Our reviews of the best alternatives for Apple Pencil. This buying guide for iPad-compatible stylus will help you find the best alternative based on usage and budget.
The original Apple Pencil or digital pen is a great accessory for iPad users, especially for graphic designers and artists. It offers pressure sensitivity and angle detection, so it is possible to easily vary the line thickness, create subtle shadows, and produce a wide range of artistic effects. We can underline, take notes, and, of course, draw. In this way, we will interact better with our Tablet and turn it into a fully digital tool. What is the problem? When it comes to the company of the bitten apple, you can imagine it. Its price is around 100 dollars. Don’t worry, there are plenty of great alternatives to Apple Pencil.
These are the best alternatives to Apple Pencil for iPad and iPhone devices
Would you like to have a pencil like the Apple Pencil for your iPad or even for your iPhone? Well, you’re in luck. Here we detail how to get a pencil – compatible with the full range of iPads and iPhones. Even if you have an iPad Pro and want to save money compared to the official Apple accessory, you will find the solution.
Mixoo – best Apple Pencil alternative for iPad Pro, Mini and Air
We start the buying guide with one of the cheapest options we can find in the stylus market. The operation of the Mixoo tablet pen is somewhat different from the rest of the models, because it does not work either by Bluetooth or has a power button, basically because it does not have a battery.
The tip is covered with a small disk so you can scroll through the screen, but without scratching it. This allows it to work in a wide range of options: iPad, iPhone, and Android tablets. The package includes replacements of both the tip and the disc.
With very good precision and tremendous finesse, the Mixoo is one of the best alternatives to the Apple Pencil. Its price is 14 dollars on Amazon (at the time of writing).
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Heiyo Active Stylus Pen
One of the best alternatives to the Apple Pencil is the Heiyo Stylus. Its strong point is its attractive design and its price (much more affordable). You can get a user experience very similar to that of the Apple Pencil. Its design is very comfortable, it adapts very well to the hand and allows you to perform all kinds of actions such as being handled by the system, taking notes by hand, and even drawing.
Its battery lasts more than 40 hours if you use it intensively and 30 days in standby mode. Also, it only takes 4 hours to fully charge. It is compatible with most iPad Pro, Mini, and Air models to date.
If you want a cheap alternative to the Apple Pencil, then the Heiyo Stylus is one of the best alternatives that you will be able to choose. The manufacturer ensures that each tip of the stylus endures about 500 hours of use and that it has been designed to protect the screen of the device so that it does not scratch.
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Logitech Crayon Digital Pencil for iPad
The Logitech Crayon is one of the most popular alternatives to Apple Pencil, especially for people who look for simplicity and do not perform artistic tasks.
The motives? A careful design, materials, and performance at the level of the Apple Pencil, but somewhat cheaper. This stylus uses Apple Pencil technology, so it doesn’t have to be paired using Bluetooth.
Its battery is one of the shortest of the proposed models, but instead, it charges in less than 1 hour through a lightning cable. Another weakness of this model is that it lacks sensitivity to pressure, so we will have to tilt it to try to simulate it. In addition, it also has no additional functions.
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MoKo Universal Active Stylus Pen
It is a low-cost alternative that offers excellent styles for both writing and drawing. One end of the stylus has a 1.5 mm thin metal dot that offers a realistic feel of a pen when writing on the screen of the most recent iPad and iPhone models. This requires the use of the integrated battery which can charge in about an hour. It provides up to eight hours of continuous use and shuts off automatically after 30 minutes of inactivity to save energy.
The other end features a soft rubber tip for use without a battery, which works on any touchscreen. An integrated clip allows you to adapt to a tablet cover or pocket while on the move.
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FiftyThree Digital Stylus Pencil for iPad and iPhone
This alternative is an unconventional pencil design; The exterior is made of real wood and its flat body with a digital eraser built into the opposite end of the tip of the stylus, gives it a unique appearance.
