhodia's "no.12" notepads (especially the dotpads), which are 85 x 120 mm (3 3/8 x 4 3/4"). Good things about it:

1. Fits in my pocket easily
2. Big enough to not need changing for a long time
3. Durable (with the cover)
4. Just nice to look at and use!

The only thing that's annoying is the awkwardness of holding it open when I'm doing something else like talking on the phone or typing in notes from it.

 

Has anybody found anything similar that stays open better? I don't mind using something to prop it open, but I find even that is tricky with this pad.

 

I guess it's hard with these small notepads to make them robust enough to stand up to daily use and also lie flat, but it seems like a binding along the long side, and less tightly bound, might make it stay open?

 

Or should I try something else instead? Maybe an A6 pad? Or maybe a thinner one an accept I'll have to change it more often?

 

Thoughts?

 

[notahipster]

Thought of a few other criteria for it to win out over the Rhodia pad for me:

• Spiral binding is an obvious answer but I think is just going to annoy me getting it in and out of my pocket.
• A cover can be pricier, but the paper itself needs to be reasonably priced. I can get the no. 12 pads for a pound or less.
• I need to be reasonably confident I can continue to get hold of the pads for a long time
• Now that I've been spoiled by the Rhodia one, I don't want anything too ugly / loud. This counts as both to me (loud and ugly): http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00CDQEQJU

Looking again I see:

• Rhodia do sell an A7 side-bound pad - but it's only 24 sheets, as compared with 80 for the no. 12. Since A7 is also smaller, I'd have to change it maybe 5 times as often - so no good.
• Lots of places (here in the UK) sell generic A7 pads that are spiral bound at the top, which would mean they would fit in the Rhodia faux-leather cover and be easy to get in and out of my pocket, albeit leaving a lot of room vertically since A7 is smaller than the no.12 pads.

I imagine the closest I'm going to get to my perfect notepad is an A7 pad ring bound at the top + Rhodia cover?

 

Or maybe A7 cover similar to the Rhodia, plus side-bound notebooks (just found one on amazon, not sure I can post links as a new user so won't post that...). Maybe even better... not sure if the ring binding will fit properly though?