The Apple Pencil (2nd generation) and Apple Pencil Pro feature an intuitive touch sensor embedded directly into the flat barrel where your index finger naturally rests. By gently double-tapping the side of the stylus, digital illustrators, students, and architects can trigger quick shortcuts without breaking drawing flow or reaching for onscreen toolbars. While iPadOS configures the double-tap gesture to alternate between your active pen and the eraser by default, you can customise this gesture to execute different creative workflows.
Accessing Apple Pencil Settings in iPadOS
Gesture customisation is managed within the centralised Apple Pencil menu in iPadOS:
- Ensure your Apple Pencil is magnetically attached or paired and actively connected to your iPad.
- Open the Settings app on your iPad.
- In the left-hand navigation column, scroll down and tap Apple Pencil.
- Locate the section labelled Double Tap.
Choosing Your Preferred Double-Tap Action
iPadOS provides several built-in response options for the barrel tap gesture:
- Switch Between Current Tool and Eraser (Default): Seamlessly toggles your active inking tool (such as a ballpoint pen or fountain nib) to the eraser, and back again upon a second double-tap. Ideal for note-taking and rapid diagramming.
- Switch Between Current Tool and Last Used: Alternates between your current drawing utensil and whatever tool you previously selected (e.g. flipping between a fine-liner pen and a broad highlighter).
- Show Colour Palette: Instantly summons the floating colour picker flyout directly beneath your stylus tip, allowing rapid pigment selection before auto-dismissing.
- Show Ink Attributes (Apple Pencil Pro): On compatible iPads paired with the Apple Pencil Pro, double-tapping can invoke brush stroke thickness and opacity sliders on demand.
- Off: Disables double-tap sensing entirely. This is highly useful if you tend to hold the stylus with a tight grip and frequently trigger accidental tool switches while sketching.
Configuring App-Specific Double-Tap Overrides
Sophisticated creative applications—such as Procreate, Adobe Fresco, and Goodnotes—often provide custom gesture engines that can override system defaults:
- Procreate: Navigate to Actions (Wrench) > Prefs > Gesture controls > Apple Pencil. You can map double-tap to summon the QuickMenu radial wheel, trigger full-screen mode, or sample colours via the Eyedropper.
- Apple Notes: Adheres strictly to the primary system preference configured in the main iPad Settings menu.
Calibrating Double-Tap Sensitivity and Responsiveness
If you find that your double-taps fail to register consistently, tap firmly near the lower third of the barrel where the capacitive sensor resides. Keeping your iPadOS version up to date ensures accurate tap rejection algorithms during active drawing strokes.