ZAGG - Pro Stylus - Black

For those of you looking to get an Apple pencil for your iPad but are turned off by the extraordinary price tag, this would be a great comparable, low cost option. I recently purchased a 12.9 iPad Pro and also got the Gen 2 Apple pencil with it. It was an impulse purchase but if you’re spending over $1k on an tablet, what’s a hundred or so more right? The Apple Pencil works great as it should and battery life is great. Obviously, the biggest turn off for the Apple Pencil is the price tag. Spending $150 or so on a pen seems ridiculous. But, for those who are in graphic design or other creative professions, the pen is almost a must have. As with any 3rd party accessory, I’m always leery that it’ll be a limited version of the OEM product. The same held true for this Zagg pen so I was expecting a lower brand knock off of the Apple Pencil. Much to my surprise, it works very well and seems to have the same functionality of the Apple Pencil. As far as size/weight, this pen is almost identical to the Apple Pencil. Length wise, they’re the same however the Zagg pen feels a smidge lighter. The Apple Pencil feels a bit more solid while the Zagg pen seems empty(er) inside. Big drawback for me, like with the Apple Pencil, is that the Zagg pen is really smooth so it’s hard to maintain a good grip for me. Also, the squishy, stylish end of the pen isn’t something I really use. I much prefer the pencil tip for my applications. One of the things that concerned me about the pen was that it should work for most applications. Fair to say that, this being a 3rd party accessory, one could expect that it wouldn’t function exactly like the Apple Pencil. For the apps that I use, this pen works perfectly fine with them. I’m not a heavy user of things like Photoshop or Adobe however I use some popular apps like PenUltimate, Notability and Evernote. I also use Sketchbook quite a bit too. In all of these apps, I don’t notice any limited functionality. Touches are registered just like the Apple Pencil does. You can easily write/draw with the pen and it doesn’t register your palm if it’s touching the screen. The only difference that I noticed is that this pen won’t detect/register pencil strokes at an extreme angle. The Apple Pencil will however the Zagg pen is very choppy when used at extreme angles. Not a huge thing but just something I noticed. The back half of the pen slides up to reveal the USB-C charging port. Included in the box is a USB-C charging cable (about a foot long) and an extra pencil tip. The one nagging thing I have with this pen is that you can’t tell if it’s on. When you turn the pen on/off, a ring of light shows up to let you know the pen is powered on/off however you can’t tell IF it’s been turned off or on. I would’ve preferred the light stay on or pulse to let you know the pen is on. Not a big issue but just something that would’ve been nice. That said, if you want a pen for your iPad but don’t want to pay retail price on the Apple Pencil, this is a great alternative. It’s cheaper than the Apple Pencil and, from what I’ve seen, works just like the Apple Pencil.

This stylus brings you most of the functionality of the Apple Pencil, at a fraction of the cost. Really the only big feature that is missing is the wireless charging while magnetically attached to the side of the iPad Pro, the Zagg stylus still attaches perfectly! In my opinion, I believe the color and styling of the Zagg pencil matches the iPad better than the Apple version. It came fully charged and ready to use out of the box, with very easy to follow instructions... push the button and use it. To turn it off, push and hold until the light comes on and fizzles out. I can't reiterate enough how incredibly easy this is to use with the latest iPad Pros. The images I've included are from my experience with the latest 11" iPad Pro, the tilt shading and palm rejection work perfectly! Charging was quick and easy, the built-in USB-C port worked with my existing charger and the battery lasted through 4 days of heavy usage, I can only imagine that once the honeymoon phase ends and it goes to regular usage, the battery will probably go for a week or more! The device is very accurate and works great with Apple's low latency screen, the capacitive nub works great on iPhones, Androids, and most other touchscreens. All around, this is an incredible value! I would definitely recommend this for anyone looking for all the excellent function of an Apple Pencil, without the price tag and okay with losing the wireless charging in exchange for a convenient charging port.

