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Styluses are quickly becoming one of the most preferred tools in creating digital art, but the uses of styluses don’t stop there. From taking notes to doing fine work like within an Excel document, a stylus is an awesome tool for any nature of touchscreen work that needs to be done.
Not all styluses are up to the task though, as some are specifically made to work with specific devices, think of the Apple Pencil which will only work with certain generations of iPads.
Types Of Stylus.
On the overview, there are two main types of styluses, active and passive.
Passive – Passive styluses, also known as capacitive styluses, are in essence just a piece of plastic (or other material) with a small rubber bit on the end to simulate a finger. The point being smaller than a finger allows this to work great for typical office styles of workload you may want to do on a tablet. A passive stylus will make working with Excel sheets a breeze when away from a computer.
Active – An active stylus is one with its own hardware that connects directly to the tablet or drawing pad. The connection type can vary from physical, Bluetooth, IR and Wi-Fi, but all achieve the same result. Active styluses are much preferred when it comes to art creation and in depth working, as they can be controlled in more ways than just simulating a finger on a screen.
For the average person, the main difference between the two will be the price point. For typical workflows like emails and documents on a tablet, a passive stylus will likely be more than enough. More in-depth workflows like art creation will greatly benefit from the more expensive active stylus.
Features To Look For
Saying an active stylus is better for art is great but means very little without the right information. There are still active styluses that may not fit your needs. To find the right stylus for your use case, it’s important to understand the features on offer that would benefit what you do.
Palm Rejection – For anybody using a stylus, palm rejection will likely be important. This works by communicating the position of the stylus in relation to the screen, allowing the tablet or drawing pad to filter out any unnecessary or, in this case, large inputs. Some filter out all other inputs, some only large area inputs, this will be a decision based on the type of workload you do most.
Pressure sensitivity – The ability to differentiate between different pressures is important for those planning to do artwork. Different pressures on the screen can allow for different line thicknesses or intensity.
Programmable Buttons – Programmable buttons on the stylus can save a lot of time when often switching between different modes.
Comfort – Comfort is an important part of any stylus you choose. Some people prefer thinner styluses while others prefer thicker, weight, shape, width, and length are all factors to take into consideration when choosing a comfortable stylus.
Support – Not all styluses are supported by all hardware platforms or even applications. Finding a stylus that matches your available hardware and programs of choice will be the biggest deciding factor of the stylus you use.
Like the games at Lucky Creek there are hundreds of different styluses out there for all different use cases. Figuring out your perfect use case will help you find the perfect stylus for you.
