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Wacom Intuos4 Medium Pen Tablet

Professional photographers, designers and artists agree: Intuos4 pen tablet speeds up production time for photo editing, design and art creation. When working with digital assets, there isn’t a more natural tool than a pen for increased comfort and control. With 48.5 square inches of working area, this tablet provides ample workspace. Built with eight ExpressKeys and illuminated ExpressKey displays that provide easy reference to your assigned functions. Featuring Wacom’s new tip sensor technology to deliver an even finer level of control. You can initiate pen pressure control with near-zero starting pressure and a feather-light touch. With 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity and 60 degrees of tilt recognition, the Intuos4 pen simulates like never before the natural feel and accuracy of working with traditional brushes, pens, and markers. In the box – Intuos4 medium pen tablet Intuos4 Grip Pen Intuos4 mouse Pen stand Ten replacement nibs (five standard nibs, one flex nib, one stroke nib, and three hard felt nibs) Nib extractor 2.5m (8.20 ft.) USB cable Quick Start Guide Installation CD (includes tablet driver software and electronic user manual) System Requirements – Windows XP SP2/Vista, Mac OS X 10.4.8+ Color display Powered USB port CD/DVD drive Unit Dimensions – 14.6 x 10.0 x 0.5 in; Weight – 2.2 lb

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars wacom Intuos4
THE best tablet I have ever used. I have used bigger Wacom tablets and other brands and this is easily the best it has been my pleasure to use. Easy to install and use, it’s a great size. It does everything I need and it fits on my desk. My work is digital design and illustration for print so I use the tablet extensively and daily.

5 Stars Awesome! This is as good as it can get!!!!
This is incredible!! Perfect. Phenomenal. I LOVE it! Everything about it deserves 5 stars.

This is a tool of the future. I use Mac OS X Snow Leopard, and it works perfectly (of course, it doesn’t work as well if you don’t use the built-in software, but it suggests many times on the screen that you use the software, which comes with the tablet).

The installation is as easy as it can get. Pop in the disk, and it will guide you through the 5 easy steps: setting whether you’re right-handed or left-handed, how to set up the tablet, controls and basics, etc. It only takes a few minutes to install the software… Then, your tablet works better than ever!

When I started using the tablet, I discovered that it has the same comfort as a pen. You can use it in your desktop, and almost any art software. When I first plugged it in, I began to easily cruise through files, surf the web, and use many art software I didn’t think I could use, with a tablet. (Paintbrush, a simple, free, downloaded app., SKETCHBOOK PRO, my favorite, Photoshop, etc.)

I rate this 5 stars on everything. If you’re a sketch artist, painter, or any kind of artist, and you’re longing for the feel of a real pen or pencil, Wacom is definitely for you.

5 Stars Intuos4: an upgrade? Definitely!
I recently upgraded my Intuos3 Small to the Intuos4 Small. And I must say it is definitely and upgrade. I really like that there are six customizable buttons instead of just four, and I much prefer the touch ring over the strip. I also like that you can customize the touch ring to do four different things so it’s like having four extra buttons! The touch ring is nicely sensitive and is far superior to the touch strip.

The active area of the tablet is about a quarter on an inch wider than the active area on the Intuos3 and about the same amount shorter. I like that it’s not so smooth as it was on the Intuos3, so when you’re drawing it feels more like real paper.

The detachable USB cord is also a big plus. It’s great if you want to take the tablet with you, like I do. Another thing is that the USB attaches to the right side of the tablet, which is great since I’m right-handed and my USB ports are on the right side of my laptop. This may not be so great for a left-handed person, but it works for me.

The little rubber feet on the bottom of the tablet are a bit thicker and wider than on the Intuos3, so it makes for a steadier base no matter where you may have it sitting. Also they seem like they’re less likely to come off after a month like they did on my Intuos3.

The pen is a bit shorter and the rubber grip part extends all the way up the pen. It fits nicely in my hand and is comfortable to use.

