Compiled from 10 sources; we haven't tested this product ourselves yet. How we research
Quick answer
The isshoni. Notebook Desk from Daigo of Osaka is a horizontal notebook made to sit in front of a laptop: 150 × 90 mm for 13-inch machines, 180 × 124 mm for 15-inch. The Thick type has 192 thread-bound pages of 5 mm grid. It won a 2021 Japan Stationery Award prize and is a 2022 Good Design Award design.
Paper cover with a striped emboss and PP coating; Daigo original paper; thread-bound
Price range
$$$5–20 per notebook
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Notes on these facts
Made by Daigo Corporation (Osaka). Made in Japan: Maruzen Junkudo's listings for the Notebook Desk range give Japan as the country of origin, and Jenni Bick and bungu.store say made in Japan; Daigo's own isshoni. page doesn't state it. Source. Price: example listing.
Price bands are typical US retail, checked October 2026. Conversions to US dollars are approximate, at October 2026 rates (US$1 = ¥158 = ₩1,330 = NT$32.5 = CN¥6.7 = SEK 9.9 = DKK 6.7 = ₺49.6 = C$1.41 = A$1.43 = CZK 21.7; €1 = US$1.12; £1 = US$1.32; CHF 1 = US$1.21).
Key takeaways
Maruzen Junkudo lists the 13-inch Thick grid at 90 × 150 × 10 mm and 113 g, and the 15-inch at 124 × 180 × 10 mm and 165 g, both with 192 pages.
Daigo sells three builds: Slim at 48 pages and 3 mm thick, Thick grid at 192 pages, and Thick daily at 368 pages, one undated page per day.
Daigo says its first Notebook Desk went on sale in February 2021, as remote work grew; a user's post about it drew more than 70,000 likes.
It won an Excellence Prize in the Functionality category of the 30th Japan Stationery Award (June 2021) and is listed among the 2022 Good Design Award designs.
Daigo's page lists the 13-inch Thick grid at ¥770 (about US$4.90) with tax; Maruzen Junkudo listed it at ¥880 (about US$5.60) on October 28, 2026.
What is the isshoni. Notebook Desk?
It is a horizontal notebook from Daigo of Osaka, sized to sit in the narrow space between a laptop and the edge of the desk. Daigo’s isshoni. page calls it the notebook for remote work and online meetings, where a normal A5 does not fit in front of the keyboard.
The range is part of Daigo’s isshoni. line for office workers; our DAIGO story covers the company. This guide covers the Thick grid, the version US shops carry most, and lists the Slim and daily builds for comparison.
Which sizes and versions does it come in?
Two sizes, matched to 13-inch and 15-inch laptops, and three builds. Maruzen Junkudo, a Japanese bookstore chain, lists the figures below; Daigo’s page confirms the layouts and model numbers.
Build
Layout
Pages
13-inch size, weight
15-inch size
Slim
5 mm grid (also list, ruled, daily)
48
90 × 150 × 3 mm (3.5 × 5.9 × 0.1 in), 34 g (1.2 oz)
124 × 180 mm (4.9 × 7.1 in)
Thick grid
5 mm grid with a composition line
192
90 × 150 × 10 mm (3.5 × 5.9 × 0.4 in), 113 g (4.0 oz)
The model numbers run from R1726 (13-inch gray Thick grid, JAN 4902041417266) to R1733 for the 15-inch daily. Daigo also lists limited citrus yellow, blue-purple and airy pink Thick grids, which retailers may not stock.
Why a horizontal notebook?
Because Covid-19 sent Daigo’s own staff to work from home. Asked by Nlab in October 2021, Daigo said it was already planning notebooks for the isshoni. brand when staff began working remotely and online meetings multiplied. A horizontal prototype fitted a home desk so well that the product team wanted to use it at once.
Daigo says it could not do market research under the state of emergency, and the Notebook Desk went on sale in February 2021. A user’s post about it, praising its fit in front of a laptop, drew more than 70,000 likes, Nlab reported.
