I run a small discord server for drawing tablets. This is where I can sometimes be found chatting about drawing tablets.

Invite link: https://discord.com/invite/gyrjPMtRrQ

General

Q: Which brands of drawing tablet should I get?

An overview of the brands and my take on some of them are here: drawing tablet brands

Q: Which an iPad better than a drawing tablet?

Read : using an iPad as a drawing tablet

Q: Can I use a drawing tablet with my iPad or iPhone?

It is possible in some cases. More here: Using a drawing tablet with an iOS device

Q: Can I use a drawing tablet with a Chromebook?

YES, It is possible, but be prepared for potential limitations. Read more here: Using a a drawing tablet with a Chromebook

Q: What size drawing tablet should I get?

It really depends on a lot of factors.

• For pen tablets - I recommend a MEDIUM size (about 11")

• For pen displays - I recommend a MEDIUM size (about 16") though many start off with a 13" and I personally prefer a 22"

More here: tablet size

Q: Should I update the tablet firmware?

Answer: Yes, but ONLY if the manufacturer recommends it. More here: firmware.

Q: Should I get a pen tablet or pen display?

There is no single right answer. Each has pros and cons. More here: Pen tablets vs pen displays

Pen Displays

Q: Why does my pen display have a sparkly grain/noise/greasy look?

To avoid the light sources from interfering with using your drawing tablet, Manufacturers apply an anti-glare treatment to drawing tablets. This anti-glare treatment disperses like from the tablet in such a way that you see it as a colorful sparkle. Read more here: anti-glare sparkle.

Q: Can I use a pen display as a normal monitor?

Answer: YES. But there are some things you should consider if you want to use it this way: Using a pen display as a monitor

Q: Why does my pen display show a temporary after image?

This is temporary phenomena called Image Persistence. This is not a permanent change and is not screen burn in (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screen_burn-in).

Q: Can I use a pen display without plugging in the HDMI cable?

Answer: YES. More here: Using a pen display as a pen tablet

Q: How do I make my pen display mirror what is on my monitor?

See this: Mirroring or extending your desktop to a pen display

Q: How do I enable mouse mode on a pen display?

The drivers that manufacturers release for their drawing tablets support Mouse Mode often only on their pen tablets but not on pen displays.

Q: Can I fix a dead pixel on my pen display?

It MAY be possible to fix. More here: Dead pixels.

General

Q: Is it normal for pen to lag?

Answer: YES. All drawing tablets experience some kind of lag. Pen tablets experience less lag than pen displays. However, extreme lag is not normal. You should be able to comfortably draw even if there is some lag. Read my notes on pen lag

Q: Can I extend the length of my cables?

Yes. More here: Extending cables

Q: What subreddits exist for drawing tablets?

There are quite a few. See this list: Subreddits for drawing tablets.

Q: Can I replace the surface of my pen tablet?

See: Protective sheets

Q: What should I do if I spilled water on my tablet or pen?

See this guide: Dealing with water damage

Pens

Q: Can I use a metal nib with my pen?

Answer: I personally do not recommend this,. However. YES it is possible, but BE CAREFUL and DO YOUR RESEARCH. There are potential risks to your pen and tablet. More here: Using Metal Nibs

Q: How do I connect my pen to my drawing tablet?

More here: Connecting a pen to a drawing tablet

Q: My pen is lost/broken. Can I just buy a replacement pen or do I have to buy a new tablet?

You just need to buy a pen of the SAME EXACT MODEL and it will work with your tablet. You don't even have to connect it - just bring it close to your tablet and it will work.

Drivers

Q: What do I do if a driver no longer supports my tablet?

See: Troubleshoot driver no longer supports a drawing tablet

Q: Can I have two tablet drivers from different manufacturers installed at the same time?

It depends. More here: Using multiple tablets on the same computer

Q: How to I completely uninstall a tablet driver on Windows?

See: Uninstalling manufacturer tablet drivers

Overview

Drawing tablets allow us to intuitively use a digital pen. On this site, I collected all my notes about drawing tablets over the years. If you are looking to buy a tablet, wanting to get help with a problem with your tablet, or just want to understand the technology, then I think you'll find the information you need here.

Popular topics

• Beginner's guide - If you are not sure really sure what a drawing tablet is, this is a great place to start.

• Buying a drawing tablet - a comprehensive guide about the topics you should consider when purchasing a tablet.

• Recommendations - Because I've used so many tablets, I have recommendations about which ones I think will work well.

• Troubleshooting guides - for when you need help

• Getting started - If you just got your drawing tablet, learn how to set it up and start drawing

• Product info - here you can find collected links, revies, information for many tablets and devices.

Contact

If you have questions or comments contact me at thesevenpens@outlook.com.

Chat

Consider joining the drawing tablet discord: Drawing Tablet discord server.

• Oct 4, 2022

• Sep 11, 2022

I have several setups ready for testing and trying out drawing tablets. It varies over time and what I am doing. Below is my latest setup as of 2023/08/03.

#1 Primary desktop

• Computer: Minisforum Neptune HX99G

• RAM: 64GB

• Storage: 1TB

• Tablets

  • Wacom Intuos Pro Large (PTH-860)

  • Wacom Cintiq Pro 22 (DTH227)

  • Both tablets are connected at the same time

#2 Drawing desktop

• Computer: Microsoft Surface Pro 8

• RAM: 32GB

• Storage: 1TB

• XP-Pen Deco Pro XLW 2nd Gen (MT1592B)

• XP-Pen Artist Pro 16 2nd Gen (MD160QH)

#3 Testing desktop

• Computers:

  • Microsoft Surface Pro 8 - Primarily for testing with Open Tablet Driver

  • M3 MacBook pro - for testing manufacturer drivers

• Tablets: various

Introduction

If you are new to drawing tablets, after reading this guide you'll understand how these devices work and be prepared to use one or to purchase one.

Basics

Position tracking

A drawing tablet lets you use a digital pen (also called a stylus) as an input device. As you move the pen on the tablet, your operating system pointer around (a.k.a. your mouse cursor) mirrors the motion of the pen. This demonstrates the first key feature of a drawing tablet - the accurate tracking of the pen's position.

Clicking

Every time you touch the pen to the tablet, your computer will interpret the contact as being the equivalent of pressing a mouse button. If you tap, it is interpreted as a mouse click. If you press down and move the pen it is just like you are holding down a mouse button and moving the mouse.

Hover

The tablet tracks the pens position up to about 10mm from the surface of the tablet and will move the pointer even if the pen is not touching the tablet. This is called hover and is very important because it lets you reposition the pointer without drawing or clicking.

Pressure sensitivity

A drawing tablet knows how hard you are pressing down on with the tip of the pen. This is called pressure sensitivity. Pressure is very important for creative applications. For example, a painting application a can change the size of your brush strokes based on the pressure. So small amounts of pressure result in thin strokes and pressing down harder will make the strokes thicker.

Pen tilt

Most drawing tablets also detect how the pen is tilted relative to the surface of the tablet. This pen tilt detection is also useful for creative applications. For example, it can also be used to alter the size of stroke such that increased tilt results in an thicker stroke.

Device options for drawing tablets

Pen tablets

Pen tablets are the simplest and least expensive kind of drawing tablet. They are often called: "screenless tablets" or "non-screen tablets".

• They DO NOT have an embedded display

• They REQUIRE A COMPUTER to be used.

• They REQUIRE A MONITOR attached the the computer or that the computer is a laptop.

The key skill required to use a pen tablet is that you must adjust to your hand drawing on one surface (the tablet) while you are looking at another surface (your monitor). Most people can adjust to this immediately or within a few days, but some people find this weird and for them one of the other device options may be a better choice.

Pen tablets cost between $50 to $500.

Pen displays

Pen displays are drawing tablets that have an embedded display panel. They are also called: "screen tablets", "display tablets".

Key attributes:

• They DO have an embedded display

• They REQUIRE A COMPUTER to be used.

A pen display may look like a laptop or an iPad. However unlike those devices you should be aware that the tablet will always have to have at least one cord coming from it that is connected to a computer.

Pen displays cost between $300 to $3500.

Standalone tablets

Pen computers

Pen computers cost between $1000 to $3500.

Pen-enabled mobile computers

These are NOT drawing tablets, but because they are very very similar to pen computers in that they are standalone and you can use a pen to draw with them - we can talk about them as an viable alternative to a pen computer.

But the key difference is a pen computer is intended for drawing, whereas a mobile computer with pen support is meant for general purpose use, but also you can use a pen do draw.

Sometimes the drawing experience with a mobile computers can really rival that of a pen computer. Sometimes they even use the same pen technology. But other times, they use a different technology and the drawing experience is not as good or may be missing features. So you have to carefully choose which devices you pick here.

