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This is the stylus for Apple's new iPad Pro

This is the stylus for Apple's new iPad Pro

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It's called the Apple Pencil

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Apple just announced the new 12.9-inch iPad Pro, its biggest iPad yet. It's a more powerful and more capable iPad than ever before, and it comes with something many thought Apple would never sell with an iOS device: a stylus. It's called the Apple Pencil, and it includes pressure sensitive technology and can be used simultaneously with a finger. Pressing lightly will produce a thin stroke, while firmer pressure can result in a heavier, darker stroke. That's similar to how Samsung's S Pen works on its various Note smartphones and tablets.

The Pencil is an active stylus and is recharged via a Lightning connector hidden inside its body. It can recharge right from the iPad Pro's port and Apple says a full charge offers 12 hours of use. If you're in a hurry, a mere 15 seconds of charging can add 30 minutes of usage time to the Pencil. Physically, the Pencil is round, which means it could roll off your desk fairly easily, and it's much longer than the many third-party styluses that have been available for years.

Apple Pencil

Apple says that a variety of its own apps will support Pencil, including the new Notes and Mail apps in iOS 9. It will also work in third-party apps, including Microsoft's Office suite for the iPad. Adobe's suite of Photoshop apps for the iPad are also being updated to support the Pencil. It's likely that many other third party note-taking and drawing apps will also be swiftly updated with Pencil support.

The Pencil will cost $99 and will be available with the iPad Pro in November.

Apple Pencil announcement photos

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