Well, I got a chance to do some real playing, and I think they are very close, if they can solve a couple issues.
I like the fact that with the style of this stylus, where accuracy isn't the #1 goal, they didn't bother trying to make this pen-like. I got the walnut version more for the wood shell rather than the magnets, and I'm glad I did. The wood shell is a tad softer than a metal one, and the idea of making it shaped like a carpenter's pencil was a smart one. The weight and balance is very nice, and it really does feel good for doing graphical outlines which is what I want a stylus for. Things like sketching out a possible UI, or how modular pieces fit together, and so on. My sketching is a lot more abstract/drafting, than artistic in nature.
The two tips detect if they are touching the screen, so that Paper can determine if it is a finger, pencil or eraser on the screen. So no accelerometer like I would have expected, but that means orientation doesn't matter. You can hold the iPad over your head and the tips are detected correctly. No pressure sensitivity, but for this particular app (ignoring the general idea of using this as a stylus in many apps), it is perfectly fine for me.
The nibs definitely have some give on them like the larger rubber nibs tend to suggest. They do have a more firm core, which helps give them a proper firm feel compared to a foam-core rubber nib. But there's definitely an air gap between the rubber and the metal tips. The writing end is wrapped in a very dense foam to get the shape, and the metal tip extends beyond that. It'd be nicer if the rubber was a bit more "tight" to be honest, but beyond that I don't have any complaints there.
My real issues are two-fold:
- The OS fights palm rejection, which is a pain. Multitasking Gestures (which I do like), Command Center, Notification Center, and palms near the edge of the screen being picked up as points are all somewhat painful.
- The style of nibs seems to create a situation where you can generate a touch event without the Pencil realizing that it is touching the screen. This causes Paper to treat it like a finger rather than the pencil. Upside is that while I can repro it consistently, you have to have a VERY light touch.
- There are a couple bugs lurking where I go to erase, and it is obvious that Paper knows the touch event is not a finger, but doesn't actually erase or write. Hopefully it gets fixed quickly.
I've still got an Apex on the way at some point that I'll want to compare as well, and the Jot Script is still interesting, but there are no apps that I use that support the BT connectivity (I really just use Paper + OneNote at the moment).
Still, the Pencil is now my favorite stylus of those I've used, although the first BT stylus I've used. I don't think it can replace a pen-style stylus like note takers might want, but it isn't focused on it. Although my previous favorite was the Alupen, overall, and the Pencil completely replaces it. Still have a Jot Pro, a couple "standard" capacitive styluses, and a pen-style Kensington stylus whose nib was just too small to get consistent recognition by the iPad
all sitting in a drawer unloved.
