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Apple Pencil Pro + iPad turns into the best note-taking + sketching device ever made. Better than paper for most uses — searchable, audio-synced, infinite undo, perfect storage. Here's the complete 2026 guide.
Squeeze the Pencil Pro to bring up a quick tool palette in any app. Switch between pen, highlighter, eraser without tapping.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: serious note-takers, artists
Buy Apple Pencil Pro →Rotate the Pencil Pro and watch your brush stroke rotate too. Specifically useful for calligraphy, brushes with directional shapes.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: artists, calligraphers
Pencil Pro Books →$50 less than Pencil Pro. Loses: squeeze, barrel roll, haptic feedback, Find My. Keeps: pressure, tilt, hover (on iPad Pro M4).
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: casual writers
Buy Apple Pencil USB-C →Most-used note-taking app. Search inside handwritten notes (OCR), audio recording, PDF annotation. Subscription $10/yr.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: students, lecture notes
Get Goodnotes 6 →Records audio while you write — playback the lecture and your notes scroll to where you wrote them. Magic for review.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: lecture-heavy students
Get Notability →Apple Notes supports handwritten notes natively. Recently added math support — write '23 * 17 =' and Notes calculates.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: free users, simple needs
Apple Notes Books →Vector-based, infinite canvas. Best for designers, architects who sketch alongside notes.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: design + sketching workflows
Get Concepts →In any text field on iPad, write with Apple Pencil. iPadOS converts your handwriting to typed text automatically.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: filling forms, writing emails
Scribble Books →Double-tap Pencil tip switches to Selection. Lasso around your handwriting to: move, resize, change color, convert to text.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: organizing handwritten notes
Pencil Selection Books →Write a math equation with Apple Pencil → iPad recognizes it → can solve, save as image, or insert as cleaned-up equation.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: students, scientists
Math Books →During lecture: write notes with Apple Pencil while Notability records audio. Review: tap any note → audio jumps to that moment.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: every student
Notability for Students →Import PDF textbook chapters → annotate with Apple Pencil. Search your annotations later. Replace physical textbook markup.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: PDF-heavy classes
Goodnotes Subscription →Apple Notes supports math equations written with Apple Pencil. Solves them. Better than typing TeX.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: STEM students
Math Notes Books →Visual learners — draw concept maps connecting ideas. Concepts (vector) and Procreate (raster) both work great.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: visual thinkers
Concept Map Apps →Hover Apple Pencil over iPad Pro M4 screen — UI elements preview, brushes show stroke preview, tools highlight.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: precision work
Buy iPad Pro M4 →Swipe Apple Pencil from BOTTOM-RIGHT corner of screen → Quick Note opens. Jot something from any app, save to Notes.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: quick capture across apps
Quick Note Books →Settings → Apple Pencil → Double Tap. Set to: switch eraser, show color palette, show ink/tool palette, etc.
💝 Why dads love it: Best for: personal workflow
Pencil Settings →