As an Apple Pencil owner, I’ve been frustrated trying to figure out whether I can use my Pencil while it’s charging. After a lot of research and testing, I’m here to share what I’ve learned and the solutions I’ve discovered.
You cannot use the Apple Pencil 1 or the Apple Pencil 2 while charging. However, you can charge them fully in just 15 minutes and 15 seconds of charge will give you 30 minutes of use time. It is very important to make sure that your Apple Pencil does not stay at 0% charge for too long since it can cause the battery to die.
In practice, being unable to use the Apple Pencil while charging it does not matter since you can charge it for 15 seconds and get 30 minutes of use out of it.
Key Takeaways:
- It is not possible to use the Apple Pencil 1 or 2 while charging.
- It takes 15 minutes for the Apple Pencil 1 & 2 to be fully charged.
- 15 seconds of charge will give you 30 minutes of use.
- It is important to not allow the Apple Pencil to stay at 0% for too long as it could cause the battery to die.
- It is better to keep the Apple Pencil attached to the iPad when not in use.
Table of Contents
Can you use the Apple Pencil while charging?
The Apple Pencil 2 must be attached to the side of the iPad to be charged. Therefore, it is not possible to charge the Apple Pencil 2 while charging it.
Read more: Why won’t my Apple Pencil charge?
Likewise, it is not possible to use the Apple Pencil 1 while it is connected to the iPads lightning port.
However, it is possible to charge an Apple Pencil 1 via a lightning cable with an adapter, but it is still not possible to use the Apple Pencil 1 when charging it this way.
Read more: does the Apple Pencil need Bluetooth?
However, this is unimportant because you can just charge the Apple Pencil for 15 seconds and it will give you 30 minutes of usage. When charging the Apple Pencil 1, you must attach it to the iPad to charge it quickly.
Also, you can avoid running out of charge with the Apple Pencil 2 by just leaving it attached to the side of the iPad when not in use. This will also help you to avoid allowing the Apple Pencil to go to 0% charge for too long.
Is it ok to just keep the Apple Pencil attached to the side of the iPad?
Often, people worry about having their Apple Pencil 2 attached to the iPad most of the time because they don’t want the battery degrading due to being fully charged all the time.
However, the Apple Pencil 2 is designed to be connected to the iPad most of the time. Also, because the Apple Pencil 2 can last for 12 hours from full charge, so it is not such an issue if the battery does degrade slightly since the battery will still be able to last for a long time.
Also, it is actually much better to keep the battery at 100% than it is to allow it to get to 0%. This is because many users have reported their Apple Pencil batteries dying when left at 0% for longer than a week.
If you do get an Apple Pencil, it will be important that you do not allow it to stay uncharged for too long. As mentioned, this should be easy since you can just leave it attached to the iPad.
How long it takes to charge the Apple Pencil
To fully charge the Apple Pencil, it only takes 15 minutes. Since you can easily leave the Apple Pencil 2 attached to the iPad all the time, it will not be often that your Apple Pencil 2 will run out of battery.
However, if your pencil does run out of power, it will not be an issue since it only takes 15 seconds to charge it enough to get 30 minutes of use.
How long does the Apple Pencil battery last for
The Apple Pencil lasts for 12 hours of regular use when fully charged. The Apple Pencil also lasts for 30 minutes after being charged for 15 seconds.
When in standby mode users report the battery losing around 15% of charge per day and will usually keep some charge for around 1-2 weeks without use.
Why to avoid allowing the Apple Pencil go down to 0%
As mentioned above, it is important not to allow the battery on the Apple Pencil to be at 0% for too long.
This is because a number of users have reported their Apple Pencils dying when being at 0% for longer than a few days. To avoid letting this happen, it is easiest to just leave the Apple Pencil 2 attached to the side of the iPad.
| Apple Pencil Model | Attach to the side? | Charging time for full battery | Time for 30 minutes of use | Battery life when fully charged | Standby battery life |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Pencil 1 | No | 15 minutes | 15 seconds | 12 hours | 1-2 weeks |
| Apple Pencil 2 | Yes | 15 minutes | 15 seconds | 12 hours | 1-2 weeks |
