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The iPad Stylus Search Continues: Targus iPad Stylus Takes the Lead

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If you’ve been following along, you know I’ve been checking out a number of styli for use with the iPad. So have many others, including Hector Gomez. Recently I’d settled on the Box Wave stylus because of the rubber or silicon tip and how that makes laying down Digital Ink feel close to doing so on a Tablet PC with a Wacom digitizer. Hector recently pointed out the Targus iPad Stylus, which is available at Best Buy (listed as back ordered currently). I managed to find one on the shelf in a Best Buy store in Richmond this weekend and picked it up. The verdict?

Fundamentally, the Targus stylus presents the same feel as the Box Wave Stylus does. Your mileage my vary, but I see no fundamental difference between the two outside of the cosmetic design. In fact, I’d say it is the exact same with the exception of color choices and the little tether that comes with the Box Wave. Well, that’s not true. The Targus iPad Stylus can be had at Best Buy for $14.99. The Box Wave Stylus has been reduced in price from $24.95 to $20.95. So, if you don’t mind waiting until they are back in stock at Best Buy, you can save a few bucks.

In the picture, the Targus Stylus is black and the Box Wave is blue.

UPDATE: Check the comments to this post. GBM reader drnkusv reports that Griffin is also marketing this same stylus at $19.99. I guess someone is cranking them out and the usual roundup of companies that market these accessories are slapping their brand on them along with their own pricing. I’m guessing that if Apple ever got over its stance that a stylus is the spawn of Satan, and tried to sell one of these the price would be $39.99.

12 Comments

12 Comments

  1. drnkusv

    08/16/2010 at 8:07 am

    Something weird is going on here. I just bought the Griffin iPad stylus, which also looks like precisely the same thing as the Boxwave and the Targus, just with a different name on it.

    https://www.griffintechnology.com/products/stylus

    Who exactly is sourcing these, and why do so many companies need to repackage this with their own branding?

    • Warner Crocker

      08/16/2010 at 8:10 am

      You’re correct. They do look exactly alike. Interesting to see how the different branding and price points work. At the moment, Targus has the lowest price.

      • Valeriograziani

        02/05/2011 at 1:59 pm

        I think that processo Are anyhow eccessive. They aren’t even providing replacement tips. A reasonable price would be 3$

  2. James

    08/16/2010 at 9:13 am

    it is too bad that Steve Job’s vision is so narrow. Think of an Ipad with a wacom active digitizer. That size, weight and form factor would replace notepads for every professional in no time. If I could take decent detailed digital notes on one, I would buy it no time. The coarse notes available with finger size stylus just do not allow for detailed writing. What a shame.

  3. dstrauss

    08/16/2010 at 10:52 am

    I’m with you James, but I’m not holding my breath for an active digitizer – not just Jobs’ hatred of anything remotely Newton, but because I have to beleive that an active digitizer will clobber both size and battery life. Every day I waffle back and forth between my iPad/Boxwave and my HP2730p/Wacom – I know, I know, they are NOT COMPARABLE as far as inking is concerned – but I have really fallen in love with the size/instant access of the iPad.

  4. Wevenhuis

    08/16/2010 at 12:44 pm

    Where can I buy this stylus on the european market?

  5. James

    08/16/2010 at 3:02 pm

    Dstrauss – I can’t believe that an active digitizer would add that much to the size. I have no idea what the power parameters of an active digitzer are. Using the finger as the model, for digitizing purposes, it turns the ipad into about a 100×100 grid which is very coarse.

    I love my tablets. I have 5 Fuji tablets and use them every single day. I would love to have an Ipad form factor that I could decent notes with. I would buy several ipads for that alone.

  6. HG

    08/16/2010 at 9:14 pm

    So now that there is more choices, I guess for price, the Targus is betteer deal. I have to agree with Warner that with Boxwave, Tatgus, and now looks like Griffen has the same type of stylus. These are the best for note taking. Since the tip is round and soft, like your finger pad it works great just like your finger tip.

  7. TR

    08/30/2010 at 1:05 am

    Do you know if the Targus & Boxwave stylus fit in a Pogo clip? I have a itouch 3g.

  8. 3littles

    08/05/2011 at 8:12 pm

    Are there replacement tips available for this stylus??

  9. Vol_kos

    08/28/2011 at 12:55 pm

    I also
    vote for the active digitizer.  Second
    thin layer below the LCD matrix will add nothing to weight and size, just will
    increase the price. However  Apple can
    produce special “student” or “business” version.  They can also make it possible to switch
    between multitouch and active digitizer, so it will be powered on and eat
    batteries just when you need it. iPad is much lighter and a bit cheaper  than tablet PCs. It’s also stylish. And I
    suppose many students would use it if it were capable of writing lecture notes.
    But unfortunately it’s still useless for that purpose. Will the iPad 3 change
    the situation?

  10. Nerissa

    05/20/2012 at 9:49 am

    The Griffin version (at least the one I got at Target) is about an inch shorter than the Targus. That makes it about 3/4″ too short to be comfortable in my hand for writing or drawing. Also, the Targus can be found at Wal-Mart for around $14, though they only seem to carry black.

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