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Ask Engadget: Should I replace my mouse with a graphics tablet?
We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, then here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget inquiry is from Whee!, which we guess probably isn't their real name, who is looking for a way to ditch their mouse. If you're looking to ask one of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com. "I'm a web developer, and my typical day involves a lot of moving and clicking when testing stuff in the browser. I've been thinking about ditching my mouse, because when using it for long hours it gets very uncomfortable. As such, I'm eyeing up a Wacom tablet and using the pen input to mouse around -- but do you think it's a good idea? Thanks in advance!" Our questioner wants to solve their wrist-pain woes, and it certainly seems like a reasonable enough idea to us. Plenty of tablets come with a mouse mode, so it's just down to the limits of your budget. If you're just dipping your toes into the water, you can pick up a Genius device for around $60. Wacom's Bamboo tablets occupy the mid-range, setting you back $80 for a 5.8-inch model, all the way up to $200 for the 8.5-incher. If you're serious about making the change, then Wacom's Intuos5 hardware is a top-range option, with the 6.2-inch version starting at $200, running all the way to $800 for the 18-inch unit, or even spending big on one of the company's Cintiq units. We've also been wondering if a touchscreen Ultrabook might be a better idea, letting your fingers do the walking to spare your aching forearms. That said, perhaps the wider Engadget community has an even better tip, so if you've already made that leap, why not share your knowledge in the comments below?
Wacom outs the Cintiq 24HD touch, adds multi-touch controls and more to its largest pen display
Hot off the heels of the more modest Wacom Cintiq 22HD's introduction, the outfit has announced a new version of its 24HD pen display as well. Labeled the 24HD touch, the upcoming offering adds multi-touch functionality to the company's 24-inch input device -- just as the name would suggest. The added features don't stop there. A touch-enabled 24HD also touts an improved display that shows 1.07 billion colors while covering 97% of Adobe's RGB gamut and implementing RGB backlighting that improves on-screen color rendition. Similar to the sans-touch offering, you can expect to utilize Express Keys and Touch Rings to customize your workflow for maximum efficiency in addition to the touchscreen. When the 24HD touch hits shelves, it'll play nice with upcoming Windows 8 operating system. In order to customize those pricey multi-touch commands, though, you'll need the requisite software. If you splurged for the regular ol' 24HD, we can understand your frustration. However, Wacom says that it intended for the touch model to be released at the same time as the pen-only version, but the development took a bit longer than anticipated. Part of the reason for the delay was the extra time needed to perfect features like palm rejection in the kit's software. The peripheral company also hopes that software developers will take the gesture tech and create features that will showcase its full range of potential -- your move, Adobe. Itchin' to snag one already? Well, you'll have to wait until sometime in August to get your hands on this model and be prepared to shell out $3699 for the pen display ($1100 more than the previous release). Need a bit more info before emptying your savings account? Hit the PR button for all the particulars or take closer look in the gallery below. %Gallery-159996%
Wacom announces Cintiq 22HD pen display, we go hands-on (video)
Oh, to sit in a darkened room all day and get paid to do art. No phone calls, no stress, and no technology except for a PC and a brand new $1,999 Wacom Cintiq 22HD tablet display (and maybe also a pair of equally well-engineered Beyerdynamics). Alas, only our Distro magazine crew get to live like that -- the rest of the Engadget team must make do with spec sheets and quick hands-on impressions, which are precisely what you'll find after the break. %Gallery-159971% %Gallery-160012%
Wacom Cintiq 24HD hands-on (video)
We've felt a strange attraction this 24-inch slab of professional graphics wonderment ever since we caught it trying to sneak its substantial bulk through the FCC. How do we feel about it now that it's all official, priced up at a daunting $2,500 and we've had some time with it in the flesh? Check out the galleries below and then head past the break for our hands-on video and impressions plus full PR. %Gallery-133278% %Gallery-133327%
Wacom Cintiq 21UX reverently unboxed by honest-to-goodness digital artist
Though the hive mind of Engadget has drawn the occasional stick figure, we're not exactly what you'd call artists -- and as such, our prior attempts to describe the $1,999 Wacom Cintiq 21UX pen display have been limited to fawning over its gorgeous pressure-sensitive screen and figuring how many organs we'd need to harvest to afford one. However, a man named Christopher Miles most certainly can draw -- you'll find his resume and portfolio at the source link -- and he unabashedly calls the tablet display "a digital artist's wet dream." Christopher gave the new Cintiq a thorough unboxing and even created a sample illustration with the device, the images from which you can find immediately below. Just be sure to remove your wallet and all easily pawned items from your general vicinity before viewing. Trust us, it's for your own good. %Gallery-90246% [Thanks, Christopher]
Homegrown Wacom Cintiq LCD tablet comes to life through prefab DIY enclosure
Dropped a stack of change on a premium Wacom drawing tablet, only to find yourself with Cintiq envy? Got an old laptop handy? If so, odds are good that you've occasionally (or persistently, for that matter) thought about hacking together an LCD tablet of your very own. Problem is, the mods we've seen require some serious shop time -- building a custom enclosure isn't for the lighthearted, you know? But if you're in possession of a sizable Wacom Intuos and roughly $220 of post-tax cheddar, TabletMod.com has a purpose-built, laser-cut acrylic enclosure with your name on it. You'll still need an LCD controller kit and CCFL extenders, and there's still a chance you'll be paying more for the whole kit and caboodle than if you just got a low-end $1,000 Cintiq 12WX to begin with -- but if you've already got half the parts lying around (or you're just dying to scratch another DIY itch), this project might be worth your while. Cheapskates like us, however, will continue to wait for the Bamboo variety, though you can certainly dabble in the source link if you're scouting some instructional videos.
