OMG PENCIL OMG (or why the Pencil is the best stylus I’ve ever used)

Serenity Caldwell on third party iPad styli:

Throughout five years of iPad stylus testing, I’ve never been able to find a stylus that perfectly and comfortably replicates the feeling of drawing in a sketchbook. Precision and lag are the top two triggers: If a stylus can’t repeatedly trace a small line—or does so slowly enough that I can’t figure out how to continue my drawing—it breaks the illusion. And the illusion is a very precarious one.

Enter Apple Pencil:

The Pencil is just as good a sketching tool as any Wacom pen. I don’t care that we don’t know its official pressure rating. It’s right. Apple got it right. The pressure, the accuracy, the lag, the palm rejection. My brain is fully and thoroughly tricked into believing it’s drawing on paper, and even the pen on glass sensation can’t convince me otherwise.

Great review. Apple Pencil is the iPad Pro’s killer app.

Note that the Apple Pencil is still a 4-5 week wait if you order it online. Some people have reported finding them in Apple Stores when new shipments come in, though they disappear pretty quickly. If you are willing to pay the premium, there are some on eBay as low as $138.