How to make apple pencil save battery?

Hi Demo.

I’’m yet to find an Apple resource that documents this behaviour/functionality. This is knowledge borne of extensive interface/device testing and debug.

There is a myth, often promulgated here, that is impossible to switch-off an Apple Pencil. Clearly, there isn’t an “off” switch or “shut-down” option in iPad settings - however, engineering tests of the first generation Apple Pencil demonstrate that it is possible to return the Pencil to its shipping-state. In this state, battery discharge is not entirely eliminated, but is substantially less that it would otherwise be the case when idle/paired.

It isn’t possible to demonstrate that the Pencil is “off” without turning it back-on through re-pairing (it’s the age-old refrigerator light paradox). However, charging a healthy Pencil to 100%, prior to the “soft” shut-down, experimentally demonstrates that diminution battery charge is significantly reduced to the level anticipated for self-discharge.

To date, I’ve not conducted structured tests to determine an absolute ‘set aside” time; as such, I simply recommend leaving the Pencil undisturbed for few hours as the accelerometer is sensitive to any movement. Tests have shown that a healthy Pencil, initially charged to 100% and subsequently shut-down as documented, can be left for many weeks with only 1-2% diminution of charge when subsequently re-paired and reported battery state verified. By comparison, a paired/inactive Pencil will lose charge at 1-2% per day (if not more).

Testing has also demonstrated that the rate of idle discharge is much greater following update of the iPad from iOS12.x to iPadOS13.x. This is believed to be due to a significant change in BT/BTLE Radio utilisation - and consequent interaction with the Pencil - in iPadOS.

The battery in the Apple Pencil is very small so it needs to be charged very frequently. I charge my pencil at least twice a day even if I am not using it. I have an I-Blaison Cosmo Smart Cover on my iPad Air 3 with a place to store the pencil. I activated the battery widget which shows my the current charge of the iPad and the Apple Pencil.

If you are not using it every day, you can leave it plugged into the wall to charge without harming the battery. If you use it fairly regularly or usually have to with you, just keep charging it regularly using the lightning port on your iPad. That’s what I do.

I have never heard of a low power mode for the pencil either.

I think that I recall another high level member here saying at one point that the pencil will hold the charge longer the less it is moved around. That seems to hold true in my case. If my pencil is charged all the way to 100% at night when I put my iPad on the desk and plug it into charge, it will still be at 100% in the morning.

Even if I don’t use the pencil on any particular day, the more that I move around with my iPad with the pencil enclosed, the more likely it is to lose some of the charge. However, it will still lose the charge over the course of the day if I sit in one spot and use it for several hours.

I am not aware of the pencil having a lower power mode, it's nothing I have ever seen on apple documents.

You can't all ways trust what you read on non official sites

Thank you for validating my post. Is there some document or website that we can direct users to read if they want to see this information?

LotusPilot

This is very interesting. Your extensive knowledge about some of this stuff is incredible. I will bookmark this for future reference. Thanks again!

Always delighted to consecutively share knowledge where appropriate - although some contributors here, perhaps, are less receptive 🙂

Demo wrote:

I have never heard of a low power mode for the pencil either.

I think that I recall another high level member here saying at one point that the pencil will hold the charge longer the less it is moved around. That seems to hold true in my case. If my pencil is charged all the way to 100% at night when I put my iPad on the desk and plug it into charge, it will still be at 100% in the morning.

Even if I don’t use the pencil on any particular day, the more that I move around with my iPad with the pencil enclosed, the more likely it is to lose some of the charge. However, it will still lose the charge over the course of the day if I sit in one spot and use it for several hours.

Quite correct. If paired to iPad, the Pencil’s accelerometer is always “live”; when movement is detected, the Bluetooth radio is enabled. As such, the more you move the pencil - even if not being actively interacting with the iPad screen - the quicker the Pencil battery will be depleted.

If fully charged, then unpaired from the iPad and set aside undisturbed for a couple of hours, the Pencil will actually fully shut-down to its shipping state. In this condition, the battery will retain its charge for an extended period - only losing charge through natural self-discharge.