This year, Apple added a breath of fresh air to its iPad lineup, pitting its most affordable entry-level model against an even better tablet. The 2022 iPad features the now-familiar design language of the iPad Pro, iPad Air, and iPad Mini. What’s more, it also brings the USB-C port of these models. It even has some fun new colors to choose from.
Unfortunately, the latest 10th-generation iPad isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. While it gets some nice improvements outside of the design, including an upgrade to the A14 chip in the iPhone 12, a better 12-megapixel (MP) camera, and 5G connectivity, it’s oddly left behind when it comes to the Apple Pencil back.
Can I use Apple Pencil with my 2022 iPad?
Apple’s entire line of tablets has offered support for the Apple Pencil since the sixth-generation iPad joined in 2018. This year’s iPad is no exception. What’s unusual about the 2022 iPad is that it seems stuck in the past when it comes to Apple’s stylus.
Specifically, the new entry-level iPad still only supports the first-generation Apple Pencil. This is the stylus that Apple introduced with the original 12.9-inch iPad Pro in 2015, and was replaced by the second-generation Apple Pencil in the iPad Pro lineup in 2018.
When the iPad Air and iPad Mini get similar designs in 2020 and 2021, they also get support for the second-generation Apple Pencil. Apple’s strategy seems clear: the traditional iPad uses the first-generation Apple Pencil, while the modern-design iPad uses an improved second-generation stylus.
It’s a good theory, but it doesn’t appear to be the playbook Apple follows. The 2022 iPad has a similar design to the iPad Air released earlier this year, but it doesn’t support the same Apple Pencil as the more premium model.
How do I charge the Apple Pencil on my 2022 iPad?
People with the new iPad will miss out on two of the best features the second-generation Apple Pencil has to offer: wireless charging and convenient storage.
The original Apple Pencil relied on wired charging, transferring power through a Lightning connector on one end. Users can plug the stylus into the iPad’s Lightning port for fast charging, or use the included female-to-female Lightning adapter to connect to a standard USB-to-Lightning cable and charger.
When Apple introduced the second-generation Apple Pencil, it went head-to-head with the iPad Pro with flat edges and a magnetic base on one side. The new Apple Pencil attaches magnetically to this spot on the iPad Pro, and once in place, it also automatically transfers charging power to it.
One of the reasons the newer Apple Pencil has never appeared in traditional iPad designs is simply because these models can’t charge the stylus. These older iPads were not designed for this type of magnetic charging, as there was nowhere to dock the Apple Pencil to the tapered edge. However, as Apple brought a new flat-edged design to the iPad Air and iPad Mini, it also added a magnetic charger, which introduced compatibility with the second-generation Apple Pencil for both models.
Sadly, despite the 2022 iPads having the same flat edges, Apple didn’t include a magnetic charger with this model, so it’s not compatible with the newer Apple Pencil.
Instead, the 2022 iPad remains the only current Apple tablet that doesn’t support the second-generation Apple Pencil. That means those who want to use the stylus with this iPad will still need to charge it the old-fashioned way — either from an external charger or from the port on the bottom of the iPad.
To make matters worse, switching to USB-C makes this even more complicated. Since the first-generation Apple Pencil still uses the Lightning connector, iPad users who want to charge the stylus via the iPad’s charger will need to use a USB-C to Apple Pencil adapter.
As silly as it may seem, you can plug the original Apple Pencil directly into the bottom of a Lightning-equipped iPad. Doing the same on the 2022 iPad with USB-C now requires you to carry a dongle and a cable with you to pair the Lightning port on the stylus with the USB-C port on the iPad.
Specifically, you’ll need the aforementioned USB-C to Apple Pencil adapter, a $9 dongle with a female USB-C port on one end and a female Lightning port on the other. Apple now includes it in the box with the new first-generation Apple Pencils, but if you already own a stylus from previous iPad models, you’ll have to buy one separately. Then you need to connect this dongle with the USB-C to USB-C cable that came with the iPad.
You don’t need to charge the Apple Pencil directly from the iPad, so if you already own an Apple Pencil and haven’t lost the included small Lightning charging adapter, you can plug it into a standard Lightning cable and a USB power adapter. You can also Use the original dongle with a USB-C to Lightning cable to charge directly from your 2022 iPad.
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