7P Drawing tablets
  • Welcome
  • About TheSevenPens
    • My tablet setups
    • Drawing Tablet discord server
    • My drawing tablets
  • Frequently asked questions
  • Basics
    • Beginner's guide to drawing tablets
    • Types of drawing tablets
    • Learning digital art
    • Learning to use a drawing tablet
    • Get started with a drawing tablet
    • Use cases
      • Gaming with a drawing tablet
      • Making educational videos with a drawing tablet
      • Taking notes with drawing tablets
      • Using a drawing tablet as a mouse replacement
    • Contacting support
    • Drawing tablets vs mice
    • The drawing experience
    • Uninstalling tablet drivers
  • Buying a drawing tablet
    • Buying used drawing tablets
    • Inspecting a drawing tablet
    • Pen tablets vs pen displays
    • The case against pen computers
    • Buying a drawing tablet for osu!
    • Buying tips
    • How many pressure levels do you really need?
    • Choosing the right size for a drawing tablet
    • Switching from a pen tablet to a pen display
    • Buying a drawing tablet as a gift
  • Recommendations
    • Recommended drawing tablets for beginners
    • Dedicated note taking devices
    • Pen tablet recommendations
      • Small pen tablet recommendations
      • Medium pen tablet recommendations
      • Large pen tablet recommendations
    • Pen display recommendations
      • Small pen display recommendations
      • Medium pen display recommendations
      • Large pen display recommendations
    • Standalone drawing tablet recommendations
      • Pen computer recommendations
      • Pen-enabled mobile computers
      • Pen-enabled laptop recommendations
    • Comparisons
      • 7P: Drawing tablet tier list (December 2024)
      • 7P: Large pen tablets compared
      • 7P: 13" pen displays compared (2023)
      • 7P: 22" pen displays compared (2024)
  • Brands
    • Huion and XP-Pen
    • Wacom
    • Xencelabs
    • Drawing tablet brands vs digitizers
    • Choosing a drawing tablet brand
  • Core features
    • Active area
    • Active area size
    • Active area aspect ratio
    • Active area mapping
    • Erasing
    • Bezel
    • Pen tilt
    • Disable pen tilt
    • Tilt impact on pressure readings
    • Pen pressure
    • Pen pressure range comparison
    • Pen pressure dead zone
    • Pen pressure instability at low pressure
    • Pen pressure response
    • Pen pressure curve
      • Misc pressure curve notes
      • Pressure curves that constrain output
      • Null pressure curve
      • Implementing pressure curves
      • Pressure curves that ignore input
      • Pressure curve shape support in applications
    • Disable pen pressure
    • Pen hover
    • Pen tracking
    • Pen tilt compensation
    • Pen barrel rotation
    • Pen nib travel
    • Pen nib material
    • Lag
    • Pointer lag
    • Brush lag
    • Diagonal wobble
    • Surface texture
    • Auxiliary inputs
    • Absolute versus relative positioning
    • Mouse mode
    • Powering a pen
    • Powering a drawing tablet
  • Guides
    • Caring for your drawing tablet
      • Dealing with water damage
      • Cleaning a drawing tablet
      • Removing a nib
      • Removing a broken nib
      • Storing your pen
      • Surface wear on pen tablets
      • Scratches on pen tablets
      • Texture erosion on pen tablets
      • Surface wear on pen displays
      • False scratches
      • Removing and replacing the surface film on a pen display
      • Nib wear
      • Replacing a pen
    • Customizing your experience
      • Match aspect ratios with Force Proportions
      • Shrinking the active area
      • Using large pen tablets
      • Using extra-large pen tablets
      • Matching pen tablet size to monitor size
