Anybody else encountered these? I have one open on the desk in front of me, an "A5 Soft Feel Notebook". Unsurprisingly, it has a pocket in the back cover and a bound in ribbon bookmark.
It lays flat when opened, and the pages aren't particularly absorbent or prone to feathering (that said, neither are the moleskines I've used, though I have to admit that I've never used a particularly wet pen, or a very assertive ink with one, so your milage will probably vary: a Parker 51 medium full of Waterman black and a medium Waterman Expert II full of the same are about the wettest pens I've used on one, and while both showed through, neither feathered). The downside here is that the pages themselves (192 of them in decent 80 gsm paper) are not quite bone white rather than the pleasant eggshell ivory of the moleskine.
The biggest sticking point, though, is the cover. I think "rubbery" is the correct adjective to use in this case. Not only is it the least convincing leatherette finish I've seen for a long time, it smells like the cloakroom in a fetish club. I'm sure there's people who could develop a storker sniffing it, but I'm not certain it's a plus. Presumably it's done in a marbled finish to make it look less like something you'd see a Suicide Girl wearing: a plain sheet of this stuff is probably a bit glossy.
That said, this is a nice little notebook for a fiver. I'm not mad keen on the wrapper, but the paper seems good enough, the spine is solid enough for it to open flat, and those who actually use the pocket in a Moleskine will be pleased to see one included. It's cheaper than a moleskine of the same size, but doesn't quite come across as cheap looking or feeling. I've only seen these with ruled pages, so they're not a substitute for the sketchbooks, but Rymans are also doing them in A4 and A6 as well. They may even be easier to find than a moleskine, as well.

Hilarious!!

Sounds like whomever is making them for Rhodia might be making them for Rymans, going by the rubbery finish?

I've not seen the Rhodias, Andy, so I honestly couldn't say. I wouldn't rule it out if those smell a bit rubbery, though. (The cover also feels a little odd, as well: they aren't kidding about the soft feel bit.)

The smell doesn't bother me, but then I've never been to a fetish club so don't have the associated "recherche de temps perdu" moment