Users on the internet are reporting that the Apple Pencil Pro isn’t working properly with the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air. Among the most common issues are that the accessory stops working randomly, disappears from Bluetooth and Find My, and freezes on an “Apple Pencil Pro” pop-up without displaying the battery when connected to the iPad.
It seems these issues have been around since day one. On a Reddit thread from last month, a user describes exactly that: ” I just got my new iPad Pro and Apple Pencil Pro today. I played with it a bit with some drawing apps, but after a while, the pencil stopped working. It wouldn’t connect even though it show the “Apple Pencil Pro” words at the top of the screen when I attached it. I have restarted my iPad many times, and it still doesn’t work.”
Some users reported that the squeeze feature didn’t work, even though they could still get haptic feedback.
Apple Pencil Pro not working haunts new iPad users, mainly because restarting the iPad, factory resetting it, or trying to remove and repair the accessory doesn’t last long.
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One Reddit user said that after tightening the Apple Pencil Pro up, it started working again, but it doesn’t seem to be the issue the majority of users are facing.
Image source: Christian de Looper for BGR
Other users reported similar issues on the Apple Community Forum: “I recently bought the new iPad M4 and the new Apple Pencil Pro. I use it mostly for taking notes on Apple Notes. Sometimes, while writing notes, the Apple Pencil stops showing what I’m writing. Anything I write disappears as soon as I write it, and then it keeps on doing that. Then I close the Notes app and open it back up, and the writing shows up again. It happens very randomly.”
Interestingly, Apple Pencil Pro does not seem to be working with the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air. The issue persists with all iPadOS versions available, from iPadOS 17.5, iPadOS 17.5.1, and the first beta of iPadOS 18.
Possible tips and tricks if Apple Pencil Pro is not working
Although most steps don’t help users, they might help you. Try the following:
- Restart iPad
- Restart Bluetooth
- Remove Apple Pencil Pro from Bluetooth and/or Find My and try to repair
- Factory reset iPad
- Contact Apple Support
It’s unclear if Apple sells faulty accessories or if a firmware update could solve this issue. BGR contacted Apple, and we’ll update the article once we learn more.