A pen tablet is a tablet that uses a stylus pen to enter text and pictures on the drawing surface. There is an image of a product for professional illustrators and designers, but it is also a perfect item for online meetings and remote work because you can visually convey points by handwriting. From among the pen tablets that are currently attracting attention, the Wirecutter editorial department will introduce recommended products that have been carefully selected for beginners!
Drawing is best done with pen and paper, but scanning and uploading sketches and illustrations can be a hassle. A pen tablet is a convenient device that eliminates the hassle of scanning and uploading by drawing creative works "digital from scratch". However, since the applications are limited, high-end products are difficult for beginners to get their hands on, and inexpensive ones are difficult to set up and use, making them surprisingly difficult to choose. At Wirecutter, we had 5 professional artists try out 64 pen tablets and 8 regular tablets, and selected the best pen tablets for beginners. We will introduce two models that we recommend as the first one!
Recommended No. 1 pen tablet for best value and longevity: Wacom Intuos
The best "pen tablet for beginners". Intuos is a gem that boasts high compatibility, extensive customization and accurate graphics. It's the best tablet a beginner can buy for under $100.
Wacom Intuos is a tablet with the best cost performance, which is multifunctional and can be used for a long time. Equipped with Corel Painter Essentials 8, which allows you to enjoy sketching and drawing, and Corel AfterShot 3, a photo editing software (both are trial versions for a limited time), adding even more value. The reading range of the pen is 6 x 3.7 inches (small size), and the accuracy and response are also ◎. It's compact and doesn't take up much space on your desk, and you can put it in your backpack with your laptop without adding bulk. The connection is via USB, so if you want Bluetooth, we recommend the wireless version.
Excellent pen tablet recommended for students: One by Wacom
A very easy-to-use, affordable pen tablet that is perfect for students.
One is Wacom's cheapest pen tablet for beginners. The perfect product for students looking for a reliable graphics tablet. Easy to set up, the 6 x 3.7 inch (small size) drawing surface feels just like paper. This will allow you to easily transition from analog to digital. The One is cheaper than the Intuos, but the size of the drawing area remains the same.
Those who want to recommend a "pen tablet for beginners"
The products introduced in this guide are the best items for those who will be involved in digital art production and photo editing. Of course, it's also great for when you want to communicate visually with someone far away, such as when giving a presentation at an online conference.
Signing your own autograph is a pain with a mouse or laptop trackpad, and detailed sketches and photo editing are a no-brainer. A pen tablet reflects what you draw with a stylus pen on the PC screen with much higher accuracy than a mouse or trackpad, so you can enjoy a natural and comfortable drawing experience for illustrations, animations, image editing, etc. . It is also attractive that it can be connected to a Windows PC or Mac, and can be used for a wide range of purposes for a long time to come. This time's recommended product is a device for people who are interested in a pen tablet but don't want to spend a lot of money on features they don't use.
This guide is intended for beginners and does not cover tablets such as the iPad Pro or Microsoft Surface Pro, or high-end products with displays such as the Wacom Cintiq series. This is because if you want to take a step into the world of digital art, I would like you to try a reasonably priced pen tablet first and see if it suits your needs.
Many of the experts who participated in the selection this time said that they started with a similar tablet. It also doesn't deal with devices like the Livescribe smartpen series or the Evernote Notebook that convert a drawing on paper to a PC.
This time, we have carefully selected recommended products based on the following criteria.
・Pen pressure sensitivity
・Compatibility and stability
・Price
・Size
・Pen type
・Buttons and operability
・Free software
・Resolution
・Multi-touch and tilt recognition
Recommended number one pen tablet with the best cost performance and long-lasting use: Wacom Intuos
Wacom Intuos is affordable and has the potential to grow with the user's skills, for beginners It's the perfect one. There was no better option in the same price range. Easy to set up, accurate and responsive right from the start. The included pen is comfortable enough to draw for long periods of time. The Intuos is one of Wacom's most affordable tablets, but it offers overall high quality and performance that compares favorably with high-spec models. Multiple software with trial periods are included, and it is convenient to be able to choose the one that suits you after actually trying it out.
Intuos is more controllable than other products, no driver issues or input lag. The pen pressure level is 4096, and the thickness and thickness of the lines are recognized well.
It's compact compared to some of the competition, but the 6 x 3.7 inch active area is a hit. Some people say that the smaller size is more convenient for use with a laptop, and some people use the medium size model at home and carry the small size model when traveling.
The Wacom model has a dot grid, so it can be used as a scale or as a guide for drawing straight lines, which is surprisingly convenient. The texture of the drawing surface feels like running a pencil on paper. Like other products, the smooth, plastic-like smooth surface is nice, but the realistic writing feeling seems to reduce the resistance to digital.