I used the Zagg Pro Stylus to draw in Procreate, Adobe Sketch, and Notes, but unfortunately I found that it doesn’t deliver the quality I expected. The tilt recognition attempts to emulate pressure sensitivity that is possible in drawing apps. In order to vary the width of the stroke, the user must tilt gradually rather than apply light or hard pressure to get a thin or thick line. The exclusion of pressure sensitivity alone on a ‘pro’ stylus is a huge con for me. The lack of pressure detection may have docked this a few stars, but the real hindrance was the constant breaking of a drawn line. The more I tilt, the more the line skips and breaks. This device works better as a regular stylus despite it being marketed to work well with Apple Pencil Apps for designing and drawing. The Pros: This package includes an extra nib. No bluetooth pairing required. The stylus has a flat edge that allows for easy magnetic storage on the iPad. Charging takes a reasonable time and is made possible with the included USB-C cable. It features a capacitive backend tip for scrolling/selecting. The design/color looks very nice. Unfortunately, the Pros are lost with the underwhelming performance of the key features and are far outweighed by the Cons. While it’s nice to get an extra nib, I found that the initial nib made a lot of skips and the second nib skipped less, but even one break in a line ruins that particular brush stroke. Drawing a single stroke to achieve a thicker or thinner line wasn’t always easy. On many brush types, when the tilt recognition was activated, it was either a thin line or a thick line at the tilt, no in between. This device must be turned on and off with the button or risk depleting the battery if left on. It will only charge via the charging cable. Day 1, I accidentally left it on, so Day 2 started off with a dead stylus. The instructions fail to discuss the stylus’s button: - Single press will turn the stylus on (you’ll see the white indicator light go from dim to bright) - Long press will turn the stylus off (you’ll see the white indicator light start bright then dim) - There is a button combination that will flash green or orange, I assume to indicate battery life, but I don’t know how to recreate that indication with certainty If you’re a digital artist, I would not recommend this. Until the nib or pen performance stops breaking a drawn line, artists cannot use this stylus to draw seamlessly.

The Zagg Pro Stylus allows you to take a compatible iPad to the next level of use. If you have a fairly recent iPad Pro, the most recent iPad mini, or the 2020 iPad (general), you should be able to use the Zagg Pro Stylus in place of “other” brands meant for those devices. With it, you can draw, write, sketch, and sign documents. The Zagg Pro is a dark Grey color, and about 6 ½ inches long. A replaceable tip is on the end, and on the other end is a soft standard stylus tip you can use for simple things like navigating web pages, etc, without smudging up your screen with your fingers. A power button with a status light ring lies near the top, which also slides up a bit to reveal a USB-C charging port. There is a flatter edge to the otherwise roundish body, which is magnetized, so if you are using a compatible iPad or case, the Zagg will stick to it magnetically. A short charging cable and one extra tip are included in the box. In theory, you need only to make sure your Bluetooth is turned on with your compatible iPad, and the Stylus should immediately sync up to it so you can begin using it. I had to try a few times to get it to sync up to mine, but once I did, it worked fine. Tip: I was told by a rep from Zagg that if you have an Apple Pencil already synced to your iPad, you may have to un-sync that one before tying to connect the Zagg to avoid interference in the settings. Once I did this, the stylus connected fine, though you may not actually see it listed in your device area (it just begins to work). The Pro Stylus recognizes if you are tilting it, so it will (slightly) vary the thickness of the line you are drawing using appropriate tool settings in many apps. It takes about 50 minutes to fully charge, and offers about 9 hours of use per charge. I find it easy to hold and angle in my hand, offering good tilting angles and pressure variations. The color is more pleasing to me than a stark White. At around $75 (approx.), it’s a little less costly than other offerings, though I wouldn’t mind seeing it sold for maybe a bit less when compared to the growing list of other offerings hitting the market now. I can’t yet comment on the longevity of the tips, but will update if there are any oddities in that regard – so far it feels just fine on the screen, though. My only negative impressions are a short battery life in-between chargings (compared to other offerings), fiddly initial connections, and the small light ring just above the power button being a bit confusing – you see it light up when turned on and pairing, but no indication when you are truly powering it off. None of these are deal breakers to me, but things I think could be improved on. As we work and school from home much more now in this new normal, having some type of stylus for your iPad if that’s what you are using, is much more of a necessity. The Zagg Pro Stylus is worth at least trying out.

