Apple Pencil 2 Not Compatible With Older iPads and Original Apple Pencil Won't Work With New Models

[MacRumors]

The new second-generation Apple Pencil that Apple introduced today alongside new iPad Pro models includes support for tap gestures and inductive charging when attached to an iPad Pro via magnets, a major upgrade from the previous model that had a built-in Lightning port.

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.

That means if you're upgrading to the new iPad Pro from an older iPad Pro model and already have an Apple Pencil, you're going to need to buy a new second-generation model if you want an Apple Pencil to use with the upgraded tablets.

The new second-generation Apple Pencil is priced at $129 and can be ordered starting today, with the accessory set to be delivered on November 7.

Apple's new Apple Pencil is $30 more expensive than the existing Apple Pencil, which is priced at just $99.

Article Link: Apple Pencil 2 Not Compatible With Older iPads and Original Apple Pencil Won't Work With New Models

 

[OldSchoolMacGuy]

Makes sense. Older iPad owners wouldn't be able to charge the new Pencil 2 as they don't have inductive charging. And new iPads don't have Lightning to charge the older Pencil.

 

[TMRJIJ]

Not surprised given the changes on both.

 

[CalBoy]

The new pencils are cool, but this almost feels like an intentional move to punish people who bought either product before today.

There’s a lot about Apple’s recent decisions that honestly come across as taking customers for granted.

 

[mobilebuddha]

Can you not use a lightning cable to charge Apple Pencil 1.0? If you are on-the-go, are you not carrying a lightning cable? Is inductive charging different from wireless charging that iPhones use?

These are -terrible- reasons to make the pencils not compatible with each other. Naked money grab.

Makes sense. Older iPad owners wouldn't be able to charge the new Pencil 2 as they don't have inductive charging. And new iPads don't have Lightning to charge the older Pencil.

 

[hetrigger]

Still should include it considering the price...even as a pity prize for the amount you shell out for the 1 tb.

 

[Kobayagi]

Makes sense. Older iPad owners wouldn't be able to charge the new Pencil 2 as they don't have inductive charging. And new iPads don't have Lightning to charge the older Pencil.

Hmmm, okay... charging won't work. We agree on that. But why won't usage work? Let's say you have and use the previous and this new iPod Pro. Then this means you also need two pencils.

Seems more like a money grab.

 

[Mac 128]

Makes sense. Older iPad owners wouldn't be able to charge the new Pencil 2 as they don't have inductive charging. And new iPads don't have Lightning to charge the older Pencil.

Nothing a dongle wouldn't fix in both cases. The only reason they would be incompatible is because Apple chooses not to support them.

Can you not use a lightning cable to charge Apple Pencil 1.0? If you are on-the-go, are you not carrying a lightning cable? Is inductive charging different from wireless charging that iPhones use?

These are -terrible- reasons to make the pencils not compatible with each other. Naked money grab.

Exactly. A simple USB to Lightning dongle would solve this problem with older Pencils.

New Pencils would be a little more difficult as they would require some sort of wireless charging dongle, and a way to trigger the wireless pairing. Doesn't seem to be rocket science in any case.
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Hmmm, okay... charging won't work. We agree on that. But why won't usage work? Let's say you have and use the previous and this new iPod Pro. Then this means you also need two pencils.

Seems more like a money grab.

Pairing I suspect is the problem. If the old iPad doesn't have a way to pair with the new Pencil, it doesn't matter if the rest of it otherwise works. As for why the old Pencil wouldn't pair with the new iPad? Well that seems like an intentional decision to prevent it.

 

[jaack]

Hmmm, okay... charging won't work. We agree on that. But why won't usage work? Let's say you have and use the previous and this new iPod Pro. Then this means you also need two pencils.

Seems more like a money grab.

That is going to be an extremely small percentage of users. It's all down to compatibility.

 

[Richdmoore]

I forsee a bunch of “You bought the wrong pencil.” posts occurring.

I am surprised you couldn’t get the usb-c to lightning cable, and use the lighting adapter provided with the gen 1 pencil to pair & charge it with the new iPad. Maybe the adapter only provides power and not the initial sync needed to pair a gen 1 pencil with supported iPads?

I hope someone tries it anyway, even if I expect it not to work.

 

[Laird Knox]

Can you not use a lightning cable to charge Apple Pencil 1.0?

No.

It would be possible with an adapter but not a normal lighting cable by itself. The pencil has a plug not a socket.

 

[tripleh3lix]

That is going to be an extremely small percentage of users. It's all down to compatibility.

It’s all down to taking advantage of the customer when they could easily have made the previous pencil compatible. Some people are happy with their pencils but don’t want to dish out another 120-130$ for another one on top of 800$

Or some may have bought a 10.5 iPad Pro along with a pencil in April

 

[ricktat]

Missed opportunity by Apple.

Think of the $$ that could be made from the adapters.

Apple Pencil Lightning to USB-C adapter $39

Apple Pencil lightning to inductive charging adapter $69

 

[Sefstah]

#FragmentGate

 

[nwcs]

No.

It would be possible with an adapter but not a normal lighting cable by itself. The pencil has a plug not a socket.

True, but it does come with the adapter...

 

[Richdmoore]

No.

