If this comes to Mac too I will never get an iPad upgrade.![]()
While the Apple Pencil is currently compatible with iPads only, a future version of the accessory may work with Apple's Vision Pro headset.
![Apple-Vision-Pro-and-Apple-Pencil-Feature.jpg]()
Apple has internally tested a new Apple Pencil with visionOS support, according to a source familiar with the matter. This would allow the Apple Pencil to be used with drawing apps on the Vision Pro, such as Freeform and Pixelmator.
No specific details are known about this project, but one possibility is that users would be able to draw with the Apple Pencil on a desk or another flat surface, and the drawing would appear in the open visionOS app. This would essentially turn a person's surroundings into a giant canvas, complete with pressure and tilt sensitivity.
A new Apple Pencil is rumored to launch alongside new iPad Pro and iPad Air models in April, but we have not confirmed if it will support visionOS.
Apple Pencil compatibility with the Vision Pro would also require updated software, but it is unclear which version might add support. The first beta of visionOS 1.2 will likely be made available to developers as early as this week, and Apple is expected to announce visionOS 2 at its annual developers conference WWDC in June.
As with any product that Apple develops, there is no guarantee that the company will move forward with releasing an Apple Pencil with visionOS support.
Article Link: New Apple Pencil With Vision Pro Support in Testing Ahead of visionOS 2
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New Apple Pencil With Vision Pro Support in Testing Ahead of visionOS 2
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Expecting to see other new functionalities too and not just Vision Pro support.
You are literally posting that comment on an article about a product that doesn’t exist yet,
Shallow misdirection. The same "but you are only looking at the current generation" assertion is equally as true for the iPad. A future VP has to catch a future iPad; not the iPad from now or 2-3 years ago.
The battery gap problem and the cellular modem are coupled. Current iPhones largely get better battery life than the original iPhone because they are bigger (i.e., have a bigger battery). The Vision Pro can't really play that game. It is already so big you have to attach it to a external module with a wire. If want to 'hand wave' at a magical future battery that can store more power with less weight, then the iPad can get that too and the gap will still be there.
The Vision Pro has both a Mn and a Rn SoC in there. Tossing a Rn and a cellular modem into the VP is always going to consume more energy than tossing just a cellular modem into an iPad. The Rn presence is very likely going to keep a cellular modem out of the device for an extremely long time. (Wi-Fi tethering to a Phone (or iPad) is likely going to be the 'escape route' path that Apple pursues. ).
Yeah it got better by getting bigger and heavier. Two paths that the VP is pragmatically blocked on; as it is at the limits of "too big , too heavy" to rest on a head for hours at a time.
Basic physics and basic economics aren't going to change in 2039. The middle-upper range iPad have the same SoC as the Vision Pro. The magical future 2039 SoC that the VP gets is very likely going to be matched by the iPad.
All of the magical 2039 tech that extends battery life and gives the VP more computational 'horsepower' at lower energy consumption will be applied to the iPad also. More affordable high resolution screens ... ditto. Better voice recognition for system interaction ... probably coming to other Apple products, including iPad, also . etc. etc.
The standard macrumors go to of telling someone else what they are thinking when the person has said no such thing at all.
There are other threads where some narrow subset of folks said they replaced their Macbook with an iPad and yet the Macbook are still around. There are some folks who replaced their Mac Pro 2010 with a Macbook Pro and yet the Mac Pro is still around also.
The person suffering from mental short sightedness here is largely you. The iPad is going to change; which you are not accounting for at all. Those storage gains referenced above ... the iPad would get excluded how? Not at all.
The $200-300 iPod touch basically got replaced by the $200-300 iPad. Bigger screen and an optional celluiar modem that had utility for a far larger group of people.
Apple's shift to an open ( available on multiple platforms) and streaming music model access (e.g., acquired Beats in 2014) had a bigger impact on the death of the iPod ( in 2015-2022 for 6th-7th gen ) than the iPhone. Throw in the price reduction of plain iPad and those are bigger contributors.
The general iPod had its heyday when the music you bought from Apple was DRM so that the iPod was a easy access (affordable) way to play the music. When that DRM leash started to fade (both in numbers and scope of media that could be sold (apps, video, etc.) ) , so did the iPod.
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Great idea. Instant buy from me.
It might require eink display inside trackpad to be usable as writing device.
Wacom cannot ignore Mac market. I think there would be very little chance of them pulling support.
The iPad doesn't come with a pencil. You can use an iPad without one. iOS is designed to be used without a stylus. That's how they positioned it. Steve Jobs even included a stylus in the iPhone keynote, as a joke.
Vision Pro doesn't need the Apple Pencil in the same way that it doesn't need AirPods Pro. It's an accessory (a rumored one).
