New iPad requires USB-C Apple Pencil adapter for pairing & charging

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in iPad edited October 2022
Apple's new 10.9-inch iPad comes with USB-C instead of Lightning, and that means users can't charge or pair that Apple Pencil without an adapter.

The required new first-generation Apple Pencil adapter
The required new first-generation Apple Pencil adapter


While the new iPad has adopted both USB-C and the flat-edge design of the iPad Pro and iPad Air, it will not work with the same second generation Apple Pencil that those models do.

Instead, it is limited to the original, or first-generation Apple Pencil, which Apple continues to sell four years after introducing its successor. Apple is now making a change to the original Apple Pencil, but only in that new ones will be sold with a USB-C to Apple Pencil adapter.

"A new USB-C to Apple Pencil Adapter is required for pairing and charging and is included in the box with a new version of Apple Pencil (1st generation)," says Apple. "For existing owners of Apple Pencil (1st generation), the USB-C to Apple Pencil Adapter is sold separately."

The Apple Pencil first generation still costs $99. The USB-C to Apple Pencil adapter costs $9.

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 30
    CheeseFreezeCheeseFreeze Posts: 1,353member
    If they'd adopted an actual standard years ago, we wouldn't have to be in dongle nightmare today. 
    And no wireless charging is just an ridiculously bad user experience. A pen sticking out the port... pfffff....
    williamlondonstarof80curtis hannahsandor
  • Reply 2 of 30
    thttht Posts: 5,765member
    That image doesn't make sense. Doesn't it need to have a USBC male side to slot into the female side of an iPad? The other side is Lightning to stick a 1st gen Pencil in.
  • Reply 3 of 30
    coolfactorcoolfactor Posts: 2,343member
    CheeseFreeze said:
    If they'd adopted an actual standard years ago, we wouldn't have to be in dongle nightmare today. 
    And no wireless charging is just an ridiculously bad user experience. A pen sticking out the port... pfffff....

    Lightning predates USB-C.

    I do agree that the Pencil should charge wirelessly, but there's no "standard" for that yet, so in line with your thinking, how can they adopt a standard which doesn't yet exist?  :wink: 
    williamlondonauxiowatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 30
    rapcatmeowrapcatmeow Posts: 35member
    tht said:
    That image doesn't make sense. Doesn't it need to have a USBC male side to slot into the female side of an iPad? The other side is Lightning to stick a 1st gen Pencil in.
    You are right. You’ll probably need a USB C cable to go between this dongle and the iPad
    watto_cobracurtis hannah
  • Reply 5 of 30
    bloggerblogbloggerblog Posts: 2,538member
    This whole Apple Pencil charging thing is a brain fart
    dewmenetroxwilliamlondonentropys
  • Reply 6 of 30
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,821member
    I have to agree with those who think Apple cut a little too deep by foisting the Apple Pencil 1 on this new iPad. I know they wanted to create price space for the iPad Air, but even the Apple Pencil 2 seems like a last-gen product at this point, while the Apple Pencil 1 is downright primitive. The charging doohickey, i.e., techno-wart, for making the Apple Pencil 1 work with the new iPad only accentuates the severity of poor decision making on Apple's part. They should have known better.
    williamlondonbloggerblogAlex1Ncurtis hannahmuthuk_vanalingambyronl
  • Reply 7 of 30
    DAalsethDAalseth Posts: 3,094member
    tht said:
    That image doesn't make sense. Doesn't it need to have a USBC male side to slot into the female side of an iPad? The other side is Lightning to stick a 1st gen Pencil in.
    You are right. You’ll probably need a USB C cable to go between this dongle and the iPad
    I HOPE that is the case. Having the pencil sticking out hanging on the plug just waiting for anything from a misplaced coffee cup, to a dropped book, to a stray cat to snap it off was absurd. That they didn’t have even a few inches of wire between the iPad and the Apple Penvil as a shock absorber was just stupid. A clear example of form crippling function. I used an ApplePencil 1, for several years, and was ALWAYS afraid of breaking it off. 
    edited October 2022 Alex1N
  • Reply 8 of 30
    mike1mike1 Posts: 3,444member
    CheeseFreeze said:
    If they'd adopted an actual standard years ago, we wouldn't have to be in dongle nightmare today. 
    And no wireless charging is just an ridiculously bad user experience. A pen sticking out the port... pfffff....

    Oh please. Then you would have complained about the transition years ago.
    Over the next year or so, I will throw away about a dozen or more lightening cables for no good reason and then spend extra $$ to replace them just to have a USB-C connector. It is what it is, I guess

    lkruppwilliamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 30
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    mike1 said:
    CheeseFreeze said:
    If they'd adopted an actual standard years ago, we wouldn't have to be in dongle nightmare today. 
    And no wireless charging is just an ridiculously bad user experience. A pen sticking out the port... pfffff....