In this category I think the Apple iPad provides the most compelling experience, followed closely by a Samsung Galaxy Tab S9.

What people do with their tablets

• Drawing - Of course, many people use drawing tablets for drawing, sketching, painting, photo-editing etc. All the fundamental creative tasks.

• Whiteboarding - especially with so many online meetings and remote learning. Many people use a drawing tablet with virtual whiteboard software.

• Educational videos - They are popular for creating videos in the same style as "Khan Academy".

• Document markup and review - They are useful for going through documents and annotating them with other notes and corrections.

Brands

Core features

The active area

Tablet size

Drivers

Connecting the tablet to the computer

All pen tablets can be connected with a single USB cable. Many pen tablets (but not all) can be connected wirelessly - for example via Bluetooth.

Applications

Pen nibs

Drawing with a tablet vs a mouse

EMR technology

Other topics to explore

Drawing tablets are heavily used for creating educational content. For example you've probably seen the Khan Academy videos and those are created with a drawing tablet.

Easy tablet choices

For this you want high reliability and durability and you DO NOT need to spend a lot of money buying a fancy tablet. And for those reasons I'll keep the recommendations short:

What features you need

• Pressure support - Will help you strokes look more natural. All drawing tablets have this pressure support.

• Tilt - not needed for education use. More of an artist thing.

• Tablet buttons (aka. ExpressKeys) - I think they can come in very useful for people. For some people these are critical. No harm in getting them, you can always disable them.

• Size - Medium or Small. I always recommend medium. Even though some people are OK with small tablets, I do see a far number of people say the small size makes their hand feel cramped.

My recommendations

Pen tablets (no screen)

• One by Wacom Medium (CTL-672)

  • Pressure: YES

  • Tilt: NO

  • Tablet Buttons: NO

  • Wireless: NO

• Wacom Intuos Medium (CTL-6100 or CTL-6100WL)

  • Pressure: YES

  • Tilt: NO

  • Tablet buttons: YES

  • Wireless: Only the CTL-6100WL supports wireless

Pen displays (have a screen)

• XP-Pen Artist 12 GEN2 (CD120FH)

  • Pressure: YES

  • Tilt: YES

  • Tablet buttons: YES

  • Wireless: NO

• XP-Pen Artist 13 GEN2 (CD130FH)

  • Pressure: YES

  • Tilt: YES

  • Tablet buttons: YES

  • Wireless: NO

• Wacom One GEN1 (DTC-133)

  • Pressure: YES

  • Tilt: YES

  • Tablet buttons: NO

  • Wireless: NO

Which tablet does Sal Khan use?

Sal Khan uses a Wacom Intuos Pro Medium for his videos. That is an AMAZING tablet, but honestly overkill. You can get by with a much less expensive tablet.

Which specific model of Intuos Pro he is using?

It does NOT look to be the latest model of Intuos Pro Medium (PTH-660). You can tell this because in one of his videos he shows the tablet and I can see some things that clearly mark it as an older tablet.

• The pen does not look like the Wacom Pro Pen 2 that comes with the PTH-660

• The USB-cable connects with a thicker end and is not the L-shaped connector that comes PTH-660

• The back of the tablet has the older Wacom branding.

Note that the Khan Academy has this document What software program/equipment is used to make Khan Academy videos? In that doc, they say he uses a Wacom Bamboo tablet. I suspect this probably was true at some point, but he clearly no longer uses it.

Resources

• Teach with Khan - Sal's Tips for Creating Blackboard Videos for Remote Learning - this is the video where he shows that he uses Wacom Intuos Pro Medium tablet.

• Khan Academy - Be Like Sal: 3 Ways a Tablet Can Energize Your Digital Teaching! Dec 9, 2020

• ClassPoint - Best Way to Use Wacom Tablet for Online Teaching with PowerPoint [One by Wacom] Dec 2, 2020

• Joshua Tarbutton - My Workflow for Recording Khan Academy Style Lectures Mar 28, 2020

• Be a Better Dev - How to make Khan Academy Style Videos for YouTube Sep 26, 2020

• GRUMO - Teach with a Tablet (Full Tutorial + Demo) May 26, 2020

• To see a full list of my tablets: https://1drv.ms/x/s!Aml8i4Jd6crCginxzCU7kvh4NB4w?e=Mkq7sx

• In that list you can see

  • The tablet name, model number, and brand

  • When I purchased the tablet

  • Which store I purchased from

  • The year the tablet model was released

  • Whether the tablet was bought new or used

• Some of these tablets are quite old - 10 years, 20+ years. Even though they work perfectly their age does make it more complex to use them. More here: Using older drawing tablets

Overview

Most people buy drawing tablet to create digital art. I've collected some links below to help them get started on this journey.

The role of drawing tablets

I do recommend you get a drawing tablet for digital art, but remember you don't have to force yourself to use a tablet for everything.

Many people use tablets in addition to other techniques. For example, some people draw on paper and then photograph or scan the drawing to get it into their computer. From there, they just finish up their work with a drawing tablet.

Videos

• Digital art

  • Nadiaxel - Beginner's Guide to Become a Digital Artist - Drawing Tablets & Apps 2022/07/04

  • Brad Colbow - Digital Art for Beginners (2020 Edition) 2020/02/24

  • Trent Kaniuga - Getting started with digital art Tools and practices 2022/03/02

  • Marc Brunet - THE BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO DIGITAL ART (from an art teacher) 2020/12/12

• Learning to draw and paint

  • Draw like a Sir - LEARN TO DRAW FROM 0 to 100! 2023/05/21

  • Art tutorial for the intermediate painter

  • Drawabox (https://drawabox.com/) - Drawabox is a set of free exercise-based lessons that focus on the fundamentals

Social

• Kawaii Sensei (https://x.com/KawaiiSensei_jp) - There's lots of practical tips every day.

• EtheringtonBrothers (https://x.com/EtheringtonBros) - More frequent practical tips. And they publish useful printed guidebooks.

Equipment

• Laptops for digital art

I love creative tech. I've been using drawing tablets for a long time and wanted share what I learn.

• My YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thesevenpens

• My notes on drawing tablets: https://docs.thesevenpens.com/drawtab/

• I tweet occasionally: https://twitter.com/TheSevenPens

• I moderate Reddit's /r/drawingtablet and /r/huion

• I keep my code on GitHub: https://github.com/TheSevenPens

Why "TheSevenPens"?

When I started my YouTube channel I had seven pens from my drawing tablets.

Now I have more than seven pens.

Tablets I own

You can see a complete list of the tablets I currently own.

My tablet setups

I have multiple desks with a combination of PCs and laptops for trying out different tablets. More here: My tablet setups

Key resources

• My general take on Drawing tablet brands

• Buying guide

• Drawing tablet recommendations

Relationship to tablet manufacturers

• I don't have any relationship with tablet manufacturers such as Wacom, Huion, XP-Pen, etc. I'm just an enthusiast.

• I do not receive tablets from manufacturers. Every tablet I have is a personal purchase.

• I do attend public demo events either online or in person if I can.

Overview

Taking notes is a popular scenario for drawing tablets.

Generally I believe you will get the most natural experience taking notes if you use a or . Because both these kinds of devices have screens, are portable, and don't require a computer to use. And this makes them very convenient for taking notes.

On the other hand some people enjoy taking notes with pen tablets (screenless tablets) or pen displays (screen tablets).

General considerations

Besides locating the position of the pen there are two pen features to discuss.

• pen pressure - this is somewhat useful for taking notes because it will make your notes look a bit more natural.

• pen tilt - for taking notes, I don't think this is very important at all. And many note taking apps ignore this feature entirely.

Using pen tablets (screenless tablets)

Some people can work very well with using a pen tablet for taking notes. Though I'm not one of these people. The chief difficulty in taking notes with the pen tablet is that you cannot see what you are writing and instead you have to look at the screen of your computer. Some find this difficult for taking notes . But for others it works very well.

Considerations:

• Size. Small pen tablets don't offer much space for writing and it can feel cramped. A medium pen tablet is better, but then it takes up much more space.

• Wireless. You might prefer to get a pen tablet that supports a wireless connection. Because it can be a little irritating to have the tablet always physically connected to the computer.

Recommended pen tablets

If you do want to use a pen tablet for taking notes here are some devices that will work well and don’t cost too much. You can even find them for less cost on eBay.

• Wacom One Medium (CTL-672)

• Wacom One Small (CTL-472)

Using a pen display (screen tablet)

Pen displays, because they do have a screen, generally feel more natural for note taking than a pen tablet. However the chief problem with the pen display is that it requires connection with the computer.

