There are some major changes in the 2010-2011 Moleskine 18 month weekly notebook from last year's version (which you can read my review of here).
The biggest change is that there are no more monthly planners with the months as columns. (But be aware, the description on the Moleskine US website still describes the "monthly view for the year, in column format on a 6 page spread." This no longer exists.)
In its place is the VASTLY preferable format many of us have been begging for for years: the months with the days as squares large enough to write in:
These monthly calendars go from July 2010 all the way through December 2011.
While I was at the London Book Fair talking to Silvia Salvadori at the Moleskine display, she confirmed that all 2011 Moleskine planners now have this monthly format instead of the monthly columns. She asked if that is a good thing, and I said absolutely yes. I much prefer this monthly format.
Buuuuuutttt... (and there's always a but, right?) something had to be sacrificed. In this case, the sacrifice was the future year's planning pages. In my review of the 2009-2010 Moleskine 18 month weekly notebook, I noted, "Also there are calendars with the months as columns with a line to write each day, 2 months per page, for July-December 2009, all of 2010, AND ALL of 2011. I do a lot of long-range planning so I REALLY appreciated this. Bravo Mole!!"
Well, now that extra future year is gone. The monthly calendars cover July-December of 2010, and January-December 2011, but there is no planner for 2012. In my opinion, it's a small price to pay for the improved functionality of the new monthly calendars.
There are planning calendars with the days just as numbers for July-December 2010
as well as all of 2011 and all of 2012, so you can see those dates. 
Thank you, Moleskine.There's also new packaging for the 2011 Moleskine planners, to make them easier to distinguish between formats.
On the back of the label, there is additional information about the planner features:
The other usual Moleskine features are still there, including country holidays for July 2010-December 2011:
Also, the 18 month planners have time tables for class schedules:
This is a handy feature even if you yourself are not in any classes. This table could be used for recurring weekly events for yourself and/or your family. I use these tables for other things (one for financial records and the other to record my weight).
Other features are still there too like the time zones map, trips planning, and several pages for notes in the back of the book (which is wonderful).
The Moleskine 18 month weekly notebooks are now available on Amazon (where I pre-ordered mine for a great price), Moleskine US, and The Daily Planner among others. (I am not affiliated with any of these websites.)
This morning I was showing my husband several planners that I will be reviewing soon, that are similar to Moleskines in design. I was explaining that I can't help but compare these types of planners to Moleskines, I guess because I am more familiar with the brand and products, and also because I think they are really good so I tend to use Moles as a standard to measure other planners by.
ReplyDeleteI showed him this new Mole 18 month weekly notebook, and he said, "Hey, I actually need something like that. That's perfect!" So, because I love my husband so much, I gave him my beloved Mole.
Then I promptly got on Amazon and ordered up another one for myself!! (By the way, right now on Amazon this planner is less than 13 bucks, which is really good because the normal price is nearly $19.
For some reason I'm seriously considering returning to this planner despite the issues I had with it (click on the "my review of here" link at the top of this post to see what I mean). There's just something about a Mole that I find so appealing. Comfort factor I guess?
Thanks for the great review! The pictures of the inside really helped as I couldn't find those anywhere!
ReplyDeleteGlad to help, alex! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for this post. I happened to notice a couple of other differences in my copy of the 2010-2011 planner from that of the previous 18 months:
ReplyDelete- Elastic band is looser
- 'Cloth' of back pocket has a finer grain
- Paper *seems* thinner - though I don't have calipers to confirm this
- Moleskine logo at the bottom of the back cover is stamped in a heavier weight
Now I'm wondering if these are part of the company's own changes or if, after years of buying the 18-month planner, I've managed to land a fake Moleskine.
Anyway I thought I'd ask because you do seem to follow Moleskine's changes rather closely.
Hi jdscott,
ReplyDeleteYour question is interesting. I've never heard of a fake Moleskine planner before. I haven't noticed the differences you mentioned, I wonder if they are factory variations or if they have indeed specifically made the changes. The only difference I noticed is that the print seems clearer and the paper feels smoother than previous years.
Hm yes, you're right - the paper is smoother rather than thinner. I hadn't actually quite noticed until I finally started writing in it (with the Pilot G-2 I usually use) and realised the paper didn't seem to absorb ink as quickly as last year's, leaving blots on the facing pages... at this rate, the planner's going to be quite a mess before even this year is over! Wonder if other long-time users have noticed anything amiss.
ReplyDeleteJan