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iPad Pro My Apple Pencil finally scratched my IPP screen.

A

arksun

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 25, 2010
29
8
I was taking notes and highlighting my schoolwork with the Apple Pencil like I normally do, when I heard a scratch and felt a sudden resistance. Low and behold, there’s a deep scratch in the middle of my IPP screen now. Upon feeling the tip of the Apple Pencil, there’s a tiny sharp barb that is now present. I’ve had the IPP and Apple Pencil for 9 months now and the tip did not look like it needed replacement, until it’s too late and left a deep gash in my screen.

Just a warning to everyone to change the Apple Pencil tip if you’ve been using it for long period of time. Better safe than sorry! I get to now stare at a rainbow line whenever I use my IPP .
 
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I would take the Apple Pencil and the iPad in together and show them the sharp point and see if they’ll at least give you a reduced cost on a screen replacement.
 
How many hours on average did you use your Apple Pencil per day? I’m probably averaging 1-2 with more on the weekends. We just bought the 4 tips pack from Apple for like $20 recently. Been wondering about when to replace the tip... Hope Apple helps you out!
 
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That's terrible! I thought the tips lasted forever and was surprised they included a spare one in the box.

Was there any sign beforehand that it was wearing out?

I hope the Apple store take pity on you and replace your screen for free (if you don't have AC). I wouldn't have a clue when it looks ready to change the tip as it doesn't seem to wear down.
 
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Did the pencil maybe fall on the ground and pick up some grit? I doubt the plastic tip, even if mangled, could scratch the screen. I have a small scratch from a piece of dust or dirt. My pencil is undamaged.
 
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off_piste said:
I would take the Apple Pencil and the iPad in together and show them the sharp point and see if they’ll at least give you a reduced cost on a screen replacement.
Click to expand...
I will bring it in next week and talk to them about it. I have a feeling they will just chalk it up to wear and tear, but we will see!

BigMcGuire said:
How many hours on average did you use your Apple Pencil per day? I’m probably averaging 1-2 with more on the weekends. We just bought the 4 tips pack from Apple for like $20 recently. Been wondering about when to replace the tip... Hope Apple helps you out!
Click to expand...
I am in medical school with 15-20 hours of didactic lecture per week. I mainly use my pencil to annotate powerpoint slides and highlight important information. On the weekend, I'll have many more hours of annotation and random note writing. My use case is on the higher end, though probably not as high as an artist. As mentioned, this was my first Apple Pencil tip and I purchased it roughly 9 months ago. From this experience and in my case, I will just replace the nib every 6 months because it was hard to see any wear before the tiny fragment broke off.

wib said:
That's terrible! I thought the tips lasted forever and was surprised they included a spare one in the box.

Was there any sign beforehand that it was wearing out?

I hope the Apple store take pity on you and replace your screen for free (if you don't have AC). I wouldn't have a clue when it looks ready to change the tip as it doesn't seem to wear down.
Click to expand...
There was no sign of wear, aside from it being noticeably more shiny than a new nib. I always brush and feel the tip of the Apple Pencil with my finger before I use it. From now on, I will probably replace it every 6 months (due to my higher use case from being in school).

BorderingOn said:
Did the pencil maybe fall on the ground and pick up some grit? I doubt the plastic tip, even if mangled, could scratch the screen. I have a small scratch from a piece of dust or dirt. My pencil is undamaged.
Click to expand...
It definitely did not fall on the ground today. I have it in the holder of my iPad sleeve case, and I took it out on the table before I started using it. As I mentioned, I can now feel as slight sharp barb on the tip of the nib which was not there before I started using it today. I have replaced the nib with the spare that came in the case – it's much smoother to write now. I guess over the months, I was so acclimated to how the pencil felt every day, even though it was wearing down and getting "rougher".

subjonas said:
You’re not using one of those after market diamond tips, are you?
:D
Click to expand...
I wish, haha!
 
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arksun said:
I will bring it in next week and talk to them about it. I have a feeling they will just chalk it up to wear and tear, but we will see!


I am in medical school with 15-20 hours of didactic lecture per week. I mainly use my pencil to annotate powerpoint slides and highlight important information. On the weekend, I'll have many more hours of annotation and random note writing. My use case is on the higher end, though probably not as high as an artist. As mentioned, this was my first Apple Pencil tip and I purchased it roughly 9 months ago. From this experience and in my case, I will just replace the nib every 6 months because it was hard to see any wear before the tiny fragment broke off.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your information. My wife is starting PhD school in a month and expects to use her Apple Pencil a lot too - she’s taking notes next to me right now. 6 months sounds good. Thanks !
 
arksun said:
I was taking notes and highlighting my schoolwork with the Apple Pencil like I normally do, when I heard a scratch and felt a sudden resistance. Low and behold, there’s a deep scratch in the middle of my IPP screen now. Upon feeling the tip of the Apple Pencil, there’s a tiny sharp barb that is now present. I’ve had the IPP and Apple Pencil for 9 months now and the tip did not look like it needed replacement, until it’s too late and left a deep gash in my screen.