      • Active Area Mapping for pen tablets and widescreen monitors
      • Mirroring or extending your desktop to a pen display
      • Using a pen display as a pen tablet
      • Using metal nibs
      • Clamping wide-gamut displays to sRGB
      • Calibrate pen position on a pen display
      • Using a pen display as a monitor
      • Controlling the pen tip behavior
    • Connections and cabling
      • Connecting a pen display with a 3-in-1 cable
      • Connecting a pen tablet to a computer
      • Wireless connection
      • Motherboard HDMI vs GPU HDMI ports
      • Connecting a pen display to a computer
      • Connecting a pen display to a mobile device
      • Connecting a pen display with a single USB-C cable
      • Using 3rd-party cables with your drawing tablet
        • Cables I use to connect pen tablets
      • Connecting a pen to a drawing tablet
      • Recessed USB-C ports
      • Connecting a pen display to a USB-C port on a GPU
    • Drawing
      • Drawing smooth strokes
      • How a brush engine uses pen data
      • Configure smoothing in applications
      • Enable tilt for brushes
    • Pen displays
      • Etched glass vs film
      • Etched glass
      • Anti-glare film
      • Anti-glare sparkle
      • Lamination
      • Display resolution
      • Choosing the right display resolution for a pen display
      • Brightness
      • Parallax
      • Display connector types
      • Using HDMI splitters with pen displays
      • Using HDMI adapters with pen displays
        • VGA to HDMI adapters
        • DVI to HDMI adapters
        • USB-C to HDMI adapters
        • DisplayPort to HDMI adapters
      • Color tint on edges of display
      • Pen display refresh rate
      • USB-C DisplayPort alt mode
      • Dead pixels
      • Using an iPad with your computer as a pen display
    • Pens
      • Pen buttons
      • Pen compatibility with drawing tablets
      • Pen weight
      • Pen weight comparison
      • Pen teardowns
    • Drivers
      • OpenTabletDriver
        • Install OpenTabletDriver on Windows
        • Install OpenTabletDriver on MacOS
        • OpenTabletDriver application data directory
        • Uninstalling OpenTabletDriver on Windows
        • OpenTabletDriver usage notes
        • Smoothing with OpenTabletDriver
        • Pressure curves in OpenTabletDriver
        • Slimy Scylla
      • Using a drawing tablet without installing drivers
      • Tablet Driver Cleanup tool
      • Using older tablet drivers
      • Importing and Exporting tablet driver configurations
    • Advanced
      • Firmware
      • Tablet reports
      • PenTracker by Patrick Lauke
    • Ergonomics
      • Body posture when using drawing tablets
      • Handedness of drawing tablets
      • Using a drawing tablet in portrait mode
      • Rotating a drawing tablet
      • Using a drawing tablet on your lap
      • Noise
      • Using a drawing tablet in bed
      • Heat
    • Touch support
      • Tablets that support touch
    • General
      • Total cost of ownership (TCO)
      • Model names vs model numbers
      • Finding the model number of a drawing tablet
      • Using older drawing tablets
      • Electromagnetic Interference
      • Connecting a drawing tablet to an iPad or iPhone
      • Connecting a drawing tablet to an Android device
      • Testing Drawing Tablet Compatibility with Android devices
      • Connecting a drawing tablet to a Chromebook
      • Chromebook testing results
      • Connecting multiple drawing tablets at the same time
    • Linux
    • Windows
      • Using a drawing tablet on Windows
      • Windows on ARM
      • Windows PNP support for drawing tablets
      • Windows PNP driver compatibility testing
      • Disable ripple effect rings in Windows
