That is what I saw at Sportsman's WH. It was real flimsy.
I am not sure that it would fish any better than a hand line or improvised pole.
I have a 4'6" ultralight spinng rod that I use to catch panfish at a local lake. It will cast about 30' with a hook and bobber set up and a little more if you add some weight. Based on my experience with this rod I would suspect that the FishPen does not cast very far.

The gadget lover in me still thinks it is cool though.