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Apple Pencil Lag with Notes in iPadOS 16.1

After update to iPadOS 16.1 I noticed some visible lag when writing on iPad, notes app. Sometimes, the object erase is also not responding but pixel eraser works. Tried, restarting iPad, re-pairing Apple Pencil to no avail.


This didn't happen before I update my M1 iPad Pro 11inch.

iPad Pro, iPadOS 16

Posted on Nov 7, 2022 10:59 PM

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Posted on Jan 4, 2023 8:42 AM

I deleted the new app "Freeform".


After that, new notes, and notes created before IOS 16, came back to life. The couple of notes that I'd created under IOS 16, with Freeform installed, were still broken.

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41 replies

Dec 20, 2022 3:25 AM in response to xavier106

Hi! Bought new iPad 9th generation, arrived yesterday. Opened and configured, it was running on iPadOS 15.x. I started to use Apple Note App to take notes. Everything smooth like butter. Today I decided to upgrade to 16.2.


After that, I opened the Note App to continue taking notes on the same note. I cannot write naturally anymore, it lags a lot. If I write a continuous line there is no lag, but if I write many little parallel lines, it misses some input and will render it after some seconds. Sometimes I change pen to eraser and try to erase something and nothing happens, but if I close the note and reopen it, I can finally see the erasing result.


Moreover, I tried to open a new note and seems to go smooth as before update. I don't know if it could be the "size" of the previous note that can introduce this lag, but yesterday I used it without problems before updating. There is something really strange about Note App on iPadOS 16.


I also tried the new FreeForm App and there is no problem, but it is not responsive as Note App in writing.


I need Note App a lot, so please do something about that Apple!

Nov 9, 2022 3:13 PM in response to xavier106

Hi xavier106,



The following steps may provide a solution: Quit and reopen an app on iPad


  1. "To quit an app, open the App Switcher, then swipe up on the app.
  2. To reopen the app, go to the Home Screen (or the App Library), then tap the app."


Quitting the Notes app should clear out any errors and refresh the app.


If you have followed the steps correctly and you still have the issue, reach out to us directly here as this may require closer guidance: Get Support


Cheers!

Jan 11, 2023 2:32 PM in response to xavier106

I HAVE A TEMPORARY FIX !


Hi everyone,


Hope you're doing well.


Listen, I've found a (temporary) fix to this problem.


Issue :

The issue occur for me since IOS 16.X

Apple note get very very and very laggy when using the Apple Pencil explicitly on the Apple Note app after a short while on the same note.

Also, the iPad get hot and battery drains quickly


The issue occur with new notes that have been created when running IOS 16 and/or if new tools



SOLUTION : This is what you can do to bypass the issue :

Info : There is 3 requirements you need for this to work :

  1. Have an old handwritten "note" that you've created earlier when you were using IOS 15 (or lower).
  2. That "old note" has to be unused with the new tools IOS 16 provided in the Note App.
  3. You have to own a Macbook


Steps :

  1. Open the note app on your Mac
  2. Find a Note in the note app that you created when you were on IOS 15 (or lower). (This note has to be untouched with all the new "notes tools" available since IOS 16)
  3. Right Click on the note and click "Duplicate"
  4. Erase the typed text and images you've inserted (if any) BUT keep the old writing field
  5. VOILÀ ! The new duplicated note is now free of lag as long as you don't use the new handwriting "tools" on this one.


Tips : What I've done is I've then duplicated "that old note" x9999 times, created a folder, moved all those non-glitchy note to this newly created folder.


So then, when I want to handwrite, instead of creating a new note, I navigate to this folder, and I "move" one of the notes to the folder of my choice.

Nov 15, 2022 10:48 PM in response to xavier106

Hey everyone,


As of right now, I got it working like before. I deleted the app from my iPad and reinstalled it from the App Store. Give it a shot and let me know if it works for anyone else! Just make sure you have iCloud on for Notes and that it is synced before deleting. After I reinstalled, all the notes came back and the pencil was working fine again.


Hopefully this will end this blunder.

Nov 17, 2022 3:58 AM in response to etimmy

This actually helped. My notes is smoother for now. Shall use it a few more hours and see how it goes.


Note: Before you delete, do remember to backup your existing notes to iCloud. The lag will persist right after download as it is still syncing, I think this is given. But after finishing syncing it should be much smoother.

Jan 13, 2023 2:15 PM in response to irto80

Can this be confirmed by someone else?

I found this in my iPad Pro 9.7 with first available release of iPadOS 16.x. As I use Apple Notes a lot in my daily work, I decided to go back to iPadOS 15 and I will not upgrade to 16 again until this is fixed, or until there’s an easy workaround… the previous suggestion about using old notes and a Mac is not suitable for me, I do not have a Mac (yet!)

Apple Pencil Lag with Notes in iPadOS 16.1

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