      • Disable the press-and-hold ring in Windows
      • Windows 7 Tablet PC features
        • Disable Tablet PC features on Windows 7
        • Disable Tablet PC features on Windows 7 using the FixMyPen tool
      • Windows Ink
        • The history of Windows Ink
        • Configure Windows Ink for apps
        • Configuring Photoshop to NOT use Windows Ink
        • Configure Windows Ink in the tablet driver
    • Mini-PCs for digital art
      • 7P: Minisforum Neptune HX99G
    • Laptops for digital art
  • Applications
    • Apps for beginners
    • Apps for Android
    • Apps for iPad
    • List of apps
    • App tips
      • Show document canvas on another display
    • 7P: Recommended apps
  • Developers
    • Pen APIs
    • WinTab versus Windows Ink
    • 7P Tablet Tester
    • WinTab API
    • Force proportions simulator
  • Troubleshooting
    • Common problems with drawing tablets
    • Common drawing troubleshooting steps
    • Testing pressure in the tablet driver
    • Check if pen display shows HDMI video signal from other devices
    • Check tablet driver diagnostics
    • Reset a drawing tablet
    • TSG: Low pressure drawing problems
    • TSG: Difficult to reach maximum pressure
    • Testing with Windows PNP drawing tablet drivers
    • TSG: pointer stuck in corner of screen
    • TSG: Drawing problems
    • TSG: Pen display shows NO SIGNAL message
    • TSG: Pen moving pointer on the wrong display
    • TSG: Pixel noise on display
    • TSG: No pressure while drawing
    • TSG: Random gaps in strokes
    • TSG: Dots at end of strokes
    • TSG: Dots at start of strokes
    • TSG: Pen draws while hovering
    • TSG: Hooks at start of strokes
    • TSG: shoelaces at end of strokes
    • TSG: Straight lines at start of stokes
    • TSG: Pen not drawing in vertical or horizontal bands
    • TSG: WiFi and Internet problems with drawing tablets
    • TSG: Tablet driver does not detect tablet
    • TSG: computer does not detect display
    • TSG: driver no longer supports a drawing tablet
    • TSG: no sound after plugging in drawing tablet
    • TSG: Pen display doesn't show anything
    • TSG: Not enough HDMI ports
    • TSG: Insects in a pen display
    • TSG: Pen acting like a mouse
    • TSG: Pen display turns on and off constantly
    • TSG: computer detects drawing tablet as a keyboard
  • Product links
    • Apple
      • Apple iPad
      • Apple Pencil
      • Connecting an iPad to a computer as a drawing tablet
      • 7P: Apple iPad
      • 7P: Apple iPad versus drawing tablets
      • 7P: Apple iPad versus Samsung Galaxy Tab S
      • 7P: How I use iPads
      • 7P: M3 MacBook Pro
    • Artisul
    • ASUS
      • ASUS Pro Art Pen Display
    • CalDigit
      • 7P: CalDigit USB-C to HDMI 2.1 adapter
      • 7P: CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt Dock
    • Dell
      • Dell Canvas 27
    • Gaomon
      • Gaomon Pen Tablet
      • Gaomon Pro Pen Tablet
      • Gaomon Pen Display
      • Gaomon Pro Pen Display
    • Huion
      • Huion Kamvas Pro
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas Pro 19 (GT1902)
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas Pro 16 Plus 4K (GT1562)
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas Pro 24 4K (GT2401)
      • Huion Kamvas Studio
      • Huion Kamvas Slate
      • Huion Kamvas
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas 13 GEN3 (GS1333)
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas 16 2021 (GS1562)
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas 13 (GS1331)
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas 22 Plus (GS2202)
        • 7P: Huion Kamvas 16 GEN3 (GS1563)
      • Huion Inspiroy R-series
        • 7P: Huion Inspiroy RTP-700
      • Inspiroy Dial