2d thinking. You’re assuming progress is linear when in every category of tech we see it is logarithmic, with the AVP being at the start and the iPad already matured. In ten years an iPad is still going to look like an iPad, the AVP has the potential to be something different.
I'm disagreeing with your point.
Having a specialty controller that is useful in some situations (such as a physical keyboard or a stylus) is not the same as being designed around that controller and being useless or barely usable without it.
You did read the title of this article right "New Apple Pencil With Vision Pro Support in Testing Ahead of visionOS 2." seems to make it clear the new Apple Pencil is being designed with the AVP in mind. You can quibble on definitions of pencil and brush, but call it what you will, no one knows for sure how it will be used but it should be interesting.
Seems more a concession the AVP will take advantage of alternative methods for input for specific applications, like they already do with the blue tooth keyboards for text input. Yes you can input text with a virtual keyboard, no doubt paint with your fingers too, but sometimes there is a tool for that. You will say I miss your point, I will say you are trying to score points on a made up issue, and life will go on.
You will never own a AVP, I do, and I am looking forward to seeing what the new Apple Pencil will do.
Right now there are very limited use cases for the VP for 2D artists, so if this Pencil works well (and is real), it could be a big deal for them, and widen the market for the VP for Apple. It’s a niche group but I imagine a sizable one.
But I’m perplexed how this thing would work. Indirect drawing only, where you look at one thing and draw on another? Actually one can already do this in VP’s virtual Mac display with a Wacom tablet. Or will it be air drawing? I hope neither because I’ll go out on a limb and say these are dealbreakers or nonstarters for most pros. I hope Apple has a better solution, even if it means it will require another device like an iPad to be used while using the VP.
And if the Pencil could be used with Mac applications via the VP, that would be an even bigger game changer. But in that case I hope it doesn’t require an iPad because that would be too many devices to deal with every time.
But I’m perplexed how this thing would work. Indirect drawing only, where you look at one thing and draw on another? Actually one can already do this in VP’s virtual Mac display with a Wacom tablet. Or will it be air drawing? I hope neither because I’ll go out on a limb and say these are dealbreakers or nonstarters for most pros. I hope Apple has a better solution, even if it means it will require another device like an iPad to be used while using the VP.
And if the Pencil could be used with Mac applications via the VP, that would be an even bigger game changer. But in that case I hope it doesn’t require an iPad because that would be too many devices to deal with every time.
If they haul the president of Warner Brothers on stage and announce a new immersive Harry Potter game, they might have something interesting.
I just want to say thank you for some actual thoughts for discussion.. it's rare these days. I am concerned that to make this really work there has to be some fundamental software upgrades beyond just making it connect, and not sure Apple is there yet. But I can imagine with its mapping capabilities that it could lead to virtual pieces of paper/canvas being anywhere there is a solid surface. Guess we will find out in June.
Except that it doesn't. Apple's marketing, or really anyone's, is not designed to cover all uses and instances. They don't say you will never need or want any other input device, they say you can control it with your hands. The latter does not imply the former unless you are closing your mind.
All the rumors of the Apple Pencil 3 almost enough for a name change, seems way more than a pencil.
I just sold my Apple Pencil 2 for parts only on ebay for $20. Lithium battery inside died due to not charging it/using it.
I didn’t use the first gen apple pencil either. Suppose I’d use it more if it went inside the keyboard rather than the loose magnet, but overall I found it to be less useful than my fingers.
Hoping the new Magic Keyboard for iPad has a better way of carrying it with the keyboard without adding too much bulk. Certainly will be buying it if it works with Vision Pro. Also will be neat if it has ”find my” feature.
If it’s just swappable magnetic tips for people to draw on ipad only, then I’ll skip it this time around.
Remember to charge your Apple Pencils, they become ”bricks” if you let them sit.
I just sold my Apple Pencil 2 for parts only on ebay for $20. Lithium battery inside died due to not charging it/using it.
I didn’t use the first gen apple pencil either. Suppose I’d use it more if it went inside the keyboard rather than the loose magnet, but overall I found it to be less useful than my fingers.
Hoping the new Magic Keyboard for iPad has a better way of carrying it with the keyboard without adding too much bulk. Certainly will be buying it if it works with Vision Pro. Also will be neat if it has ”find my” feature.
If it’s just swappable magnetic tips for people to draw on ipad only, then I’ll skip it this time around.
Remember to charge your Apple Pencils, they become ”bricks” if you let them sit.
Ouch. That kinda sucks. I use mine a lot so I haven’t had battery issues but that would make me pretty upset. The darn thing should be able to be a little neglected without bricking.