Less expensive than the Apple Penicl, this Zagg Pro Stylus works on iPad 6th and 7th gen., iPad Pro 11-inch 1st and 2nd gen., and iPad Pro 12.9-inch 3rd and 4th gen. It makes a great alternative with its gray/black design matching the space gray iPad designs much better than the white Apple Pencil. There is a battery level indicator on the stylus and it uses type C charging. I found this to be one versatile stylus and something I didn’t think I needed, but ended up being a great tool to further enhance the iPad.

I have an iPad Pro from 2019 that I use for all of my work-related tasks at home. I have paired it with the Zagg Rugged Book Go keyboard case, which has worked flawlessly since I've had the iPad, as well as the second generation Apple Pencil. Apple products carry a premium price tag, and the Apple Pencil, as I am sure you know, is no different at $130. When I received the opportunity to review the Zagg Pro Stylus, a possible alternative to the Apple Pencil, I jumped on the opportunity. I utilized the Zagg Pro Stylus with the idea of comparing it to the venerable old Apple Pencil. My Zagg Pro Stylus came in a gray color, and just holding it demonstrates a key difference between it and the Apple Pencil. The Pro Stylus is lightweight and feels like it is made from some kind of aluminum. The second-generation Apple Pencil is the same weight, but feels like it is made entirely from plastic. The ends of the Pro Stylus are terminated in a plastic writing tip and a rubber capacitance tip, while the second-generation Apple Pencil just has the writing tip. The instructions say the Pro Stylus's capacitance tip is made for scrolling and selecting items on the iPad, and the writing tip is for, well, you know, writing. However, I was able to use the writing tip to scroll and select items on the iPad also, so I am assuming Zagg is giving users the ability to decide whether they would rather use the soft capacitance tip for browsing around on the iPad or the harder, plastic tip. The Pro Stylus does not charge like the second-generation Apple Pencil does. You can't just magnetically attach it to the side of the iPad and it won't charge itself (although it will magnetically attach, it just won't charge in that position). Instead, the top of the pencil that holds the rubber capacitance tip pulls up and there is a USB-C charging port there. The Pro Stylus comes with a short USB-C cable (no power supply) for charging it. The directions say that the Pro Stylus is already charged, just push the button located near the top and start using it. The Apple Pencil uses Bluetooth to connect to the iPad, but the Pro Stylus does not. At first, I went into the Bluetooth screen of the iPad, thinking I would have to go through the connection process, but the Pro Stylus does not show up there. No Bluetooth connection is needed. A cool function of the second-generation Apple Pencil is the ability to double-tap the barrel of it while writing, and it will switch to erase mode. Due to its lack of Bluetooth connection, the Pro Stylus doesn't have that function. However, as a writing/drawing device, it worked perfectly. Palm rejection on my iPad Pro was excellent, and tilting the Pro Stylus as different angles resulted in different writing thickness. When using the Apple Notes app, writing with the Pro Stylus at no angle resulted in a small, compact stroke. Tilting the Pro Stylus at varying angles resulted in broader, thicker strokes. Drawing within the Evernotes app was quite pleasant. My daughter, who is an accomplished artist, felt like the Pro Stylus held a slight edge over the second-generation Apple Pencil when it came to control during sketching. If I can give the greatest compliment possible to the Pro Stylus, it would be to say, "It just works." That may be oversimplified, but I love components that require nothing more than to turn them on and they do their job. The Pro Stylus is that way. I've had the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil lose connection at times, I've had the Apple Pencil not charge for whatever reason while attached to the iPad, but I didn't have any moments during my review period of the Pro Stylus where I thought, "Now, why isn't that working?" If you don't feel like dropping $130 on the second-generation Apple Pencil, the Zagg Pro Stylus is a less expensive alternative that will still give you the ability to write on the iPad and have a capacitance tip for scrolling. Highly recommended.

