S-pen uses

Tomab

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I've had the S8+ for a few days and it's been great. The only thing I'm trying to figure out is the uses for the s-pen. Is it just a gimmick or do people actually use it? I can't think of an example of a good use case. Jotting notes isn't really useful when I can type it using the keyboard or on my computer while I'm working. It's more practical to put short notes or lists in on my phone if I'm on the go and not lugging the tablet or computer around. Does anyone here have a real world example of when it makes sense to use the s-pen? I feel like I'm missing something.
 

L0n3N1nja

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Is this a honest question? It's a digital pen, an active stylus, it's absolutely amazing for writing and drawing. It has a tip much finer than a finger and works great for navigation and swipe typing. These things are an artists dream come true, we wanted this technology for decades before it became a reality. There is a reason every major tablet and PC maker provides devices with an active stylus, but they aren't for everyone.

Personally I've been using devices with a Wacom stylus since 06/07, originally for editing photos and drawing on my PC. They aren't for everyone, some people have zero use for them, some people just don't care to write or draw. When Samsung first launched the Note series over a decade ago it felt like a dream come true for me, a device I had wished I had in high school and college because that pen allowed me to do things I had only imagined in the past.

On older Note phones they were critical for website navigation IMO, a lot of websites weren't optimized for touch and it allowed the use of drop down menus. Not really an issue today. It also functions as a Bluetooth remote to trigger the camera shutter on newer devices but I'm not sure if that works on the tablet or just some phones.

If you prefer to type up notes, don't do much photo editing, don't care to draw, no need to sign documents, etc, than there isn't much use for the S Pen for you and that's OK. We all use our devices for different things.

If they were useless, manufacturers wouldn't be spending extra money to implement the technology into their devices, and people wouldn't be paying companies extra to use them. Apple, Microsoft, and others charge extra money to buy their pen. Artists have literally spent thousands to use this type of technology in the past and Wacom among others still make dedicated drawing tablets. It's far from a gimmick.
 

Tomab

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It's an honest question, and I appreciate the response. I'm not an artist and can barely draw a stick figure. I am legitimately curious about how people have actually been using the pen because I've never seen anyone using them in the wild. But an artist has a very different and specialized set of skills that make the pen useful, I can see that. I guess I could turn the feature off and sell the pen before I lose it, but I was just wondering if I was missing something that most people use it for.
 

Joshua Luther1

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I had these dreams of starting to use mine for sketching and drawing but have only used it a handful of times. If I were to use it to to take notes, it would be useless as my handwriting is chicken scratch. For some, it's a gimmick, for others it's a very useful tool.
 

ClintRo

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If you do write faster than you type and have OK handwriting the notes can be converted to digital. Also good for taking classes when you need to draw, like formulas or ideas.

but voice to text is starting to get so good, not sure how much longer people will type or write notes anymore...LOL
 

L0n3N1nja

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It's an honest question, and I appreciate the response. I'm not an artist and can barely draw a stick figure. I am legitimately curious about how people have actually been using the pen because I've never seen anyone using them in the wild. But an artist has a very different and specialized set of skills that make the pen useful, I can see that. I guess I could turn the feature off and sell the pen before I lose it, but I was just wondering if I was missing something that most people use it for.

Sorry went on a bit of a rant there, but it's basically just a digital pen/pencil. It's primarily used to write/draw and if that isn't something you're interested in it serves little purpose.
 

Tomab

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If I could save a hundred bucks by not having it bundled with the tablet, I would.

Yeah me too. It's definitely got the cool factor going for it, but it's just not practical for my uses. I've turned the features off and put the pen in a drawer for now, otherwise knowing me it'll get lost very quickly. Maybe I'll find an appropriate use and I'll try it again.
 

trucksmoveamerica#AC

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Yeah me too. It's definitely got the cool factor going for it, but it's just not practical for my uses. I've turned the features off and put the pen in a drawer for now, otherwise knowing me it'll get lost very quickly. Maybe I'll find an appropriate use and I'll try it again.
I use it everytime I use the tablet. I just typed this out to you using the spen.

It's a package deal. If I could save $100 by not having a front camera on this tablet I would, I don't use the front camera, it's not practical for me. If you want to talk phones, I would pay an additional $100 to not have a front camera. So it's what we get when it's a package deal, we all get stuff we don't use but we get it anyway.

You at least get to put the spen in a drawer and not see it, I get to look at a camera hole I don't use every day.



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J Dubbs

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Yeah me too. It's definitely got the cool factor going for it, but it's just not practical for my uses. I've turned the features off and put the pen in a drawer for now, otherwise knowing me it'll get lost very quickly. Maybe I'll find an appropriate use and I'll try it again.

Get a case that holds the pen... you might start using it and find it useful for something ;) I just picked up a Samsung tablet with the pen... I didn't even realize it came with one till I got it home lol. I'm going to give it a try and see if I like it, who knows, I might become a pen convert :p
 

srgonu

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I use it for signing and highlighting in documents, teaching math for my kids (saving a lot of paper), and also jotting down my ideas quickly when needed. Am a note user since note 2 and I just love the functionality of Spen. There is no creative limitation because of it once you start using Samsung's AR Zone with the camera, live texting, editing photos, and videos, etc. Everyone was always wowed by the results and I had a great time exploring and enjoying and at the same time spending quality time with kids when stuck at home.

Also, am a Sony A7C user and like to edit my photos using Adobe Lightroom on my phone or tablet once in a while and Spen is very accurate. Spen is very useful with feature-rich Samsung photo and video editors too.

Maybe this video will help you folks get started with Spen: https://youtu.be/IdZzTPA-NSA


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