I only have two small gripes, first: the mouse feels a little small. I’m a girl and therefore don’t have huge hands, but still it feels small when I’m using it. This may be a bit of a drawback for the men out there that have big hands. However this should not turn you off from this tablet. I’m sure after a few weeks of use I won’t even notice. And also a small mouse travels well. I also kind of miss having a button on either side of the mouse like the Intuos3 mouse. But again, I’m sure I’ll get use to this after I use it more.

The other gripe I have is that the area of the tablet where the buttons and touch ring are picks up fingerprints VERY easily. Again it’s not a huge problem; I just like a neat and tidy workspace so am constantly wiping it off so it stays shiny and clean.

Overall the Intuos4 Small is a great tablet for the price, (199.99 here at Amazon as well as Best Buy) and I would definitely recommend it.

2 Stars not bad, not optimal
For most 4 out of 5 people I would suggest the medium size Intuos 4, because:

A) cheaper

B) faster

It’s gonna be less ergonomic for painter/artists, but quicker for most designers, photo retouchers, just power users who want a pen.

4 stars to the medium size.

5 Stars wacon intus is wonderfull…
Work with wacom intus4 is like work with a sheet of paper and more…just imagin!!! Very easy to use and install.

Buy/More Info

Wacom Bamboo Pen and Touch Fun Small Tablet

Bamboo Pen & Touch Tablet combines the benefits of Multi-Touch with the comfort and precision of Wacom’s ergonomically designed pen. The result: a powerful new way to work with your computer.

With Multi-Touch, you use simple hand gestures and finger taps on the tablet’s surface. And because the active area is larger than traditional mobile devices and laptop trackpads, it’s comfortable and natural to use. Easily move around your desktop, scroll through documents, navigate the web, zoom in and out of photos, and rotate images.

Need precision? Pick up the pressure-sensitive pen to edit photos, create personal greetings, make sketches, and mark up documents in your own handwriting.

Using Bamboo is easy even if you’re new to the touch experience. The included tutorial will teach you how to use simple hand gestures to move around your desktop, make selections, and complete other tasks on your computer. You can even customize your Bamboo experience by assigning your own shortcuts to the four ExpressKeys. In the box: System Requirements – Windows 7, Vista or XP w/ SP 2 or Mac OS X (10.4.8 or higher) Color display, available powered USB port, & CD/DVD drive

User Ratings and Reviews

2 Stars Disappointment
Just got it today; if I can’t pawn it off on one of my co-workers it is going to have to go back. I wanted a larger touch surface area than my MacBookPro’s touch pad, and one that I could sit back and use the pen when in more of a creative mode.

Pros: It is a larger touch pad and it has a pen…

Cons: Surface texture is not comfortable, buttons are awkward, tracking is slow and less accurate than touch pad, and it only supports two finger multitouch gestures. Multitouch doesn’t work especially well, especially forward and back. There was a 2-3 second delay in registering. After unplugging it, Finder crashed on me, so I have a feeling the mac drivers aren’t quite up to snuff.

The pen was a complete disappointment for general use. Anybody getting the “pen only” version is making an even bigger mistake.

I guess I am spoiled with the Mac trackpad. I’d love for it to get pen support and/or be available as an external track pad to better meet my needs, but this product just isn’t there.

First Wacom product in 15 years, so I could have given it more time to get used to, but it just didn’t offer much for me.

3 Stars Good quality product- but it may not be ideal as a replacement for a mouse.
Pros:

- The gestures for the pad are intuitive.

- The stylus is pressure sensitive and works as one would expect for a Wacom tablet.

- The package comes with video tutorials for complete novices.

- The device is stylish and is well constructed and packaged.

Cons:

- It was too easy to inadvertently click and/or drag something by accident.

- I tried both placing it on the side where one would normally place a mouse and placing it south of the keyboard where one would normally use a trackpad on a laptop. The latter seemed to cause more of the accidental catches while I was typing. I am not entirely sure how I am able to trigger the tablet in that instance expect perhaps a tiny portion of my palm might be just catching the edge of it.

