Technologies

Best Apple Pencil Deals 2023: Save $15 on Apple Pencil 2

Need an Apple Pencil but don’t want to pay full price? We’ve got you covered.

Apple Pencil deals crop up fairly frequently, which is welcome news for iPad owners. Apple devices generally don’t go on sale all that often, but this useful iPad accessory has seen quite a few price drops, so there’s usually a good chance you can avoid paying full price for one.

Apple’s sleek stylus offers precise pressure sensitivity and is designed to pair seamlessly with Apple’s tablets for a fluid experience. This premium tech doesn’t come cheap, though, with prices starting at $99. That’s why we’ve scoured the web to bring you the very best Apple Pencil deals available so you can get one in your hands for less. We’ve also gathered up some of the best alternatives out there in case you’re looking for an even more affordable option.

Below is a current breakdown of the best Apple Pencil deals available right now, with a quick look at historic low pricing for both models.

Apple Pencil pricing 2023

Model	Apple Store price	Best price right now	Best all-time price
Apple Pencil (1st gen)	$99	$89	$70
Apple Pencil (2nd gen)	$129	$114	$85

Beyond the Apple Pencil, there are a few great Apple Pencil alternatives that are also worth considering, and there are frequent deals on those, which we’ve highlighted farther down the page.

an iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil — Sarah Tew/CNET

Best Apple Pencil (1st gen) deals

Apple’s first-gen Apple Pencil was originally released in November 2015 and has stuck around since then. At its debut, it worked only with the first iPad Pro model before support was added to subsequent models. It has a Lightning connector built into the end for charging the Apple Pencil right from your iPad and has a removable tip that can be changed out after your current one starts to get worn down.

The first-gen Apple Pencil is compatible with all pre-2018 iPad Pro models, the iPad Air 3, the iPad Mini 2019 and all base-model iPads since 2018. It’s also the one to get to use with the new 2022 10th generation iPad. Awkwardly, there are two versions of the first-gen Apple Pencil for sale at most retailers: one with a Lightning adapter and one with a USB-C adapter. Other than the adapter, the Apple Pencil is exactly the same, so the deciding factor between them is purely how you wish to charge the device back up. The USB-C version hasn’t been on the market as long and tends not to be discounted. Here are the best first-gen Pencil deals you can buy right now.

Apple

Apple Pencil (1st gen): $89

Save $10

Amazon, Walmart and B&H all have the first-generation Apple Pencil available for $89 right now, which saves you $10 compared to the Apple Store price. It comes with the USB-C adapter, which is required to pair with the newest iPad model. We have seen it go as low as $70 in the past and deals dropping it under $80 aren’t too infrequent, so if you can hold off you might get a better price within the next few months.

$89 at Amazon $89 at Walmart $89 at B&H

Best Apple Pencil (2nd gen) deals

The second-gen Apple Pencil was launched in October 2018 alongside the third-gen iPad Pro, and while it may look similar on the surface, there are quite a few differences between the two models. One big difference is that the Apple Pencil 2 charges magnetically while attached to newer iPads, meaning there’s no Lightning connector. The design is slightly refined as well, with one flat side that’s used to charge and a sensor near the tip that enables double-tap features.

The second-gen Apple Pencil works with all 11- and 12.9-inch iPad Pros (2018 and later models), as well as newer iPad Air (2020 and 2022) models and the iPad Mini 6. Here are the best Apple Pencil 2 deals you can get right now.

Apple

Apple Pencil (2nd gen): $114

Save $15

A few retailers have the Apple Pencil 2 listed at $114 right now, which is $15 less than Apple charges for it. With regular price drops under $100 in the last six months, and the price falling as low as $85 just weeks ago, it’s hard to recommend nabbing one at this price unless you really need it right away. Chances are, steeper discounts will be coming down the pike.

Read our Apple Pencil 2 preview.

$114 at Amazon $114 at Walmart $114 at B&H

Best cheap Apple Pencil alternatives

While the Apple Pencil offers one of the best experiences when paired with the iPad, it may not be the best choice for everyone. There are a number of cheaper Apple Pencil alternatives that you can take a look at. Here are some of the best ones that are on sale right now.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Logitech Crayon: $60

Save $10

The Logitech Crayon works with just about every iPad out there, unlike the Apple Pencil, where you have to worry about which iPad model you have to ensure you buy the right one. It doesn’t have the fancy instant pairing or magnetic charging, but other than that it works very similarly to the Apple Pencil for a fraction of the price. It’s $10 off at Amazon right now.

Jamjake

Jamjake Stylus Pen for iPad: $25

Save $15

This stylus is a great cheap alternative to the Apple Pencil if you want the overall style of the Pencil without the price tag. It has removable tips, can be turned on and off and even recharges via USB-C. It lists for $40, but you can grab select colors for as little as $25 right now at Amazon.

Zagg

Zagg Pro Stylus: $55

Save $15

Zagg’s Pro Stylus also offers an Apple Pencil-like experience for less. It features palm rejection and tilt-recognition tech like Apple’s option, offers automatic pairing and even attaches magnetically to the side of your iPad Pro or iPad Air (though you’ll need to charge it via USB-C).

