Best Apple Pencil Alternatives With Pressure Sensitivity [2023]

Having recently dwelled in digital arts and calligraphy, I have been in the market for a pressure-sensitive Apple Pencil alternative.

The Apple Pencils are an expensive investment, especially when starting out on your digital art journey.

But what surprised me was the sheer lack of alternative Apple Pencil options with pressure sensitivity, with most brands omitting the feature for other goodies.

Having very few materials to go with, here are my recommendations of the best Apple Pencil alternatives that I could find that natively support pressure sensitivity.

Adonit Note+	The best alternative to 2nd Gen Apple Pencil
Adonit Pixel	Best Alternative to 1st Gen Apple Pencil
SonarPen	Most Compatible Stylus

The best 2nd Gen Apple Pencil alternative that supports pressure sensitivity is the Adonit Note+. The best 1st Gen Apple Pencil alternative is the Adonit Pixel. An alternative stylus pen with pressure sensitivity that is the most compatible across all iPad models and operating systems is the SonarPen.

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Adonit Note+:Best Alternative to 2nd Gen Apple Pencil

Adonit is one of the few reputable brands that still make stylus pens with pressure sensitivity for iPads.

Here is a brief outline of the specifications and features that the Adonit Note+ promises:

Dimensions	6.02" x 0.41" x 0.41" (15.2 cm x 1.04 cm x 1.04 cm)
Weight of stylus pen	0.03 lbs (15 g)
Material used	Plastic(PC+ABS) Metal
Pressure sensitivity	✓ 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity
Palm rejection	✓
Tilt support	✓
Replaceable tips	✓
LED status indicators	✓
Charging standard	Type C
Charging time	1 hr
Battery life	10 hrs of continuous use
Shortcut buttons	✓ Two programmable buttons
Compatible iPads	6th Gen iPad 7th Gen iPad 8th Gen iPad 3rd Gen iPad Air 4th Gen iPad Air 5th Gen iPad Mini 6th Gen iPad Mini 11" iPad Pro 3rd Gen 12.9" iPad Pro 4th Gen 12.9" iPad Pro 5th Gen 12.9" iPad Pro
Compatible OS	iOS 13.3 or above

The Adonit Note+ is currently one of the best alternatives for the 2nd gen Apple Pencil that supports a pressure-sensitive tip.

The Adonit Note+ supports almost all essential features that are supported by the Apple Pencil 2nd gen, making it an ideal replacement for casual users.

It supports a very healthy 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity, making it ideal for a lot of simple pressure-sensitive tasks.

But it doesn't come close to the 4096 levels of sensitivity that the 2nd generation Apple Pencil boasts, but the difference might often be negligible for a beginner.

Palm rejection and tilt support are other fantastic features that have been ported from the Apple Pencil to the Adonit.

Coming to the battery and charging situation, the Adonit Note+ can run for a whole 10 hours of continuous usage on a full charge.

The stylus pen also charges up fairly quickly, with it requiring only an hour to fully juice up from a dead state.

In conclusion, the Adonit Note+ is an excellent replacement for a 2nd Gen Apple Pencil at $70.

Adonit Pixel: Best Alternative to 1st Gen Apple Pencil

Thanks to Apple's incorporation of different tech and modus operandi for each of their Apple Pencil models, they both are not backward compatible with each other.

This applies to third-party alternatives as well, and therefore you will have to resort to a different Adonit model if you have an iPad that natively supports the Apple Pencil 1.

The Adonit Pixel is the best alternative for such users.

