How to disconnect my Apple Pencil?

As an Apple Pencil owner, I know the frustration of trying to disconnect your device from your iPad. After several failed attempts, I decided to do some research and testing to figure out how to solve this problem. Now, I’m here to share with you what I’ve learned and the success I’ve had in successfully disconnecting my Apple Pencil. In this blog post, I’ll walk you through the various steps and solutions I discovered for disconnecting your Apple Pencil.

To disconnect the Apple Pencil, you simply have to go into the Bluetooth settings on your iPad and forget the Apple Pencil.

If you are doing it to save some power, it is not really necessary since the Apple Pencil goes into a low power mode when it is not in use which disconnects it from the iPad. When you pick the pencil back up, the pencil quickly reconnects to the iPad so that you can start using it.

Key Takeaways:

The Apple Pencil goes into a low power mode when it is not in use, but can be disconnected from the iPad by going to Settings -> Bluetooth -> Apple Pencil -> “Forget this device”.
The Apple Pencil cannot be turned off and is always using some power.

The Apple Pencil typically holds its charge for 1-2 weeks when not in use, and loses about 15% of charge each day without use.
It is important not to allow the battery to be at 0% charge for too long, as many users have reported their Apple Pencil batteries dying when left at 0% for more than a few days.

Table of Contents

How to disconnect my Apple Pencil?

To disconnect the Apple Pencil, you simply need to disconnect it from the iPad’s Bluetooth. You can do this by going to settings -> Bluetooth -> Apple Pencil -> “Forget this device”

However, the Apple Pencil disconnects when it is not in use anyway to save power. So, if you are doing it in order to save power, it is not really necessary.

How do I turn off my Apple Pencil?

The Apple Pencil cannot be turned off and it is always using some power. However, when you stop using the Apple Pencil, it will go into a low power mode and stops being connected to the iPad’s Bluetooth. When you pick the pencil up again, the Bluetooth reengages and quickly reconnects to the iPad.

In my experience, the Apple Pencil 2 keeps its charge for around 1-2 weeks, if you leave it unused after being fully charged. Users also report in forums that their Apple Pencil 2’s lose about 15% of charge each day without use.

How often you will need to charge the Apple Pencil will depend a lot on how often you use it. If you use the pencil for 30 minutes per day, you should expect to have to charge it about 1 time per week, if you do not keep it attached to the iPad.

Many users worry about the battery losing its capacity over time because you can never save power by turning the pencil off.

However, a brand new Apple Pencil is meant to last for 12 hours of regular use with a single charge. Even if your pencil loses 50% of its capacity, you can still expect it to last for about 6 hours.

Most people don’t need to use the pencil for more than a few hours at a time, so the deterioration of the battery should not be a major concern.

It is more likely that you would lose the pencil or upgrade to a future edition before the battery becomes an issue.

Do I need to disconnect my Apple Pencil?

It is not necessary to disconnect the Apple Pencil because the Pencil goes into a low power mode and temporarily disconnects from the iPad anyway. When you pick the pencil back up again, it reconnects to the iPad.

As long as the battery has power, the Apple Pencil is always turned on. This is not such an issue in practice because the pencil does not lose power too quickly when it is not in use and can be charged to full in only 15 minutes.

Also, because you can leave the Apple pencil 2 attached to the iPad, it will not be common for you to find yourself running out of power.

Why you should always keep your Apple Pencil charged

Something very important to be aware of is that it is important not to allow the battery to be at 0% charge for too long.

The reason for this is that many users have reported their Apple Pencil batteries dying when left at 0% for more than a few days.

In practice, this should be very easy with the Apple Pencil 2 because you can just leave it attached to the iPad, so it will rarely be able to get close to 0% unless your iPad goes to 0%.

Pros and Cons of Disconnecting Your Apple Pencil

Pros	Cons
The Apple Pencil goes into a low power mode when it is not in use, saving power.	The Apple Pencil cannot be turned off and is always using some power.
The Apple Pencil can be easily reconnected when you pick it up again.	The Apple Pencil loses about 15% of charge each day without use.
The Apple Pencil typically holds its charge for 1-2 weeks when not in use.	It is important not to allow the battery to be at 0% charge for too long, as many users have reported their Apple Pencil batteries dying when left at 0% for more than a few days.