Hello PS forum, Im concedering purchasing a wacom tablet,I have photoshop 5.0 and photodelux2.0 .I will use it to color cartoon drawning that Ive scanned and to paint the hair on poser models.. Which tablet do you recommend?? I see they have an enty level tablet for 99.00 with bundled software and the next tablet up in 6 by 8 is 340.00 with software.. I must admit I use photodelux 2.0 as i like the delete button that removes the last think you did with the mouse.. photoshop 5.0 doesnt let you do this as well. Getting tired of the claw hand after sitting at the computer drawing and coloring with the mouse. regards PE

I don't know a lot about the new tablets, but I've used the old Artpad II for ages.....eventhough it was the smallest tablet at the time, it's still fairly big for your hand to cover. So if the smallest one know is just about the same, I won't reccomend buying a bigger one.

I agree... I've been using the small Artpad II for as long as I can remember, and it makes a huge difference. There's no way I could justify the price of a larger one; the 4 X 5 area is sufficient for everything I need to do. I'm sure there are people who wouldn't want to bother with anything smaller than 6 X 8, but for the money the smaller pad is a great value.

I've got an intuos and I can't leave without it.

I have the Wacom Graphire 4 x 5 tablet. Comes with stylus and cordless mouse. I use it daily and have basically disregarded my regular mouse. You can move over the entire screen with little, if any, movement of hand. Other big benefit of the tablet is the pressure sensitivity. For one, you don't have to change brush sizes so often. So much more control. I would not go larger if I had to make the choice over again. Hard to justify cost difference between the 6 x 8 at $340 when the 4 x 5 at $99 unless the software it comes is worth it.

A wacom graphire is 5x4. I use one, and I think it was the best present I've ever gotten. If you have the cash, go for an intuos though. As for size, that depends on your most natural stroke. long medium small, start drawing and find out.

I have the Art Pad II as well but I have had one of the less expensive tablets in the past, there is a BIG difference in the feel of the less expensive tablets, you dont have as much control or as much preassure sensitivty. I hated graphics tablets when I had the cheaper one because it just wouldnt do what I wanted it to do. I finally folded to preasure from my sister to try the more expensive tablet and now I cant live with out it. All of my bird art is done soley with the graphics tablet and Photoshop with out the use of any filters or effects......I can say for sure though where tablets are concerned you get what you pay for. I do agree though the 4 x 5 tablet is plenty large enough. The Intuos is the Art Pad II replacement/ upgrade tablet, and you can get them from Intuos for about $199 .... if you can wait and save a little more money I would say go Intuos over Graphire.

Sorry about that typo up there, you can get them directly from Wacom at that price.

I too would call it a 5 x 4 tablet as you normally measure across first, the wacom people call it a 4 x 5. Go figure. Then again I guess it depends on the orientation (landscape or portrait). The Intuos2 does have 1,024 levels of pressure and comes with a better grip stylus. The Graphire2 has only 512 levels but then again Intuos2 will run you twice the price ($199 vs $99). Intuos2 bundled with Adobe Photoshop Elements and Painter Classic and the Wacom Pen Tools. Graphire2 bundled with Adobe Photoshop LE and Painter Classic and the Wacom Pen Tools. Only one problem with the tablet. I can't be without one now. I have one on both my computers.

thanks everyone, Ive ordered the Intuos2 4by5 it will be here on friday! cheers PE

Just wanted to note that whether to call it 4 X 5 or 5 X 4 seems to be a right- or left-pondian thing. In the US, the smaller dimension is generally stated first; the opposite is true in Britain & Europe. I was surprised once when a British client kept referring to shooting in the studio with a 5 X 4 view camera, and making 10 X 8 glossy prints.

I have an old 4"x5" Wacom that is sitting on the shelf since I got my 12"x12" Wacom Tablet. It lists for around $500, but it's worth every penny. It has it's own programmable tool bar and brush sets for Photoshop. It makes painting and drawing in Photoshop more like sketching on a real pad. My 4"x5" is pretty cool too, but after the 12"x12" it seems so puny.

Levels of sensitivity aside (512 vs 1024, I personally don't think I'd be able to tell the difference...), the Intuous has many more features over the graphire, but they may not be used in programs you use. The intuos has features like the pen tilt, which, however hella cool it may be, isn't supported in Photoshop 6 (3rd party plugs like Deep Paint though I think understand pen tilt). There a page somewhere on the wacom site that has a big list of programs for mac and PC, and lists what functions they can recognize. With the intuos as well, you can buy multiple pens, and assign a specific funtion to each, instead of having to select each tool. Also, you can buy a specific airbrush pen that supposedly really does a good job at mimicking the style/feel/appearance of a real air brush. I've never used it before. As for the size of the tablets, once again, that depends on your comfort level. Ideally, I think I'd prefer a 6x8 instead of my 5x4, but beggars can't be choosers. That humongous 12x18 Intuos, while I'm sure its REAL nice, I'd have no use for it. My strokes really are nowhere near that long, and I'd have no place to put the fucker. It all depends on preference, room, and the size of your stroke. Me thinks yer gonna like yer Intuos a lot dude, especially if I love my graphire so much!

That I didn't know Cinema1954. I'm Canadian eh! LOL
Width is always first as in our paper size 8 1/2 x 11. That explains why US people seem to never be consistant. It's not width or height first ... it's smallest # first. Go figure. Learn something everyday.

go montreal, eh

what about us people in the UK? i wanna get a tablet too but I've only got about 100...(im not good enough to justify spending any more than that) I can't find newhere that lists tablet prices in uk money and none of my local shops have em. help!

http://www.wacom-europe.com/uk/products/graphire2/index.asp

Apple Mac OS X (10.1) + Wacom Graphire2 Pen & Mouse Set Mac USB

This one is for the Mac and comes with OS10 for 109 ex vat (128.07 inc vat)... I gather that is your tax. Quite a price difference when converted to US dollars but it does come with OS 10.1. Not sure if you have PC or Mac.

I als o have the 4x5 Wacom and i wouldnt be without it. As for using it with PS, I use a separate layer for the hair that way if i make a mistake I am not messing up the whole image, just have to erase on the new layer... Makes for a much simplier project.

My old partner bought a Wacom tablet... I don't know specifics but the usable area was I believe the 12"x18". He didn't like it so he let me use is. Needless to say, I fell in love with it. I used it as a mouse as well as a drawing too. The only problems I had were very fine selection, and stress on the wrist from lots of large arm movements. You're better off with their mouse over the pen for stability and fine movement because doubleclicking will throw you off. At least it did me. Would I get one again? Hell yes!... if it's the 12x18" one. Word of warning though, if you have carpal tunnel or tendonitis, think twice, for it can aggravate it pretty bad. I couldn't work with it sometimes because it hurt too much from previous maraton sessions. Cheese Doodles for thought.

Maybe the 12 x 18 was too large a tablet. With the 4 x 5 or 5 x 4 as some call it, you don't have those large arm movements. You don't really have any arm movement. It does also come with the cordless mouse but I put mine away because I tried it a few times and much prefered the stylus.