        • 7P: Huion Inspiroy Dial 2 (Q630M)
      • Huion Inspiroy Frego
        • 7P: Huion Inspiroy Frego M (L610)
      • Huion Inspiroy
        • 7P: Huion Inspiroy Giano (G930L)
        • 7P: Huion Inspiroy HS611
        • 7P: Huion Inspiroy WH1409V2
      • Huion KeyDial
      • Huion pens
        • Huion PenTech
        • 7P: Huion PW500 pen
        • 7P: Huion PW517 pen
        • 7P: Huion PW550 series pens
        • 7P: Huion PW600 series pens
        • 7P: Huion PW507 pen
      • Huion Inspiroy 2
        • 7P: Huion Inspiroy 2 L (H1061P)
    • Microsoft
      • Microsoft Surface Pro
        • 7P: Microsoft Surface Pro 8
    • OnePlus
      • OnePlus Pad
    • Samsung
      • Samsung Galaxy Tab S series
      • 7P: Samsung Galaxy Tab S series
      • 7P: Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE
      • 7P: Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra
      • 7P: Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 lite (2022 edition)
      • Samsung Galaxy Tab A
      • Samsung Galaxy Book 360
      • Samsung Galaxy Tab S6
      • Samsung Galaxy Tab S7
      • Samsung Galaxy Tab S8
      • Samsung Galaxy Tab S9
      • Samsung S Pen
        • 7P: Samsung S Pen
    • Wacom
      • 7P: Comparison of Wacom pen tablets
      • Wacom model number format
      • Wacom One vs One by Wacom
      • Wacom tablet list
      • One by Wacom
        • 7P: One by Wacom (CTL-x72)
      • Wacom Intuos Pro 2025
        • 7P: Wacom Intuos Pro 2025 (PTK-x70)
      • Wacom Intuos Pro 2017
        • 7P: Wacom Intuos Pro 2017 Medium (PTH-660)
        • 7P: Wacom Intuos Pro 2017 (PTH-x60)
      • Wacom Intuos Pro 2013
      • Wacom Intuos5
      • Wacom Intuos4
        • 7P: Wacom Intuos 4 XL (PTK-1240)
      • Wacom Intuos3
      • Wacom Intuos2
      • Wacom Intuos1
      • Wacom Intuos
      • Wacom UD tablets
      • Wacom SD tablets
      • Wacom Cintiq
        • 7P: Wacom Cintiq 22 (DTK-2260)
      • Wacom Cintiq Pro
        • 7P: Wacom Cintiq Pro 16 (DTH-167)
        • 7P: Cintiq Pro 24 (DTx-2420)
        • 7P: Wacom Cintiq Pro 27 (DTH-271)
        • 7P: Wacom Cintiq Pro 22 (DTH-227)
      • Wacom Movink
        • 7P: Wacom Movink 13 (DTH-135)
      • Wacom One 2019 GEN1
        • 7P: Wacom One 2019 GEN1 (DTC-133)
      • Wacom One 2023 GEN2
        • 7P: Wacom One 2023 GEN2 pen displays
        • 7P: Wacom One 2023 pen tablets
      • Wacom accessories
        • 7P: Wacom Converter (ACK45219Z)
        • Wacom texture sheets
        • Wacom pens
          • 7P: Pro Pen 2 (KP-504E)
          • 7P: Wacom 2K Pen (LP-190K)
          • 7P: Wacom One 2019 GEN1 Pen (CP-913)
          • 7P: Wacom One 2023 Pen (CP-923)
          • 7P: Wacom Pro Pen 3 (ACP-500)
          • 7P: Wacom Intuos 2 Airbrush pen (XP-400E)
        • Wacom pen compatibility
    • Xencelabs
      • Xencelabs Quick Keys
      • 7P: Xencelabs Pen Tablet Medium (BPH1212W-A)
      • 7P: Xencelabs Pen Display 16 (LPH1612U-A)
      • 7P: Xencelabs V2 pens
      • 7P: Xencelabs Mobile Easel
      • 7P: Xencelabs Pen Display 24 (LPH2412U-A)
    • XP-Pen
      • XP-Pen Magic Note Pad (MNP1095)
      • XP-Pen Magic Drawing Pad
      • XP-Pen Artist
        • 7P: XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus (MD220FH)
      • XP-Pen Artist GEN2
        • 7P: XP-Pen Artist 12 Gen2 (CD120FH)
        • 7P: XP-Pen Artist 13 GEN2 (CD130FH)
        • 7P: XP-Pen Artist 16 GEN2 (CD160FH)
      • XP-Pen Artist Pro
      • XP-Pen Artist Pro GEN2
        • 7P: XP-Pen Artist Pro 22 GEN2 (MD220QH)
        • 7P: XP-Pen Artist Pro 19 GEN2 (MD180UH)
        • 7P : XP-Pen Artist Pro 16 GEN2 (MD160QH)
      • XP-Pen Shortcut Remote
      • XP-Pen Deco
        • 7P: XP-Pen Deco LW (IT1060B)
      • XP-Pen Deco Pro GEN2
