Apple Pencil Pro offers features that no third-party stylus for the iPad supports. (Image source: Apple)”/>The Apple Pencil Pro offers features that no third-party stylus for the iPad supports. (Image source: Apple)
Anyone who buys an Apple iPad Pro and wants to use a stylus can currently hardly ignore the Apple Pencil Pro, because features such as magnetic charging or the hover function are not available to third-party pens. This may have to change soon in the European Union.
The European Union has already forced Apple to make numerous changes over the past few years, which is why, among other things, the iPhone 16 (approx. 869 euros on Amazon) is equipped with a USB-C port, and users can now download apps from third-party stores and set alternative browsers and camera apps as the system default. In April 2024, after iOS, iPadOS was also defined as a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act.
Apple has already ported many of the changes the company made to iOS to iPadOS, but further changes are likely to come. Because Apple’s November 1st compliance report does not write a word about third-party alternatives to the Apple Pencil, while the European Commission in one Press release explicitly points out that relevant iPadOS features must also be usable by pens from other manufacturers.
Although there are already numerous third-party pens that are compatible with the iPad and iPad Pro, Apple does not support industry standards such as MPP 2.0, while selected functions officially only work with the Apple Pencil, such as the hover functionality shows the position of the stylus, even if it is a few millimeters away from the display, or the ability to magnetically attach the stylus to the tablet and thus charge it. The European Commission is currently reviewing Apple’s latest compliance report and will then decide whether the adjustments already made are sufficient to meet the requirements of the Digital Markets Act or whether further changes are necessary.
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Hannes Brecher – Senior Tech Writer – 16304 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2018
I have been writing for various publications in the technology sector since 2009 until I joined the Notebookcheck news editorial team in 2018. Since then, I have combined my many years of experience in notebooks and smartphones with my lifelong passion for technology to inform our readers about new developments on the market. My design background as an art director of an advertising agency also allows me deep insights into the peculiarities of this industry.
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