Expo Click Retractable Low Odor Dry Erase Markers

Expo Click Retractable Low Odor Dry Erase Markers

Looking for some good dry erase markers that dont smell?  Looking for some good dry erase markers that have a nice bold color to them?  Well, the Expo Click dry erase markers do all of that, plus they come in a nice retractable form factor.

The three pack of the Expo Click Low Odor Dry Erase Markers

I’ve used dry erase markers for quite some time now, but for the most part I don’t think that I’ve ever bought my own (ie. paid for by my employer) or even selected (came with the dry erase board) my own.  Finally having a need to pick up my own, I figured I would go with the Expo brand since I was well aware that they come from the same people who make Sharpie.  When I saw the retractable version, I was intrigued because this was the first time I ever saw this option in a dry erase marker, so I grabbed the 3 pack of the thicker chisel tips, but they have a fine tip 6 color package as well.  Hopefully this doesn’t mean I have a problem or anything, but one of the first things I did upon opening the package was to give it a click to expose the tip, and take a deep sniff to see exactly how “low odor” these things were because truth be told, I kinda like the smell of dry erase markers.   Based on my non-scientific smell test, I would say that the strength of that recognizable smell is very much reduced as compared to the regular versions.  It still has the SAME smell, it’s just much less powerful.

Close up of the buttons on the Expo retractable dry erase marker

The picture above shows a close up of the two buttons that control the retractable tip of the Expo low odor dry erase markers.  The top button that you see that kinda sticks out and has the scoop out of the top is the one that you push down on to get the tip to reveal itself.  The oval shaped button that is more towards the bottom of the picture is the one that you push on to get the tip to retract back in.  These two buttons (and Im guessing the spring inside of the body of the marker) are seriously heavy duty.  They aren’t hard to use at all, but there really seems to be some force behind each of these buttons when you press on them.  From the user perspective, I love it because there is no doubt that the tip is going to stay in whatever direction you select.

Writing sample of th Expo Retractable Low Odor Dry Erase Markers

After giving these markers the sniff and click test, I figured I should take them for a spin on my new dry erase board since I wasnt too thrilled with the marker that came with it.  The writing sample above was obviously done just for this review, but when I tested these out, the first one I tried was the red marker, and I was very impressed.  Usually dry erase markers tend to have a faded or light look to them when you write with them.  As soon as I put this red one to use I was shocked by how bright and bold the color was.  Moving on to the blue and black , I saw that they had the same bright and solid color too…very impressive.

The bodies of these low odor dry erase markers are very thick, which I personally like a lot, but I know some people prefer a thinner body.  If the thinner bodies are more your style, there are thin versions of the Expo retractable, available that I linked to in the first paragraph above.  Although I just usually like thicker writing implements because they feel more comfortable,  I like the thicker dry erase markers because many times I find myself gesturing and pointing with the dry erase marker, so in this case, bigger is better.  Another benefit of the retractable feature of these markers is that the two buttons on the side that expose and retract the tip also completely stop the markers from rolling if you lay them on a flat surface like a desk or table.

Id definitely give these Expo dry erase markers a big thumbs up if you are in the market for some new ones, of if you just want some dry erase markers that dont smell.  You can find these in lots of places, I picked these up at Office Depot, but I Amazon.com also has them and Im pretty sure I’ve seen them at Staples too.