Radar, the Original High-Performance Eraser - 每天，文具等。 |〜没有文具,无life.~

日本語の記事は点击这里 (This is a translation of a Japanese article written by Takataku, translated by Bruce Eimon)

“Plastic” erasers are the most popular kinds of erasers these days, and SEED Co., Ltd. is the company that invented and began selling the plastic eraser ahead of anybody else in the world. SEED has produced over two billion plastic erasers over the years, and their “Radar”, which was first released in 1968, is their longest seller. When it comes to high-performance erasers that require very little pressure to use, the Radar is the standard of all standards.

It has been my go-to eraser for 25 years

For as long as I can remember, my image of an eraser has been the Radar with that familiar blue case. My father was an architect, and since it was his favorite eraser, that was what we had at home. Since I was using a Radar ever since I was a small child, I remember being shocked by how inferior the cheaper erasers were, even when I was in elementary school.

Many new innovative erasers have entered the market in recent years, ranging from ones that require very little pressure, to those that produce very few crumbs, to erasers with multiple edges, to a whole range of specialty erasers in fun shapes. Despite all of these innovations, I’m a Radar fan all the way. The way that it erases so well with so little pressure is something that has not changed over all of these years. I have had the opportunity to test various new erasers in my time, but I always come back to this best-seller.

SEED is a pioneer in the “Correction” business

Now, you may not have heard of SEED before, but they are actually quite an innovative and interesting company. Most of the erasers out on the market these days are the plastic variety, but SEED is the one who invented this genre. That is not their only product that has had a major impact in the world of stationary, though. SEED was also the first company ever to develop correction tape.

What is amazing about SEED is that they have kept their patents on these products, on plastic erasers and correction tape, open and available to the public. I imagine “open innovation” must be part of their corporate philosophy.

A new series of innovative erasers: GRAPH × SEED

In January of 2016, SEED released their “G Series”, a collaboration with Issei Kitagawa of the world-renowned creative agency “GRAPH.” These are erasers with a minimalistic design, something different from what you would expect of a typical eraser.

The “G Rader” has the same insides of the regular Radar, and carries over the same blue color scheme.

“G NonDUST” has clumping properties for the eraser crumbs.

“G ForSHARP” is optimized for fine mechanical pencils.

“G ForColor” is best for soft lead and coloring pencils.

“G ForSOFT” is a kneaded eraser for sketching. It can be used for charcoal sketching when you want to add some highlights.

If you have never used one before, I would highly recommend a Radar. Not only is it an effective eraser, but hopefully you will also appreciate the fact that it has stayed a best seller since 1968.