So, you’ve picked up an Apple Pencil. Maybe it came bundled with your new iPad, or perhaps you finally decided to treat yourself to the ultimate iPad accessory. Congratulations! You have just unlocked a completely new way to interact with your device. But here is the secret that many new users miss: the Apple Pencil is far more than just a fancy stylus for drawing pictures.
While it is certainly an incredible tool for digital artists, the Apple Pencil is also a productivity powerhouse for students, professionals, and anyone who loves staying organized. From turning your handwriting into typed text to navigating your iPad with a flick of the wrist, there are hidden features buried in iPadOS that can transform your daily workflow.
Whether you have the original Pencil, the magnetic 2nd Generation, or the USB-C model, let’s dive into the essential tips and tricks that will help you master your Apple Pencil.
1. Stop Typing and Start 'Scribbling'
For years, using a stylus meant awkwardly tapping on a virtual keyboard or opening a specific drawing app. Apple changed the game with a feature called Scribble. This feature allows you to handwrite into any text field on your iPad, and the device will instantly convert it into typed text. This means you can write a URL directly into the Safari address bar, reply to an iMessage, or search for a song in Spotify without ever putting the Pencil down.
Scribble is enabled by default, but the real magic lies in the editing gestures. You don’t need to switch tools to fix a typo. Try these natural gestures:
- Scratch to Delete: Made a mistake? Just scribble vigorously (scratch it out) over the word or sentence, and it will vanish.
- Circle to Select: Want to highlight a word to copy or bold it? simply draw a circle around it.
- Slash to Separate: If two words are stuck together, draw a vertical line between them to insert a space.
- Join Words: Conversely, if a word is accidentally split, draw a vertical line where the space is to pull them together.
Pro Tip: If your handwriting is a bit messy, don't worry. The iPad learns your style over time. However, you can practice these specific gestures by going to Settings > Apple Pencil > Try Scribble for a quick interactive tutorial.
2. Navigate Faster with Corner Gestures
One of the best ways to speed up your iPad usage is to utilize "Hot Corners." By default, Apple allows you to perform specific actions by swiping your Pencil diagonally from the bottom corners of the screen. It feels like magic once you get used to it.
Here is how the default setup works:
- Bottom-Left Corner Swipe: instantly takes a screenshot. This is much faster than fumbling for the volume and power buttons.
- Bottom-Right Corner Swipe: Opens a "Quick Note." This is a small floating window where you can jot down a phone number, a grocery item, or a sudden idea without leaving the app you are currently using.
If you find that you are accidentally triggering these, or if you want to swap them around, you have full control. You can customize these gestures to suit your dominant hand or disable them entirely if you prefer.
3. Become a Wizard of Screenshots and Markup
Speaking of screenshots, the Apple Pencil is arguably the best tool for annotating documents and images. We have all been there: you need to sign a PDF contract, circle an error on a renovation plan, or highlight a funny quote in an article to send to a friend.
When you take a screenshot (using that bottom-left swipe we just mentioned), tap the thumbnail that appears. You enter Markup mode. Here, you have access to pens, highlighters, and rulers. But there is a hidden feature here that is a lifesaver for research:
When you take a screenshot of a long webpage in Safari, look at the top of the screenshot editor. You will see two tabs: "Screen" and "Full Page."
- Screen: Saves just what is visible on your display.
- Full Page: Captures the entire website from top to bottom as a single PDF. You can then use your Pencil to highlight and annotate the whole article and share it via email or save it to your Files app.
Quick Note on Signatures: In the Markup toolbar, tap the "+" icon and select Signature. You can sign your name once with the Pencil, save it, and then drop that signature into any PDF document in the future with a single tap. It looks much more professional than trying to sign with your finger.
4. Draw Perfect Shapes Every Time
You don't need to be Picasso to appreciate this feature. Have you ever tried to draw a circle to highlight something, only for it to look like a lumpy potato? Or maybe you are trying to draw a straight arrow to point out a detail in a photo?
Apple has a built-in "shape recognition" tool that works system-wide (in Notes, Markup, and many third-party apps). The trick is all in the pause.
How to do it:
- Draw your shape (a circle, square, triangle, star, or arrow).
- Do not lift your Pencil tip when you finish the shape.
- Hold the tip still at the end of the drawing for about half a second.
- Watch as your shaky hand-drawn line snaps into a mathematically perfect geometric shape.
This is incredibly useful for students taking notes who want to draw clean diagrams, or for home renovation planning when you are sketching out a room layout on a photo.
5. The Double-Tap (For Pencil 2 and Pro Users)
If you own the Apple Pencil (2nd Generation) or the newer Apple Pencil Pro, you have a physical button—well, sort of. The flat side of the pencil creates a touch-sensitive area. By default, double-tapping the flat side near the tip will switch between your current tool (like a pen) and the eraser.
This saves a massive amount of time because you don’t have to move your hand up to the toolbar every time you make a mistake. However, not everyone likes the eraser toggle. If you are a heavy note-taker or artist, you might prefer different functionality.
You can customize this in your Settings to:
- Switch between the current tool and the last used tool.
- Show the color palette.
- Turn the feature off entirely (if you find yourself accidentally tapping it).
6. Instant Notes from the Lock Screen
Sometimes inspiration strikes when your iPad is asleep. You don't want to wake the screen, unlock the device with FaceID, find the Notes app, and create a new note. By the time you do that, the idea might be gone.
With the Apple Pencil, you can bypass all of that. Simply tap your Pencil tip on the black, locked screen of your iPad. The iPad will wake up and immediately open a fresh Note, ready for you to write. It is the digital equivalent of keeping a notepad on your nightstand.
Whatever you write here is automatically saved to your Notes app. You can configure this in settings to either always create a new note or resume the last note you were working on—which is handy if you are taking intermittent notes during a long meeting.
Battery Care Tip: To keep your Pencil healthy, try to keep it charged. If you have the magnetic version, store it on the side of the iPad. If you let the battery drain to 0% and leave it there for weeks, it can damage the battery's ability to hold a charge. If you aren't using it for a long time, charge it up before storing it!
The Apple Pencil is a device that rewards experimentation. The more you use it, the more natural it feels, until it eventually becomes an extension of your hand. So, go ahead—scribble on your screen, swipe those corners, and enjoy the precision that comes with your new tool!