Apple Pencil Is Much More Innovative than You Might Think

Apple’s “Hey Siri” event today featured the debut of the impressive iPad Pro. Demonstrations featuring the device showed a gorgeous display, fast performance, and multitasking between apps that could certainly prove useful in a variety of industries.

The debut of the iPad Pro also introduced several new accessories – a “smart” keyboard that attaches to the device via a new three-pin connector, and an incredible new stylus tool available for the iPad Pro – the Apple Pencil.

At an Apple event in 2010, Steve Jobs famously delivered the quote “if you see a stylus, they blew it,” when speaking about tablets. The Apple Pencil, however, is far from a simple stylus. Apple senior vice president of worldwide marketing Phil Schiller described how the Pencil and the iPad Pro interact with each other at the “Hey Siri” event earlier today.

The display on the iPad Pro scans twice as often while using the Pencil to accurately track the movement with extremely low latency – he remarked that using the Pencil “feels” like you’re using an actual writing utensil. The iPad Pro is able to detect force data while using the Pencil – a harder press can deliver broader strokes, and the angle and orientation of the Pencil, which offers a variety of uses in fine art applications.

The Pencil features “all day” battery life, and charges via a Lighting connector hidden under a cap near the back of the device.

After introducing the device, the Pencil was used in several app demonstrations. Obvious uses for the device were demonstrated in apps like the Notes app and fine art apps such as the new Procreate. Microsoft engineers demonstrated its uses in the Microsoft Office Suite, and Adobe director of design Eric Snowden demonstrated the Pencil’s use in a variety of new iPad-only Adobe apps.

Irene Walsh of 3D4Medical also showcased the Pencil’s use in one of their anatomy apps, being used to virtually slice layers of skin and muscle off of an anatomical figure to reveal layers of bone and tissue underneath.

The Apple Pencil will surely offer an incredible level of precision never seen before in a stylus, and may transform the way the iPad is used in several industries. The Pencil will be made available this coming November, and will cost $99.

Here’s a look at the video Apple used to showcase the new Apple Pencil on the iPad Pro during the “Hey Siri” event earlier today, courtesy of Gizmodo.