It would be possible with an adapter but not a normal lighting cable by itself. The pencil has a plug not a socket.

My Apple Pencil included an adapter to charge with a lightning cable. You can buy 3rd party ones as well.

This isn’t the official one, but It looks like this:
https://www.amazon.com/TechMatte-Lightning-Charging-Adapter-Connector-x/dp/B01JGBVRE6

 

[Carlanga]

The new pencils are cool, but this almost feels like an intentional move to punish people who bought either product before today.

There’s a lot about Apple’s recent decisions that honestly come across as taking customers for granted.

lol recent
its all about maximizing accessories/dongle profits.

 

[sracer]

The new pencils are cool, but this almost feels like an intentional move to punish people who bought either product before today.

That's an odd way to view it. The Pencil 1 is usable on the 9.7 Pro, 10.5 Pro, 12.9 Pro, and 2018 iPad.

Except for those who feel the need to have the "latest and greatest" regardless of functionality, the 2018 iPad + Pencil 1 is hardly punishing anyone. In the whole landscape of Apple products, that combination is a "bargain" by anyone's standard.

There’s a lot about Apple’s recent decisions that honestly come across as taking customers for granted.

RECENT? They've been doing that for the past 3-4 years at least.

 

[jasonefmonk]

Hmmm, okay... charging won't work. We agree on that. But why won't usage work? Let's say you have and use the previous and this new iPod Pro. Then this means you also need two pencils.

Seems more like a money grab.

It’s possible they use a variant of wireless connectivity like the Logitech Crayon. The Crayon is only compatible with the 6th-gen iPads and not compatible with iPad Pro models released in 2016-2017. The pencil worked on both iPad Pros and 6th-gen iPads despite this.

Will the Logitech Crayon be compatible with iPad Pro 11-inch and iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd-gen)? Can you move one 2nd-gen Apple Pencil seamlessly between two new iPad Pros?

 

[IGI2]

Makes sense. Older iPad owners wouldn't be able to charge the new Pencil 2 as they don't have inductive charging. And new iPads don't have Lightning to charge the older Pencil.

Moreover, the first gen pairs via the lightning port.

 

[subjonas]

Do we know for sure the older pencil won’t work on newer iPad Pro? Is this an official Apple statement? More importantly, has anyone tried it? It can charge from a lightning cable so it only needs to pair with the new iPad. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe one could test it with the lightning male to female adapter (that comes with the old pencil) and a usbc to lightning charger cable.

 

[Mac 128]

No.

It would be possible with an adapter but not a normal lighting cable by itself. The pencil has a plug not a socket.

My Apple Pencil included an adapter to charge with a lightning cable. You can buy 3rd party ones as well.

This isn’t the official one, but It looks like this:
https://www.amazon.com/TechMatte-Lightning-Charging-Adapter-Connector-x/dp/B01JGBVRE6

The issue is going to be whether Apple supports pairing over USB-C. The Lightning/Pencil adapter may only support charging and not data. If either is true, then there's no way to pair the old Pencil with the new iPadPro. Either way, you're right, Apple could simply sell a new Pencil adapter for use with a USB-C to Lightning cable, that supported it, and enable pairing through USB-C. I'm starting to realize that while there's likely no reason they couldn't, that they aren't planning to.
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Do we know for sure the older pencil won’t work on newer iPad Pro? Is this an official Apple statement? More importantly, has anyone tried it? It can charge from a lightning cable so it only needs to pair with the new iPad. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe one could test it with the lightning male to female adapter (that comes with the old pencil) and a usbc to lightning charger cable.

The Apple website is very clear for the old and new Pencils. The new only only supports the new iPads, and the old one only supports the old iPads. Yes easily tested once someone gets a new iPad Pro to test it with.

 

[PG(Austin)]

Classic up-sell

 

[CalBoy]

lol recent
its all about maximizing accessories/dongle profits.

RECENT? They've been doing that for the past 3-4 years at least.

Fair, I suppose I meant more post-Jobs Apple. Don’t get me wrong, Steve loved to charge a pound of flesh, but he usually did so with more subtlety and a pretense of magic.

That's an odd way to view it. The Pencil 1 is usable on the 9.7 Pro, 10.5 Pro, 12.9 Pro, and 2018 iPad.

Except for those who feel the need to have the "latest and greatest" regardless of functionality, the 2018 iPad + Pencil 1 is hardly punishing anyone. In the whole landscape of Apple products, that combination is a "bargain" by anyone's standard.

I’m not sure how you squared that circle. Suppose my iPad is not doing so well but I have an older pencil that’s doing great. Now I’m forced to buy two new products if I still want the pencil.

I think over the longer term this works out fine for people who either don’t have a pencil already, but it’s a bummer for those people who may have been wanting only one or the other in the near future. There’s also the spectre of additional products going down this path. The premise behind remaining in the Apple ecosystem is that products will retain cross-functionality for a long time and hence improve the life cycle of a purchase.

If it isn’t about bilking customers from their money, Apple should consider a trade-in for the pencils to show good faith.

 

[KeepCalmPeople]

Not surprised. No reverse or forward compatibility, and bump the price up 30%.
Apple pushing the price boundaries as usual.