Just a warning to everyone to change the Apple Pencil tip if you’ve been using it for long period of time. Better safe than sorry! I get to now stare at a rainbow line whenever I use my IPP .
Click to expand...

Most likely it was not the tip, but the micro piece of dust captured beneath the tip.

Sorry for your screen :(
[doublepost=1530049989][/doublepost]
4RunnerHeaven said:
Tempered glass screen protector a must.
Click to expand...

Increases parallax. Would never use a glass one for Pencil work. Use a ‘regular’ one, if you must, if you go slightly matte, it will add some paper-like friction which feels nice.

Or just keep the screen clean and no protector required.
 
aevan said:
Most likely it was not the tip, but the micro piece of dust captured beneath the tip.

Sorry for your screen :(
[doublepost=1530049989][/doublepost]

Increases parallax. Would never use a glass one for Pencil work. Use a ‘regular’ one, if you must, if you go slightly matte, it will add some paper-like friction which feels nice.

Or just keep the screen clean and no protector required.
Click to expand...

Not sure I understand why? I used it and it was great. No difference between the screen and the tempered glass when I wrote on it.
 
4RunnerHeaven said:
Not sure I understand why? I used it and it was great. No difference between the screen and the tempered glass when I wrote on it.
Click to expand...

Well, the glass protectors are thicker than regular ones and detract from that feel of writing/drawing directly on the surface of the iPad because they add a new layer between the Pencil and the LCD. It’s not bad (you have to be very picky about it to mind), and if you like them, by all means use them.
 
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4RunnerHeaven said:
Tempered glass screen protector a must.
Click to expand...

I have _never_ needed a tempered screen protector on my iPad or iPhones. I’m not sure how others manage to scratch their displays, but I have never had that issue, I do use a portfolio case that covers the display when I’m not using it. And I also don’t prefer to have the texture of a tempered screen protector when interacting with it. I Find the iPads displays to be more than durable enough, but I also am cautious on how I handle my products.
 
off_piste said:
I would take the Apple Pencil and the iPad in together and show them the sharp point and see if they’ll at least give you a reduced cost on a screen replacement.
Click to expand...

there's no screen replacement for iPads. it's whole unit cost
[doublepost=1531877525][/doublepost]
4RunnerHeaven said:
Tempered glass screen protector a must.
Click to expand...

i disagree. I've used multiple iPads for years with not even a film and no issues
 
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I have varying opinions on this.

I never use screen protectors on my iPads, but when I got the first gen iPad Pro with Apple Pencil, I noticed some marks on my screen after doing some sketching, so I put a glass protector on it. Definitely wasn't ideal and made my screen more slippery for writing and drawing, but gave me some peace of mind.

On my 10.5" Pro I have not used a protector for the most part, and am using the Pencil as much as I ever have, and it's scratch free--and yes, I have inspected it under really intense bright light just to verify.

So either I got really unlucky with my first one and there was some grit stuck to my screen or Pencil while I was drawing, OR those marks were there all along and I just never noticed them. No device is ever 100% perfect. There are always some flaws, even if they're very very slight and unnoticeable.

So I'm back to no screen protector on my iPad, and it's still pristine. I do clean the screen before I use the pencil and I always just run a finger over the pencil tip to make sure there is no schmutz stuck to it.
 
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charlituna said:
there's no screen replacement for iPads. it's whole unit cost
[doublepost=1531877525][/doublepost]

i disagree. I've used multiple iPads for years with not even a film and no issues
Click to expand...

I’ve had iPhones and iPads since the beginning and take extreme care. However, no matter how clean I keep them and how careful, I am with them, I always get a scratch on the screen - usually before the new screen protectors are on the market. I use the tempered edge to edge glass on my iPhone and Power Support film on the iPad. I have the iPad Pro and within a month had a decent scratch from a drag with the Pencil but thankfully it was only on the protector and not the actual screen. The Pencil tip was fine but must have had a speck of dirt on it. What I really wish is that someone would put out an anti-glare that doesn’t reduce the clarity.
 
CrazyForCashews said:
To all of the people who are suggesting to use tempered glass screen protectors, you guys must love glare.

It's a crime to slap on a glass screen protector on the iPad Pro's fantastic anti-reflective display. It's counter productive and takes away from the experience.
Click to expand...
weeeeellllll, fantastic is a bit of hyperbole. Yes, it cuts down on glare, but at the expense of fingerprint smudges. I’ve found that a matte protector not only cuts down on glare, but cuts down on fingerprint smudges and offers ever so slight resistance for the Pencil.
 
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