Apple Pencil's 'incredible' design packs 15 semiconductors into small space
Though the Apple Pencil is simple on the outside, the inner workings of the iPad Pro stylus are a major technological achievement, a new analysis from the silicon experts at Chipworks has found.
Upon dissecting the Apple Pencil, Chipworks discovered 15 semiconductors housed inside the 1-gram accessory, measuring just 176 millimeters long, and 9 millimeters thick.
"This is quite incredible for something so small," the chip analyzers concluded.
Their teardown of the Apple Pencil found that Texas Instruments and STMicroelectronics were responsible for the largest share of parts in the stylus. The device also houses chips from Maxim Integrated Products, Cambridge Silicon Radio, SiTime, Bosch, and Fairchild.
Chipworks also found an Apple-branded part inside the tip of the Pencil. Upon taking it apart, they discovered a driver integrated circuit designed and fabricated by STMicroelectronics.
Chipworks has promised much more in the coming weeks, including details on how the stylus and iPad Pro work together. The Apple Pencil can only be used with the iPad Pro, relying on special technology within the 12.9-inch tablet's display.
An earlier, more basic teardown of the Apple Pencil found that the device's logic board is folded in half to fit inside the writing and drawing tool. In its analysis, iFixit declared the Apple Pencil logic board to be the smallest it has ever seen.
The plastic shell of the Apple Pencil also houses a tube-shaped lithium-ion battery, rated at 3.82 volts and 0.329Wh. The device is rated for 12 hours of battery life, while 15 seconds of charging provides 30 minutes of uptime.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities said late last year that the complex design of the Apple Pencil caused hiccups in assembly when the accessory launched. Supply chain yields are expected to improve as Apple's partners become more accustomed to building a new format device.
As of Tuesday, new Apple Pencil orders from the official Apple online store are still advertised with a 4-to-5-week delay before shipping, suggesting demand continues to outstrip supply.
Upon dissecting the Apple Pencil, Chipworks discovered 15 semiconductors housed inside the 1-gram accessory, measuring just 176 millimeters long, and 9 millimeters thick.
"This is quite incredible for something so small," the chip analyzers concluded.
Their teardown of the Apple Pencil found that Texas Instruments and STMicroelectronics were responsible for the largest share of parts in the stylus. The device also houses chips from Maxim Integrated Products, Cambridge Silicon Radio, SiTime, Bosch, and Fairchild.
Chipworks also found an Apple-branded part inside the tip of the Pencil. Upon taking it apart, they discovered a driver integrated circuit designed and fabricated by STMicroelectronics.
Chipworks has promised much more in the coming weeks, including details on how the stylus and iPad Pro work together. The Apple Pencil can only be used with the iPad Pro, relying on special technology within the 12.9-inch tablet's display.
An earlier, more basic teardown of the Apple Pencil found that the device's logic board is folded in half to fit inside the writing and drawing tool. In its analysis, iFixit declared the Apple Pencil logic board to be the smallest it has ever seen.
The plastic shell of the Apple Pencil also houses a tube-shaped lithium-ion battery, rated at 3.82 volts and 0.329Wh. The device is rated for 12 hours of battery life, while 15 seconds of charging provides 30 minutes of uptime.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities said late last year that the complex design of the Apple Pencil caused hiccups in assembly when the accessory launched. Supply chain yields are expected to improve as Apple's partners become more accustomed to building a new format device.
As of Tuesday, new Apple Pencil orders from the official Apple online store are still advertised with a 4-to-5-week delay before shipping, suggesting demand continues to outstrip supply.
Comments
I am looking forward to 3rd party grips. I'd prefer something a bit thicker & grippier.
Maybe the same 3rd party will make some 4th Gen AppleTV Siri Remote grips to help me tell front from back end.
I have grown so sensitive to the junk that is being spread by them, I just can't bear to read any word of them anymore.
It's the same size isn't it?
I just wish iPad Pro uses a magnet to hold the pencil. There is some magnetic attraction on the side where you dock the keyboard but it doesn't hold it.
I do wonder how the Pencil manage to work so well and how it interacts with iPad Pro seems like a mystery. If you put paper over iPad Pro, it still registers just fine. Even with three papers on display, it will still work. I just don't understand how it exactly interacts.
That may explain why Pencil is quite a complex stylus.
However, the battery drain is pretty terrible. If you use it regularly, it seems to run out of juice much faster than it should. Annoying, and I hate how it charges.