Mechanization and mass production drove prices down, and by the start of the 20th century, even schoolchildren were using pencils ​ — unpainted “penny pencils, ” as they were called in the United States.
Në atë kohë, në Shtetet e Bashkuara, lapsat quheshin « lapsa njëcentësh », me këllëfë druri të pangjyrosur.