Considerations:

• Size - a 13" or smaller pen display should work fine. In fact 13" may even be a bit large for this purpose.

• Wireless. A pen display will always have at least one wire that needs to be connected to the computer.

• Power. The pen display will draw a significant amount of power from your laptop. And this will really reduce the battery life of your laptop.

• Dropping the tablet. If you are note taking in a location where you might drop your pen display, in many cases you will either experience a cracked screen or simply break the tablet entirely.

Applications for taking notes

Resources

Wacom

-

Wacom community forums:

To file a support ticket: You can file a support ticket with Wacom at this link:

Huion

-

Go to the bottom of the page to find links to contact Huion support

XP-Pen

Support page:

Gaomon

service@gaomon.net

My hobby concerning drawing tablets is centered largely around creatives - people who are drawing, sketching, etc. Despite using tablets for well over a decade, only in 2022 did I discover people were using drawing tablets for games. And some of these games are quite popular.

osu!

osu! is a popular rhythm game and many of its players use drawing tablets instead of a mouse. ()

<- this video is relatively well known in the osu! community.

osu! is very popular

They have about 1.7M monthly active users who play osu!

You can get the live stats from here:

How osu! players use drawing tablets

While creatives tend to use their drawing tablets in standard ways, osu! players do a number of quite surprising things:

Active area size

• Players use tablets of various sizes: Small, Medium, and Large. Small is the most popular based on the videos I've seen.

• Players often customize the active area to be surprisingly small - much smaller than even the default active area. In the video above, notice how the player moved the pen only in a tiny region of that tablet.

Drivers

• • OTD has less lag than manufacturer drivers

  • OTD is highly customizable through it's plug-in system

  • OTD works across many tablet models

  • OTD works on Windows, Mac, and Linux

Drag vs hover

• Drag players play with the pen touching the surface of the tablet.

• Hover players don't let the pen touch the tablet surface.

Clicking

There are various clicking styles used by osu! players.

• click by tapping the pen on the tablet

• click by using the keyboard

• click by alternating between the pen tapping and keyboard presses

Tablet expertise

Some osu! players - at least the ones I communicate with regularly - are remarkably knowledgeable about drawing tablets.

They know a tremendous amount about the hardware, drivers, etc. Some conduct original research and testing of tablets. Some write code for OpenTabletDriver.

I would consider them absolute experts - far beyond any drawing tablet reviewer out there and myself.

They are also incredibly sensitive to microscopic behaviors, latencies, etc. in drawing tablets - far more than someone who has typically has used tablets only for creative tasks.

Advanced customization

Players do advanced customization of osu! through OpenTabletDriver plug-ins. Some examples:

• Circular/Elliptical tablet areas

• Rotated tablet areas

• Live active area randomization

Picking a drawing tablet for osu!

FPS games

Players using drawing tablets for FPS games is less common than for Rhythm games, but this is the preferred input device for some people.

Overview

If you just acquired a drawing tablet and want to start using it, this guide will lead you through the basics.

Get prepped

• Make sure you know the model number of the tablet. This will help you in many ways later. More here: .

• Make sure you know how to for your tablet manufacturer

• Read the manual for your tablet. You don't need to even open the box. You can download the manual from the manufacturer website.

Don't drop the pen

• If drop the pen to the floor, usually it will be unharmed.

• When you are not using it make sure its stored in such a way it doesn't fall off your desk.

• HOWEVER, sometimes a pen seems to hit just right and the fall can damage the pen.

Prepare for replacing your pen

The pen has somewhat delicate parts inside and is the most likely thing you will break. If you lose or damage your pen, there are some things you need to know:

• Pens are surprisingly expensive to replace.

  • Some pens cost half the cost of the tablet

  • Some pens (especially Wacom Pro pens) are more expensive than the tablets of other brands.

Install the tablet driver

• You need the tablet driver installed for the tablet to work correctly.

• You can go to the manufacturer site and download the driver and install now before your tablet even arrives.

• If the tablet driver is installed, when you connect the tablet with USB cable the driver will just detect the tablet and the pen will work as soon as it comes close to the tablet (about 10mm)

• The drivers install an app you can use to configure the driver. The apps have different names depending on your tablet brand

Connect the tablet

• Pen tablet - There will be a simple USB cord. These days the cords are all USB-C cords.

  • Some pen tablets ALSO support wireless connection. For now ignore wireless. It just adds more complication. Get it working with a cable first

The NO SIGNAL problem with pen displays

How the pen & tablet work with the computer

• If the pen is in range (about 10mm) of the tablet or touching the tablet , then moving the pen will move the mouse pointer.

  • If the pen is not touching the tablet, it will be like your are not pressing down any mouse buttons

  • if the pen is touching the tablet, it will be like you are holding down the left mouse button

• In drawing apps which are pen aware can take advantage of other features like pressure and tilt.

• If you are using a drawing program, You don't need to hold down any button for it to draw, just put touch the pen to the tablet.

Active Area (aka Working Area)

• The active area on the tablet is the region of the tablet that is sensitive to the pen.

  • Wacom calls this the "Active Area" in their docs. In their driver, it is called "Mapping"

  • Huion calls this the "Working Area"

  • I will always call it the "active area" because that is the oldest term for it.

• Go into the driver and and find the active area and get familiar with what it looks like. It's one of the most common things you'll need to adjust.

Map the Active Area to a single display

• This step is needed for pen tablets (the ones without a screen)

• The active area can be mapped to 1 of your displays or multiple displays.

• For now, map the active area to a single display.

Match aspect ratios between the active area and your display

• This step is needed for pen tablets (the ones without a screen). You don't have to do this for other kinds of tablets.

• This step is important for pen tablets. If you don't do this there will be a distortion as you draw - in other words tracing out a perfect circle on the tablet will draw an oval on the screen.

Windows

Apps

Overview

Almost certainly you've used a mouse with a computer, and this this document will help you understand how using a drawing tablet with its pen differs from using a mouse.

Positioning strategy

Mice and drawing tablets have very different positioning strategies. Mice use relative positioning. Drawing tablets use absolute positioning. Learn more here: . Drawing tablets can simulate relative positioning if needed with . However, I don't recommend using mouse mode.

Stroke smoothness in drawing apps

With a drawing applications you'll notice that the strokes drawn with a mouse have a rougher stair-step effect and in general are not as smooth.

Position smoothing (aka "stabilization") is one of these techniques. However, Some apps may allow position smoothing with drawing tablets but not with mice.

Here's what Krita currently does:

• Basic smoothing: applies ONLY to drawing tablets

• Weighted smoothing: applies BOTH to drawing tablets and mice

Here's what Clip Studio Paint does:

• Stabilization: applies ONLY to drawing tablets

Clicking and moving the pointer

With a mouse, you move the pointer and clicks only happen when you take a very conscious effort to click a mouse button.

A drawing tablet feels very different. To move the pointer and avoid clicking you hover the pen over the drawing tablet (up to about 10mm) and this will move the pointer without clicking. If you touch the pen to the tablet however, this will count as a click.

So with a drawing tablet you have to get used to hovering and only pressing down when you want to click.

Keep the pointer on a single pixel (without clicking)

With a mouse it's usually pretty easy to put the pointer on a single pixel and keep it there. You can just move the mouse and once the pointer is where you want it, it's easy to hold the mouse in that position. Or you can even let go of the mouse and the pointer will stay there.

Drawing tablets feel very different in this regard. First, you can't touch the tablet with the pen you have to hover the pen over that spot. While it is very easy to hover in a general location (a couple of pixels wide) its much harder to keep the pen over a specific pixel while hovering because you hand will move around a bit. Also most drawing tablet pens are sensitive to the tilt of the pen, and so if you tilt the pen it may cause some movement in the mouse pointer.

Keep the pointer on a single pixel (while clicking)

Mice are really good at this. Once the pointer is where you want it, you can click the buttons and this can be done without changing the pointer location.

This is much harder with a pen. First there is the general difficulty of keeping the pointer on a specific pixel. And then, if you press the buttons on the pen, this will almost always change the position of the pen and thus the pointer.

Application considerations

if you are drawing strokes or painting in an app like Clip Studio Paint or Krita, then a drawing tablet will feel MUCH more natural.

If you are layout out shapes and creating vector shapes in applications like Illustrator, a mouse might actually be better because they are easier to keep in a specific pixel location. For example, I normally just use a mouse when I use illustrator.

Ergonomics > Wrist Pain

Using a mouse can place strain on your wrist. Drawing tablets are generally less stressful on your wrist. However, they also can place strain.

Power

Mice get their power from either a cable or they use batteries.