Wacom's new Cintiq 21UX pen display ups the sensitivity, skips the multitouch and 'affordability' options
We'd sell any number of our children and internal organs in exchange for a Wacom Cintiq pen display, but unfortunately we're not sure any of them are quite valuable enough. The holy grail of drawing on your computer has just upped its game with the newest Cintiq 21UX. First and foremost is a new level of pen sensitivity, with support for a "near-zero" starting pressure and a total of 2048 levels of sensitivity. The 21-inch LCD display also has rear mounted "Touch Strips" running along the sides that let you adjust different parameters based on what you select with the thumb-convenient Touch Strip Toggle button. Unfortunately, there's no mention of that rumored finger-friendly multitouch (or even finger touch of any sort) on this new display. It's hard to blame Wacom, it has a priority to serve artists first and Microsoft Touch Pack dabblers second, but hopefully we can get a second, multitouch version of this display that's a little less extravagant on the pen end and a little more affordable than the $1,999 pricetag affixed to this display. The new Cintiq 21UX should ship later this month or early April. PR is after the break. %Gallery-86731%
Wacom Cintiq 21UX multitouch tablet caught in the wilderness of a live presentation
Oh you're tired of tablets, are you? Pray tell, how many multitouch 21.3-inch tablets have you seen so far then? A prototype of Wacom's update to the ultra-high end 21UX has been shown off at a recent CAD presentation, so we figured we might as well take a look at the thing -- given its predecessor's $2,999 starting price, we're unlikely to be buying one any time soon. So dive past the break for a glimpse -- just a glimpse -- of the new multitouch goodness taking place. After you're done with that, you can check out the source link for more pictures of what's sure to be the new state of the art in graphics tablets.
Wacom rolls out the Cintiq 20WSX interactive pen display
If you're an artist or designer who needs a little more real estate, or if your project happens to be in the trendy widescreen format, Wacom has got a new interactive pen display that might put a smile on your face. Enter the Cintiq 20WSX, a follow-up to the company's wildly popular 21UX which provides a 16:10 aspect ratio at 1680 x 1050 resolution, giving you 20.1-inches of sweet, succulent workspace to throw down your ideas. Like other models in the Cintiq line, the 20WSX comes equipped with programmable ExpressKeys and finger-sensitive Touch Strips, so you can get speedy access to oft-used tools, like that hideous "emboss" effect you keep putting on everything. Regardless of your artistic choices, the tablet is available now for $1,999. [Thanks, Topi]
Wacom adds a baby Cintiq, the 12WX tablet / display
Wacom's 21-inch Cintiq display tablet got a little sibling today, the 12.1-inch Cintiq 12WX. The unit is basically an Intuos3 tablet with an integrated display, so it features everything you'd expect -- 1,024-level pressure-sensitivity, input device rotation support, touch strips, ExpressKeys, Tool ID, and tilt sensitivity -- with the added bonus of being able to work directly on the 1280 x 800 image itself. Wacom says the Cintiq 12WX will be shipping November 1 in the UK for £829 ($1679) and will support XP, Vista, and OS X -- no word on when it'll be out in the States, but we can't imagine it'll be long. [Thanks, Mark]
UK artist builds DIY Wacom Cintiq tablet for under $200
Artist and gadget builder Drew Northcott, of Bicester, UK, has just spent the last five months building his own Wacom Cintiq drawing tablet (no, not a tablet computer). Now of course, Drew could just have gone the normal way and bought the 21-incher for $3000, but as he cleverly pointed out: "where's the fun in just buying something?" He told us that after having begun the project on June 8 with nothing more than an idea, he finally "bolted the case shut" on November 9 -- almost exactly five months after having begun his odyssey. How'd our intrepid young artist do it? Basically he gutted a working Dell 1501fp monitor, stripped out the screen, and put it together with the magnetic sensor from the tablet into the Wacom case, along with a 2-millimeter acrylic panel over the screen for protection. However, that's a much simpler explanation than his 18-part online series, where Drew's got tons of photos to document each and every exciting step. So the final question is, how much did all these parts (time costs aside) run our good friend Mr. Northcott? Roughly £100 ($190), a heckuva savings by any measurement.[Thanks, Chris M.]
Wacom's Cintiq 21UX 21.3-incher
If you can afford it, you're probably a professional who's been tracking it a while now, but Wacom's introduced their new Cintiq 21UX 21.3-inch UXGA (1600 x 1200) tablet / monitor and the peeps at PC World got to take a gander. Sucker comes with DVI and VGA inputs (as well as the obligatory USB connections), not to mention a fancy pen stand and slick adjustable monitor stand-freakin' better for $2,999 ($2500 street) is all we're saying. What'd they think? Well, it was good, but definitely not a paper substitute; what'd you expect? [Via PC World]
