Following on from my previous review of the MeePlus SlimPad A5 binders back in July this year. MeePlus contacted me again to discuss a new product they had released.
MeePlus kindly sent me a sample of their recently introduced Mini Reporter ring bound notebook.
This notebook is a three ring design, the same spacing (19mm) as our beloved Filofax organisers, so I was interested! The paper size is the same as Filofax Mini, but with the rings at the top of the page rather than at the side.
Putting the rings at the top of the page makes it so much easier to write in. However, if you want to you can use the MeePlus Mini Reporter in landscape format with the rings at the side and write on the pages in what some would consider to be the 'normal' way.
Another three ring binder, was the now discontinued Filofax M2, it used pages of slightly different dimensions, but very close in size, you used them in landscape format rather than portrait.
The MeePlus is a very simple design, a leather cover that is approximately 1.8mm thick with a set of rings attached to the leather, with a smart metal spine plate over the attachments for the rings.
You can also add a closure band as an accessory, this is attached to a stiff page size divider made of a man-made material.
Also available is a simple ring protector and a leather card holder, which would be very useful if you were using the MeePlus Mini Reporter for your shopping list and you could keep your store-card or bank card in the card holder.
The rings are 11mm in size and it states on the MeePlus website that they aren't made by Krause, but on inspection they seem to be well made and should provide years of service.
The outer leather cover is available in four different types of leather and four in different colours.
I opted for the Buttero leather in dark brown for this sample of the MeePlus Mini Reporter.
The MeePlus Mini Reporter arrived very well packed and contained in a neat box with the notebook in a cloth bag.
The band, ring protector, card holder and paper.
Taking a closer look at the Mini Reporter.
And then opening it up without any contents, good 'flatability'.
A close up of the card holder.
For comparison of the page sizes, Filofax M2 at the top, Filofax Mini in the middle and MeePlus Mini Reporter at the bottom.
And in their normal intended orientation. Filofax M2 at the top, MeePlus Mini Reporter and Filofax Mini.
As you will see the MeePlus Mini Reporter is much more compact that the two Filofax options of similar page size. Filofax Mini Malden at the top, MeePlus Mini Reporter in the middle and Filofax M2 at the bottom.
I have previously used my Mini Filofax and an M2 Filofax as a wallet/notebook, but they have always seemed to be too big for my pockets when carrying them. The MeePlus Mini Reporter however, does slip in to the back pocket of my jeans comfortably, you almost don't notice that it's there.
Lora of MeePlus describes the Mini Reporter along side the MeePlus Mini5 notebook.
Further Information:
How much stiffness does that metal bar add to the MeePlus covers, compared to simple 6-ring leather cover binders?
ReplyDeleteIt stabilises the cover so that you can hold it in your open hand and easily write on the pages without having to put it on a flat surface.
DeleteThe metal spine cover has been nicely finished too.
These look a good alternative to the Plotter 3 Ring model I’d posted about last year, with the advantage of being readily available. (Plotter 3 Ring has mainly been sold only in Japan, with occasional event appearances in the US. And even in Japan it seems hard to find them in stock lately.)
ReplyDeleteI had assumed the MeePlus design replicated that of the Plotter, but I can see from the above that the MeePlus is actually bigger. The Plotter dimensions I measure are 110mm x 75mm x 14mm (H, W, D).
DeleteDoes the Plotter Mini use the same size pages? I should have checked! But I thought people would be more familiar with Filofax sizes.
From my order being placed it arrived in less than 10 days via air mail, which is good for this time of year. My wife is still waiting for a letter posted two weeks ago in UK!
The “official” inserts for Plotter 3 Ring are card size 91 x 55mm.
DeleteI prefer to use the Rhodia leaves which are 95 x 65mm. These fit fine and match the width of standard personal size.
Seems MeePlus have carried across the dimensions of Filofax mini in the Reporter.
The MeePlus video states 67x105 and directly compares it to a Mini format as being just the other orientation.
DeleteI have some genuine M2 inserts from different M2 here, which are something like 64x103. One set is labeled (c) 2003 with 2005 calendar.
The paper edge along the mechanics is usually very similar, due to the available space without obstructing the release buttons. But the other measurement can differ significantly, as the comparison with Rhodia shows.
Hans
Some more notes about cross-compatibility.
DeleteI just checked the Mulberry Mini format against the Mulberry Agenda (True A6 with 38mm center space): The Mulberry Mini (M2 size) inserts would perfectly fit the Mulberry Agenda as two rows. And I think the Mulberry Mini inserts were more towards 105mm.
However, the only original inserts I have are punched at 3.0mm, and therefore do not fit over the 3.4mm ring thicknes of the Agenda.
So in case somebody wants to properly fit M2 inserts, a true A6 binder designed for the A6 width of 105mm is the perfect match - if punch diameter and ring thickness allow for that.
Hans
I have a Mulberry Mini. It’s in landscape but I use it portrait in the reporter style.
DeleteI have the original unused 2001 diary inserts called “The Social Organiser Diary”. The inserts are 103mm by 64mm with very small holes punched. The holes are spaced 19mm apart but like yours are only 3mm in diameter. The rings in the Mini are 8mm measured on the inside. There are three rings spaced 19mm apart (as you’d expect given the inserts!). The organiser is 120mm by 82mm by 13mm.
I’m using A7 paper, punched reporter style. It lives in my handbag for jotting quick notes while I’m out and about so the fact the holes punched are slightly too big isn’t an issue as I tear the pages out when I get home anyway.
I very nearly bought the MeePlus reporter but saw the Mulberry on eBay instead. Lucy
Thanks for confirming the tiny 3mm holes with Mulberry inserts, and also the exact format. I only have address/phone inserts with mylar protection, so it's hard to judge the intended measurements. The good part is that these details don't matter with homemade inserts.
DeleteUsing the Mulberry Mini in portrait orientation just gives me the image of the tree growing sideways. But that does not affect the use, of course.
I am currently thinking about a hybrid format with a small and compact planner, and to swap the inserts over time, replacing future low detail calendar pages with more detailed ones. Just what a ring planner offers by nature.
Another option I have in mind is using a tiny planner with day on a page. For those 3-ring 60x80mm with 20mm rings, there might even be room for a full year.
Hans