Modern drawing tablets all support wired connection through USB. Some tablets also support wireless connection through bluetooth.

The pens for a modern drawing tablet neither use a cable nor do they have batteries. Instead they get power simply from being near the drawing tablet.

ProTip: Match aspect ratios when using a pen tablet

Overview

Occasionally if you're going to buy a tablet you might have an opportunity to try the tablet out before you purchase it. This is often a case when you're getting the tablet from a friend or purchasing it used.

I highly recommend that you test out the tablet before the purchase. This will save you a lot of headaches and disappointment later on.

Getting prepared to test

For the sake of this discussion I'm going to assume that you're going to bring a laptop with you and use the tablet with that laptop.

Preparation:

• Have the applications installed on the laptop that you're going to use with the tablet. I always test with Krita in addition to any other apps.

• Depending on the brand of the tablet you're considering purchasing make sure you have the latest drivers for that tablet installed.

Basic test of functionality

• Connectivity

  • Conduct the tests with a wired connection.

  • Any then verify they work with wireless connection

• Drawing

  • Check if the pen works in all locations on the active area

  • Check if the pressure smoothly going from zero to 100

  • Check tilt works in all directions

  • Check that the pointer generally stays where the tip of the pen is even if you tilt the pen.

  • Check that location of pen is tracked accurately in over the entire surface of the tablet

Express keys

• Check if all the buttons, dials, work. A quick way to test this is to map the buttons to keypresses. Then you can open a notepad app and press the express keys and see it typing things

Pen display features

• Check for stuck or dead pixels

• Check for basic color and brightness

• All pen displays have more pointer lag than pen tablets. Verify if you are OK with the amount it has.

• All pen displays have some minor edge and corner inaccuracy in tracking the pen location. Check this to see how much there is and if you are OK with this.

• Verify you are OK with the anti-glare sparkle on the screen. Some people are very sensitive to this.

• Verify that the display does not have a color tint on the edges. More here: Color tint on edges of display.

Surface

• There should be no cuts or scratches deep enough that you can feel them through the pen. More here:

  • surface wear on pen tablets

  • surface wear on pen displays

Misc

• Are you getting replacement nibs with the pen?

Overview

The easiest way to understand what it feels like to draw on a drawing tablet is to compare it to drawing with pen and paper.

A pen display works just like pen and paper in the sense that you can exactly see what you're drawing. More specifically your eyes are looking at what you're drawing.

With a pen tablet things are very different - your hand is drawing in one place but you're looking somewhere else to see what's being drawn. So fundamentally using a pen tablet works differently than pen and paper.

Getting strokes right the first time

Because it is more clear what the pen is doing with the pen display many people who use append display say that they “get the stroke right the first time”.

With a pen tablet people often feel like they have to make the stroke multiple times to get it right and have to press undo to erase Any errant strokes.

I would generally agree with this feeling. When I want to get a drawing done faster especially if I have a general sense of what it is I want to draw then I do work faster with the pen display and I find that I have to press undo far less often.

Dealing with your hands

With a pen display, things are natural. You see the pen in the same place the stroke is being drawn - just like when you use pen and paper.

And just like pen-and-paper, your own hand and the pen will block your eyes from seeing the display. The easy solution to this is to reposition your eyes or take advantage of the canvas zoom and rotation features of your drawing app.

With a pen tablet, you are looking at a monitor but drawing somewhere else with your hand. Fundamentally this is no different than using a mouse. So this is kind of a convenience actually since you never have to worry about the positions of your hands. They can be anywhere and they will never block what you see.

Adjustment period

Because a pen display works like pen and paper almost everyone can immediately start using a pen display. It's just kind of obvious how it works. And especially these days with so many people having used devices like iPads. They know how to deal with the screen that they can interact with.

For pen tablets things get a little more complicated. I would say that 80% of people can immediately or at least in a few minutes get comfortable using a pen tablet. Another 10% of people will take anywhere from a couple of days to maybe a couple of weeks to adjust to a pen tablet. And the remaining 10% of people will never be able to adjust to a pen tablet. For them it will never feel natural to use. And they are better off getting a pen display.

Unfortunately without trying a pen tablet it's really difficult to tell if you would fall into the 10% of people who just can't use pen tablets..

Matching aspect ratios

With a pen display, the active are and the screen have the same size. This means the pen will draw exactly where you see it draw.

With a pen tablet, the active area where you raw is separate from the monitor where you see the your strokes. Unless specifically configured in the driver, this will cause your strokes to be distorted. For example if you draw a circle on the tablet it will show up as an oval on the screen. It is easy to fix this problem in the driver. More here: match aspect ratios between pen tablets and monitors.

Overview

Pen computers are standalone drawing tablets with screens that you can use without being attached to a computer. Essentially they are laptops that work with an EMR pen.

Even though some people love using pen computers, I do not in general recommend buying one.

Key characteristics of a pen computer:

• Run a desktop OS - these are intended to be full-fledged personal computers. As of 2023, all pen computers run Windows.

• Have a battery - because they must be run without being connected to a source of power

• Pen tech - It varies. Some use EMR, some use MPP, some use AES.

Examples

• Microsoft Surface Pro (..7,8,9,10,etc)

• Huion Kamvas Studio

• Wacom Mobile Studio Pro

Alternatives to pen computers

Instead of pen computers, I recommend looking at mobile devices that support pens. These are devices such as:

• Apple iPad Pro with the Apple Pencil

• Samsung Galaxy Tab S series tablets that use the Samsung S pen

More here: Standalone drawing tablet recommendations

Cost

Pen computers are incredibly expensive.

I certainly do not recommend pen computers for people who are just getting started with drawing tablets. I will always recommend that you go with cheaper alternatives. And the reason for this is simple: You may find that the wrong experience doesn't live up to your expectations.

Upgradability

Pen computers typically have very limited upgradability.

Typically once you buy pen computer you'll be stuck with those specifications in terms of memory processor speed and GPU for the entire lifetime of the device.

If you are going to purchase a pen computer please verify how upgradable it is before you make the purchase.

Customer support

Companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Dell sell a lot of laptops and all-in-one systems. These companies have built world-class customer support organizations and support systems to ensure that their customers are getting the help they need when a customer has a question or something goes wrong with these complicated devices.

The truth is that drawing tablet manufacturers aren't as big as these companies. They handle a much smaller volume of products and users and you may find that their customer support may not be as helpful as these larger companies.

Repairs

As with most laptops and all-in-one systems a pen display is typically not intended to be user-serviceable. If something goes wrong it's going to be difficult to fix by yourself. Not only are these computers often not designed to be opened. Even if you are successful in opening the case and fixing whatever problem there is it will most certainly void your warranty.

If you need to have the pen computer repaired by the manufacturer. You are going to find that both the process is difficult and the cost is extraordinarily high.

You cannot take these devices into a local retail store for the tablet manufacturer to take a look at. You'll have to send the pen computer back to the manufacturer and you will have to pay for the cost of shipping. And the repair cost can be as expensive as getting another laptop.

Overview

These are highly-curated recommendations for people who are just beginning to get into drawing tablets.

• All these tablets deliver the basic experiences and a reasonable price

• Some of these tablets are missing so-called "pro" features.

Below you'll find my beginner-friendly recommendations for:

• pen tablets (no screen)

• pen displays (have a screen)

• and standalone tablets.

Pen tablets vs Pen displays

My recommendation for beginners is to start with a pen tablet (medium size) and get used to that first. Pen displays have pros and cons - don't assume they are better.

Much more here: pen tablets vs pen displays

Pen tablets

These are tablets WITHOUT a screen that need to be connected to a computer (some support wireless) to work.

If I had to pick one item on this list, I would recommend the Wacom CTL-672 for true beginners. It's reliable and has a decent drawing experience.

More info: Comparison of Wacom pen tablets

• One by Wacom Medium (CTL-672) [no tilt, no wireless] (my notes) ★★★

• Wacom Intuos Medium (CTL-6100) [no tilt, no wireless]

• Wacom Intuos Medium (CTL-6100WL) [no tilt]

• XP-Pen Deco M [no wireless] & XP-Pen Deco MW

• XP-Pen Deco L (IT1060) [no wireless] & XP-Pen Deco LW (IT1060B) (my notes)

• Huion Inspiroy Frego L (L610) (my notes)

Pen displays

These are tablets WITH A SCREEN that need to be connected to a computer. No pen displays are wireless. I don't enjoy drawing an 13" pen display. Instead, I prefer 16" and above. But 13" is a good way to get introduced to pen displays. More info: Small pen display recommendations

• Huion Kamvas 13 GEN3 (GS1333) (my notes) ★★★

• XP-Pen Artist 12 GEN2 (CD120FH)

• XP-Pen Artist 13 GEN2 (CD130FH) (my notes)

Standalone tablets

These are tablets that don't need to be connect to a computer.

