After having bought a licence for Moho, I feel the need for a pressure sensitive graphics tablet.
I found a low-cost alternative to Wacom on:
http://www.trust.com/products/product.aspx?artnr=14117
The specs look similar to Wacom.
Has somebody made some experience with this other other low-cost alternatives?
Thank you.
Asking for advice: Trust Graphic Tablet
Moderators: Víctor Paredes, Belgarath, slowtiger
Yes I've got a trust 1200, I would never bought it myself but I got it as a birthday present from my girlfriend and now I'm stuck with it and I have to like it.
It's not the model you linked to but I imagine they are similar.
The pen is not comfortable, I think it's weight is wrong centered and when the battery in the back of the pen is running low you loose the pointer having to shake the pen a bit for it to work again (or you could change the battery, but wacoms not battery powered pen is oh so much nicer).
The pens tip grinds down pretty fast and it's not easy to find spare ones, I haven't found any yet, not even on trusts webpage.
The buttons on the pen got a very low budget feel, you get that cheap plastic creak free of charge.
Enough with the pen, on to the tablet itself. Not much to say there exept that the plastic drawing area could have been better...
Now to the drivers, the are not good. Sometimes I looses preasure sensitivity having to restart the software I'm working with for it to function again. And some other times the pen switches from absolute tracking mode to mouse mode (absolute is when the drawing area represents the screen and mouse works as an ordinary mouse) for no reason at all.
And did I mention that Trust haven't updated the drivers in almost 3 years and that they haven't answered a single one of my mails asking for support?
My advise would be to save up the cash to buy a wacom tablet, they are a million times better.
I'm planning to give my trust tablet a couple of months more and then I'm going to accidently spill a cup of coffe over it and buy myself a wacom.
It's not the model you linked to but I imagine they are similar.
The pen is not comfortable, I think it's weight is wrong centered and when the battery in the back of the pen is running low you loose the pointer having to shake the pen a bit for it to work again (or you could change the battery, but wacoms not battery powered pen is oh so much nicer).
The pens tip grinds down pretty fast and it's not easy to find spare ones, I haven't found any yet, not even on trusts webpage.
The buttons on the pen got a very low budget feel, you get that cheap plastic creak free of charge.
Enough with the pen, on to the tablet itself. Not much to say there exept that the plastic drawing area could have been better...
Now to the drivers, the are not good. Sometimes I looses preasure sensitivity having to restart the software I'm working with for it to function again. And some other times the pen switches from absolute tracking mode to mouse mode (absolute is when the drawing area represents the screen and mouse works as an ordinary mouse) for no reason at all.
And did I mention that Trust haven't updated the drivers in almost 3 years and that they haven't answered a single one of my mails asking for support?
My advise would be to save up the cash to buy a wacom tablet, they are a million times better.
I'm planning to give my trust tablet a couple of months more and then I'm going to accidently spill a cup of coffe over it and buy myself a wacom.
You can get a Wacom Graphire 3 tablet for just under $100 US, or about $98 Euros. This is the lowest model. I have one at home and I like it a lot. It's small, 4x5 inches, but I have never found it to be limiting. Of course I only have a 13" screen at home, but even so it works fine. At work I have an Intuos tablet, which is considerably more expensive, and I like it as well.
Jack
Jack
I have a Graphire 3, which I got for 79 bucks at Best Buy. Well, really $39, as I had a 40 dollar gift certificate I would have let expire as I often do. And I never cashed in the $40 rebate. So it shoulda been free, but that's entirely besides the point. I like the tablet. Not quite as much as my ex-girfriends pile of 10x12 intuos II's (shoulda snagged one), but still an indispensible tool. If all your budget calls for is a $30 tablet that only works half the time, I would still go for it. I still keep the mouse nearby, but I rarely draw with anything else. And, yes, I do draw in Moho. I don't mind it. But I am working on my tweak of the freehand tool (have active feedback of line width going on, but it makes the screen flicker a lot, which is a little distracting).
Stupid reply - tablets rock.
Stupid reply - tablets rock.
Thank you ... What about size and bluetooth wireless.
... dear rylleman, Jack, Brian.
So after that, Wacom appears currently the best buy option for me.
Now it would be nice, if somebody could give advice on the size of the tablet.
It might be, that a smaller and wireless tablet might be more ergonomic than a bigger one.
Experiences?
So after that, Wacom appears currently the best buy option for me.
Now it would be nice, if somebody could give advice on the size of the tablet.
It might be, that a smaller and wireless tablet might be more ergonomic than a bigger one.
Experiences?
My Graphire that I use at home is 4x5 inches, and it covers the whole screen without any problem. If I'm drawing something detailed, I'll zoom in. The size has not been a problem.
At work I use a 6x9 inch tablet, and I have a 23" Apple Cinema Display. Big screen, small tablet. Still no problem with the size of the tablet.
Another thing you can do with the Wacom (and probably other tablets also) is assign the tablet to a certain portion of the screen, instead of the whole screen. I personally haven't found this useful to me, but I guess it all depends on your method or working. The Wacom tablet is an excellent tool. I wouldn't want to be without one.
Jack
At work I use a 6x9 inch tablet, and I have a 23" Apple Cinema Display. Big screen, small tablet. Still no problem with the size of the tablet.
Another thing you can do with the Wacom (and probably other tablets also) is assign the tablet to a certain portion of the screen, instead of the whole screen. I personally haven't found this useful to me, but I guess it all depends on your method or working. The Wacom tablet is an excellent tool. I wouldn't want to be without one.
Jack
I own three wacom tablets of different sizes, all work fine. The 12 x 12" is almost too big.
I don´t own a wireless one - but before I would get one I would check:
-the weight (battery-rechargeable tablet battery)
-the added cost (battery-rechargeable tablet battery)
-and the possible added lag time between drawing on the tablet and the computer screen updating itself.
Plus it probably costs more.
I had a bluetooth mouse and went back to usb because of the lag time.
http://www.wacom.com/_db/reseller/GraphireBT.pdf
I don´t own a wireless one - but before I would get one I would check:
-the weight (battery-rechargeable tablet battery)
-the added cost (battery-rechargeable tablet battery)
-and the possible added lag time between drawing on the tablet and the computer screen updating itself.
Plus it probably costs more.
I had a bluetooth mouse and went back to usb because of the lag time.
http://www.wacom.com/_db/reseller/GraphireBT.pdf
I have no experience with tablets, but I saw the Adesso tablets being advertized on the Apple website as "Ergonomically designed wireless tablet with scroll mouse for easy drawing, handwriting, sketching, coloring and picture editing." Adesso produces several models, ranging from $69.99 to $169.99, for both Mac OS and Windows.
Thank you all.
Hi, thank you again for your helpful hints.
Jack: Based on your posting, I feel safe now to buy a small format.
Toontoonz: Let's apply your considerations on http://www.adesso.us/product_details.as ... LET%5F6400
Rash: Thank you for the link.I didn't know this product yet.
Bupaje:
Your posting gives me again more weight on the Wacom. I heard, they have a Bluetooth version with optional USB (in case..
).
Now I'm in an indeterminate state, looking for more information.
All the best to you.
Jack: Based on your posting, I feel safe now to buy a small format.
Toontoonz: Let's apply your considerations on http://www.adesso.us/product_details.as ... LET%5F6400
Rash: Thank you for the link.I didn't know this product yet.
Bupaje:
Your posting gives me again more weight on the Wacom. I heard, they have a Bluetooth version with optional USB (in case..
).Now I'm in an indeterminate state, looking for more information.
All the best to you.
-
VideoDesigner77
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Sun Apr 10, 2005 11:08 pm
- Location: Pembroke, ON Canada
Calcomp, Cross, JamStudio
My first tablet was 4x5" by ACECAD and was wired, it was good until WIN95.
Next I had a 12x12 SummaGraphic, I took it back for a refund because it crashed my system as soon a I moved the puck.
I had a wireless CALCOMP 5x7 which I found to be a great size. The pen used four very hard to find watch batteries, which would last about 10 hours a set. After using up $100 of batteries in two weeks. I relieved it from duty. Calcomp even replaced the first pen, which seemed to eat more
juice than the original pen. They thought I might be storing the pen so that it would be always on, but that was not the case.
I really liked my Cross Ipen. It was 5x7, wireless and had great batterylife.
The AAAA (that's right) battery would last about a year with eight hour days evey week. Of course, the Cross Pen Company got out of digital pens, and never made an XP driver.
I found a 4x5 Jam Studios Tablet at Radio Shack for $10.00. It was wired, but had USB so I tried it. The company seems to be bankrupt, but I found an XP driver. It works fine, and I use it with a mouse, so the pen is just for drawing.
With the former tablets I used the pen for everything, maybe that was too hard for them.
So I would take what everyone else has said, and tell you to go for a WACOM.
Next I had a 12x12 SummaGraphic, I took it back for a refund because it crashed my system as soon a I moved the puck.
I had a wireless CALCOMP 5x7 which I found to be a great size. The pen used four very hard to find watch batteries, which would last about 10 hours a set. After using up $100 of batteries in two weeks. I relieved it from duty. Calcomp even replaced the first pen, which seemed to eat more
juice than the original pen. They thought I might be storing the pen so that it would be always on, but that was not the case.
I really liked my Cross Ipen. It was 5x7, wireless and had great batterylife.
The AAAA (that's right) battery would last about a year with eight hour days evey week. Of course, the Cross Pen Company got out of digital pens, and never made an XP driver.
I found a 4x5 Jam Studios Tablet at Radio Shack for $10.00. It was wired, but had USB so I tried it. The company seems to be bankrupt, but I found an XP driver. It works fine, and I use it with a mouse, so the pen is just for drawing.
With the former tablets I used the pen for everything, maybe that was too hard for them.
So I would take what everyone else has said, and tell you to go for a WACOM.
Wacom BlueTooth Graphire
Thank you VideoDesigner77:
After your posting my focus has now narrowed to:
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0504/05041 ... etooth.asp
Two questions remain:
- Has this Bluetooth device a noticable latency?
- In case of latency, is there a reliable USB option?
After your posting my focus has now narrowed to:
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0504/05041 ... etooth.asp
Two questions remain:
- Has this Bluetooth device a noticable latency?
- In case of latency, is there a reliable USB option?
Re: Thank you all.
It says it needs batteries:fridemar wrote:
Toontoonz: Let's apply your considerations on http://www.adesso.us/product_details.as ... LET%5F6400
"2 AA and 1AAA batteries, "
I try to avoid anything with batteries if I can. With the batteries for the product above that means:
More weight. (Tape a 1AAA battery to a pen or pencil and try drawing with it for 3 or more hours...it gets heavy quick.)
More cost. (New batteries at least once a week adds up to big money over a year.)
My bluetooth mouse went through two AA batteries every 3 days.
It was gone quick. (Sure you can get rechargeables, but you have to pay more for the batteries and buy a recharger.)
Note on the WAcom bluetooth tablet. It says it is good at distances up to 30 feet.
Whoopee! Sit 30 feet from your monitor and try to see what´s on it.
The USB wacom tablets I have are light and easy to use.
I suggest you go to a store and try different one´s out before you buy.
You can´t go wrong buying a Wacom.
Hello Fridemar,
I can't tell you anything about the Bluetooth device, but I'm fairly sure the current Graphire3 and Intuos3 range both use USB connections.
I'll add my vote for both a Wacom and the 6"x8" size - I haven't tried larger ones, but for paint programs I find the 4"x5" size a little cramped for natural use (not seriously, just a little), while the 6"x8" is a comfortable working size. That may be just me - it's not a problem with vector/illustration programs and Moho.
The light batteryless wireless pens are a joy to use compared to wire-connected or battery pens.
The Wacom tablets also last well - I'm still using an old Wacom that runs off the serial port, and it still runs well.
Hint: if you're going to be travelling with your Wacom pen, pack it securely in a small rigid box, such as you buy good writing pens in - some Wacom pens can be broken or cracked by serious mistreatment (equivalent to that needed to break a wooden pencil, not by normal use).
Hint: if you don't like the feel of the standard Wacom pen tip (there are other pens with different tips available, for at least the Intuos range), try taping a sheet of paper over your tablet and drawing on that.
Regards, Myles.
I can't tell you anything about the Bluetooth device, but I'm fairly sure the current Graphire3 and Intuos3 range both use USB connections.
I'll add my vote for both a Wacom and the 6"x8" size - I haven't tried larger ones, but for paint programs I find the 4"x5" size a little cramped for natural use (not seriously, just a little), while the 6"x8" is a comfortable working size. That may be just me - it's not a problem with vector/illustration programs and Moho.
The light batteryless wireless pens are a joy to use compared to wire-connected or battery pens.
The Wacom tablets also last well - I'm still using an old Wacom that runs off the serial port, and it still runs well.
Hint: if you're going to be travelling with your Wacom pen, pack it securely in a small rigid box, such as you buy good writing pens in - some Wacom pens can be broken or cracked by serious mistreatment (equivalent to that needed to break a wooden pencil, not by normal use).
Hint: if you don't like the feel of the standard Wacom pen tip (there are other pens with different tips available, for at least the Intuos range), try taping a sheet of paper over your tablet and drawing on that.
Regards, Myles.
"Quote me as saying I was mis-quoted."
-- Groucho Marx
-- Groucho Marx
The first tablet I ever had was a Calcomp 12x12. That was a bunch of years ago. It was a good tablet, but it was really way too big. It worked well, but the pen required a couple of watch batteries, and was therefore heavier than the batteryless Wacom pen. The Wacoms I have (Graphire and Intuos) are both USB connected, and I have never really found the cord to be in the way. It's long enough so you can put the tablet anywhere you want to get comfortable. I highly recommend the Wacom tablets. I haven't tried the other brands mentioned, but Wacom does have a long reputation behind it.
Jack
Jack