Adonit's original Jot Touch was our Editors' Choice for iPad styli when it was first released, and the newer, updated Jot Touch is still the most precise and accurate pressure-sensitive stylus available for the iPad, tying with Adobe's Ink and Slide stylus and digital ruler (which also uses Adonit's Pixelpoint technology). Selling for $119.99, it's pricey, but it's also a less expensive alternative to the $199.99 Ink and Slide ($24.99 at Amazon) . So far it only works with Adobe's Sketch and Line apps, but Adonit's website promises compatibility with several more apps in the near future.
Design and Features
Adonit claims the Jot Touch's battery will last up to 11 hours. In the box, you'll find the Jot Touch pen itself along with a magnetized USB charger that charges the stylus standing up from its base.
For the updated Jot Touch, Adonit has removed the disc at the tip that helped define its line of styli, and its black or white anodized aluminum body is sleeker and more refined as a result. At 12mm in diameter and weighing only 0.7 ounces, it's almost as comfortable to hold as Adobe's slightly warped, triangular Ink.
The Jot Touch needs to be turned on to be used as a basic stylus, by pressing the smaller of the two buttons on the grip. To take advantage of the Jot Touch's advanced features, like Palm Rejection, Palm Preference, Pressure Sensitivity, and Shortcuts, you'll need to connect the Jot Touch via Bluetooth to a third-generation or later iPad or an iPad mini and its only compatible apps to date, Adobe's Line and Sketch (although many more apps are queued up for compatibility).
Similar Products
Adobe Ink and Slide
Palm rejection uses the Jot Touch's Bluetooth connection to distinguish between the stylus' tip and your palm, and it works, but a few marks still appeared where my palm was resting on the iPad's screen. The Jot Touch records how much pressure you're applying to the iPad's screen with 2,048 levels of sensitivity, and it works quite well. With some practice, you can produce excellent effects.
The Jot Touch has two raised buttons on its grip compared to the Ink's single button. I found the buttons a little too easy to press. I occasionally pressed them by accident, which interrupted the flow of drawing. This can become frustrating, but isn't necessarily a deal breaker; you just need to adjust your grip so your fingers don't come close to the buttons. The smaller button brings up color selection, utensil selection, and sharing options in both Adobe's Sketch and Line apps. The larger button above acts as an Undo button in Sketch, but doesn't do anything in Line. Additionally, the shortcut buttons aren't programmable in either Sketch or Line, but they will be once other apps become compatible with the Jot Touch.
Thanks to Adonit's 3.18mm tip, the Jot Touch replicates thinner utensils, like pens and pencils, much more accurately than styli with large, wide rubber tips, like the Pogo Connect . The Jot Touch's PET plastic tip also creates much less friction on an iPad's screen, making for smoother digital drawing/designing. Palm Preference is meant to adjust where on the iPad's screen the Jot Touch's tip will draw according to how you normally hold your real pen to paper. That didn't work well for me, as my natural drawing style means that I often changed the angle at which I held the Jot Touch. However, this just means you need to readjust your style for digital drawing or designing.
Conclusion
Adonit's Jot Touch and Adobe's Ink and Slide are the two best iPad styli. They aren't quite as accurate as pen and paper or a Wacom tablet, but they're the state of the art in capacative styli. You just have to decide whether you want to pay $80 extra for Adobe's digital ruler. Adonit's $119.99 price tag might seem expensive, as previous generations of styli offerings peaked around the $100 mark, but you get what you pay for here. Both the Ink and Jot Touch share the same Pixelpoint technology and both perform equally well, so unless you think you'll need the Slide digital ruler, the Jot Touch is a better deal.
Adonit's new Jot Touch is a less expensive but equally accurate alternative to the Adobe Ink and Slide.
Like What You're Reading?
Sign up for Lab Report to get the latest reviews and top product advice delivered right to your inbox.
This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.
Thanks for signing up!
Your subscription has been confirmed. Keep an eye on your inbox!
Sign up for other newsletters
