MacRumors:
Given all of the changes introduced in the Apple Pencil 2, it only works with the new 11 and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models and it is not compatible with older iPad Pros or the sixth-generation iPad.
Likewise, the current Apple Pencil will not work with the new iPad Pro models and is limited to older iPad Pro models and the sixth-generation iPad.
This should come as no surprise to anyone who watched today’s video and no, this is not Apple being “greedy”.
Did the engineers working on the Pencil have no idea what the iPad Pro pipeline looked like? Was there no one who said hey maybe paring via lightning isn’t the best idea?
Is this simply because of the problem of pairing which requires being plugged in? Would a USB-C to Lightning adaptor make this possible? Lots of questions here.
Nonsense. It’s iterative development, and they had to build the v1 before they couple improve on it for v2. People like you always say “this is what they should have done all along”, but it’s an opinion ignorant of how real product development works IRL.
You probably won’t hit 0% so often, because the pencil will be charging more often. Or do you actually use the thing from 100% down to 0%? (I can see an artist actually doing that)
That’s probably too hot a reply. To rogifan, it’s worth remembering how long ago the first iPad Pro and Pencil were. There was a significant gap between the first and second 12.9″ iPads (more than a year and a half), and it’s been over a year since the second one. So when they came up with the first design, there was likely no thought of USB-C. And probably most of the features of Pencil2 were in response to feedback they got about Pencil1. It’s just how it works out.
That’s an interesting question actually. Does such an adapter “adapt” all the info. The niftiness of pencil2 probably warrants just buying a new one. But due to the cost, I could see it if you didn’t want to.
I agree. I’m sure I won’t be sitting there using the iPad with that Pencil sitting on top (not totally sure, but I’m kinda thinking I won’t). So yeah. I wonder if it can charge any other way. I kept getting called away during the unveiling so I don’t know.
So you think an accessory made for a specific device should be compatible with one three years in the future at the expense of the current product, or else it means that nobody’s looking at the future?
I’m skeptical. I’m sure Apple’s product roadmaps are longer than 2 years. But how about paring via Bluetooth? Then it wouldn’t matter what I/O the device had. I wouldn’t care as much if the Pencil wasn’t so expensive. And now the new once has a price increase of $30.
Yes I think future proofing as much as possible is a good thing. Could the 1st gen Pencil have paired via Bluetooth instead of lightning?
I was hoping this new Pencil would have an on/off switch but if the magnetic connection is really solid the Pencil will probably be connected most of the time.
It’s a three year old device.
I’ll delete my reply. I can see where I’m wrong. The old Pencil required plugging in via Lightning to connect, and that can’t happen with the new machines, and vice versa with the new pencil and old iPads. You’re right.
I’m not entirely sure what you mean by that, but I’m interpreting it to mean that a three-year-old device is old enough that people shouldn’t complain about it becoming obsolete. I don’t think I buy that, especially since the idea of iPads changing to USB-C seemed kind of far-fetched until recently. I don’t have a pencil and probably won’t be buying the new one either, but I think it would be reasonable for people to think that they would be able to use it across hardware generations.
Personally I think Apple probably would have carried over support for the old pencil if it had been feasible, but the change in ports and the fairly radical redesign of the new model made that difficult.
Sorry for the short comment, I didn’t intend that people shouldn’t complain – especially if they just bought it. You’re right about that.
What I mean is that it’s already a 3 year old technology and they’ve learned a lot in that time. Also it was a first generation product so now they have a world of knowledge.
Automatic $100 upgrade
I feel like the old Pencil will work with the new iPad. You’d just need to pair them manually in the settings app since you can’t auto-pair without a hardware connection. You can charge it with your phone or a Lightning cable. Inconvenient, sure, but it should work.
Using a new Pencil with an old iPad Pro would be difficult since you can only charge the new Pencil with the new iPad Pro.
If it’s a Bluetooth device it should follow the Bluetooth spec. You should be able to pair manually. Auto-pairing with the W1 chip is just Apple’s magic sauce.
If you roll all the way back to the design stage all things are possible. But it would have been a worse product.