I am considering buying a Pearl S and I see that it comes with the rubber coaster.

I assume the rubber pad for the Pearl and the rubber coaster for the Pearl S are needed to protect the scale from the heat, when using a glass carafe, with thin walls and a flat base.
Do you actually need to use the heat resistant coaster or pad when you brew directly into a ceramic cup as well?
I don't think that the ceramic gets as hot as the glass and usually ceramic cups (at least mine) are not totally flat at the base so they have a small contact surface.

I'm like 50/50 on using the coaster when brewing on my Pearl S, whether into a cup or carafe and I've never had issues with my S. With a ceramic cup too it's definitely going to have less heat transfer so you should be just fine.

When I use the coaster it's more just to prevent cups/vessels from sliding around or scratch the scale, though it has a thin protective film on top so scratches aren't a huge issue.

Mine is the original Pearl S though not the 2022 so ymmv.

Thank you!
As far as scratches is concerned, I would rather use the pad after the fact, to hide them

Last question, I promise .
I did not know about the thin protective film. I see that Acaia sells it separately on the web site so I assume it has to be replaced from time to time. Given my (bad) experience in trying to apply protective film over cellphones and tablets without having bubbles or, worst, dust trapped under the film, I am not super enthusiast about it. Have you ever had to replace it?

I have not, it's not a hard plastic screen protector like material, it's a bit softer. So it definitely scratches but I've I had my pearl S for 2 years and use it on a daily basis and it shows wear but not nearly bad enough that I would consider replacing it. Since it's not like the Lunar where it's just a covering for the screen it definitely seems like it would be hard to get it installed without any bubbles or trapped dust.

Thank you all.
At this point I think I'll wait and see the Tally scale from Fellow before pulling the trigger. It should be released soon.