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An Apple Pencil for iPad Air 2, iPad mini and iPhone: Adonit launches new $79 Pixel stylus as worthy competitor to Apple Pencil

Screen Shot 2016-05-24 at 17.21.35

Update: Adonis Pixel is now on sale for $69.99.

The stylus market was shaken up last fall with Apple’s first-party entrance into the race with the Apple Pencil, which works in concert with special sensors in the iPad Pro display for pixel-accurate recognition. This left third-party stylus accessory manufacturers in a quandary — how can they compete with the officially-endorsed Apple Pencil?

The Pixel stylus is the answer from Adonit, on sale today for $79.99. Not only is Adonit’s stylus $20 cheaper than Apple’s, it has a huge advantage in terms of iOS device compatibility. It’s the closest you’ll get to an Apple Pencil for an iPhone, or an Apple Pencil for iPad that isn’t a Pro model.


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Review: Adonit’s new Jot Dash finally makes digital iPad styluses pen-thin and right-priced

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I keep a box with around 20 iPad styluses next to my desk, so every time a new stylus arrives, I can easily compare it against its predecessors and rivals. There hasn’t been much functional innovation in the category for a couple of years, but stylus form factors, batteries, and buttons have changed, generally getting simpler and smaller after each generation. Even so, Adonit’s new Jot Dash ($50) surprised me. It comes less than 6 months after the release of Jot Script 2 (reviewed here), but looks and feels a lot different from its predecessor. Jot Script 2 costs $25 more, feels fairly thick, and uses Bluetooth 4 for (somewhat iffy) palm rejection. Jot Dash cuts both its price and size by dropping the Bluetooth hardware, while keeping the 1.9mm fine writing tip that made Script special.

Why would Adonit simplify its prior electronic styluses by removing Bluetooth? Perhaps because relatively few developers have been willing to add Bluetooth stylus support to their apps. Today, a stylus would be considered to have “good” software support if 30 of the 1.5 million iOS apps included hooks for its special features; Jot Script 2 lists just under 20 fully supported apps. So, like the $60 Lynktec Rechargeable Apex I recently reviewed, Jot Dash doesn’t require special software support — it has a simpler feature set that works with all apps and all iPads, including the iPad Air 2. It similarly includes a rechargeable battery, which gets topped off with any available USB port. The differences are the $10 lower price, and the fact that it feels a lot more like a standard-sized pen…


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Review: Adonit’s Jot Script 2 adds iPad Air 2 support and recharging to a top Bluetooth stylus

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Up until last year, digital styluses — ones with electronic parts inside — worked pretty well across multiple iPad models. Developers including Adonit took over two years to develop electronic iPad writing tools that were thinner-tipped than fingers and rubber-domed styluses, but they succeeded, enabling iPads to serve as notepads and sophisticated canvases for artwork. Then the iPad Air 2 came out, subtly changing the touch-sensing technology that digital styluses relied upon, breaking some and reducing the accuracy of others. Stylus developers quietly acknowledged that new hardware would be needed.

Adonit’s new Jot Script 2 ($75, aka Jot Script 2 Evernote Edition) is the first digital stylus I’ve tested with full iPad Air 2 compatibility. As the sequel to Adonit’s 2013-vintage Jot Script Evernote Edition, it borrows a lot of its predecessor’s design and functionality, but also improves upon it in several ways. Beyond adding iPad Air 2 support, it has a thinner body, and a rechargeable battery rather than a disposable one, all at the same price as last year’s model…


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9to5Toys Last Call: Adonit Jot Touch Bluetooth iPad stylus $50, MacBook stickers BOGO, affordable UHDTVs, more

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the brand new 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: TwitterRSS FeedFacebookGoogle+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

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Adonit Jot Touch w/ Pixelpoint Bluetooth LE pressure sensitive stylus for iPad $50 (Reg. $100)

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MacBook/iPad stickers (multiple options) Buy One, Get One Free: $4 shipped (Reg. $40)

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Amazon flips the switch on free 4K streaming for Prime members, here are the 4K UHDTVs you want to watch it on

More new deals:

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More deals still alive:

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Holiday Gift Guides:

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New products/ongoing promos:

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