Westcott 16059 iPoint Orbit Electric Pencil Sharpener for Home and Office

As a person who uses colored pencils for art, this is a great sharpener. It stops sharpening when the pencil is ready and fits nicely in my art room.

works with better quality batteries only, but it sharpens amazingly.

Like most motors, they eventually slow down. I like that it is hard wired. The first one jammed and couldn’t be rehabbed. It lasted about 4 yrs. so I got another one!

I’ve been trying to understand why there are so many negative reviews here. I guess it must come down to who is using it and with what kind of pencils they are sharpening.I have been on the lookout for a good electric pencil sharpener ever since my old workhorses stopped producing a fine point after 30 years of service. I tried to replace them with newer models with new blades, but by then the sharpeners I loved were discontinued.After years of searching and trying out every well reviewed electric sharpener still on the market, I started to realize that they don’t make things like they did in the good ole days. I’ve found that every sharpener today suffers from one major flaw: They don’t sharpen pencils shorter than 2 1/2 inches. Why is that so important to me? Because I use professional pencils that cost about $1-$2 each.Here’s what sets this electric sharpener apart from every other model I’ve found so far: It engages the motor with only 1 1/2 inches of the pencil inserted. All other electrics I found need 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 inches inserted before they will start sharpening. At about $1 per pencil, you’d be wasting about 33 cents per pencil if you can’t sharpen the last third length.Are these durable? I can’t say for sure. My first ipoint Orbit sharpener was purchased about a year ago and it is still running fine. I have no illusions that it will last for years, though. I’ve since bought 6 more as back ups, in case it breaks down and these get discontinued. (I’ve found these at Costco and from Amazon at varying prices, from $8-$22 each. It’s best to shop around since the prices can change quite a bit over time.)I’m no expert but I am a professional illustrator who has gone through thousands of pencils and dozens of sharpeners since I started my business in 1984. For me, this is hands down the best pencil sharpener I can find today.

This is a great pencil sharpener for the money. I think it’s great for the one child that lives with me, but she goes to tutoring and that place is full of other children. They have worn one like this out until it died. My granddaughter told me not to get this one because of what she saw at tutoring and not being able to sharpen her pencil doing math. I told her for one child it will do fine and I’m right! It sharpens from the top. It stops by itself when the pencil is sharpened. The top unscrews to empty the container. It’s easy to take off the top, but you have to shake out the shavings. I like this sharpener as it’s small and doesn’t take up room on her small desk. It has easy access from the top also.

I ordered both this item and the Jarlink competitor. I first had a manual crank sharpener but I found it infuriating to try and get a strong, properly centered point. (Apparently I must have lost that skill in grade school).I wanted a "vertical" sharpener so I could use it with one hand (without pushing it all over my desk). This one and the Jarlink seem to be the most obvious options. The Jarlink is OK, but it doesn't have enough torque so its pretty easy to overload the sharpening motor if you are not careful. The Westcott has much more torque and is less fussy to use.

I have purchased several very expensive ($200.00 plus) pencil sharpers for my classroom in my 30 year teaching career. This sharpener out performs all of the expensive models. The paper/plastic coatings on the cheap pencils that my students bring to school would not sharpen well in my expensive sharpeners. The paper would shred off or the plastic would melt in the the sharpening blades. With this sharpener all pencils sharpen with ease to a very fine tip. All electric sharpeners are noisy despite the claims of "Quiet Operation." This is a very acceptable noise and if needed I can have a student sharpen a pencil while I am teaching and it does not create a major disturbance in the classroom. I only wish they made this model with an adjustable pencil size for large primary pencils. The true test of this sharpener will come at the end of the school year. If it can survive 30 second grade students then it is a true winner! I will update my review at the end of the school year.UPDATE: After two years of daily classroom use my sharpener finally stopped working. I have never had an electric sharpener last this long! I am still very satisfied with this sharpener and have already purchased two more.

I love love love this thing—Before this purchase, I was having a hell of a time trying to sharpen soft-core colored pencils like prismacolor.I didn’t really want to buy this sharpener since I already had a few other cheap electric sharpeners— but this appeared on Amazon warehouse for very cheap— so I finally broke down to give it a try—If I could go back and pay full retail years ago, I would. I would have saved myself so much time, money, and frustration—The inner mechanism is stable and gentle— and I have had little core breakage since using this sharpener— and what breakage of lead I have experienced was my own hand slipping while pulling out my pencils.If I HAD to list something that could be improved...it would be great if this had a longer cord or was cordless— but that’s it.—No regrets. If you have an unsteady hand like me and love colored pencils, get this— it’s game changing.

Absolutely Fantastic!!! Would definitely recommend this. Best sharpening tool ever. I love it!!! Had to buy a converter as it came with a USA plug fitting, but it works perfectly with the adaptor plug. Buy it, you won't regret it. Worth every penny!

I bought this to replace my old electric sharpener. It works well. It stops so you don’t oversharpen. I like that feature. It was recommended to me by a friend for my Prismacolors. She said she hasn’t had one break since she started using it. I’m hoping that will be the case.I’ll try and remember to give an update in a few months to review its performance over time. I sharpened all my sketch pencils and I’m pleased so far.

Very smooth operating sharpener, container holds plenty of shavings & is easy to empty. Nice size, not overly large but still with a decent weight so it won't fall over. Only one sized opening for standard pencils and regular sized pencil crayons. Prismacolor pencil crayons fit well & sharpen superbly with this machine.

Works well and doesn't take off too much pencil at a time. A little unstable in its design, though. I often find myself holding it in place as I sharpen.

Product works very well, even with chewed ends.However, after about 2 weeks, the blades seemingly are going dull.I’d probably spend a bit more money for a better blade.