Jiří Filip With a bit of exaggeration, it can be said that Apple Pencil should be a must-have for every iPad owner. The catch, however, is that the price of both the first and the second generation is not exactly low, so if you only use this accessory here and there, you don't have to fully justify this "investment" to yourself. Fortunately, however, there are alternative solutions on the market that are comparable to the Apple Pencil in terms of functionality, but significantly cheaper. One such alternative should be the Graphite Pro style from the FIXED workshop, at least according to the manufacturer's presentation. But is the product like that in real life? I will try to answer exactly this answer in the following lines. FIXED Graphite Pro has just arrived at our editorial office and since I have been intensively testing it for quite a few days now, it is time to introduce it to you.
Technical specifications, processing and design
In terms of design, the FIXED Graphite Pro is somewhat of a hybrid of the first and second generation Apple Pencil. The stylus borrowed a cylindrical body from the first generation, and a flat side with magnets and wireless charging support from the second generation. It is the wireless charging that is absolutely bombastic, as it works both via the "charger" on the side of the iPad Air and Pro, but also on classic wireless chargers, thanks to which the pen can be used without any problem even with basic iPads (2018) and newer ones that charge they do not have a pencil pad. If you are interested in the duration of the stylus on one charge, it is 10 hours according to the manufacturer.
FIXED Graphite Pro is made of high-quality, but at the same time, light plastic. The weight of the stylus is only 15 grams, with a length of 16,5 mm and a diameter of 9 mm, which makes it an accessory that fits perfectly in the hand. Perhaps it's a bit of a shame that the stylus is only available in black, which doesn't suit every iPad. As for the other specifications of the stylus, it will please you with, for example, a button to return to the home screen, an automatic sleep function during inactivity to save battery, Palm Rejection (i.e. ignoring the palm placed on the iPad screen when writing or drawing) or perhaps regulation of shading by tilting the stylus, respectively then its tip. If you are interested in connecting the stylus to the iPad, Bluetooth takes care of that.
Since I have already given a taste of the design in the previous lines, it is not out of place to briefly dwell on the processing of the stylus. To be honest, this really appealed to me, because it can withstand the strictest parameters. In short and well, it can be seen that he put a lot of work into the development of FIXED and he cares that it is not only functional, but also looks premium. In fact, he also thought of absolute details such as an inconspicuously integrated circular diode located around the perimeter of the body under the button to return to the Home Screen. In its inactive state, it is practically not visible at all, but after charging on the wireless charger or through the iPad, it will start to pulse and thus show that everything is going exactly as it should.
Gallery
Testing
Since FIXED Graphite Pro is compatible with all iPads from 2018, you can use it as an alternative for the first and second generation Apple Pencil. In my case, I used it to replace the first generation Apple Pencil that I use for my iPad (2018). And I must say that the change was really big for several reasons, starting with a more pleasant grip. The matte body of the Graphite Pro with one flat side actually holds better for me compared to the completely round Apple Pencil. Of course, it's not just about the grip.
As soon as you connect the stylus to the iPad via Bluetooth, it is immediately functional, so you can start using it both to control the system and mainly to take notes manually, draw and so on. The response of the stylus when moving the tip across the display is absolutely top-notch and its accuracy just as much, which makes you feel like you are writing or painting on real paper and not a digital display. However, in addition to the responsiveness, I was very impressed by the tilt support, thanks to which you can, for example, shade nicely in images, simply highlight important passages in the text by "fatting" the line formed by the highlighter, and so on. In short and well, everything related to writing and drawing works exactly as expected. However, this is not the case with the button for returning to the home screen, which always reliably returns you to it after a "double click". It's a bit of a shame that it only works "one-way" and after repeated double-clicks, for example, it won't return you to the minimized application, but even just returning to the home screen is a pleasure. However, I was probably most impressed by the above-mentioned wireless charging on a classic wireless charger, which I think is simply great for a product in this price range.
However, to not just praise, there is one thing that surprised me a little. Specifically, the pen can only be paired with one device at a time, so if you wanted to "switch" the stylus from iPad to iPad, expect to always have to disconnect the stylus from one and connect it to the other, which not exactly comfortable. Or at least that's how the stylus behaved after I connected it to the iPhone out of curiosity. As soon as he "caught" it, he was suddenly no longer visible for pairing with the iPad. However, I am aware that I am describing a scenario here that the vast majority of users will not deal with at all.
Summary
As you can probably guess from the previous lines, FIXED Graphite Pro really impressed me. Its functionality is absolutely great, the design is very good, charging is extremely simple, and the cherry on the cake are gadgets like a button to return to the Home Screen. When to top it all off I will add the very favorable price of CZK 1699, which is a good 1200 CZK lower than what Apple charges for the 1st generation Apple Pencil, which is the only one compatible with my iPad (of the original models), I almost want to say that it is simply not above something to think about. The classic Apple Pencil - unless you absolutely need pressure support for your creation - makes no sense at all compared to the FIXED Graphite Pro. So if you are thinking about getting a stylus for your iPad, there is nothing to think about. Go into it!
Hello,
does this stylus work on iphone too? If not, which one would you recommend?
Thank you in advance for your reply.