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Drawing Tablet Recommendations?
a year ago
Because I think I might have to replace my drawing tablet pretty soon. Its an old Wacom Cintiq 13in HD and has been my trusty sidekick for about... I wanna say almost decade or so now? It still works fine, but the wear its been accumulating over the years has been hard to ignore. I can see and feel the scratches on the surface of the tablet when I draw and it just doesn't feel good to work on anymore. Since its been starting to affect the way I work now, I think its best to just invest in a new one.
Since I'm sorta out of the loop of what the cool kidz use to draw these days, I thought I'd ask for some recommendations. Ideally, I just want something that kinda feels similar to my old one since its what I've been used to for so many years, just not as dinky haha. But since I know Wacom doesn't manufacture the 13HD model anymore, I don't know where to start. xD But heres a few other things that I'm looking for too!
- I'm not a huge fan of large display screens (like 24-27") for drawing. I remember using them in school and my arm would always get tired fast. The 13" one worked just fine for me, but I'm willing to go up to 16" and maybe 22". Though I'd prefer not to go smaller than 13".
- Some of the things I couldn't stand about my 13HD was the wacky cord setup and the flimsy stand (if you worked on one of these, you'll probably know what I mean xD) Once it got set up, it was fine, but it was definitely not on-the-go friendly. If I can avoid that nonsense and have something a bit more mobile, that would be great lol.
- I'm willing to spend more for a quality tablet since I'm gonna be working on it for a long time, so I don't have a set budget/price range. If you know a good quality one at a more affordable price range, thats great! But I also don't want to cheap out if it'll cause me issues down the line. So I'd prefer to get something completely new and not old/used/refurbished.
- Brand names don't matter to me as long as its reliable, solid tablet. I know Wacom is probably the most well known, but I'm willing to try other ones if you've had good experiences with them!
- No Ipads/Microsoft Surfaces. I just can't get used to drawing on them and I felt the work area to be a bit too small/cramped imo. I could consider one for casual on-the-go doodling one day, but ideally not for work-work, haha.
But yeah, feel free to share about your experiences with your drawing tablet or if you've heard good experiences with other models! Anything helps, thanks! :)
Since I'm sorta out of the loop of what the cool kidz use to draw these days, I thought I'd ask for some recommendations. Ideally, I just want something that kinda feels similar to my old one since its what I've been used to for so many years, just not as dinky haha. But since I know Wacom doesn't manufacture the 13HD model anymore, I don't know where to start. xD But heres a few other things that I'm looking for too!
- I'm not a huge fan of large display screens (like 24-27") for drawing. I remember using them in school and my arm would always get tired fast. The 13" one worked just fine for me, but I'm willing to go up to 16" and maybe 22". Though I'd prefer not to go smaller than 13".
- Some of the things I couldn't stand about my 13HD was the wacky cord setup and the flimsy stand (if you worked on one of these, you'll probably know what I mean xD) Once it got set up, it was fine, but it was definitely not on-the-go friendly. If I can avoid that nonsense and have something a bit more mobile, that would be great lol.
- I'm willing to spend more for a quality tablet since I'm gonna be working on it for a long time, so I don't have a set budget/price range. If you know a good quality one at a more affordable price range, thats great! But I also don't want to cheap out if it'll cause me issues down the line. So I'd prefer to get something completely new and not old/used/refurbished.
- Brand names don't matter to me as long as its reliable, solid tablet. I know Wacom is probably the most well known, but I'm willing to try other ones if you've had good experiences with them!
- No Ipads/Microsoft Surfaces. I just can't get used to drawing on them and I felt the work area to be a bit too small/cramped imo. I could consider one for casual on-the-go doodling one day, but ideally not for work-work, haha.
But yeah, feel free to share about your experiences with your drawing tablet or if you've heard good experiences with other models! Anything helps, thanks! :)
Admittedly I don't have any noteworthy experience with using display tablets (I never quite got used to those, weirdly enough), but Huion is a cheaper option than Wacom overall - and, in my opinion, they've got a comfier setup. They're also customizable (the one I use let me specify the exact part I wanted to use for my drawing range, which is VERY nice because it's quite a bit larger than my old Wacom was), in case that's something that might interest you. c:
(But in all honesty, I think most modern tablets have customizable setups and button-mapping etc. features, so that very probably is NOT brand-exclusive, haha.)