        • 7P: XP-Pen Deco Pro XLW GEN2 (MT1592B)
      • XP-Pen Innovator
      • XP-Pen protective sheets
      • XP-Pen pens
        • 7P: XP-Pen X3 Pro pens
        • 7P: XP-Pen X3 Elite pen
      • XP-Pen ACS15 Ergo Stand
    • Ugee
  • Application links
    • MyPaint
    • Adobe Photoshop
      • 7P: Adobe Photoshop
    • ArtRage
    • Affinity Photo
      • 7P: Affinity Photo
    • Autodesk Maya
    • Blender
    • Clip Studio Paint
      • 7P: Clip Studio Paint
    • Concepts app
    • FireAlpaca
    • Freeform
    • Fresco
    • HEAVYPAINT
    • HiPaint
    • Ibis Paint
    • Infinite Painter
    • Inkscape
    • Kleki
    • Krita
      • 7P: Krita
    • Medibang Paint
    • Medibang Pro
    • Microsoft Whiteboard
    • Microsoft PowerPoint
    • Microsoft OneNote
    • Microsoft Paint
    • Painter
    • Paintstorm Studio
    • PaintTool Sai
    • Photoshop
    • Procreate
      • 7P: Procreate
    • Rebelle
    • Samsung Notes
    • ZoomIt
    • Feather 3D
  • Accessories
    • Screen cleaning sprays
    • Monitor arms
      • 7P: Ergotron monitor arms
    • Cables
      • 7P: CableMatters Thunderbolt 3 cable
    • Cable adapters
    • Drawing gloves
    • Extension cables
    • Keyboards
    • Auxiliary input devices
      • TourBox
        • 7P: TourBox
      • 8bitdo controller
      • Clip Studio Tabmate
    • Pen grips
    • Protective cases
    • Surface protectors
      • Foxbox covers
      • Photodon screen protectors
      • ePlastic polycarbonate sheets (velvet lexan)
      • Paperlike for iPad
    • Stands
      • 7P: VIVO Pneumatic Arm Monitor Desk Stand (STAND-V100R)
      • Parblo PR-100 stand
        • 7P: Parblo PR-100 Stand
      • XP-Pen AC41/AC42 stands
      • XOOT Stand
      • iPad stands
  • Resources
    • Drawing tablet community
    • Kuuube
      • Kuuube's Wacom tablet mastersheet
      • Kuuube's tablet buying guide
      • Kuuube's Wacom pen compatibility mastersheet
    • YouTube channels
    • Subreddits for drawing tablets
    • Koneko_w
    • Project Patchouli
  • Process
    • Pressure range data
    • Measuring hover height
    • Measuring pressure
    • Measuring display sharpness
    • Measuring report rate
    • Measuring diagonal wobble
    • Diagonal wobble samples
    • Perfect pressure sensitive lines
    • Tablet evaluation
    • Microscope
  • Reference
    • Resolution info
    • Aspect ratio math
    • Standard paper sizes
  • Technology
    • Display panel technology
    • VESA
    • Wacom patents
    • AES
    • Apple Pencil tech
    • EMR
      • EMR technical resources
      • EMR position detection
      • EMR pressure detection
      • Active EMR vs Passive EMR
      • EMR tilt detection
      • The realities of building your own EMR pen
    • MPP
    • Digital pen tech
    • Wacom UD EMR
      • Pens that support UD EMR 2nd gen
      • Tablets that support UD EMR 2nd gen
    • USI
  • Misc
    • Circuit simulations
    • History of drawing tablets
      • Preface
      • Chapter 1: Antiquity
      • Chapter 2: Terms
      • Appendix: Timeline
      • Appendix: Other histories
      • Appendix: References
    • Mobile computer recommendations
Powered by GitBook
On this page
  • Introduction
  • Buying guide videos series
  • My recommendations
  • Choosing the type of drawing tablet
  • Basic guidelines
  • Brands
  • Product info
  • Core drawing tablet features
  • Secondary features
  • Pen display topics
  • Connections & cabling
  • OS and device compatibility
  • Ergonomics
  • Use Cases
  • Look at model numbers, not just names
  • Applications
  • Buying used drawing tablets
  • Power
  • Picking tablets with more recent tech
  • Preparing for a drawing tablet
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Buying a drawing tablet