More info: 7P notes: Apple iPad versus Samsung Galaxy Tab S

• Apple iPad - Any Apple iPad that works with the Apple Pencil 2 (My notes)

  • NOTE: You will have the buy the Apple Pencil 2 separately. It does NOT come with the iPad.

• Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE (My notes )

  • NOTE: The Samsung S Pen COMES WITH the tablet.

  • If you are one a smaller budget, Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 lite (2022 or 2024 edition) (My notes) - a little bit sluggish but the price is great. The Samsun S pen also comes with this tablet.

Read the manual

Read it to clearly understand these things:

• How to install the driver

• Verify how it will connect to your computer this is especially important if you are using a pen display.

  • For a pen display, you may want to use it with a single USB-C cable. Verify this in the manual. and if your computer has a USB-C port that supports DP-Alt Mode. More here: Connecting a pen display with one USB-C cable.

• If the tablet supports wireless, how to initiate a wireless connection

Be prepared to handle common problems

• Ensure you know how to contact customer support.

• Ensure you know the warranty and how (if needed) you can can return the tablet to the manufacturer or to the retailer (example: Amazon) you bought it from

• Here's a list of Common problems with drawing tablets. Although for a majority of you everything will "just work" some small number of you will start off with issues on day one.

• I have a list of troubleshooting docs here: Troubleshooting

• The most complex problem for pen displays is usually the "NO SIGNAL" problem. If it happens, this guide will help: Troubleshoot the NO SIGNAL problem

Check the reviews

Never purchase a tablet without looking at the reviews first.

Some reviewers to explore:

• Teoh on Tech (https://www.youtube.com/@teohontech7141) Teoh has the most in-depth reviews of tablets.

• Create Now Sleep Later (https://www.youtube.com/c/Createnowsleeplater)

• Brad Colbow (https://www.youtube.com/c/thebradcolbow)

• Aaron Rutten (https://www.youtube.com/c/aaronrutten)

• Adam Duff (https://www.youtube.com/@AdamDuffArt)

Verify the model number, not just the model name

Tablet names are confusingly similar. So much so, that I've seen people order the wrong tablet just because the names were close.

• NEVER order by using the name of the tablet alone.

• ALWAYS verify you have ordered correct model number.

See this page for all the reasons why you should not rely on the model name: Model names vs model numbers

Make sure your working environment is usable

• Check for potential sources of Electromagnetic Interference. More here: Electromagnetic interference

• Ensure you have enough space on your desk for the tablet and where your keyboard will be placed

Top Picks

• Wacom Intuos Pro Small (PTH-460) [$200, links ]

• Wacom Intuos Small (CTL-4100) [$75, links]

  • FEATURE LIMITATION: NO TILT

• One by Wacom Small (CTL-472) [$50, links, my notes]

  • FEATURE LIMITATION: NO TILT

Poor performers

• Wacom One S GEN2 (CTC-4110WL) [$100, links ]

  • AWFUL PRESSURE HANDLING: BAD LOOKING STROKES

I don't use these devices myself. Here are some popular ones.

• Onyx Boox Note Air3

• Remarkable 2

• Amazon Kindle Scribe

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.

Video series (in progress)

If you prefer a watching a video ...

• 7P - Drawing Tablet Buying Guide (2023) Episode 1 2023/11/10

• 7P - Drawing Tablet Buying Guide (2023) Episode 2 2023/11/16

My recommendations

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

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

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

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

• If you are a beginner I have simplified the options for you: Recommended drawing tablets for beginners.

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. This guide on drawing tablet brands will help understand how to compare the brands.

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

Product info

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

Core drawing tablet features

• 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 choosing the right tablet size 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: pressure.

  • 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.

• 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 tilt.

• 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.

• 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: diagonal wobble.

Secondary features

• 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: ExpressKeys

• 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: Touch support

Pen display topics

• 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: Anti-glare sparkle.

• Display resolution - Choosing the display resolution.

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

• 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: parallax.

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

• 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. See Troubleshoot the NO SIGNAL problem.

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

• Display Panel tech - There are many different display panel technologies used in pen displays. These include IPS, TN, VA, OLED. IPS panels represent the vast majority of display panels used in pen displays. I recommend going with IPS panels. As of May 2024, we seen a few OLED-base displays but we don't know yet how OLED will work in terms on longevity compared to IPS.

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:

• 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

OS and device compatibility

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

• Macs

• Using a drawing tablet on Windows

• Using a drawing tablet with Linux

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

• Using a drawing tablet with an iOS device

• Using a drawing tablet with an Android device

• Using drawing tablets with Chromebooks

Ergonomics

• Thickness - Pen tablets are very then these days - about 8mm. Pen displays are thicker. Smaller pen displays can be around 10mm but as their size grows they get thicker - for example 35mm. Lately (2024) some pen displays are starting to use OLED display panels and are getting very then. For example the Wacom Movink 13 (DTH-135) is about 6mm thick.

• 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: Surface texture

• 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: Body posture when using drawing tablets

• 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: Using monitor arms with a pen display

• 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.

• 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 handedness of drawing tablets.

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

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

Use Cases

• 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: The drawing experience and here Learning digital art

• 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: Taking notes with drawing tablets

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

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

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

Look at model numbers, not just names

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

Applications

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

Buying used drawing tablets

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: Buying a used tablet

Power

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: Powering a drawing tablet

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

    • More here: Huion pens

Preparing for a drawing tablet

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

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

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

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

• 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: Caring for your tablet.

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

Overview

There are three kinds of drawing tablets. This document is discussing how you might choose between a pen tablet and a pen display.

• pen tablets - that don't have a screen

• pen displays - that do have a screen

• standalone tablets- that have a screen and you can use them without being connected to a computer

Approach

Choosing between a pen tablet and pen display is not easy. There is no single answer that applies to everyone.

This document will identify the different dimensions across which you can compare a pen tablet and a pen display. And it will identify those cases in which pen tablets have an advantage and those cases in which a pen display has an advantage.

And ultimately the goal is to provide you enough information so that you can make an informed decision.

Details

This document summarizes many very deep topics. If you want more information, consult the buying guide which covers all these topics in detail.

Dispelling common myths

MYTH: A pen display is inherently better than a pen tablet

REALITY: Neither is inherently better. Which one you should use depends on a lot of factors

Pen displays look really fancy and cost much more than a pen tablet. And it would be natural to think that this means that pen displays are in some way fundamentally better than a pen tablet. That is absolutely not true. Pen tablets have their own merits. So do not think about a pen tablet as simply a lower cost option that you have to “settle for.” For many people it is the right answer.

MYTH: Professional artist only use pen displays

REALITY: Professional artists use both pen displays and pen tablets

Another common myth is that professionals only use pen displays. Again this is absolutely not true. There are many professional artists who use pen tablets out of preference and or doing high quality professional work with those pen tablets.

MYTH: People naturally prefer using a pen display. The only reason they use pen tablets is because they are cheaper.

REALITY: Lots of people try pen displays, and go back to pen tablets

I see countless stories of people who love using their pen tablet but feel the need to get a pen display and then when they tried the pen display they realized that the pen tablet worked much better for them. And then they end up returning.

MYTH: Pen displays let you create better art

REALITY: Both pen displays and pen tablets can create equivalently good art

Some people worry that the quality of art they want to produce can only be produced by a pen display. You shouldn't let that worry you. People have been producing amazing art with pen tablets for decades. There are definitely some benefits to using a pen display, but the quality of art than can be made is not a factor.

Advice for first-time tablet users

If you are just getting started using a drawing tablet - for example maybe this is going to be the first tablet you own - my advice is to start with a pen tablet. And learn to use it and if you can't adjust to a pen tablet in a few weeks then return it and get a pen display.

Need to be used with a computer

WINNER: TIE

Both pen tablets and pen displays need a computer to work. They can't be used standalone like an Apple iPad.

Posture

WINNER: Pen tablets

With a pen tablet you are drawing in generally a better posture. You will be sitting in a way such that your back is vertical and your head will be looking straight ahead at your monitor. With a pen display you will almost always have to lean over a little bit and look down at the tablet to draw. This can place strain on your lower back and on your neck. This is one of the most popular reasons why someone buys a pen display but then returns it. They just find using a pen display to be very hard on their bodies. More here: Body posture when using drawing tablets

Cost

WINNER: Pen tablets

Pen tablets cost much less than pen displays. Even the most expensive pen tablet cost less than the majority of pen displays.

• Pen tablets cost between $50 to $250. The most expensive on the market is $500 and often discounted to $400.

