OASO guides
Disc Tip or Pencil Tip: Which Stylus Does Your Screen Want?
Every week someone asks us which OASO pen to buy. The honest answer depends less on the pen and more on the screen in front of you. Here is the same short walk-through we give by email.
A disc tip stylus is passive: it has no electronics and simply borrows the electrical properties of your hand. That is why it works on any capacitive screen. A pencil tip stylus for iPad is active: it has a battery and a powered nib that the iPad recognises as a pencil, which is what unlocks palm rejection and tilt.
Check the year of your iPad
Palm rejection pencils work with iPads released from 2018 on: iPad 6th gen and newer, iPad Air 3 and newer, iPad mini 5 and newer, and iPad Pro from 2018. Older iPads need a disc stylus.
Think about where your hand goes
If you write long notes or sketch, you will want to rest your hand on the glass. That is the pencil's job. For taps, signatures, games and short notes, the disc stylus is quicker.
Count the screens in your life
One pen for a phone, a work tablet and a Chromebook? Only a disc stylus covers all three. Our pencil set includes a disc stylus for exactly this reason.
Decide how you feel about charging
Disc styluses never need power. The pencil charges over USB-C and lasts many hours, but it does need the occasional top-up.
Still torn? Start with the pencil set: it gives you both tips in one box.