Wacom to go after consumers with Graphire4 tablets
By Marc Perton 
posted Sep 15th 2005 12:35PM
posted Sep 15th 2005 12:35PM
While graphic artists have been using tablets for years, digicam-obsessed consumers are still a new market, and Wacom is now trying to move into that virgin territory with their Graphire4 line, a series of consumer-oriented tablets that will ship (at least in some configurations) with Photoshop Elements and other end-user-friendly software, as well as in three different colors: silver, white and metallic blue. The tablet also includes programmable buttons and a scroll wheel, to make it easier for users to navigate and access software functions without having to swap input devices. Prices start at $99 for a 4-inch x 5-inch version; a 6-inch x 8-inch version is $199.
I'll stick to my Intuos 2 9x12 ;)
hmmm, seems like link to original story is broken.
"Wacom is now trying to move into that virgin territory [the consumer market] with their Graphire4 line..."
You mean, the market that Wacom utterly failed to address with the Graphire, Graphire2, and Graphire3 product lines? :rollseyes:
Sheesh. History began before 2004, people.
Link requires reg. Try http://www.dcviews.com/press/Wacom-Graphire4.htm
Figures. I bought a Graphire 3 just a couple weeks ago - nice sale at Best Buy.
And I bought Dreamweaver MX 2004 a few weeks before Macromedia announced version 8.
I bought a Linksys wireless router a few weeks ago too. About time for 802.11n to be finalized or for Apple to come out with an AirPort A/V, I guess.
B^(
- Jasen.
Jasen, you might want to check with Macromedia. I had actually bought Studio MX 2004 in mid-July. I e-mailed Macromedia, and they said that as long as you purchased it within a certain period of time (I think 60 days prior to the announcement), you would be eligible for a free upgrade.
This is effectively non-news. Wacom Graphire tablets have always been around $100. Not much has changed since the Graphire2, and there's no reason for the general populace to pick one up now unless they drop the price significantly.
The bluetooth option sounds great. I think that is a real move forward. My 9x12 tablet rarely sees the light of day because I have to wire it up and it's too big to be a permanent fixture. I'd love the idea of a smaller bluetooth tablet.
I own a Graphire3 4x5 and a Graphire3 Bluetooth. I bought the 4x5 first, and it was a toy for about a month. Until I bought SketchBook Pro from http://www.alias.com that is. Wow. If you've ever used a white-board, you've GOT to try this software. It works so well, I bought the bluetooth tablet for use with my laptop. I can connect my laptop to a projector at the office, and walk around the room drawing on the wall. It's quite cool. SketchBook has the best tablet-centric user interface I've ever seen. I tried a dozen other programs (Adobe Acrobat, Macromedia Flash, Word, Art Rage, Xara X1, etc). Art Rage was pretty good, just not quite "there". SketchBook Pro 2 REALLY polished all the problems with version 1. Try the trial.