Adonit

Adonit Note Stylus: $40

No discounts currently available

This stylus pen has a nice sleek design and offers a black option that Apple does not currently have for its Pencil models. It offers up to 12 hours of battery per charge, and a 4-minute charge can give you an extra hour of battery life. It uses Micro-USB for charging and can charge and write at the same time. There aren’t any discounts on this stylus at the moment, but it’s still a solid value at less than $50.

Apple Pencil vs. Apple Pencil 2: Which should you buy?

The decision here is simple: You have to buy the one that’s compatible with your iPad. Apple does not let you pick which Apple Pencil you want to use with which iPad. Instead, iPads are only compatible with a specific model of the Apple Pencil.

As outlined above, the original Apple Pencil works with the first- and second-gen 12.9-inch iPad Pro, 10.5-inch iPad Pro, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, iPad Air 3 and fifth-gen iPad Mini, and all of the base-model iPads since the sixth-gen model. If you have a newer iPad Pro, fourth- or fifth-gen iPad Air or the sixth-gen iPad Mini, you’ll need to opt for the Apple Pencil 2.

If you want to avoid this confusion, you can select from one of the non-Apple alternatives listed above, which generally have broader compatibility.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Saturday, Feb. 28

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Feb. 28.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? As is usual for Saturday, it’s pretty long, and should take you longer than the normal Mini. A bunch of three-initial terms are used in this one. Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Rock’s ___ Leppard
Answer: DEF

4A clue: Cry a river
Answer: SOB

7A clue: Clean Air Act org.
Answer: EPA

8A clue: Org. that pays the Bills?
Answer: NFL

9A clue: Nintendo console with motion sensors
Answer: WII

10A clue: ___-quoted (frequently said)
Answer: OFT

11A clue: With 13-Across, narrow gap between the underside of a house and the ground
Answer: CRAWL

13A clue: See 11-Across
Answer: SPACE

14A clue: Young lady
Answer: GAL

15A clue: Ooh and ___
Answer: AAH

17A clue: Sports org. for Scottie Scheffler
Answer: PGA

18A clue: «Hey, just an F.Y.I. …,» informally
Answer: PSA

19A clue: When doubled, nickname for singer Swift
Answer: TAY

20A clue: Socially timid
Answer: SHY

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Morning moisture
Answer: DEW

2D clue: «Game of Thrones» or Homer’s «Odyssey»
Answer: EPICSAGA

3D clue: Good sportsmanship
Answer: FAIRPLAY

4D clue: White mountain toppers
Answer: SNOWCAPS

5D clue: Unrestrained, as a dog at a park
Answer: OFFLEASH

6D clue: Sandwich that might be served «triple-decker»
Answer: BLT

12D clue: Common battery type
Answer: AA

14D clue: Chat___
Answer: GPT

16D clue: It’s for horses, in a classic joke punchline
Answer: HAY

Technologies

Ultrahuman Ring Pro Brings Better Battery Life, More Action and Analysis

The company’s new flagship smart ring stores more data, too. But that doesn’t really help Americans.

Sick of your smart ring’s battery not holding up? Ultrahuman’s new $479 Ring Pro smart ring, unveiled on Friday, offers up to 15 days of battery life on a single charge. The Ring Pro joins the company’s $349 Ring Air, which boosts health tracking, thanks to longer battery life, increased data storage, improved speed and accuracy and a new heart-rate sensing architecture. The ring works in conjunction with the latest Pro charging case.

Ultrahuman also launched its Jade AI, which can act as an agent based on analysis of current and historical health data. Jade can synthesize data from across the company’s products and is compatible with its Rings.

«With industry-leading hardware paired with Jade biointelligence AI, users can now take real-time actionable interventions towards their health than ever before,» said Mohit Kumar, CEO of Ultrahuman.

No US sales

That hardware isn’t available in the US, though, thanks to the ongoing ban on Ultrahuman’s Rings sales here, stemming from a patent dispute with its competitor, Oura Ring. It’s available for preorder now everywhere else and is slated to ship in March. Jade’s available globally.

Ultrahuman says the Ring Pro boosts battery life to about 15 days in Chill mode — up to 12 days in Turbo — compared to a maximum of six days for the Air. The Pro charger’s battery stores enough for another 45 days, which you top off with Qi-compatible wireless charging. In addition, the case incorporates locator technology via the app and a speaker, as well as usability features such as haptic notifications and a power LED.

The ring can also retain up to 250 days of data versus less than a week for the cheaper model. Ultrahuman redesigned the heart-rate sensor for better signal quality. An upgraded processor improves the accuracy of the local machine learning and overall speed.

It’s offered in gold, silver, black and titanium finishes, with available sizes ranging from 5 to 14.

Jade’s Deep Research Mode is the cross-ecosystem analysis feature, which aggregates data from Ring and Blood Vision and the company’s subscription services, Home and M1 CGM, to provide historical trends, offer current recommendations and flag potential issues, as well as trigger activities such as A-fib detection. Ultrahuman plans to expand its capabilities to include health-adjacent activities, such as ordering food.

Some new apps are also available for the company’s PowerPlug add-on platform, including capabilities such as tracking GLP-1 effects, snoring and respiratory analysis and migraine management tools.