Need to create or buy a precise stylus for drawing on a 1st-gen iPad

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Level 2

304 points

Need to create or buy a precise stylus for drawing on a 1st-gen iPad

I have a 1st-generation iPad -- perfect condition.

I've downloaded some drawing apps, and I can get them to work -- but as things now stand, I must draw using my finger as the "pen" or "stylus."

The problem is that a finger is rather large and imprecise -- it's very difficult to do detail work, and everything ends up looking like a finger-painting.

I was hoping there is a way to get or create a more precise stylus. But I've heard conflicting things -- because iPads detect electrical conductivity, not pressure, most old-school styluses won't work on iPads. And because iPads are designed to detect only input from finger-sized contact, they don't register or "notice" contact from a conductive tip much smaller than a finger.

For example, I have a collection of very smooth ball-bearings in a variety of sizes, and as an experiment, I held each one in my fingers and tried to "draw" on the screen with them (since the steel would conduct my finger-electricity). (Note: these are perfectly smooth, so they don't damage the screen at all).

I discovered that the larger (half-inch diameter, etc.) ball-bearings "draw" well, but of course they're way too big to be precise drawing tools. The medium-sized ones (like, say, quarter-inch) work intermittently or inconsistently; while the smaller ones (one-eighth inch) don't work at all -- they're too small for the operating system or screen to "detect" and register.

But of course I want the smallest tip/surface possible to use as my stylus. Based on my experiment, I fear that if I buy (or make) a stylus with any kind of small-ish tip, it will never work, due to the way the system software is designed.

Is this true? Or are there special styluses that DO work with iPads (1st-gen iPads in particular)? Or is there a way to customize the OS so that it notices and detects input from smaller "finger" contacts? Is there any way to construct a home-made stylus to get around this problem?

Would updating the iOS (if that's even possible on a 1st-gen iPad) help solve the problem?

Any advice on any of the three possibilities (retail stylus, alter/update the OS, home-made stylus) would be greatly appreciated. (Or is there a different kind of solution altogether?)

Thanks!

Posted on Mar 10, 2015 12:17 PM

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Answer 1

rccharles

Level 6

13,037 points

Mar 10, 2015 5:20 PM in response to Tuffy Nicolas

"ixelpoint technology allowed us to shrink the stylus tip size down to 1.9mm; 70% smaller than the nearest competition. While fingers and rubber styluses feel more like markers or crayons, Pixelpoint helped create a true digital pen. The tip’s material was hand-picked to mimic the drag of a pen on paper, giving you more control and better expression in every stroke."

http://adonit.net/pixelpoint/

Not I have not tried this styluses.

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Answer 2

Skydiver119

Level 9

53,489 points

Mar 10, 2015 5:30 PM in response to rccharles

You may find some capicitive ones out there that are .5MM but anything too much smaller will have issues.

I've been wanting to draw with my iPad 2 and have discovered that the technology to work with many of the better artistic styli comes with iPad 3+.

The pixelpoint may work - haven't tracked one down yet. Going by the reviews if you try one, use a screen protector because many of the reviews mention microscratches on the screens.

There's a 'wacom fine point' stylus that I've thought about buying. most of the good features won't work on my iPad (so shouldn't work on yours either) but the fine point part is supposed to work on anything.

I did get a smaller pointed stylus (bamboo duo) and discovered, at least in the apps I've played with, that it tends to skip or there is some latency in my motions.

I've come to the conclusion if I want to do too much I need to buy a new device or perhaps a graphics tablet and use it with my computer.

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Answer 3

Tuffy Nicolas Author

Level 2

304 points

Mar 10, 2015 5:47 PM in response to rccharles

rccharles + Skydiver119:

Thanks for the info.

On the pixelpoint page that rccharles linked, it says this:

How It Works

Touch screens emit a signal from the edges of the device, forming a grid across the screen. Your finger, which is conductive, connects the signals and tells the device where on the grid the contact occurred. iOS is specifically designed to ignore small points of conductivity; this eliminates accidental touches, but also forces most styluses to have large, bulky tips. Pixelpoint™ technology solves this problem by detecting the signal from the device and rebroadcasting it in a larger diameter that’s recognized as a touch by the iPad’s screen.

I'm curious about the part that says"iOS is specifically designed to ignore small points of conductivity."

Is there ANY way to fiddle with iOS to alter these parameters, so that it WILL pay attention to "small points of conductivity"?

Macs running standard Apple computer OSXes are highly customizable; is the same not true for iOS devices? I have no experience with iOS prior to today, so I don't know. Surely someone has figured out how to get into iOS's inner workings so they can be customized. With normal computer OSX.x, one can look behind the scenes at the UNIX level and alter some fundamental attributes. Can this be done with iOS -- or is it simply impossible?

Meanwhile, I'll look into those styluses, but as Skydiver119 says, it seems like 90% of their functionality only works with modern iPads with new iOSes, and not with my 1st-gen 5.1.1.

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Answer 4

Skydiver119

Level 9

53,489 points

Mar 10, 2015 5:58 PM in response to Tuffy Nicolas

At least one of the Adonit styli I saw has a small transparent disc around the point, which conducts without blocking the view. (It can also be a weak spot in the stylus since some reviews speak of the disc falling off and not being reattachable)

Wacom and Adonit are the two main manufacturers. There's also one on Amazon called a Dot Pen that i'm looking at but haven't tried.

there's a Targus Brush Pen and a PenGo Brush Pen that may also work, at least if you're wanting something arty. I haven't tried them but they're on my 'when I feel like spending money' shopping list.

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