Last updated 7 days ago

Introduction

I want to help you make an informed choice when purchasing a drawing tablet. My goals are to (1) save you money, (2) ensure you aren't disappointed with your purchase, and (3) prevent you from damaging your tablet or pen.

If you are new to drawing tablets, read this first: . This buying guide builds on the beginner's guide. If you also just want to quickly get to some beginner recommendations then go here: .

Buying guide videos series

If you prefer a watching a video ... I've got a playlist here:

My recommendations

I strongly urge you to read this buying guide and beginner's guide completely before you jump directly to the recommendations.

Choosing the type of drawing tablet

The most fundamental choice to make is the kind of drawing tablet you want:

  • pen tablet - does NOT have a screen and requires a computer to use

  • pen display - has a screen and requires a computer to use

  • standalone tablet - has a screen and can be used my itself without being connected to a computer.

Basic guidelines

  • If you really need need one that is standalone get an iPad or a Samsung Galaxy Tab.

Brands

If you want a safe choice, go with Wacom. They are also the most expensive. Competitors such as Huion, XP-Pen, and Xencelabs are closing the gap with Wacom.

More here:

Product info

Core drawing tablet features

    • Initial Activation Force (IAF) is smallest pressure that activates the pen. In general you want a pen that has a low (<=3gf) IAF. Modern drawing tablet pens are around this value.

    • The maximum pressure is the most pressure the pen can detect. The pressure range is the difference between the maximum pressure and IAF. Higher maximum pressure means that the pressure range is wide and is better for drawing because it lets you have better control over how pressure affects your stroke.

    • The difference between the max pressure and IAF is the physical pressure range. A range of 300gf is GOOD. 400gf and above is very good. Not all brands publish this information for their pens but some do. If you can't find the information ask customer support or ask people in the community.

    • Pressure levels - the physical pressure range is divided into segments - each segment is a pressure level. They go from 0 to some number like 8192. Despite what marketing says, I believe you only need 2048 pressure levels. All modern tablets have at least 4096 level, and the vast majority have 8192, and a few have 16K. In other words, EVERY tablet has enough pressure levels. So don't worry about choosing a tablet based on pressure levels.

  • EMR resolution - This is how accurately the tablet can sense different positions of the pen. In other words, this is the tablet's ability to detect very tiny position changes. Most tablets have a reported LPI of 5080. 5080 lines per inch translates to 200 lines per mm. Without getting into details, Wacom tech is superior here, but if you are drawing you will not notice this. You don't need to worry about this spec. All modern tablets have enough resolution.

Secondary features

Pen display topics

Connections & cabling

Pen tablets can all be connected with a single USB cable. Most pen tablets even support wireless connectivity - usually via Bluetooth. Be aware that many tablet models have wireless and non-wireless versions with slightly different names and model numbers. Be sure which one you are buying.

Pen displays ALWAYS require at least 1 cable. As the pen display size starts getting to 16" and above, they tend to require at least 2 cables due to the increased power required by the display. Pen displays have many more connection options. Its a common mistake to buy a pen display and then realize you have no way to connect it to your computer. So please invest time understanding connection options BEFORE you make a purchase. More here:

OS and device compatibility

Drawing tablets well work with computers and laptops running popular operating systems. More here:

  • Macs

Drawing tablets work to some extent with other kinds of devices. More here:

Ergonomics

  • Thickness - Pen tablets are very thin these days - about 8mm. Smaller pen displays can be around 10mm larger pen displays can be 35mm.

  • Legs - Many pen displays (not not all) have foldable legs on the back. This allows you to keep the pen display at a slight angle on your desk which makes it a bit easier to see and draw on. Pen tablets do not have legs. If you want to place them at an angle, you will need to find and purchase some other solution.

Use Cases

Look at model numbers, not just names

Applications

Buying used drawing tablets

Power

Picking tablets with more recent tech

Drawing tablets have been released over many years. That means when you shop online you are going to be seeing many models both old and new and that can get very confusing.