    Oh please. Then you would have complained about the transition years ago.
    Over the next year or so, I will throw away about a dozen or more lightening cables for no good reason and then spend extra $$ to replace them just to have a USB-C connector. It is what it is, I guess

    No matter what Apple does there will be bitchers bitching here on Appleinsider. But they keep buying the products which makes no sense to me.
    williamlondonwatto_cobraTash
  • Reply 10 of 30
    williamlondonwilliamlondon Posts: 1,428member
    lkrupp said:
    mike1 said:
    CheeseFreeze said:
    If they'd adopted an actual standard years ago, we wouldn't have to be in dongle nightmare today. 
    And no wireless charging is just an ridiculously bad user experience. A pen sticking out the port... pfffff....

    Oh please. Then you would have complained about the transition years ago.
    Over the next year or so, I will throw away about a dozen or more lightening cables for no good reason and then spend extra $$ to replace them just to have a USB-C connector. It is what it is, I guess

    No matter what Apple does there will be bitchers bitching here on Appleinsider. But they keep buying the products which makes no sense to me.
    In addition to some of the usual suspects, the forum has been inundated with low post count negative nellies competing to see who can post the first bullshit, negative comment like this is MacRumors or something. Fucking children.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 30
    iloveapplegeariloveapplegear Posts: 124member
    That is crazy.

    Should have gone with pencil 2 not 1.

    Someone clearly needs to have a serious talk too at apple.
    starof80williamlondonAlex1Nmbenz1962
  • Reply 12 of 30
    starof80starof80 Posts: 19member
    Yea this is another basic iPad that’s a pass for me. I was going to get the Air but waited for this, now that I know it’s just a spec bump and still uses the first gen Apple Pencil the Air is what I’m getting.
    williamlondonAlex1N
  • Reply 13 of 30
    thttht Posts: 5,765member
    rapcatmeow said:
    tht said:
    That image doesn't make sense. Doesn't it need to have a USBC male side to slot into the female side of an iPad? The other side is Lightning to stick a 1st gen Pencil in.
    You are right. You’ll probably need a USB C cable to go between this dongle and the iPad
    Yup. That part will work with a USB cable. It is just like the current Pencil 1 Lightning to Lightning coupler/adaptor. There needs to be another adaptor that is USBC male to Lightning female. Unless Apple intends Pencil 1 owners to use this pictured adaptor to do:

    iPad 10th gen <=> USBC-to-USBC cable <=> USBC-to-Lightning adaptor (pictured) <=> Pencil 1

    The Pencil 1 needs to be paired. The easiest way is to plug it in. I supposed a user can connect through the Bluetooth settings, but that's crazy.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 30
    multimediamultimedia Posts: 1,061member
    Is the USB-C to Lightning adapter included either the all new 10th Gen iPads or all new Apple Pencils 1st Gen?

    Further research found it’s in the new $99 Apple Pencil Gen 1 boxes available Nov 1.
    edited October 2022 Alex1Nwatto_cobrambenz1962
  • Reply 15 of 30
    auxioauxio Posts: 2,774member
    williamlondon said:
    lkrupp said:
    mike1 said:
    CheeseFreeze said:
    If they'd adopted an actual standard years ago, we wouldn't have to be in dongle nightmare today. 
    And no wireless charging is just an ridiculously bad user experience. A pen sticking out the port... pfffff....

    Oh please. Then you would have complained about the transition years ago.
    Over the next year or so, I will throw away about a dozen or more lightening cables for no good reason and then spend extra $$ to replace them just to have a USB-C connector. It is what it is, I guess

    No matter what Apple does there will be bitchers bitching here on Appleinsider. But they keep buying the products which makes no sense to me.
    In addition to some of the usual suspects, the forum has been inundated with low post count negative nellies competing to see who can post the first bullshit, negative comment like this is MacRumors or something. Fucking children.
    Sad to see how many people need to make a quick buck posting for hire everywhere. I just assume that online reviews are paid shills these days.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 16 of 30
    entropysentropys Posts: 4,331member
    Maybe some of these posters are Auxio, but that does not excuse Apple putting a product out to market that requires an adapter to charge a key accessory sold by the very same company, when a design tweak of the accessory (a USBc connector, it could be a pencil gen 1b) or adaptation of the iPad to the 2nd gen pencil already available for years. doing this is a despicable move that is pretty damn shameful. And worse, user unfriendly.