Best of luck with finding a new tablet!
if you decide to go for another brand the 2 recommendations there may be worth while to look into.
hope the new tablet treats you well :D
(yeah avoid surface, awful tablet in the end, 6 replacements since the screens kept dying on me)
Generally I'm pretty gentle with my screen, and I've only had to replace my nibs maybe twice during the whole time I've had it. But the quality of the nibs might have changed over the years, I dunno. xD
Yeah i hated drawing on it haha. I've heard the ipad is a bit better, but I just cant get used to the small screens haha.
i guess my other issue with wacom is their dead pixel policy is they wont do anything for dead pixels unless there is more then think 5 and if they are spreading so something to consider if you got a wacom and it had a dead pixel or two is they wont do anything about getting you a replacement
https://support.wacom.com/hc/en-us/.....isplay-tablet-
my wacom the one i currently have is a replacement because of dead pixels that were spreading. they tried to lay blame on me for damaging it but i had pictures and time stamps from when i got it out of the box so dont let them push you around if there is something wrong with the wacom tablet. (if you went with that brand)
i do like my tablet just dont care for the company.
i guess a feature that surface/ipad does better is the palm touch as on my wacom cintiq pro 16 palm touch doesn't work well and registers as pen strokes so i had to turn it off as it interferes alot. while not drawing it works great, very responsive just not good while drawing
surface has big problems with their screens getting what is commonly called flickergate to phantom touches, they also get very hot and the battery is not good from the start. i had nothing but issues with it when i had it. its a great idea having a all in one computer/tablet but surface just wasn't it.
Not sure if it's something related to this unit specifically but it popped up after 1-1.5 years of active use.
What do you mean by popped up? :o
Since you've had a cintiq before, how does the color accuracy compare with the UGEE? Another issue I forgot to mention is that my colors always felt off on my cintiq (it seems more desaturated on screen, then when i upload the drawing and view it on other screens, it looks way more saturated that i was hoping)
16 inch cintiq is purrfect size. Go for the pro version if you want something heavy duty.
huion kamvas tablets are a good competitor though.
Right now Huion Kamvas 16 (the 4k version) seems like what I might go for, but I'll look around for more reviews. Still shopping around haha.
I've used Wacom for the majority of my work thus far and I haven't had any issues with them (aside from the Mobile Studio Pro, but that's not relevant). Wacom wise, I would recommend the Wacom Cintiq 16 Pro or the Wacom Cintiq 17 Pro. Both have a 4K display, but the 17 has a newer design in contrast to the 16 Pro (it's a lot cleaner looking in terms of overall design). The Cintiq 17 Pro also features a 120hz refresh rate, so it means that anything that moves on the screen would run smoother. The 17 Pro also has better multi-touch functions and aren't as clunky as the ones found on the Cintiq 16 Pro. Both of them also have express keys, but they're now found on the backside in contrast to having buttons on the front. The Cintiq Pros both use USB C so you don't have that clunky 3-in-1 cord.
The Cintiq Pro 16 has retractable feet whereas the Cintiq 17 includes a detachable stand (and VESA screw).
(Part 1. Cont.)
A lot of my friends use Huion tablets. My partner uses a Huion 16" 4K display and it has been going strong for the past couple of years. Huion tablets are great also because they have little to no parallax (some of the tablets have laminated screens and I would recommend going after those). They also have USB C functionality, which reduces the amount of cumbersome cords that you would have to deal with. Huions are great price point wise and are very competitive quality wise in comparison to Wacom.
Feel free to hit me up if you have any additional questions. I'll also leave this channel here from Brad Colbow. He reviews tech for a living and he's covered all of the tablets that I've mentioned here.
https://www.youtube.com/@thebradcolbow
- Huion Kamvas Pro 16 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7P3RW0JxgPU
- Cintiq Pro 17 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBn727A9pAc
- Cintiq Pro 16 vs. Kamvas 16 Pro vs XP Pen Artist 16 Pro - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnLcEE5AXfE
They have both regular graphics tablets and also screen tablets.
https://artisul.com/products/artisu.....ch-pen-display
https://artisul.com/collections/pen-tablet
ONE BIG CAVEAT THOUGH!
Always order them through Amazon, NEVER through the artisul site. Their return policy is abysmal and they make you jump through hoops to get refunds. Instead, order through amazon, put the tablet through its paces, and then return it immediately for an exchange if you have _any_ QC issues.
https://www.amazon.com/stores/ARTIS.....3-9A160DC7A48F
Oh yeah, I've heard some similar stories with other brands too. But yeah Amazon always seems to be the most secure way, so whichever brand I go with, it'll probably be through them.
An IPad is genuinely really nice for drawing as well as long as you're not doing huge illustration pieces. They can also work well together. It's nice being able to draw when I'm out and about then finish my project on my Huion. Reverse that; it's also nice to be able to send a current project to the iPad and finish that on the go. :)
Yeah thats why I can probably see myself drawing on a small tablet for doodles and sketches, but I just need more space personally for painting and rendering xD
Comes with nibs, the artist glove, and a pen holder. The stand for the tablet is already attached. It feels very heavy and durable, and not cheap at all. The colors are great, as well.