Like other latest models, Intuos uses a battery-free stylus pen. 3 standard nibs are included, and replacement nibs can be stored inside the pen. You can purchase additional 5 standard cores for 1,100 yen (tax included), and hard felt cores are available at the same price for those who want to enjoy the feeling of resistance to writing with a hard brush.
One of the great things about Intuos is that you can customize your pen and tablet. Via Wacom's Desktop Center software, you can update support and drivers, customize, backup and even restore tablet and pen functionality. You can also set the pen tip feel and pressure sensitivity. In terms of pencils, it feels like using 2B with a soft touch and HB with a hard impression with less pressure. You can also adjust the double-click and detection sensitivity, and it is very rare to find a product that can program such a subtle touch.
You can assign shortcut keys to each pen button and tablet key, making it easy to perform operations such as zooming, right-clicking, deleting, and switching apps. And it's customizable for each program, so you can set a specific key for the "Save for Web" action in Photoshop, or to switch brushes in Corel Painter, for example.
Points of concern
In February 2020, software engineer Robert Heaton wrote on his blog, ``Wacom uses software to determine the user's usage (including the apps they use). We are collecting the data of, ”he expressed privacy concerns.
In response, Wacom has issued a statement that while allowing information collection from the software, it is 'limited to quality assurance and development purposes.' The company also collects "samples of information" from tablets and software applications, as well as "basic app usage data" from the Wacom Desktop Center, Windows Control Panel and macOS System Preferences. We are announcing it.
If you want to turn this program off, please refer to the steps below.
1. Open the Wacom Desktop Center
2. Click the "more" link
3. Click "Privacy Settings"
4. "Nonparticipate" in Wacom's experience program
The Intuos has four tablet keys, which is a small number for a tablet in this price range. These keys are often installed on the side, but Intuos is placed at the top of the drawing surface, so it may be a little difficult to press while drawing. If you frequently use buttons as keyboard shortcuts, this placement may be a bottleneck. However, beginners tend to use the pen buttons (which can be customized) rather than the tablet keys, so the combination of buttons should be enough to cover frequently used shortcuts and tasks.
The Intuos doesn't have multi-touch capabilities, but unless you're using the tablet as a trackpad, you probably won't need it. Multi-touch and tilt recognition, which are also not installed, can be said to be functions for advanced users.
Excellent pen tablet recommended for students: One by Wacom
Wacom's One and Intuos have similar functions, and I actually had a hard time deciding which one would be the number one recommendation. In the end, the Intuos came out on top with its high pressure sensitivity and customizable buttons. Conversely, the lack of this function makes the price cheaper, and the other functions are well equipped, so it may be cheaper for students to buy One.
The One is the easiest to set up and works well from the start of all the devices we tested. The pen is almost the same as the Intuos, and it's comfortable to draw for hours. One is the cheapest model among Wacom's tablets, but like Intuos, it comes with multiple software with a free trial period (Clip Studio Paint Pro can be used for a 3-month free trial if you register from a Chromebook), so it's a tool that suits you. can be judged. Software for students and teachers such as Kami, Explain Everything, Limnu, and Collaboard are available.
In this test, the experience of using One was almost the same as Intuos, but only the pressure sensitivity of One was 2,048, which is about half that of Intuos (4,096). However, the difference in sensitivity is not noticeable. The size is also compact like Intuos, and the surface is a dot grid specification with a paper-like texture. The pen has two customizable buttons and a replaceable nib.
More! The pen tablet I want to pay attention to
Veikk A15 Pro is a great place to use as soon as you take it out of the box. It has 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity (Intuos has 4,096) on a drawing surface of approximately 10 x 6 inches. I used to recommend it as a medium-sized tablet, but after several tests, I had problems re-downloading the driver, and the procedure and documentation were difficult to understand, which is a negative point. I got help from the IT department of The New York Times, but that didn't solve the problem.
The Artisul M0610Pro is also a large tablet and has a fairly high pen pressure sensitivity of 8,192. However, when I connected the tablet and downloaded the driver, I had trouble drawing and clicking on the tablet. I contacted customer support and got a response from a representative 4 days later, but their advice did not resolve the issue.
The Parblo A610 Plus V2 is about the same size and sensitivity as the Veikk tablet, but the Veikk was simpler and faster to set up. If you didn't get the high-end model recommended this time, or if this product has dropped in price, it's a good first tablet as long as you endure the initial setup process.
The Huion Inspiroy Dial Q620M, Wacom Intuos Pro S, and XP-Pen Deco Pro are all high-quality pen tablets with plenty of additional functions, but the price jumps from 2 to 4 times the recommended top, so it's still a beginner. It can't be said that cost performance is good for.
We also researched multiple pen tablets, including the latest models from manufacturers such as Gaoman, Turcom, and Ugee. It was not selected this time because the negative side was conspicuous.
*Prices and other information displayed are current as of writing. There is a possibility of change, so please check the sales page.
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