  • Wacom - Wacom models from any year are good quality. However keep in mind over time their latest drivers will drop support for older models.

  • Huion & XP-Pen - Huion and XP-Pen have so many models and some that use older pen tech are released in the same year as tablets that use newer pen tech. The easiest way to know whether you are getting a truly more modern tablet is be looking at the pen it is compatible with.

    • XP-Pen: Look for tablets that have X3 in their name

      • These are the X3 Elite, X3 Roller, and X3 Pro

    • Huion: Look for tablets that use more recent Huion PenTech versions:

      • PenTech 3.0: PW517, PW515, PW110

      • PenTech 3.0+: PW500, PW500S - in my research these are clearly better pens than PenTech 3.0. In terms of pressure range as good as PenTech 4.0.

      • PenTech 4.0: PW600, PW600S. The PenTech 4.0 Pens are better than the PenTech 3.0 pens

Preparing for a drawing tablet

If you are ready to buy a tablet, go ahead to . Those recommendations should help you narrow your search. The recommendations cover pen tablets, pen displays, and pen computers across multiple price ranges.

Get a pen tablet (no screen) unless you are absolutely sure that you MUST have a pen display (has a screen). More here:

If you are a beginner I have simplified the options for you: .

f you decide on Wacom and want a pen tablet, read this guide: . In the future, I'll add a doc covering Wacom pen displays.

I have links to information, reviews, and my notes on tablets in the section.

Size - Tablets come in a variety of sizes. The size has a BIG impact on the ergonomics of using the tablet. And different sizes serve different user needs. This guide on will help you find a size size that works for you.

Pressure - The pen can detect how much pressure you are putting on its tip. All drawing tablets sense pressure. More info: .

Tilt can be very useful for for certain kinds of artwork. If you are just taking notes it may not be useful at all. Almost all modern tablets support tilt, except for less than a handful of pen tablets. More here .

Diagonal wobble - All drawing tablets all have some wobble when moving the pen at an angle - it is strongest at 45 degrees. Some have a lot and some have very little or almost none. You may be very sensitive to the wobble. Be aware of this affect and make sure the tablet you buy doesn't have too much wobble. More here: .

ExpressKeys are additional inputs (buttons, dials, scroll wheels, etc.) on the tablet. Some tablets have them and some don't. They allow you to easily perform certain tasks without touching the keyboard. You should decide if they are important for you. Read more here:

Touch - A few drawing tablets support touch. Overall touch is not great. I do not recommend buying a drawing tablet if you expect the touch support to be on par with an iPad. You will be disappointed. More here:

Anti-glare sparkle - To prevent glare, pen displays have an anti-glare treatment applied to them. This will produce a kind sparkle effect. Some pen displays have a lot of it and some a little. Some people can tolerate it. Some people hate seeing it. More here: .

Display resolution - Choosing the .

Brightness - Pen displays are bright but not super bright like some other displays you might be familiar with. More here: .

Parallax - Parallax is the apparent disagreement between the location of the physical tip of the pen and the and where the computer thinks the tip of the pen is. This is another thing, some people are more sensitive to. Learn more here: .

Lamination - Lamination can decrease parallax. I highly recommend getting a pen display that has lamination. Learn more here:

NO SIGNAL - The most common problem with pen displays is something called NO SIGNAL. If you are interested in pen displays you should be prepared to deal with this topic. .

Even though a pen display is meant to draw on you can use it exactly like a normal monitor. Learn more here: .

Display Panel tech - Most pen displays use an IPS display panel. Though a handful use OLED. Currently I recommend sticking with IPS panels because we don't know how long OLED displays will last in the scenarios we use drawing tablets. More here: .

