Has anyone tried a fine stylus on an iPad?

[Margi]

Try a Jot
http://adonit.net/product/jot/

And there is a new brush called Sensu available in Jan.

[royblumenthal]

Yup...

I received my JOT a week or so ago. It's a really clever solution to giving a precision stroke.

PROS:

o It's very precise.

o Very easy to see EXACTLY where your point of contact is. So you can easily lift the stylus, and then place it down in the same spot to create a continuous line. No guessing where you're placing it.

o It's a nice weight. Good build. Aluminium shaft. Screw on metal cap that fits both ends of the shaft, so you're never going to lose the cap. Finely crafted machining. Classy looking.

o The movement range is great. You can angle it pretty much wherever you need it. The plastic disc is attached to a small ball joint.


CONS:

o Needs a pretty assertive amount of constant contact with the screen. And you've got to 'grip' the shaft quite well, probably to ensure that the electrical conductivity of your skin makes it all the way to the flat plastic disc. I find it a bit 'gappy'. Ie, the conductivity isn't constantly reliable with a normal drawing or painting grip.

o The stylus doesn't have a pocket clip, so it doesn't stay seated in whatever spot you store it (eg, in your pocket, or in one of those pen slots in a bag).


VERDICT:

It's kinda okay. But not something I use often enought to justify the purchase. I HOPED it would make painting easy. But my finger works way better for me.

I wish the plastic disc had more give. Something springy, with travel. It's disconcerting poking a screen with something that has no give. Kinda gives a 'dead' feeling to the stylus. Coupled with the spotty conductivity, I think it's still a bit of a work-in-progress as far as making art goes.

It's perfect for the usual screen gesture stuff and poking at the onscreen keypad.

Blue skies
Roy

[Strandy]

You can also try to make your own stylus for iPad. Just follow these instructions

Well, I didn't try this yet, but it's looking quite interesting.

[royblumenthal]

Hi Strandy...

I've bought almost EVERY stylus there is. And so far, I haven't found one that works. So I wouldn't waste my time on the homemade route.

The worst of the stylusses I've bought makes intermittent contact, and you have to press really hard, both on the screen AND on the shaft, just to get a signal to the screen.

The best of them is just a little bit better.

The Nomad brush is a good idea, but it doesn't make firm enough contact. So it's kinda on the verge of useless.

I'm really looking forward to the KICKSTART-backed SENSU. It's a 'real' brush, made by real brushmakers. And they've tested it for the right levels of resistance to make it feel 'realistic' to digital artists.

My guess is that it's the right answer to a field filled with almost-right answers.

[Margi]

royblumenthal, you may be able to get a replacement disc. If yours was one of the first shipments, they will send you new ones. The fist batch had some faulty ones. Mine worked great for a few weeks and then started gapping, the new one is fine though, although as you say, it still rolls. You can get triangular grip things for pencils, and that is not a bad solution. I also backed the Sensu and am looking forward to it.

[royblumenthal]

Thanks Margi! I'll look into it.

[zerogeek]

I too like the jot for the precision of the disc system, but fully understand the concern with the 'give'. Have you tried the pogo sketch pro? It has what might be the smallest of the rubber tips and works down to an amazing shallow angle. The stick is fairly long and tapered like a paint brush. They also include one of their spongy tips. No, I don't like those, but it means that the tips are threaded, thus replaceable!

http://tenonedesign.com/sketchpro.php

[Margi]

Roy, and anyone who is interested in the JOT, after I posted recently about the jot skipping etc. I started using the new disc, and not long afterwards, had the same skipping problem. Let me say that I HATE screen protectors, (feel and look) but was leery about using the jot without one due to the fact there is metal touching glass. So I put up with it. I had thought all along that without the protector the jot would work. In searching on line, i found more than a few people who had luck with putting scotch tape on the bottom of the disc saying it glided better especially over a protector. So I tried it , and sure enough it worked flawlessly. So if there is tape over the metal, I felt there was no risk to scratching the glass and did away with the damn thing . (and who am i kidding, I will be getting a new iPad as soon as they come out anyway...) I used scotch invisible tape and the result is fantastic!! will keep you posted...

[royblumenthal]

Thanks Margi.

So if I'm understanding you right, you've actually removed the plastic disk entirely, and you're using just the metal ball (with a bit of sticky tape on it)?

I was under the impression that the reason for the plastic disk was to simulate the correct amount of surface area of a human finger (the plastic is conductive, not a non-conductor, as I understand it).

But if it actually works with the small ballpoint, that would be pretty interesting!

Can you maybe clarify?

Blue skies
Roy

[Margi]

no, sorry about that misunderstanding. The disc is on, but I stuck a piece of tape on it and with tiny sharp scissors, cut the tape to fit the disc. It works beautifully. Having said that, what the tape is doing now, is protecting the metal from touching the screen. i.e., I had felt all along that 'no screen protector' would enable the pen to work nicely, as it did when I first received it. (i had no protector on at the beginning) but was afraid of the screen/scratch problem. I don't like matte protectors and I think the glossy ones cause the disc to "grip" and "drag". The tape is the solution to keep the disc from dragging, but I like the tape as the solution to keep the metal on the disc from scratching. When all is said and done, if you DONT use a screen protector, and the pen is still skipping, this isn't going to help.