Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP) Stylus Compendium

Technology Drawing Tablets, Pens & Accessories
1

A list of Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP) styluses.

Please read ‘What is Microsoft Pen Protocol?’ first if you not familiar with it. MPP requires batteries. These can be either standard AAAs or cells, or integrated.

Notably Lenovo and Fujitsu do not use MPP. They use Wacom’s AES technology. There are dual protocol styluses that support both MPP and AES, but they are few and far between. Some generations of the Wacom Bamboo are one option.

Note:

  • If you see :warning:, please read the warning carefully. Not heeding it may lead to you wasting money or even damaging your device.
  • :vb-warning: means that the information may be inaccurate or incomplete.

Contents

Notes for Editors :writing_hand:
Acknowledgements :tada:

What is Microsoft Pen Protocol?
‘MPP 2.0’ - Feel/Feel IT
‘MPP 1.0’ - Penabled/TabletPC
‘N-Trig’ - Penabled/TabletPC

Tips/Nibs

Mods

Resources :memo:

:speech_balloon: Community Chat :speech_balloon:

I’m not familiar with MPP and have only played with them in stores, so please feel free to edit this wiki. The N-Trig section is currently not split into any generations. - Tams

:writing_hand: Notes for Editors :writing_hand:

  • Please try to add features and availability if possible.

  • Links need only be to a page showing the product, though official product pages are preferred.

    • Please use the webpage with the most information. This may be a promotional page or a webstore page (official best)*.
    • For older products whatever page is alive is fine.

  • Use :vb-warning: to mark parts that need correcting, updating, or checking.

    • and please act on them if you can

  • Use :warning: to warn readers about major issues they may have.

    *It’s fine to expect readers to find out where to buy things on their own, or make a post asking for help regarding doing so.

:tada: Acknowledgements :tada:

People who have contributed information to this wiki, either directly or indirectly.

Justice Frangipane – “Tablet Pro”

Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP)

A type of digital stylus technology designed by Microsoft. It was originally an independent company called N-Trig which Microsoft started using in Surface Pros from the Surface Pro 3 and bought in 2018. The name was subsequently changed to ‘Microsoft Pen Protocol’.

MPP is a form of active digitiser. Most of the components are in the pen, which means the pen needs significant power and therefore a battery (or large (for the size) supercapacitor). As a result, these pens do need to be kept charged.

The main upside is that MPP is easier to implement into devices; also making it cheaper. OEMs are therefore more likely to do so. As a result, there are a number of devices that poorly advertise MPP support, or even have it ‘hidden’.

The main users of MPP are:

  • Microsoft
  • Asus
  • HP
  • Dell
  • MSI

Others include:

  • Acer (not their Concept line - the 3 uses Wacom AES and the others Wacom EMR)
  • Vaio (formerly Sony Vaio)
  • Kobo (Rakuten)
  • LG
  • Motorola (Lenovo - but only on a few Motorola devices)
  • GPD
  • One-Netbook

MPP 2.0

Microsoft

Surface Slim Pen 2 - available

  • One side button
  • End eraser
  • End Bluetooth button
  • Bluetooth 5.0
  • Haptic feedback - Surface Laptop Studio and Surface Pro 8 & 9 with Windows 11
  • ‘Zero force inking’
  • Magnetic
  • Wireless charging (One device and USB Type-C charger)
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Tilt

Surface Slim Pen - available

  • One side button
  • End eraser
  • End Bluetooth button
  • Bluetooth 5.0? :vb-warning:
  • Magnetic
  • Wireless charging (One device and USB Type-C charger)
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Tilt

Surface Pen with no clip - available

  • One side button
  • End eraser
  • End Bluetooth button
  • Bluetooth 4.0
  • Magnetic
  • AAAA battery
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Tilt
  • Four barrel colours

Surface Pen with single button on one edge - available

  • One side button
  • End eraser
  • End Bluetooth button
  • Bluetooth 4.0
  • Magnetic
  • AAAA battery
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • No tilt
  • Clip

Surface Pen with two side buttons - available

  • Two side buttons
  • End eraser
  • End Bluetooth button
  • Bluetooth :vb-warning:
  • Not magnetic
  • AAAA battery
  • 1024 pressure levels
  • No tilt
  • Clip

Microsoft Classroom Pen - available

  • Two side buttons
  • AAAA battery
  • 1024 pressure levels
  • No tilt

Microsoft Classroom Pen 2 and Microsoft Business Pen - available

  • Two side buttons
  • AAAA battery
  • 4096 or 1024 pressure levels
  • No tilt
  • Clip
  • Tether slot

Renaisser

R530 - only on the Renaisser website in a bundle with the Pelican K8 Keyboard

  • Two side buttons
  • End eraser
  • Magnetic
  • USB-C
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Tilt

