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An Apple Pencil for iPad Air 2, iPad mini and iPhone: Adonit launches new $79 Pixel stylus as worthy competitor to Apple Pencil

Update: Adonis Pixel is now on sale for $69.99.

The stylus market was shaken up last fall with Apple’s first-party entrance into the race with the Apple Pencil, which works in concert with special sensors in the iPad Pro display for pixel-accurate recognition. This left third-party stylus accessory manufacturers in a quandary — how can they compete with the officially-endorsed Apple Pencil?

The Pixel stylus is the answer from Adonit, on sale today for $79.99. Not only is Adonit’s stylus $20 cheaper than Apple’s, it has a huge advantage in terms of iOS device compatibility. It’s the closest you’ll get to an Apple Pencil for an iPhone, or an Apple Pencil for iPad that isn’t a Pro model.

The Pixel works with various models of iPhone and iPad, not just iPad Pro. The Adonit Pixel communicates with the iOS device over Bluetooth and is compatible with iPhone 5, iPhone 6, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, third-gen and fourth-gen iPads, iPad Air, iPad Air 2, all iPad minis and the 12.9 inch iPad Pro. The 9.7 inch Pro is a notable omission from the compatibility list, but expect to see support for Apple’s latest iPad soon.

The Pixel uses a 1.9 mm ‘Pixelpoint’ tip to draw and sketch with surprising realism; Adonit’s styluses were top picks before the Apple Pencil was introduced. With the Pixel, you get 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity, two shortcut buttons and more.

The Pixel replaces the Adonit Jot Touch, the previous high end model. The Adonit Pixel supersedes its predecessor with a lower price, higher precision, offset correction and improvements to palm rejection.

Unlike the Apple Pencil, the Adonit will only work with select apps which is a drawback shared amongst third-party Bluetooth iPad styli. The company claims it has made adjustments to the tip to enhance traction across the glass screen surface, optimising this stylus for writing and note-tasking tasks.

Although the Pencil will continue to win out in terms of latency and performance, the Adonit Pixel is a worthy alternative — especially for people who own older iPads.

The inclusion of shortcut buttons is a nice differentiator as well because the lack of an eraser option in the Apple Pencil is a top complaint. Buy the Adonit Pixel today for $79.99. More details can be found on the company website.

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