Despite its wider rubber tip, you can draw fine lines thanks to the excellent pressure sensitivity function. The accessory is compatible with an iPhone 4s or later, a third-generation iPad or later, an iPad mini, iPad Air, or iPad Pro. Its battery lasts approximately one month of normal use and recharges completely in less than 90 minutes.
There is no need to worry about pairing because when you press the tip on the device screen, the touch pen will automatically connect via Bluetooth.
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Wacom Bamboo – the best cheap alternative to Apple Pencil
The Bamboo Stylus Duo is a dual-purpose touch pen for iPad and Android tablets, which combines a soft and responsive pen tip for tablets at one end with a premium ink pen on the opposite end. This allows you to switch between working on a tablet and working on paper simply by turning the pen.
The pen cap can be conveniently attached to each end of the pen to protect the unused tip. The writing tip uses standard ink refills and offers a writing sensation similar to regular pens.
Wacom created input devices long before the iPhone and iPad even came onto the market. The Wacom Bamboo Duo is a stylus for an iPad (or iPhone), but it also lets you switch to analog with the built-in ballpoint pen. The Bamboo Duo does not require power, so it is compatible with any touchscreen device.
On the stylus side, the smooth carbon fiber tip with mesh end is completely replaceable. The pen is compatible with standard D1 ink refills.
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Adonit Pixel
If you are looking for an experience similar to Apple Pencil, Adonit Pixel is an excellent option. It is a thin-tip stylus; that admits 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity and palm rejection; It includes programmable shortcut buttons and balances very well in your hand. It incorporates two programmable shortcut buttons that provide quick access to functions such as erase and redo. This is something that is not found in the Apple Pencil.
You can use the stylus with a wide variety of applications for Apple Pencil, such as Goodnotes, Procreate, AstroPad, and others; In addition, the stylus is compatible with the iPhone 5 and later versions, along with the iPad, iPad mini, and iPad Air.
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Bamboo Stylus Fineline 3
This is another great alternative to Apple Pencil from Bamboo, especially popular for its graphics tablets with a stylus. The Bamboo Stylus Fineline 3 is a very attractive alternative to the Apple Pencil because, in addition to being more affordable, it has interesting features. This Wacom stylus is a convenient tool for recording sketches and ideas digitally on an iPhone or iPad.
It has Bluetooth connectivity, which allows us to program a button to perform actions and take advantage of its pressure-sensitive tip, which we can collect when we do not use it. In addition, it has a clip to carry in pockets like traditional pens. Its battery has an approximate autonomy of 15 hours and is charged by micro USB.
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What to consider when choosing an iPad stylus?
With the Apple Pencil, both 2nd generation 120 dollars and the original 95 dollars, performing tasks such as taking notes or creating art in digital format is easier and more precise by allowing us to interact with the Apple tablet in pencil format as if we were doing it by hand. Despite its price, its design and intuitive use make the Apple Pencil an interesting option and a reference for other stylus in the market.
In this sense, it is interesting to look for a third-party stylus with an ergonomic design that allows you to digitize content comfortably and accurately.
Also, as with the Apple Pencil, some models offer shortcuts to work faster, either through touches or by integrating buttons.
Before choosing an alternative for the Apple Pencil, it is important to verify that the specific model is compatible with both our iPad and the apps we plan to use.
As for its battery, we will pay attention to both the autonomy of the stylus and the charging time and what port it uses for this purpose.
Finally, it is interesting that as with the Apple Pencil, the stylus in question has Bluetooth connectivity, which allows it to perform functions without touching the screen.
Conclusions of the best Apple Pencil alternatives
With one of these stylus options, almost all iPad users can unlock a new level of productivity. Whether you are taking notes, channeling a creative side as you draw, doing a coloring book for adults, or something else, one of these choices should help.
And if you’re interested in turning an iPad into a real laptop replacement, take a look at our overview of the best keyboard cases for iPad devices.
Do you know any other stylus that is worth highlighting as an alternative to the Apple Pencil? Tell us in the comment box.