We have not measured an open copy, and the listings don’t say which edge is the spine. If it opens along the 150 mm edge, a spread would be about 300 mm (11.8 in) across for the 13-inch; that is our arithmetic, not Daigo’s.
Which Notebook Desk should you buy?
In our view, the 13-inch Thick grid suits most note-taking. It has the most pages in the smaller body, and its 5 mm grid with a composition line, a ruled column for headings, suits meeting notes.
Pick the 15-inch if your laptop is 15 inches or larger and you want a B6-sized notebook when closed. Pick the daily Thick for a free-date agenda, and the Slim if you want something that rides in a bag with almost no weight.
What does it cost and where can you buy it in the US?
On October 28, 2026 Jenni Bick listed it at US$15 for the 13-inch size and US$19 for the 15-inch, in gray or black. That puts it in our $$ band ($5–20). Japan prices are far lower.
Daigo’s isshoni. page, read the same day, shows the 13-inch Thick grid at ¥770 (about US$4.90) with tax and the 15-inch at ¥880 (about US$5.60). Maruzen Junkudo showed ¥880 (about US$5.60) and ¥990 (about US$6.30), so Japanese shops and Daigo’s page disagree; we don’t know which is current.
bungu.store, a Japan-based exporter, listed the 13-inch Thick grid at ¥1,800 (about US$11).
What awards has it won?
A Functionality Excellence Prize at the 30th Japan Stationery Award in 2021, and a 2022 Good Design Award. Organizer Reed Exhibitions Japan announced the stationery prize in June 2021; the Japan Institute of Design Promotion lists the notebook among the 2022 Good Design Award designs, as does Daigo’s own page.
It was not the grand prix winner: DIME says the Functionality grand prix went to Hobonichi’s Earth Ball. Our Japan Stationery Award 2026 winners guide covers the current prize.
Where is the Notebook Desk made?
In Japan, per retailers. Maruzen Junkudo gives Japan as its origin and Jenni Bick says it is thread-bound in Daigo’s Japanese factory. Daigo’s own pages do not state it.
For another notebook that lies flat, see our lay-flat notebooks roundup.
Daigo’s other 2022 Good Design Award item, an upright notebook with numbered pages and an index, has its own guide: isshoni. Notebook Number.
Frequently asked questions
How big is the isshoni. Notebook Desk when closed?
The 13-inch size is 90 × 150 mm (3.5 × 5.9 in) and Maruzen Junkudo's listing, from Daigo's copy, says it is about as big as a large smartphone. The 15-inch size is 124 × 180 mm (4.9 × 7.1 in), roughly B6 when closed.
Is the Notebook Desk a real notebook or a pad?
A thread-bound notebook. Daigo's award entry says the Thick builds open a full 180 degrees, so the pages lie flat on a desk.
What is the difference between the Slim and Thick Notebook Desk?
The Slim has 48 pages, a 3 mm spine and a gold-foil cover; the Thick has 192 pages (grid) or 368 (daily), a 10 or 13 mm spine and a coated cover. Both come for 13-inch and 15-inch laptops.
Does the Notebook Desk have dated pages?
No. The daily Thick is a free-date notebook of 368 one-page days, about a year, with a time schedule and a 2.5 mm grid memo area, so you write the date yourself.
Is the Notebook Desk fountain pen friendly?
US seller Jenni Bick calls the paper fountain pen friendly and bleed-resistant; Daigo only says its original paper is pleasant to write on. We haven't tested it with fountain pens.
Did the Notebook Desk win a design award?
Yes. The Japan Institute of Design Promotion lists it among the 2022 Good Design Award designs, and it took a Functionality Excellence Prize at the 2021 Japan Stationery Award.
Does the Notebook Desk come in colors?
Gray and black are the regular colors. Daigo's page also lists limited citrus yellow, blue-purple and airy pink for the 13- and 15-inch Thick grid.
