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Among many of the things that make an iPad popular, it is the ease of drawing that helps it stands out from the competition. Many artists around the world use it for sketching and bring their ideas to life. But an iPad is not enough. You'd need an equally good stylus to be able to draw with the utmost level of accuracy and finesse. But the stylus isn't cheap.
The default stylus for iPads, Apple Pencil, comes at a price tag of $129 approximately. And this doesn't come bundled with the iPad either. Styli of other brands with the same capabilities easily breach the $80 price tag.
So you might be wondering what’s so special about these styli that they cost so much. In this article, you’ll learn about how iPad styli are useful for drawing.
How does Stylus work on iPad?
To understand how a stylus is useful for sketching and drawing on the iPad, you must understand the working principle in the first place.
The stylus comes from the word "Stylus' which is a writing utensil used for markings or shaping in pots. With this tool, potters created the artwork on their pots, which were later sold in the market. The better the design, the higher the price was set.
In electronics, a stylus is a pen-shaped tool that is used to interact with a touchscreen device. Instead of a sharp tip that is found in regular pens, the stylus comes with a round or pointed rubber piece that glides across the screen. Touch-sensitive screens sense the stylus movement and draw it accordingly on the digital canvas. That's the basic working principle.
Touchscreen devices have been around for quite some decades now. The earliest ones were called resistive touch screens. They had two layers of conductive materials sandwiched beneath the screen. When there’s pressure applied on the surface, the layers come in contact, which creates a closed circuit. That’s how the device knows where the touch occurred.
The modern touchscreen devices are called Captive touchscreens. They use a variation of the electrical field and not the traditional pressure control technique. When you touch the screen, it changes the area electrically, thus registering the spot as a touchpoint. The device then responds accordingly.
Why a Stylus?
Now that you know that the touchscreens of today are advanced enough to sense a finger touch, you might be wondering if a stylus is worth purchasing. But a stylus offers much more than a way for you to touch the screen.
Just like there are two types of touchscreens, there are two types of style. One is an Active Stylus, and another is a Passive or Capacitive Stylus. The former includes an electronic component at the tip, which is sharp and pointing. This allows you to adjust pressure sensitivity. You can draw both lighter and heavier lines by making slight pressure adjustments. Because of the electrical component, there's continuous communication between the stylus and touchscreen device. So you can even rest your palm on the screen without creating interference.
On the other hand, the passive stylus does not have that electrical component and is provided with a rubber material instead. This makes it less sensitive to touch.
By using an active stylus, you’ll have more precise control on your iPad. For drawing, you’ll be using paintbrushes to enhance the design work. That’s where touch sensitivity can make or break a design.
The use of stylus also comes from a hygiene standpoint. With a stylus, you can avoid touching your iPad screen with your fingers. Since fingers can be sweaty and bacterial at times, you won't necessarily want to contaminate your screen with them. A stylus never sweats, nor will there be any risk of bacterial transmission. Thus, it will keep your iPad safe for use.
You don't have to limit the use of the stylus to the iPad. You can use it for mobile devices and touch laptops too. In a small screen of a mobile device, precision touch becomes even more essential. This accuracy will help you eliminate typos.
To Sum up
For your iPad, Apple Pencil should be the first choice. You’ll get an active stylus that works with precision and a quality product from Apple. But the current stylus being sold are compatible only with the third-generation iPad Pro, both with the 12.9-inch and 11-inch screens. For other models, you can settle with styli from Adonit, Samsung, or Wacom.
