Apple’s cheaper Pencil is available to buy now, but it has some limitations

• The USB-C port is hidden under the cap. [credit: Apple ]

The new USB-C Apple Pencil is now available for sale through Apple's website, with the first shipments arriving on November 3. It looks like it will be available in physical stores starting around November 8, too.

The $79 peripheral is the third Apple Pencil model, but don't let that fool you into thinking it's the best choice; it's the new cheaper, entry-level option. The second-generation Pencil is the highest-end one, at $129.

What makes this Pencil different? Well, you can look at the gigantic table above from Apple's website to see the features as they compare to other models—or you can read what we wrote a couple of weeks ago when it was first announced: