rwoodvira

I'm getting tired of editing with my mouse and I have a few gift cards for birthday/Fathers Day, I'm looking at the following:

Wacom One (the old one not the new ones just announced)- refurbished or used
Huion Kamvas 13 and 13 Pro - new and refurbished
Huion Kamvas 12 and 12 Pro - new and refurbished
Xp Pen Artist 12 - new

Wacom seems to have a good reputation for refurbs; has any anyone had experience new or refurb with the Huion
or Xp Pens?

I'm trying to keep this $150 - $200. The joy of retirement.

Thank you for your help.

fredpnm Loc: Corrales, NM

I have no experience with the Wacom One, only Wacom tablets (small - I found any larger ones to be a waste of space, in both the tablet and my desktop). Many professionals I have followed started out with ones like the 'One' - a Wacom display/tablet, but larger size - but rather quickly quit using it. They found the small tablet to be of better utility.

Doubtlessly there are folks who find the display/tablet to be a wonder asset. Perhaps you will hear from a few here.

nanaval Loc: Cornwall

I have used a Wacom tablet for years and would not be with out it. I started with a medium one then went to a large one and kept the med one for use with my laptop and it is still going strong. I now use a small Wacom with my desktop. The biggest difference is that you lose the pen and tablet just like a pen and paper by lifting the pen slightly off the tablet to move the curser to a different place on the screen. No scrolling needed. As I use a mouse with my left hand and write with my right (can write with both hands) I can't use the mouse as good with my right hand hence changing to a tablet. You can also make notes on things easier than having to type. Do you know anyone who has one that you could try or try in a shop. You have to just think of the tablet as your paper and the pen as a pen or pencil and look at the monitor not at the tablet and just play around with drawing to get used to it and there are short cuts on the tablet as well. I use mine to do everything on the computer and for making composites I find I have better control for doing fiddly bits.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I got a small Wacom tablet about 10-15 years ago. Tried several times to get used to it but I have been using a trackball for too long and at my age muscle memory is important and hard to develop. It looks like it would work well and so many people swear by them it's probably a viable editing tool, just doesn't work for me.

OTOH, I gave up the mouse about 3 decades ago and switched to a trackball. The mouse requires desk space and the trackball does not. You can even use it under a pile of papers on your desk. My desk was always messy so the trackball worked for me. Over the years I have had several different kinds and my favorite right now is the Ergo from Logitech. It comes in two packages. The best one is about $75-100. It has a two-speed trackball. There's a button right by the ball that will switch to fine motion so you can get more accuracy from the motion. It also has a switch that will allow you to use it on one of two machines, so I can put two laptops side by side and use the trackball on one or the other without moving my hand. It's wireless bluetooth and has a USB port for occasional charging.

I find it really good for editing because of the fine control. But that's just me. I would put it out as an option in case the tablet doesn't work for you. Both items take practice.

DavidM Loc: New Orleans, LA

See this link for recommended tablets...

https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-drawing-tablets-for-beginners/

StanMac Loc: Tennessee

I find using a mouse to follow curved or irregular lines, such as when selecting or masking, to be extremely tedious and difficult to do. Do you tablet users find doing those kinds of actions using a pen and tablet considerably easier and scribing a line more accurate?

Stan

frankraney Loc: Clovis, Ca.

My old Wacom tablet died and I got the wacom intuos. Love it. It's on sale at Amazon

Wacom Intuos Small Bluetooth... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079J7DCXN?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

flyguy Loc: Las Cruces, New Mexico

Alex A

You could consider an iPad with iPencil as well. Though that might not be in your budget.

rcarol

Have both the Huion and the XP pen. Both do a good job. My Huion is bigger than the XP Pen and I've elected to map my screen to a smaller area of the tablet to reduce the amount of hand movement.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

Here's a suggestion you may want to consider if you are new to using graphic tablets. X Pen Star G640 is a high-resolution fundamental USB-powered graphic tablet. It retails for $28.00 and it does everything you would want a graphic tablet to do. I use mine with Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator, Affinity Photo, Sketchup, and AutoCAD applications. Of course, it serves as a mouse for other applications although I prefer using a mouse for non-graphic programs which I find to be more intuitive.

I've used $300 Wacom tablets and this X-Pen Star G640 is every bit as good. It is ever so thin and compact for travel. (My Wacom was stolen from my car when they broke the window and snatched my computer bag along with all of its contents including my backup drives).

I suggest investing $28.00 to see if you like using a graphic tablet. They do take getting used to and it is a bit like rubbing your head and patting your belly at the same time which requires hand and eye coordination.

frankraney Loc: Clovis, Ca.

Absolutely that's why I use a wacom mostly.

one_eyed_pete Loc: Colonie NY

I have found this discussion very interesting. I am naturally left handed but years ago I trained myself to efficiently use the mouse with my right hand. I'm thinking I might be able to use a tablet/pen with my left hand for better fine control while editing.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

And the mouse with your right hand. A two-handed editor.

one_eyed_pete Loc: Colonie NY

Exactly my thinking!!