The Zagg Pro stylus is a third party alternative to the pencil for the iPad boasting tilt recognition, palm rejection, USB C charging, and replaceable tips. The stylus works with recent iPads, and the iPad Pro. Physically, the Zagg is a nice solid aluminum that matches the space gray color of the iPad Pro pretty well. It is round with one flat end, reminding me somewhat of the Microsoft Surface Pen. It has only one button, for power. The stylus offers a USB-C port for charging, hidden in the barrel of the stylus near the top. Pulling the darker plastic portion up reveals the port and locks into place lightly with a nice click. In that same area is a LED ring around the pen showing charging status and will flash when powered on. The very top of the pen is a standard capacitive rubberized stylus end, giving a backup and more generic alternative to using your finger. The build quality is excellent, and it feels more premium than the pencil in my experience. The aluminum adds just enough heft and strength, avoiding the bendy feeling the pencil has. The tips are replaceable, and an extra tip comes in the box. The tip screws on, and provides a smooth feel, akin to a ballpoint pen. Indeed, the stylus feels inspired by the Surface Pen, so if you’re looking for a stylus that more closely mimics that stylus, the Zagg comes closer than any other I’ve used for the iPad. Even the ‘eraser’ stylus end reminds me of the pen. The Zagg Pro stylus connects solidly to the iPad Pro via magnets. It connects naturally like a first party product, with a solid feel. Much like any magnetic stylus, the strength is enough for day to day use, but can be accidentally removed pretty easily, and would most likely fall off in a bag. Still, this is a great feature and something that really adds to the first-party feel of the product. The performance of the stylus is excellent. The active tip, while lacking any pressure sensitivity, does offer tilt recognition and tracks fast. Of third party styli available for the iPad, this feels most like a grown up Logitech Crayon, which itself is a great product. The Zagg Pro does all that stylus does while offering USB-C, magnetic connection, and a professional feel and look. Drawing had no trails or artifacts. Essentially if you can live without pressure sensitivity, this stylus has few downsides. My son wanted to try it out on his (7th gen) iPad, and it went from drawing on my iPad Pro to working immediately on his iPad. The disconnected active stylus means you can use it on as many iPads as you want. This is nice flexibility in a family with multiple iPads. If you’re looking for a professional looking stylus and just don’t want to spend the premium for the pencil, the Zagg Pro is really good. It looks, feels, and acts much like a Surface Pen, which is a compliment in every way. It’s simple, offers a good charging port, and replaceable tips. The solid magnetic connection to the iPad Pro makes it feel like a first party addition, and the performance is excellent. Again, there is no pressure sensitivity here, but tilt works extremely well. Overall, I like it better than my experience with the first gen Pencil. In my writing/note taking/scribbling, I don’t feel the loss of the pressure sensitivity, so I highly recommend this stylus.

The Zagg pro stylus is the best stylus I have used. In the Box - The packaging is nicely done which can be kept and used to store the stylus. The stylus comes with a USB-A to USB-C charging cord. It also contains an extra replacement tip and a quick start guide. The stylus is magnetic so it will stick to the iPad without scratching it. Active - You simply push the button and it turns on and off. No pairing or bluetooth connection is required Charging - This stylus does not charge via the iPad like the Apple Pencil but it has a USB-C port that allows for charging. The battery lasts a long time and the light on the stylus shows battery life if you press the power button while using. I don't see a big problem with the USB-C charging for the following reasons: The cost is much less than the Apple Pencil and it does not take away any charge from your iPad. Writing/Drawing - the capacitive tip glides smoothly on the iPad's screen and allows anywhere from fine to blunt writing or drawing. It has a blunt rubber top which you can use to scroll screens on the iPad or some drawing apps use it for an eraser. Tilt recognition is built-in so apps can take advantage to make the lines in your drawing vary by the angle you are holding the stylus. Palm rejection is built-in so you can rest your hand on the screen while writing and not leave artifacts on your drawing. I really like that I can annotate on documents or PDF files which will then be saved so I can send the annotated document or PDF file to others with my markup. Summary - Overall this is a great stylus for the iPad and the best one I have used.