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ESR Launches $30 Apple Pencil Alternative With Find My

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Accessory maker ESR this week introduced the Geo Digital Pencil, a low-cost Apple Pencil alternative that has support for Apple's Find My functionality.

esr-geo-pencil.jpg

Priced at $30, the Geo Digital Pencil connects to an iPad with Bluetooth, and it supports writing, drawing, sketching, and more much like the Apple Pencil. The Geo Digital Pencil connects to an iPad using a magnetic attachment to keep it from being lost, but charging is done using a USB-C charger.

Supported features include tilt sensitivity and shortcuts, but pressure sensitivity, Apple Pencil hover, and other Apple Pencil exclusive features are not available.

Find My integration allows the Geo Digital Pencil to be located using the Items tab in the Find My app on any Apple device, with options for playing a sound, marking an item as lost, and seeing the last known location of the pencil when Bluetooth is unavailable.

ESR says the Geo Digital Pencil is compatible with all 11-inch iPad Pro models, the third-generation iPad Air and later, the third-generation 12.9-inch iPad Pro and later, the iPad mini 5 and later, and the iPad 6 and later. It is available for purchase from Amazon, and it is priced at $30.

magmouse-esr.jpg

ESR has also introduced a case designed for the iPhone 16 models with Camera Control button and the MagMouse, a mouse with a built-in USB-C cable that can attach magnetically to an iPad or Mac for storage purposes.

Article Link: ESR Launches $30 Apple Pencil Alternative With Find My
 
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https://www.macrumors.com/2025/01/09/esr-apple-pencil-alternative/
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the MagMouse is way cooler than the stylus but I can't figure out how it works, do you have to permanently attach that base to the Mac??
 
I think this has its consumer target. And I could be interested.

I've been thinking about getting an Apple Pencil 2, which is pressure sensitive and also has the double tap shortcut. If this ESR has the double tap feature, hmmm... I think I could live without pressure sensitivity on my Apple Pencil.

EDIT: It doesn't support the double tap shortcut to change between tools. So... I think I'm better off waiting for a good sale on the now old Apple Pencil 2. But still, I think this product has it's demographic, and they will sell a lot.
 
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Is there MFi certification or anything for this kind of accessory? There are lots of cheap Apple Pencil "clones" floating around, but most don't have quite this feature set and certainly not Find My -- but many of them do have palm rejection and tilt sensitivity. (I know, I know, it's still lacking some features the higher-end Apple Pencil models do, and wireless charging and automatic pairing would be nice, but...look at the price.)

Anyway, I'm just wondering if this manufacturer has some advantage over any of these others...
 
Mag mouse is cool. When I had used a wireless mouse it always fell off the little table I had set up whenever I moved the table. So I went back to connecting via cable and stuck some tape on the cable lol. The magnetic ability is more elegant / sophisticated. I'm thinking I could also now use some of those magsafe stickers and attach one to the bottom of the mouse and one to the table itself. But for now I'll just keep using the wired cable mouse with some tape heh. But the magnet built into the bottom of the mouse is the future.
 
Looks like the Goojodoq GD14 that’s been available for a while.
goonie4life9 said:
Correction: ESR launches a stylus that looks like an Apple Pencil but does almost nothing the Apple Pencil can do.
Click to expand...
It does most of the things the Apple Pencil does.
Save for the pressure sensitivity - though that’s overrated to not really useful for mere note-taking.

Digital artists should get the Pencil Pro (if compatible).
Most other people will be well-served with a good-enough third-party Pencil at a fraction of Apple‘s price.

Plus, they won‘t be subject to Apple‘s whims on making their accessories with future iPad generations.
Prepare to write off your Magic Keyboards and Pencils once Apple yet again changes a few magnets.
 
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AppliedMicro said:
Looks like the Goojodoq GD14 that’s been available for a while.

It does most of the things the Apple Pencil does.
Save for the pressure sensitivity - though that’s overrated to not really useful for mere note-taking.

Digital artists should get the Pencil Pro (if compatible).
Most other people will be well-served with a good-enough third-party Pencil at a fraction of Apple‘s price.

Plus, they won‘t be subject to Apple‘s whims on making their accessories with future iPad generations.
Prepare to write off your Magic Keyboards and Pencils once Apple yet again changes a few magnets.
Click to expand...
Every stylus can write, draw, sketch, etc. In fact, you finger can do the same. What makes the Apple Pencil unique is the pressure sensitivity, squeeze capability, tapping, automatic pairing, etc., which this product cannot do. This is simply a stylus made to look like an Apple Pencil.
 
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goonie4life9 said:
What makes the Apple Pencil unique is the pressure sensitivity, squeeze capability, tapping, automatic pairing
Click to expand...
True but largely pointless for simple notetaking.
I need an accurate stylus to write - and few other bells or whistles.

squeeze capability
Click to expand...
Only on the „Pro“ pencil.

automatic pairing
Click to expand...
My third-part pencil does not even require Bluetooth pairing.
You just turn on and begin to write (with palm rejection).
 
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Funny I paid extra for the Apple Pencil pro (although I got it on sale for 30 off), just because I thought the find my would be useful. Turns out every time I go check, its lost its connection with find my and I have to repair it in order to get it to show up again UGH. LOL. There are some good reviews on this ESR alternative on Amazon already, I guess we can see how it holds up.
 
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alexandr said:
Did I say it was? Just seems like meh alternative.
Click to expand...
It’s because Apple hasn't opened up the wireless protocol that turns the charging on and off to third parties (among other Pencil features).
 
RMo said:
Is there MFi certification or anything for this kind of accessory? There are lots of cheap Apple Pencil "clones" floating around, but most don't have quite this feature set and certainly not Find My -- but many of them do have palm rejection and tilt sensitivity. (I know, I know, it's still lacking some features the higher-end Apple Pencil models do, and wireless charging and automatic pairing would be nice, but...look at the price.)

Anyway, I'm just wondering if this manufacturer has some advantage over any of these others...
Click to expand...
Find My can be licensed from Apple.
 
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klasma said:
It’s because Apple hasn't opened up the wireless protocol that turns the charging on and off to third parties (among other Pencil features).
Click to expand...
I'm just not digging the product very much. ESR do make some great things, but then some of their products kinda miss the mark imho.
 
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AppliedMicro said:
True but largely pointless for simple notetaking.
I need an accurate stylus to write - and few other bells or whistles.


Only on the „Pro“ pencil.


My third-part pencil does not even require Bluetooth pairing.
You just turn on and begin to write (with palm rejection).
Click to expand...
Yes, thank you for agreeing with me that this is not a “Pencil Alternative with similar features,” but just a stylus (or a finger replacement).
 
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3Gmatt said:
Nice. Perfect for the kid. I’m surprised there aren’t more 3rd party pencil options.
Click to expand...

There are a ton of them for $15 or less on AliExpress. Plenty on Amazon, too, but of course with extra markup.

Probably not fine for artists but good enough for me for simple note taking. I especially like that these don't require pairing and I can write on multiple iPads at the same time (e.g. when marking up multiple related documents on 2 different iPads).
 
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