    What would Steve Jobs have done? Tore the supply chain bean counter that proposed the very idea a new waste disposal outlet.

    lkruppAlex1Nmuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 17 of 30
    auxioauxio Posts: 2,774member
    entropys said:
    Maybe some of these posters are Auxio, but that does not excuse Apple putting a product out to market that requires an adapter to charge a key accessory sold by the very same company, when a design tweak of the accessory (a USBc connector, it could be a pencil gen 1b) or adaptation of the iPad to the 2nd gen pencil already available for years. doing this is a despicable move that is pretty damn shameful. And worse, user unfriendly.

    What would Steve Jobs have done? Tore the supply chain bean counter that proposed the very idea a new waste disposal outlet.
    I agree that it is poor design. That said, what are the numbers on Apple Pencil sales relative to overall iPad sales? I'd be willing to bet that it's a very small fraction, and that nearly all of the people who are outraged have never even bought one. It's a niche product and represents a very small fraction of iPad use cases. To declare the entire product a failure because of it is to really be looking for a reason to hate. Or have some vested interest in it.
    edited October 2022 watto_cobra
  • Reply 18 of 30
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    mike1 said:
    CheeseFreeze said:
    If they'd adopted an actual standard years ago, we wouldn't have to be in dongle nightmare today. 
    And no wireless charging is just an ridiculously bad user experience. A pen sticking out the port... pfffff....

    Oh please. Then you would have complained about the transition years ago.
    Over the next year or so, I will throw away about a dozen or more lightening cables for no good reason and then spend extra $$ to replace them just to have a USB-C connector. It is what it is, I guess
    Why would you throw them away?  If you have no further use for them then give them to someone else.  There will be plenty of Lightning iPhones and iPads circulating for many years yet, and people will need to charge them.
    Alex1N
  • Reply 19 of 30
    Alex1NAlex1N Posts: 157member
    I’m one of those ‘low-count’ commenters - partly because my old AI account, which had a modestly good post count, seemed to get wiped a while ago. I haven’t had the time or inclination to post much since, nor do I have usually much to say that’s relevant in any case.

    Having said that, however, I have a 6th gen ipad with that infernal pencil mk.1. I hate charging it in the ipad’s lightning port - it's one bump away from disaster (like my recent iphone rear glass/apple silicon case’s camera protector ’incident’). It’s also very cumbersome and I fear for the ipad’s connector while the pencil waggles around. (Apple’s removal  of the convenient battery widget and burying it in settings in ipados has been another issue that stick’s in my craw.) I usually charge the pencil using the supplied adapter and a lightning cable.

    The old pencil’s functionality has left a little bit to be desired for some time, too, but I’ve put up with it until now - not including support for a more up-to-date pencil in this new ipad is a deal-breaker for me. I’m going to have a much more serious look at the ipad air.
    williamlondonauxiowatto_cobramuthuk_vanalingamdewme
  • Reply 20 of 30
    auxioauxio Posts: 2,774member
    Alex1N said:
    I’m one of those ‘low-count’ commenters - partly because my old AI account, which had a modestly good post count, seemed to get wiped a while ago. I haven’t had the time or inclination to post much since, nor do I have usually much to say that’s relevant in any case.

    Having said that, however, I have a 6th gen ipad with that infernal pencil mk.1. I hate charging it in the ipad’s lightning port - it's one bump away from disaster (like my recent iphone rear glass/apple silicon case’s camera protector ’incident’). It’s also very cumbersome and I fear for the ipad’s connector while the pencil waggles around. (Apple’s removal  of the convenient battery widget and burying it in settings in ipados has been another issue that stick’s in my craw.) I usually charge the pencil using the supplied adapter and a lightning cable.

    The old pencil’s functionality has left a little bit to be desired for some time, too, but I’ve put up with it until now - not including support for a more up-to-date pencil in this new ipad is a deal-breaker for me. I’m going to have a much more serious look at the ipad air.
    Thanks for posting your very clearly real-world experience with the 1st gen Apple Pencil.

    I also bought one along with the 1st gen iPad Pro and I agree with everything you said. Though, for me, the performance (precision and lag) has always been much much better than any other stylus I've tried (and yes, I've used Wacom tablets).

    In regard to charging it from the iPad, that's the thing, because of the finicky connection with the lightning port and feeling like the connector is going to snap, I almost always use the lightning-to-lightning adapter to charge it via a regular cable. So even if they'd made a new pencil with a USB-C connector, I doubt I would charge the pencil from the connector on the iPad anyways.

    The only real solution was to go with wireless charging and the 2nd gen pencil, but doing so would add components and cost to the base iPad (as well as a case redesign), for something which most base model iPad buyers would never use.
    edited October 2022 williamlondonwatto_cobraAlex1NTash
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