- After using it for some time I started to miss the hand support offered by a mouse, and began to feel some fatigue. I am not sure how long one can sustain that kind of activity.

- The surface of the pad has some resistance to give the stylus the sensation of writing on paper. However this does not make it as ideal a trackpad since your fingers don’t glide over the surface as easily.

- Using the zoom, rotate, forward and backward page gestures seemed to introduce significant lag. As a result, for example, when you zoom in/out in a web browser it feels like you are lurching in and out. Often I find myself over shooting a zoom level.

- Sometimes you accidentally trigger the right mouse button when instead you are trying to use a 2-finger gesture.

- The placement of the cable should have been along the top of the unit rather than the side. Having it on the side means you can’t cleanly butt it up against a keyboard without the wire getting in the way.

For the price it does what it claims and it is a respectable amount of capability for what you are paying for. I’m not entirely certain however it will ultimately be a successful device to replace the mouse.

I’ll stick with it for a little longer and update my review if I feel differently.

2 Stars horrific Wacom software driver
I ordered this tablet recently and just returned it for a refund. The hardware seems to be well made; however, its software driver is another matter. Not only the performance of the touch and pen is sluggish at best, the driver manages to crash many of my programs (MFC based, I am a software developer.) The Wacom driver seems to negatively effect the existence of windows’ handle, causing the program to crash intermittently.

4 Stars Solid Device with Solid Functionality
I started developing repetitive stress injuries in college and have been using all sorts of alternative input devices, from gyration mice to tablet computers. Most recently I had a Wacom Intuous 3 which I thought was the solution, except I started transferring what used to be wrist strain to my shoulder. I bought the Bamboo hoping for an alternative and it pretty much delivers on all of the areas I expected it would. The touch is intuitive (and the clicking, scrolling, right clicking, back, forward commands are all very functional) and offers a solid replacement to a mousing device. What’s nice is that you’re not just limited to using the tips of your fingers – you can use your knuckles, your pinky, or whatever part of your hand you want to so you can alternate positions and help reduce the repetitiveness of computer input. I had some issues with installation, but it resolved when I plugged the device into one of my computer’s back USB ports instead of front (which seems to solve a lot of issues with a lot of computers I’ve noticed). It may not work for everyone, but for what the device is intended to do, I think it performs solidly.

4 Stars A Great Introductory Tablet with a Promising Touch.
As a designer I have seen Wacom tablets in various shapes and sizes throughout the years. I have only used them a handful of times at colleagues offices however once learning of the Bamboo Pen & Touch and seeing the price, I decided to take the leap.

Overview:

For less than $100 you get an extremely capable pen tablet with a “rough around the edges” yet promising touch device. The shape and form factor is smallish yet works fine with my 20″ widescreen monitor. The long USB cable should accommodate almost any workspace setup.

Pen:

The pen works flawlessly. Using the pen has dramatically increased my productivity particularly in Adobe Illustrator, it’s a breeze to use compared to a mouse for vector work. It’s also very capable in Photoshop and even as a mouse replacement for general use. The shape of the pen could be more contoured however and it’s not easy to move quickly from using the pen to typing due to its shape. Overall I am very pleased using the pen.

Touch:

The multi-touch component of this device combined with the price is what sold me. I wanted a fluid experience much like other touch devices and this seemed, in combination with the pen, like the answer to a mouse-less desk. My initial impressions of the touch capabilities of the tablet were mixed, it was jittery, continually dragging items around my computer screen that I did not intend to move and frustrating. Now I have a touch pad on my laptop and am very comfortable using such a surface which made the experience even more confusing. A large portion of my problems were fixed by adjusting the preferences in the control panel as well as turning off the single finger “Drag” setting. Even after rectifying many of my issues I still feel like the touch experience could use some refinement, however I am sticking with it so far and have not returned to using a mouse.

Conclusion:

The Bamboo Pen & Touch offers a great entry into the tablet world along with a promising touch functionality. I would definitely buy this again with the strong message of adjusting the preferences right out of the box since this solved most of my initial issues.

Buy/More Info