Surface texture - If you are drawing, you might have strong preferences of what the texture of your tablet feels like. All drawing tablets have some surface texture but there is quite a bit of variation. There are even ways to achieve the texture you want. For example, many people want their tablet to have a rougher texture like paper. Learn more here:

Body posture - With a pen tablet, your torso will naturally have a more vertical posture. This is because you will be looking at your monitor while you hand rests on the pen tablet which is on your desk. With a pen display, you will be leaning over a bit to draw since you must look at the pen tablet on you desk. You may experience lower back pain or strain on your neck from looking down. More here:

Arm mounting - Pen displays are essentially monitors, and many (but not all), pen displays have a VESA mount on the back that you can put the pen display on. This will allow you to use keep the pen display away and use it like a secondary display and then pull it close when you want to draw. Pen tablets do not have any kind of built in ability to be mounted like that. See:

Right-handed vs left-handed use - All drawing tablets work for people who are right-handed or left-handed. In some cases (usually due to the layout of the tablet buttons) you may need to configure the tablet to be used correctly in a left-handed way. See .

Noise - You may have strong preferences about noise. Generally drawing tablets are considered very quiet, and some are completely silent. More details here:

Heat - Drawing tablets are either room temperature or slightly warm depending on the kind of drawing tablet. More here:

Drawing - Drawing with a drawing tablet very similar to but different from drawing on paper. And there is a big difference between how it feels to draw with pen displays versus pen tablets. You must understand the differences to help you choose between a pen tablet or pen display. More here: and here

Taking notes - I don't typically recommend pen tablets or pen displays for note taking. But some people really do like doing this. Instead I suggest standalone devices like an iPad which I think work much better. More here:

Educational videos - You've probably seen those Khan academy videos. Those are done with a drawing tablet. More here: making educational videos. More here:

Gaming - some people actually play games with drawing tablets. More here:

Playing osu! - If you want to play osu!, there are very specific drawing tablets you should consider. More here:

Tablet names are confusing and often misleading. Make sure you make your decisions based on the model number. More here:

There are a lot of applications that work well with pen tablets depending on what you want to do. More here: . Here are the apps I specifically use:

If you buy a used tablet, you could save yourself some significant money but you should be prepared for the issues you might face buying a used tablet. More here:

Depending on the kind of tablet it will draw different amounts of power. Pen tablets requrie very little. Pen displays need much more. Some pen tablets even have batteries so that they can work wirelessly. More here:

More here:

Troubleshooting - At some point, something is going to go wrong. I highly suggest you familiarize yourself with the and be aware of these .

Accessories - There are some interesting accessories for a tablet. More here:

Purchasing - Before you actually purchase the tablet. Go through this .

Getting started - Once you get your tablet, here's a guide to setting it up for the first time:

Maintenance - Once you get your tablet, you'll need to take care of it and perform some simple maintenance. I've written a guide on this: .

Be prepared for the total cost of ownership. Just buying the tablet is one thing. But you will likely purchase other things. More here:

my tablet recommendations
Pen tablets vs pen displays
Recommended drawing tablets for beginners
Brands
Choosing a drawing tablet brand
Overview of Wacom pen tablets
product info
choosing the right tablet size
pressure
tilt
diagonal wobble
ExpressKeys
Touch support
Anti-glare sparkle
display resolution
brightness
parallax
lamination
See Troubleshoot the NO SIGNAL problem
Using a pen display as a monitor
Display panel technology
Connecting a pen display to a computer
Connecting a pen display with one USB-C cable
Connecting a pen display with a 3-in-1 cable
Using a drawing tablet on Windows
Using a drawing tablet with Linux
Using a drawing tablet with an iOS device
Using a drawing tablet with an Android device
Using drawing tablets with Chromebooks
Surface texture
Body posture when using drawing tablets
Using monitor arms with a pen display
handedness of drawing tablets
Heat
The drawing experience
Learning digital art
Taking notes with drawing tablets
Making educational videos with a drawing tablet
Gaming with a drawing tablet
Buying a drawing tablet for osu!
Model names vs model numbers
Applications
Recommended apps
Buying a used tablet
Powering a drawing tablet
Huion pens
Common problems with drawing tablets
Troubleshooting guides
Accessories
Before-purchase checklist
Get started with a drawing tablet
Caring for your tablet
Total Cost of Ownership
Noise
Beginner's guide to drawing tablets
Recommended drawing tablets for beginners