Maruman M.memo Dmp-A7 Grid Notepad

[A Smug Dill]

The m.memo DMP-A7 notepad produce by Maruman has (almost) the same dimensions as the Bloc Rhodia No.11 notepad and shares the same design, including the single staple binding in portrait orientation, the fold-back front cover, and perforated pages.

 

 

Maruman m.memo DMP-A7 versus Bloc Rhodia No.11

[/th][th]m.memo DMP-A7	Bloc Rhodia No.11
Country of manufacture	Japan	France
Paper weight	60 g/m2	80 g/m2

Number of sheets10080Page sizeactually A7 (7.4cm x 10.5cm)nominally A7 (7.4cm x 10.5cm);

actually 7.3cm x 10.3cm

Page ruling5mm dot grid on recto side only7mm ruled on both sides

 

The lovely, subdued blue cover on the DMP-A7 is less glossy than the orange cover on the Rhodia, but it is nevertheless coated. I haven't tested whether one is more resistant to moisture, dirt and scratches than the other.

 

The gridlines on the ever-so-slightly-off white pages in the DMP-A7 are a very faint grey, significantly lighter in colour than the blue-grey lines on the Rhodia paper. I see that as an advantage, especially when it comes to full 'graph paper' grids. Also, the verso (i.e. reverse) side of the paper is blank without any printed lines, which suits me just fine.

 

The paper itself is very smooth and fountain pen friendly. I have not yet seen any of my inks feather or bleed-through on it, even when writing on the verso side, in spite of the paper being only 60 g/m² paper and 25% lighter than the Rhodia paper. It is coated and smooth, and conducive to laying down crisp lines with an Extra Fine and/or Italic nib. The coating seems to be rather better than that in the Bloc Rhodia, and I have observed sheen readily on the m.memo paper from a number of different inks.

 

 

Being so lightweight, some ghosting is inevitable, although all things considered the paper does a marvellous job of resisting ghosting, which mostly only shows when the sheet is laid down against a bright white background, under a light source strong enough to penetrate the Maruman paper and reflect off the backing sheet or surface beneath it.

 

 

 

Other than the impractical size of the tiny notepad itself, I'm very happy with its performance, and I must say it's a superior product to the Bloc Rhodia No.11 notepad. It is also significantly cheaper per notepad and per page at their respective regular prices (here, at least).

[Caeruleum]

Thank you very much for this detailed review, comparison and great pictures!

[inkypete]

Nice review, thanks. Maruman has been a bit disappointing for me in the past - inconsistent. But it has been a few years so probably worth a try again. Did you buy yours at Kinokinuya?

[A Smug Dill]

I bought mine at Daiso, and I've seen them in all three Daiso stores within walking distance from me.

[XYZZY]

three Daiso stores within walking distance from me.

 

 

I consider myself lucky to have one within short driving distance. But it's small and rarely (never?) has the stationery that folks here buy at theirs. However, I just checked and discovered that there are 5 others in the Seattle area that would not be horrible drives. Maybe one weekend soon I'll do a "Daiso crawl" and check them all out

[inkypete]

I bought mine at Daiso, and I've seen them in all three Daiso stores within walking distance from me.

Will check them out on the weekend, thanks. Did you notice if they have it in any other size?

Edited July 18, 2019 by inkypete

[A Smug Dill]

Will check them out on the weekend, thanks. Did you notice if they have it in any other size?

 

 

Yes. If I recall correctly, the other Maruman m.memo product in Daiso is spiral bound on the long edge in portrait orientation, have a large page surface but fewer pages in the notebook.

[A Smug Dill]

This is the other Maruman m.memo product at Daiso: http://www.e-maruman.co.jp/products/detail.php?product_id=2639 (in blue only)

[inkypete]

This is the other Maruman m.memo product at Daiso: http://www.e-maruman.co.jp/products/detail.php?product_id=2639 (in blue only)Daiso over the weekend but neither had the notebook reviewed. Did get a few of the spiral version you have linked here and they are excellent. Also bought a few 120x80 red cover note blocks that look like Apica. They have a red cover and MEMO PAD on front. 100 sheet, ivory paper, grid. Superb. I am not a fan of ivory paper but this is particularly nice. Thanks for the tip.

Not sure what has happened here - will repost.

Edited July 21, 2019 by inkypete

[inkypete]

This is the other Maruman m.memo product at Daiso: http://www.e-maruman.co.jp/products/detail.php?product_id=2639 (in blue only)

Went to two Daiso over the weekend but neither had the notebook reviewed. Did get a few of the spiral version you have linked here and they are excellent. Also bought a few 120x80 red cover note blocks that look like Apica. They have a red cover and MEMO PAD on front. 100 sheet, ivory paper, grid. Superb. I am not a fan of ivory paper but this is particularly nice. Thanks for the tip.

[A Smug Dill]

Also bought a few 120x80 red cover note blocks that look like Apica. They have a red cover and MEMO PAD on front. 100 sheet, ivory paper, grid.

I presume you're talking about the dot-gridded sibling of this:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/346033-daiso-d-98-series-b7-7mm-ruled-memo-pad/

[inkypete]

I presume you're talking about the dot-gridded sibling of this:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/346033-daiso-d-98-series-b7-7mm-ruled-memo-pad/

Hmmmm - I think so. But must say the paper in mine behaves beautifully. I like it a lot. I am still looking for the m.memo and will grab some if I find them. Frustrating sometimes what is available at one Daiso is not available at the next.