R520BT - available

  • Two side buttons
  • End Bluetooth button (three functions)
    *Bluetooth use reduces battery life
  • Magnetic
  • USB-C via a magnetic charging cap
  • Tilt

R520C - available

  • Two side buttons
  • Magnetic
  • USB-C
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Tilt

R520 - available

  • Two side buttons
  • Magnetic
  • USB Micro-B
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Tilt

Asus

ASUS Pen 2.0 SA203H - available

  • Two side buttons
  • End Bluetooth button
  • USB-C (hidden)
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • 5-350g pen tip force
  • Tilt
  • Four pen tips ( 2H, H, HB, B)

ASUS Pen 2.0 SA201H - available

  • Two side buttons
  • Flat button side
  • AAAA battery
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • 14-450g pen tip force
  • Tilt

ASUS Pen - available

  • Two side buttons
  • AAAA battery
  • 1024 pressure levels
  • 10-300g pen tip force
  • Tilt
  • Clip

HP

HP Rechargeable MPP 2.0 Tilt Pen - available

  • Two side buttons
  • USB-C (hidden)
  • ? pressure levels
  • ? pen tip force
  • Tilt

MSI

MSI Pen 2 (MSI pen 1P 16) - available

  • MPP 2.6
  • Two side buttons
  • End Bluetooth button
  • USB-C
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Black or silver
  • Tilt
  • Battery indication light
  • Haptic feedback
  • Magnetic
  • Graphite tip (comes with ‘fountain pen’ tip too)
    • can be used as a normal pencil too

MSI Pen (MSI pen 1P 14) - available

  • Two side buttons
  • End Bluetooth button
  • USB-C
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Black or silver
  • 65 hour battery life (stated)
  • Battery indication light

Wacom

Bamboo Ink Plus (CS322AK0B) - available

  • Two side buttons
  • End button (bluetooth)
    • Supports single and double clicks as well as click & hold
  • USB-C (hidden)
  • Integrated battery (est. 20 hours)
  • Clip
  • 4,096 pressure levels
  • ? pen tip force
  • Tilt
  • Comes with medium nib installed and box with soft, firm, and blue nibs
  • Dual mode MPP and Wacom AES
  • Indicator lights between barrel buttons and above clip
  • Black

Bamboo Ink (Second Gen) (CS323AG0B) - available

  • Two side buttons
  • No end button
  • AAAA battery
  • Expected battery life ~ 900 hours (15 months)
  • Clip
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • No tilt
  • Indication light between barrel buttons
  • Comes with medium nib installed and box with soft, medium, and firm
    • No blue nib
  • Dual mode MPP and Wacom AES
  • Grey

Bamboo Ink (First Gen) (CS321A1K0B) - available

  • Two side buttons
  • End button (bluetooth)
    • Supports single and double clicks as well as click & hold
  • AAAA battery
  • Expected battery life ~ 900 hours (15 months)
  • Clip
  • 4096 pressure levels
  • Tilt?
  • Indication light between barrel buttons
  • Comes with medium nib installed and box with soft, medium, and firm
    • No blue nib
  • Dual mode MPP and Wacom AES
  • Black

MPP1.51

Asus

Active stylus SA200H - discontinued

  • Two side buttons
  • AAAA battery
  • 1024 pressure levels
  • 14-450g pen tip force
  • Tilt
  • Clip

HP

HP MPP 1.51 Pen - available

  • Two side buttons
  • One (Bluetooth? Eraser?) end button
  • AAAA battery
  • ? pressure levels
  • ? pen tip force
  • Tilt?
  • Clip

Tips/Nibs

There are nib packs available from most vendors, but there has not been enough testing to see how intercompatible they are.

Wacom (Bamboo Ink series)

Nib kit for Bamboo Ink (ACK42416) - available

Nib kit for Bamboo Ink Plus (ACK24006Z) - available

  • The same but with the extra blue nib

Mods

Currently no significant attempts known.

Resources

Keywords for web crawlers if that’s how they still work.

MPP pen list. Surface Pro pen list. Surface GO pen list. Surface Laptop pen list. ASUS Pen. ASUS pen list. Which digital pen? Which digital stylus?

:memo: Edit notes :memo:

  • Created 8th July 2023
  • 30th October - Fixed formatting, quick check, and made into a wiki.
  • 7th November - Added Wacom styluses
8 Likes
2

Thanks for taking the time to write this :clap::clap::clap:

3

Good post!

4

To be honest, most of it is a copy and paste job from the EMR thread. It’s certainly not up to the same standard.

I got bored halfway through doing it. Further, it was in this state by late January and I’ve just been sitting on it since.

2 Likes
5

I just got the Wacom Bamboo Ink Plus, so added the Wacom pens.

Information about the first generation Bamboo Ink is quite sparse.