Reviews

Logitech Crayon Review – the Best Apple Pencil Alternative for your iPad?

logitech crayon review iPad drawing

The Swiss accessories specialist has developed its own pen for the iPad. We’ve put it through its paces.

Although there are plenty of alternatives to the Apple Pencil, nobody could match the original iPad pencil so far. Now the Logitech Crayon is available and Apple had its hands in the development. Is there finally a sensible alternative to the Apple Pencil?

Crayon lies well in the hand

The feel is definitely right: despite its 20 grams, the Crayon lies well balanced in the hand. The wide shaft is reminiscent of that of a Zimmermann pencil and can be held securely by both small and large hands and at the same time guided precisely. Some people might prefer a round pencil shape, but after an initial period we got used to it. One major benefit. When placed on a table, it does not roll away so easily.

Another advantage is that the Crayon is ready for writing and drawing immediately after pressing the power button. It does not connect to the iPad via Bluetooth, but via a proprietary wireless connection and works like magic. In contrast to the Apple Pencil, the Logitech pen also works directly with any iPad of the sixth and seventh generation.

The rest of the Crayon has also been carefully designed by Logitech product developers with its intended use in education, at home with the family and above all by children’s hands: there are no loose parts that could be lost or even swallowed. The cap of the charging socket, for example, is connected to the pen by a rubber tab. Logitech also made sure to make the product break resistant: the pin body is made of aluminum instead of plastic, and the Crayon can easily withstand a fall from table height.

The design, on the other hand, is a matter of taste: The Apple Pencil in its plain snow-white looks noble, the Crayon on the other hand is rather playful because of its orange accents on the silver-grey aluminium. But the colour was obviously chosen carefully: It catches the eye in the chaos of a classroom, a schoolbag or a couch scribe at home.

The battery lasts a week and more

The Crayon is just as easy to charge as the Pencil. But instead of using a Lightning plug like Apple, there is a Lightning socket under the dust cap of the Crayon.

A full battery charge results in about seven hours pure usage time. And if the battery runs out at just the wrong moment, one and a half minutes of uninterrupted charging results in about 30 minutes of usage – a two-colour LED and an automatic switch-off function warn and protect against an empty battery.

Reliable workhorse instead of a noble brush

But how does the Crayon actually perform? First of all, you can easily write in different line widths (which are determined by the inclination of the pen), for example in the notes app. Annotations in PDFs or in the word processor Pages can also be added easily; sketches, drawings and photo editings are also easy to do. In other words: the Crayon does a great job in everyday life, the palm recognition reliably prevents incorrect entries.

When implementing complex shadings or similarly advanced techniques, the Logitech pen, on the other hand, fails to perform in comparison, because of the lack of pressure recognition. Apple’s own stylus is the potentially more expressive and sensitive, but also a much more expensive tool.

Works with hundreds of Apps

Use Crayon to learn a new language, sketch, design, or create with apps that are compatible with Apple Pencil.

logitech-crayon-applications

Logitech Crayon put to the test: Conclusion

The Logitech Crayon is characterised by an idiosyncratic shape. The flat pen has a better grip than we initially feared. It writes well, and even drawing is successful. Placing the ball of your hand on the screen of the iPad is no problem at all – the Crayon also works perfectly here. It’s ahead of its competitors.

Drawers prefer to use the Apple Pencil because of the lack of pressure, and the iPad Pro is also more accurate and looks more direct thanks to the laminated display. All in all, the Logitech Crayon deserves a recommendation.

Logitech Crayon in the test:

What we really liked:

  • The iPad’s palm recognition works very well when using the Crayon – one of the main problems that the other pencil alternatives have.
  • The accuracy is good.
  • The iPad does a good job of tilt for hatching.
  • A Lightning cable can be plugged into the back for charging.
Logitech Crayon Drawing

What we didn’t like that much

  • The design looks a bit like a basic school or construction site, the broad form is not everyone’s cup of tea.
  • The Crayon is not quite as exact as the Apple Pencil. Moreover, it doesn’t work with the iPad Pro, which allows even higher accuracy on the tablet side.
  • The Crayon does not support pressure intensity.

Things you should know about the Logitech Crayon

  • Do not forget to switch it on! Otherwise nothing works. Unused, it switches itself off automatically after half an hour.
  • If you have paired an Apple Pencil, disconnect it (e.g. simply switch off Bluetooth in the control centre). Crayon and Pencil cannot be used on one tablet at the same time.
Logitech Crayon Review
  • 8.2/10
    Design - 8.2/10
  • 8.5/10
    Usability - 8.5/10
  • 10/10
    Battery - 10/10
  • 7.9/10
    Compatibility - 7.9/10
8.7/10

Summary

The ideal iPad stylus for all everyday tasks – with the exception of more sophisticated craftsmanship.