• Pen displays start at around $300 and can go up to about $1300. Wacom professional pen displays are in a special price category and can cost from $2500 to $3500.

Reliability

WINNER: Pen tablets

Pen tablets are the clear winner for reliability. Pen tablets are very simple devices compared to pen displays. They have far fewer components. And so there's just less of a probability that something will go wrong with the hardware of a pen tablet. And the components they have are not as delicate.

Cabling

WINNER: Pen tablets

Pen tablets work with a single USB cable (And some are wireless). Pen displays are more complex. Depending on your computer and which pen display there are multiple cabling options and sometimes they can be difficult to configure. More here: Connecting a pen display

Pointer lag

WINNER: Pen tablets

All tablets have some amount of pointer lag. But in my observation pen tablets have less pointer lag than pen displays.

And on top of it even if they have the same amount of lag you will notice it more with the pen display because you can see the tip of the pen and the pointer next to each other. And looking seeing them next to each other on the same screen highlights the pointer lag. More here: lag

Wireless connectivity

WINNER: Pen tablets

Many pen tablets support wireless connectivity. These days that is via Bluetooth.

However no pen displays support wireless connectivity. You will always have at least one wire connecting your end display to your computer. And if you have a larger pen display - anything at 16 inches and above - it's almost guaranteed you'll have at least two wires - one going to your computer and one for power.

Taking notes

WINNER: Pen displays

In general I do not recommend taking notes with pen displays. I think that standalone tablets are much better for no taking. But compared to a pen tablet a pen display is certainly much better because you can see what you're doing with the pen and so it's just more intuitive and feels like you're working with pen and paper. More here: taking notes with drawing tablets.

Surviving a fall

WINNER: Pen tablets

If you knock a pen tablet off your desktop and it hits the floor almost certainly nothing bad will happen. Pen tablets generally don't have any moving parts aside from maybe some buttons. But if you drop a pen display almost certainly that pen display will be severely damaged by the drop. This could shatter the glass of the pen display. Or it could do some severe internal damage to the display panel that's inside the tablet. And this damage to a pen display is not user repairable and it's often extremely expensive to have it repaired if it is even possible to repair.

Most of the time when I've seen someone have significant damage to their appendix display the cost to repair is as much as a new pen display.

Power requirements

WINNER: Pen tablets

A pen tablet doesn't require much power. If connected to your laptop it won't drain the battery as much. A pen display requires much more power. If connected to your laptop, it will draw much more power and run your battery down faster. More here: powering a drawing tablet.

Hand covering what you are drawing

WINNER: Pen tablets

In many ways a pen display mimics how it feels to draw with pen and paper. Usually this is an advantage. However it also has some of the same limitations of pen and paper. In particular with the pen display your hand and arm are between you and what you are drawing. So quite naturally you have to accommodate for this. You might have to draw from a different angle or rotate the canvas.

A pen tablet of course separates what you see from where you draw. And so your hand is never in the way of what you are drawing.

Physical size and weight

WINNER: Pen tablets

Pen tablets are considerably thinner and weigh less.

Drawing experience

WINNER: Pen displays

• Pen displays have a more natural feel because you looking at the same place your are drawing. With a pen tablet you are drawing in one place but looking somewhere else.

• Most people feel like they have press UNDO much less frequently with a pen display because the stroke more often goes where they intended.

• With a pen display you do have to ensure you configure the tablets active area to map to your display so that there is no distortion. With pen displays you don't have to do this.

More here: The drawing experience

Portability

WINNER: Pen tablets

Given their size and weight and need for a single cable (or even wireless capability) pen tablets have a lot of advantages for carrying around with you.

Also with a pen display, you will need to protect it more because it is more sensitive to damage. See protective cases.

Diagonal wobble

Diagonal wobble is a slight "wobbly" inaccuracy in tracking the pen position. It is present in ALL drawing tablets to various degrees.

In my testing I have found no clear pattern that indicates that pen tablets or pen displays are prone to more or less diagonal wobble. Instead it seems to be linked to the specific tablet model involved.

You can see the different diagonal wobble samples I have collected here: Diagonal wobble samples.

Pen pressure handling

The behavior of a tablet with regard to pressure (IAF, max pressure, etc.) depends on the pen that is used, not the tablet.

There are a few exceptions - there are 1 or 2 tablets that I think do a particularly bad job of pressure independent of the pen, but those are exceedingly rare.

You can use both kinds of tablets

And there is no rule that says you have to use only one kind of tablet. There are many people who have both a pen tablet and a pen display. And depending on what they're doing they will switch between using one or the other. See: Using multiple drawing tablets at the same time

Videos

• Teoh on Tech - 9 things to know about pen displays before you buy one Jan 6, 2023

• EyeKooDrawsStuff - What drawing tablet to buy... a screenless graphics tablet or pen display? July 10, 2023

• Paintable - Do you NEED a Screen Tablet? | Honest Huion Kamvas Pro 24 Review Mar 30, 2023

Top picks

• Wacom Intuos Pro Medium (PTH-660) [$300, ]

• Wacom Intuos Medium (CTL-6100) [$200, ]

  • FEATURE LIMITATION: NO TILT

• One by Wacom Medium (CTL-672) [$100, , ]

  • FEATURE LIMITATION: NO TILT

• XP-Pen Deco Pro MW GEN2 [$140, ]

• XP-Pen Deco Pro LW GEN2 [$170, ]

• XP-Pen Deco LW (IT1060B) [$90, , ]

• Huion Inspiroy Frego M (L610) [$90, , ]

Older but works well

• Huion Inspiroy HS611 [$80, ]

  • Little bit of an older Huion tablet with older tech. But it does work fine.

Seems OK but haven't spent much time with it

Reconsidering

• • NOT RECOMMENDED: PRESSURE INSTABILITY AT LOW PRESSURE. I AM REVALUATING THIS TOPIC IN NOVEMBER TO SEE IF THINGS HAVE IMPROVED.

• • NOT RECOMMENDED: PRESSURE INSTABILITY AT LOW PRESSURE. I AM REVALUATING THIS TOPIC IN NOVEMBER TO SEE IF THINGS HAVE IMPROVED.

Poor performers

• • NOT RECOMMENDED: SUBSTANDARD PRESSURE HANDLING

Top picks

• Wacom Intuos Pro Large (PTH-860) [$500, ,]

• Huion Inspiroy Giano (G930L) [$200, , ]

• XP-Pen Deco Pro XLW GEN2 (MT1592B) [$200, , ]

Overview

We would all like to have completely brand new equipment. However used tablets maybe a way to save a little extra money.`

My experience with used drawing tablets

I have bought and worked with MANY used drawing tablets - 26 used tablets as of April 2024. You can see the list of all my tablets here:

• pen tablets - Pen tablets are generally very reliable devices and are fine to buy used I own many used pen tablets, some over 25+ years old that still work.

• pen displays - I have purchased one used pen display.

• pen computers - I have no experience with used pen computers. And in general I do not recommend pen computers. See:

Tablet age

Because the used tablets might be older models, you should prepare for issues that might arise due to their age. More here:

Older drivers

In particular you may need to use older drivers. This comes with its own set of complications. More here:

Which brands for buying used

Used Wacom Intuos professional tablets

There are some factors you MUST take into account when buying them used. I've summarized those issues in this video below. In the description of the video, please make sure to note the errata.

Even though this video is about used pen tablets, I think it may be useful even if you are looking to purchase a used pen display.

Likewise even though this video is about professional tablets, the topics raised also apply to consumer level tablets.

Notes on Wacom drivers

Alternative to Wacom drivers for older tablets

Testing out a tablet before you buy

Buying online

You can find many tablets on eBay and I've had a good experience with the 25+ tablets I've bought from there

• All but 1 worked out-of-the-box

• Reading the item description...

  • I made sure the surface didn't have any visible signs of wear

  • That the tablet came with a pen

  • That the tablet came with the cables it needed - this is very important if the tablet used proprietary cables

Tablet Manufacturers on eBay

Some manufacturers directly sell new and used/refurbished tablets on eBay

Surface texture

A used tablet's surface might be almost pristine or it might be heavily used and exhibit a lot of surface wear.

• Ideally you get one that is not heavily worn.

• Small scratches or OK if they can not be felt through the pen.

More here:

Pens

Keep in mind you may get a nice price on a tablet, but it may not come with a pen. So verify whether a pen is included or not before you purchase.

If you need to buy a pen or you break your pen, keep in mind that

• You have to make sure you find the exact model number of pen that is compatible with your tablet. A random pen from the same brand may not be compatible.