Here is a brief outline of the specifications and features that the Adonit Pixel promises:

Dimensions	5.91" x 0.41" x 0.41" (15.01 cm x 1.04 cm x 1.04 cm)
Weight of stylus pen	0.04 lbs (18.1 g)
Material used	Plastic(PC+ABS) Metal
Pressure sensitivity	✓ 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity
Palm rejection	✓
Tilt support	❌
LED status indicators	✓ Green- full battery Orange- low battery Red- no battery
Replaceable tips	✓
Charging standard	Magnetic cradle
Charging time	1.5 hr
Battery life	11 hrs of continuous use
Shortcut buttons	✓
Compatible iPads	3rd Gen iPad 4th Gen iPad 5th Gen iPad 6th Gen iPad 7th Gen iPad 8th Gen iPad 1st Gen iPad Mini 2nd Gen iPad Mini 3rd Gen iPad Mini 4th Gen iPad Mini 1st Gen iPad Air 2nd Gen iPad Air 3rd Gen iPad Air 4th Gen iPad Air
Compatible OS	iOS 12.2 and above

Adonit Pixel sports a trademark Pixel Point Tip which, according to Adonit, provides increased accuracy and a natural paper-like writing texture to your strokes.

The pressure sensitivity is capped at 2048 levels, making it a very decent option for older and cheaper iPads that utilize the 1st gen Apple Pencils natively.

All the essential goodies such as palm rejection are built in, with the exception of tilt support, which can be a slight bummer for some.

The Adonit Pixel, just like the Note+ also has shortcut buttons, something missing on the 1st gen Apple Pencils which can completely elevate your user experience.

This brings essential functions such as undo, erase, etc much more accessible directly from the pen without needing to fiddle around with the settings.

The charging is also very good compared to competing products, with the Adonit Pixel providing 11 hours of continuous use .

The Adonit Pixel charges using a magnetic cradle and takes about 90 minutes to fully charge.

SonarPen: Most Compatible Stylus

SonarPen is a very innovative active stylus solution that does not cater to a traditional modus operandi, with pressure sensitivity being its main USP (Unique Selling Point).

Thanks to its radically different mode of operation, this is the only stylus pen on this list that is pressure sensitive and supported across all iPads, irrespective of model.

Here is a brief outline of the specifications and features that the SonarPen promises:

Dimensions	6.1" x 0.59" x 0.59" (15.5cm x 1.5 cm x 1.5 cm)
Weight of stylus pen	0.24 lbs (110 g)
Material used	Plastic(PC+ABS) Metal
Pressure sensitivity	✓
Palm rejection	✓
Tilt support	❌
Replaceable tips	✓
Charging standard	Plug and play using a 3.5 mm jack Connects to newer iPads using 3.5 to type C dongle
Shortcut buttons	✓
Compatible iPads	All iPads excluding 1st-Gen iPad
Compatible OS	iOS 8 and above

The SonarPen is an interesting case, in that it specifically uses a radically different technology just to enable pressure-sensitive inputs.

Although it does not support tilt support, there is natural palm rejection built in.

The main selling point that lets the SonarPen stands out from its Adonit competition is that this requires no batteries for operation.

The SonarPen simply plugs in directly to your iPad via a 3.5mm port, making it one of the most compatible stylus pens bar none.

In fact, this is the only active stylus solution with pressure sensitivity support that works across almost all the iPads regardless of model, as well as most other operating systems.

This includes support for iOS, Nintendo Switch consoles, Android, Chromebooks, Linux, etc. as long as the device supports an input that takes in the 3.5mm jack.

Even if your device doesn't have a 3.5mm port, like most modern iPads and devices, you can still make the setup work using a converter dongle.

This seamless and simple technology in short is also responsible for the SonarPen being one of the cheapest devices on this list.

Final Thoughts

It is clearly evident that not a lot of alternatives come close to the utility that the Apple Pencils provide.

Wacom did delve into the pressure-sensitive active stylus space with the Wacom Bamboo Fineline, but it has been years since they have updated the models.

Despite its high asking price, the Apple Pencils seem worthy of your digital art and calligraphy arsenal.

I hope my article on the alternatives for Apple Pencil that supports pressure sensitivity has been a helpful read and has aided you with the same.

Have a good day!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Do MacBooks support Apple Pencil?

Macbooks do not have a touch screen and therefore cannot support any stylus input, let alone Apple Pencil.

Is Apple Pencil an active or passive stylus?

Apple Pencil is an active stylus since it uses external power from its inbuilt battery to detect and input strokes on an iPad screen.

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