It appears that Apple is now ready to make my small dream of utilizing the Apple Pencil on an iPhone come true – maybe.
According to recent reports on iOS 17.4, the next iPhone platform upgrade will have the option to use Find My to locate a missing Apple Pencil. What’s more fascinating is that the Pencil in question could be a fresh version of the digital stylus.
There are no reports or direct hints that the “Apple Pencil 3” will be designed to function with your greatest iPhone, but I believe it is safe to infer that Apple is paving the way for that possibility with this initial iOS connectivity.
Sure, you can now use your iPhone to track down misplaced AirPods and AirTags, but Apple seldom adds new devices to the Find My corral.
I believe the reasons for wanting to utilize the Apple Pencil on an iPhone are obvious.
Art is the thing
In 2009, brilliant digital artist Jorge Colombo used only his finger to draw a New Yorker magazine cover on his little iPhone 3GS. This was extremely impressive given the phone’s small 3.5-inch screen. He didn’t even have Procreate (he was using an early app called Brushes).
That work prompted me to begin drawing on the iPhone using my fingertip. My work was subpar, so I began purchasing a collection of analog, soft-tipped styluses for use on the little screen. I had greater control, but it was still not ideal. After the iPad was released in 2010, I quickly adopted it as my new drawing platform and continued to use those dumb styluses. It would take another five years until Apple debuted the first Apple Pencil. It instantly improved my ability to draw in digital space. By 2017, Jorge Columbo was using the Apple Pencil to sketch New Yorker covers on an iPad. His work fared significantly better than mine.
I frequently wonder if artists like Colombo are like me, wishing they could draw with an Apple Pencil on their iPhones. The iPad is an excellent canvas, but I don’t keep it in my pocket, and what if inspiration strikes and I want to quickly sketch something? I’m not carrying a pen or paper. I could carry the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra. It features an outstanding built-in S Pen and some great Android art apps, such as Autodesk Sketchbook, but not my preferred Procreate. To be honest, I’m still mostly an iPhone user, and I’d like to draw on my iPhone 15 Pro Max‘s 6.7-inch Super Retina XDR display.
Which takes me back to this piece of news.
Ready for iOS 18
This reported Apple Pencil 3, which we now “know” will operate with the iPhone in some capacity, could be more than simply a modest upgrade with USB-C capability and possibly a new SoC. It could fit on the iPhone 15 Pro Max.
You may have observed that your iPhone’s MagSafe charging magnets attract the magnets in your Apple Pencil, but it would be more appropriate for Apple to release a new case that can support the Apple Pencil 3. To do so, however, the new Pencil must be less than 6.29 inches long. The current Apple Pencil 2 measures approximately 6.5 inches long. So it needs to be shorter, but not necessarily slimmer.
I believe the best time to launch this new Pencil would be
During WWDC 2024, Apple could reveal iOS 18 and possibly a slew of Pencil-gesture-based features. All of these would be fantastic, but the ability to finally draw on the iPhone with actual control, tilt, and pressure sensitivity would be the most exciting for me.
I realize it’s a far shot, but iOS 17.4, an Apple Pencil 3, and support for Find My Apple Pencil have me fantasizing about creating art on my iPhone.