• Replacement pens can be very expensive even if they are a decade old. For example, older Wacom Pro Pens can be very expensive (>=$100).

• Replacement pens can be incredibly hard to find on the used market.

• In the used market, sellers do not sell the pen by itself. So you may even have to purchase ANOTHER tablet with a pen. I've personally had to do this myself.

Nibs

Often, depending on the tablet and how you draw, the pen nib wears down as you use a pen.

• Verify whether your purchase includes spare nibs or not.

• Compatible nibs may be difficult to find.

• Compatible nibs may be difficult.

Reddit threads

Many people use drawing tablets to play osu. More here:

If you are interested in playing osu with a drawing tablet, then do not rely on recommendations from drawing tablet reviewers. They focus on the needs of the creative users. Don't rely on my recommendations for the same reason.

Instead, the definitive resource to consult is .

If you do want a quick answer now though, these two tablets are excellent for osu.

• One by Wacom Small (CTL-472)

• One by Wacom Medium (CTL-672)

You could also buy one of these tablets below, which are also great for osu, but they are very expensive and are not any better for osu than the ones listed above.

• Wacom Intuos Pro Small (PTH-460)

• Wacom Intuos Pro Medium (PTH-660)

• Wacom Intuos Pro Large (PTH-860)

Wacom guidance (with caution)

Wacom lists recommended tablets for osu here: . However, they list some tablets that are NOT recombed for osu. So, I recommend you disregard their list andpick from the models listed above or the one Kuuube recommends.

Overview

It's best if you look through first. These are recommendations for tablets that have have screens. If you are looking for a tablet without a screen go here: . If you want a standalone tablet, go here: .

• Make sure you know about before you buy a pen tablet

Please keep in mind that pen displays are not inherently better than pen tablets that don't have a screen. More here:

• (12" to 14")

• (16" to 19")

• (22" to 27"

Overview

It's best if you look through first. These are recommendations for tablets that don't have screens. If you are looking for a tablet with a screen go here: . If you want a standalone tablet, go here: .

About Wacom pen tablets

Many Wacom tablets are in this list. To better understand the difference in Wacom pen tablets see:

Size considerations

The list contains SMALL and MEDIUM tablets. For the vast majority of people I recommend MEDIUM sized pen tablets. More here:

If you are a beginner

For beginners see:

Recommendations by size

Top picks

• Huion Kamvas 13 GEN3 (GS1333) ★★★ [$250, , ]

• XP-Pen Artist Pro 14 GEN2 (MD140FH) [$420,]

• XP-Pen Artist 12 GEN2 (CD120FH ) []

• XP-Pen Artist 13 GEN2 (CD130FH) []

• Wacom Movink 13 (DTH-135) []

Value with compromises

• Huion Kamvas 13 (GS1331) [$240, , ]

• Wacom One 2019 GEN1 (DTC-133) [$400, ]

  • NOTE: Expensive for what it is and how dated it is, but is a decent tablet. A good candidate for buying used.

Unsatisfactory drawing experience

• Wacom One 12 GEN2 (DTC-121) [$400, ]

  • BAD PRESSURE HANDLING

• Wacom One 13 touch GEN2 (DTH-134) [$600, ]

  • BAD PRESSURE HANDLING

Additional resources

Overview

If you are new to drawing tablets, I suggest you read the .

Below, here are tablets I would personally recommend separated by device type. These recommendations are centered around using the tablets for drawing.

• (No screen + require a computer)

• (Have a screen + require a computer)

• (Have a screen + do not require a computer)

If you are beginner, then consider these specific models which are great introduction to drawing tablets. .

Resources

• 2022/06/20

• 2022/10/01

• 2023/05/08

• 2023/08/07

Overview

A standalone drawing tablet is ideal if you need to draw away from home or away from your desk. People look for standalone tablets because:

• They can travel with it

• They can be used on the couch, in the bed, on a bus etc.

• Doesn't require the connection to a computer. (Because it is a computer)

Recommendations by device type

• Pen-enabled mobile computer recommendations ★★★ (I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS TYPE)

• Pen computer recommendations (I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS TYPE)

• Pen-enabled laptop recommendations

Other resources

• Teoh on Tech - iPad vs Android and Windows tablets (artist perspective) 2024/01/05

Overview

These aren't really drawing tablets. They're laptops that you can use for drawing also. The drawing experience with these devices is not as good as a dedicated drawing tablet but they may be enough for what you need.

• Operating system: currently all run Windows

• Scenario: General purpose

• Pen tech: varies. MPP, EMR

These kinds of devices are really for general purpose use. So if what you want is a full operating system where you can use things like Microsoft Office, or the full version of Photoshop, etcetera. Then these suitable choices for a standalone tablet.

Microsoft Surface Pro

Type: Slate laptop

Pen tech: MPP (similar to AES)

My notes on using the Microsoft Surface Pro

• Surface Pro 8 (starting at $900)

• Surface Pro 9 (starting at $900)

Samsung Galaxy Book 4/5 360

Type: 2-in-1 laptop

Pen tech: Wacom EMR (Samsung S Pen)

This device also works with the the Wacom CP-913 pen. (Thanks to fellow tablet enthusiast Atnas for confirming this).

Two editions:

• Samsung Galaxy Book5 360

• Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro 360

• Samsung Galaxy Book4 360

• Samsung Galaxy Book4 Pro 360

Top picks 22"

• Wacom Cintiq Pro 22 [$3000, info]

  • BE AWARE: Fan noise

• XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus (MD220FH) ★★★★ [$470, links, my notes]

Top picks 27"

• Huion Kamvas Pro 27 (GT2701) ★★★★ [$2000, links ]

• Wacom Cintiq Pro 27 [$3500, links, my notes ]

  • BE AWARE: Fan noise

Decent choices

• Huion Kamvas Pro 24 4K (GT2401) [$1300, links]

  • BE AWARE: Antiglare sparkle

• Huion Kamvas 24 Plus (GS2402) [$900, links]

  • BE AWARE: Antiglare sparkle

Compromises

• Huion Kamvas 22 (GS2201) [$450, links]

• Huion Kamvas 22 Plus (GS2202) [$550, links, my notes]

• Wacom Cintiq 22 (DTK-2260) [$1200, links]

Not tested yet

• LARGE Xencelabs Pen Display 24 (LPH2412U-A) [$1800, links, my notes]

Other resources

• 7P notes on 22" pen displays compared (2024)

Overview

If you're primarily interested in drawing or notetaking I think pen-enabled mobile computers are your best options.

The two real options in this space are:

• Apple iPads + the Apple Pencil

• Samsung Galaxy Tab S devices

Basics

Formally, these are not drawing tablets, but they can work just like one. And often I think they are your best choice for a standalone tablet. These include products such as Apple iPad Pros and Samsung Galaxy S series tablets.

• Operating system: a mobile OS (iOS, ChromeOS)

• Scenario: General purpose

• Pen tech: varies. Apple Pencil, AES, EMR

Apple iPads

My notes on using Apple iPads

• Apple iPad Air (4th gen and later) ($600)

• Apple iPad Pro 11 inch (4th gen and later) ($800+)

  • Supports Apple Pencil 2

• Apple iPad pro 12.9 inch 6th gen ($1100+)

  • Supports Apple Pencil 2

Samsung Galaxy Tab S series

My notes on Samsung Galaxy Tab S Series

My notes on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra

• Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Series ($800 to $1200) higher performance options

• Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE ($450) excellent mid-budget option

• Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (2022 version or 2024 version) ($240) is a good a low-cost option for beginners.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A Series

I do not recommend this series of tablets. More here: Samsung Galaxy Tab A

Devices from Huion and XP-Pen

• Huion Kamvas Slate 10 NOT RECOMMENDED

• XP-Pen Magic Drawing Pad NO COMMENT YET

Top Picks 16"-17"

• XP-Pen Artist Pro 16 GEN2 (MD160QH) ★★★ [$600, links, my notes]

• Wacom Cintiq Pro 17 [$2500, info]

• Wacom Cintiq Pro 16 (DTH-167) [$1500, links, my notes]

Top Picks 19"

• XP-Pen Artist Pro 19 GEN2 (MD180UH) [$900, my notes]

• Huion Kamvas Pro 19 (GT1902) ★★★ [$1100, links, my notes]

Compromises

• Wacom Cintiq 16 (DTK-1660) [$650, links]

• Huion Kamvas Pro 16 Plus 4K (GT1562) [$900, links, my notes]

  • LOTS OF AG SPARKLE

• XP-Pen Artist 16 GEN2 (CD160FH) [$400, links, my notes]

  • EXCESSIVE DIAGONAL WOBBLE

Introduction

There are many tablet brands. And picking the brand of the tablet is one of the most important decisions you will need to make.

