Apple Pencil
Is Apple’s new stylus sharp enough to erase the competition?
Apple isn’t the first company to make a pressure-sensitive iPad stylus, but as is often the case, now it has finally made one, it is probably the best iPad stylus you can buy.
Developed specifically for the iPad Pro, the Pencil connects using Bluetooth and transmits a signal back and forth 240 times a second, so there is almost no perceptible lag when drawing. For many digital artists this potentially resolves the issue of latency, which has held back other styluses from being truly exceptional, and when combined with a phenomenal degree of accuracy on the Pro’s supersized screen it means your artwork is able to look better than ever before.
The Pencil feels great to use in your hand thanks to its slick white glossy finish. Tilting it enables you to shade as if using the edge of a pencil or charcoal, and drawing with the Pencil feels so natural that you find yourself checking your hand to make sure it is not covered in charcoal smudges or ink stains as you draw. It is this distraction-free usability which is the Pencil’s greatest feature.
With other styluses you find yourself focussing on what you are using, rather than what you are drawing. However, you have none of that with the Pencil, and the way it integrates seamlessly with apps like Procreate and Adobe’s Sketch and Photoshop Fix means you can simply enjoy being creative.
At £79, the Pencil is competitively priced when compared to rivals. Although it currently only works with the iPad Pro, if you have made the investment in the larger tablet then your experience of it will not be complete without one of these. Alex Thomas