Apple Pencil support is coming to iPhone Duo next week

Apple Pencil support is coming to the iPhone Duo next week. It arrives with iOS 27.2, a software update. Many people expected to wait until December. Apple said in September, when it unveiled the Duo, that Pencil support would come "later this year." Reviews of the Duo are now out.

What changed

The Duo does not reach buyers until late October. Apple often saves bigger software updates for December, so a December Pencil launch seemed likely. Instead, iOS 27.2 includes it. Max Weinbach posted on X that Pencil support works in the iOS 27.2 release candidate, a near-final test version that came out Monday.

Timing depends on how you get your Duo. Pre-orders arriving this Friday will have to wait a few days. Anyone who installs the release candidate gets Pencil support on day one. Everyone else should have it when their Duo arrives. The public version of iOS 27.2 is expected on or around Monday, October 26.

Which Pencil works

The iPhone Duo works only with the Apple Pencil (USB-C) model. No other Pencil is compatible. That means an Apple Pencil Pro or a standard Pencil will not work. The USB-C model also works with most iPads. It is currently $69 on Amazon, according to 9to5Mac.

What is not known yet

The material does not say how Pencil features will look on the Duo or how they compare with the iPad. It also does not say what else iOS 27.2 includes. Those details should become clearer once the update is public.