Tier 1: Wacom

Wacom continues to make the highest quality and most reliable tablets. In general, Wacom has tghe best drawing experience. Their products are the most expensive. I consider Wacom to be the "safe choice". More here: my notes on Wacom

Tier 2: Huion, XP-Pen, and Xencelabs

Huion and XP-pen since about 2021 have been releasing decent devices and size 2023/2024 a couple very good ones that compete strongly with Wacom. In many ways they deliver 90% of what a typical person needs for about half the cost. They do trail Wacom in reliability and in customer support however. If you carefully research a tablet from these brands, you can find one that works for you. More here: My notes on Huion and XP-pen

Xencelabs (founded 2019) is a new brand focused only on professional tablets and have a very strong focus on customer support. more here: my notes on Xencelabs

Tier 3: Smaller brands

After Wacom, Huion, XP-Pen, there are many other brands that focus on budget or consumer tablets. All these brands the same technology as the Tier 2 brands. In fact they are even owned by the same companies. But have smaller portfolios, less responsive customer support, and smaller communities.

• Artisul - https://artisul.com/

• Gaomon - https://www.gaomon.net/

• Ugee - https://www.ugee.com/

• Veikk - https://www.veikk.com/

• Parblo - https://www.parblo.com/

Tier 4: Everyone else

Avoid

Customer support

No brand's products are consistently perfect.

All brands will eventually ship a product that has defective units or that will have sporadic problems with their drivers, etc. So, at some point you will need help.

This is why you MUST choose a brand that:

• Supports its customers well

• Has enough other people using their tablets, so that you can get help from the community.

Online communities

Communities are where a people can learn and get help with drawing tablets. Depending on the brand there are different options. More here: Drawing tablet communities

Discussions

• https://www.reddit.com/r/wacom/comments/zt9c2p/debating_on_what_to_do_with_these_two_tablets/

• https://www.reddit.com/r/wacom/comments/y8n9yp/how_much_of_a_difference_between_wacom_xp_pen_and/ - brands compared

Overview

All drawing tablets have multiple components, but the primary component is the EMR sensor - which also called the digitizer.

And despite all the many brands of drawing tablets you see, there are only a couple of manufacturers of digitizers. These are: Wacom, Hanvon Ugee, Huion.

Which digitizers go into which brands

• Wacom digitizers are used in their own products.

• Hanvon Ugee supplies digitizers to Xencelabs and XP-pen tablets

• Huion supplies supplies digitizers for: Gaomon, Huion, Veikk tablets. And Huion supplies digitizers for Artisul tablets through their acquisition of UCLogic.

Acquisitions

• Huion acquired UCLogic in 2019 (https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/UC-Logic_Technology_Corp.)

Overview

The are true drawing tablets in that they are the most popular digital pen technologuy (EMR) and are intended to provide the classic drawing tablet experience in a standalone form factor.

• Operating system: currently all run Windows

• Scenario: Intended for artists

• Pen tech: EMR

Beware

As a policy, I do NOT recommend pen computers. The reasons are many and documented here: I don't recommend pen computers.

I recognize that some people LOVE the experience of using a pen computer. But cannot in good conscience recommend them.

Options

• Huion Kamvas Studio 16 ($1700)

• Huion Kamvas Studio 24 ($2400)

• Wacom MobileStudio Pro 13 ($2500)

• Wacom MobileStudio Pro 16 ($3500)

Overview

Xencelabs (https://www.xencelabs.com/) is trying to position itself as a direct competitor to Wacom - as you can see from the pricing of their products.

They are a very new brand and have a small product line as of Jan 2024:

• Xencelabs Pen Display 24: my notes on this tablet

• Xencelabs Pen Display 16: my notes on this tablet

• Xencelabs Pen Tablet Medium: my notes on this tablet (very minimal notes)

• Xencelabs Pen Tablet Small

What Xencelabs does well

• They are very thoughtful about the design of their products. You can see small touches that make a difference. For example:

  • Their pen tablets are exactly 16x9 aspect ratio

  • The front edge of their pen tablets are slightly slopped so there's less of a hard edge hitting your wrist

• The "feel" and quality of materials is excellent - Wacom tier.

• Their driver experience is easily the most well thought-out, user-friendly and attractive of any tablet brand.

• Their tablets come with 2 pens. This is great because if you are having difficulties you se if switching pens helps.

• I don't have any direct experience with their support. I haven't needed to contact them for any issue. But from what I have seen Xencelabs support is extremely good.

How Xencelabs could do better

• Their EMR tech is the same place as XP-Pen. If they are going to challenge Wacom at the same price point this should improve.

• There aren't that many Xencelabs users out there - so if you need community help there are very few people in the community who can help and you'll need to rely Xencelab's customer support.

• As of July 2024 they have a wider product portfolio . The only gap i see is that they don't have a LARGE pen tablet model - something comparable to the Wacom Intuos Pro Large.

Overview

HUION (https://www.huion.com/) and XP-PEN (https://www.xp-pen.com/) are the next big tablet brands. Their recent (2021 and later) models have been pretty good - but still trail Wacom a bit in quality and reliability. In general I think they offer 90% of what you get with a WACOM but at a substantial price reduction.

Their best tablets

In 2023 and 2024 Huion and XP have released models with upgraded tech that are challenging Wacom's professional line.

• Huion Kamvas Pro 19

• Huion Kamvas Pro 27

• XP-Pen Deco Pro GEN2

• XP-Pen Artist Pro GEN2

A lot of their improvements with these tablets are due to their pens handling pressure better: lower IAF and much wider pressure ranges than before.

What HUION and XP-PEN do well:

• Good price vs cost

• Their latest offerings since 2021 are very usable for creative tasks.

• They introduce new models frequently - much more often than Wacom.

• Their consumer level tablets tend to have more features than Wacom's consumer models (tilt & tablet buttons, dials, knobs)

How Huion and XP-PEN could do better

• Huion pen displays - especially the high PPI ones tend to show more AG sparkle. more here: Anti-glare sparkle.

• Pointer lag:

  • XP-pen pen displays tend to exhibit slightly more pointer lag than Wacom or Huion. More here: lag.

  • XP-Pen and Huion's pen tablets seem to have the same level of pointer lag.

• Improve their Core EMR tech and specs - while on paper equivalent to Wacom are still trailing. For many artists they may not notice this, but tablet enthusiasts do certainly notice it. (Will be a topic for a future video)

• Improve customer support. Both Huion and XP-Pen struggle with customer support. They tend to take more time to respond.

• Reliability - Huion and XP-pen a little lag behind Wacom.

• Huion and XP-Pen offer too many products - with new models (with newer tech) and older models (with older tech) sitting alongside them. This makes it confusing to buyers.

• They should monitor and answer questions on https://www.reddit.com/r/huion/ and https://www.reddit.com/r/XPpen/

• Long-term reliability unknown compared to Wacom. This can't be helped, they have only been around since 2011 (Huion) and 2005 (XP-Pen). And their passive EMR tablets (the ones where the pens do not have a battery) have only been around since the late 2010s.

Switching from Wacom

If you are an existing Wacom user yuou should keep in mind there are somethings that Wacom does where Huion and XP-Pen are still catching up on. In particular some of Wacom's pens (especially the Pro models) have an extremely low IAF (<1gf) . Huion latest pro pens can get to 2gf (per Huion's statements) and 3gf (per XP-Pen's statements). If you are used to a Wacom pen making marks at very tiny pressure you may find these higher IAF values hard to deal with.

Overview

Translating the position of the pen on the EMR sensor (AKA “the digitizer”) to a position on display is called mapping.

The tablet firmware reports the position of the pen on the EMR sensor using coordinates that are relative to the EMR sensor.

The tablet driver takes coordinates from the tablet and then maps them coordinate on the display.

Basic cases to consider

CASE 1 a pen display

The simplest case to consider is a pen display. In this scenario the EMR sensor is directly underneath the display and both are inside the plastic shell of the tablet

In this case the active areas physical size and aspect ratio matches that of the display perfectly.

and in this case the transformation is very simple because the EMR sensor and the display have the same aspect ratio.

Case 2 a pen tablet with one monitor

this is a somewhat more challenging case.

Because the EMR sensor and the display in the monitor need not be the same size and need not have the same aspect ratio.

But still it is possible to transform the coordinates from the tablet to a coordinate on that display.

Case 3 a pen tablet with multiple monitors

This is a little bit of a weird case. But we have to account for it because so many people have multiple monitors with their computers.

Tablet drivers allow users to handle the situation in multiple ways.

• The tablet driver can map the EMR census coordinates to a single display.

• Another option is that the tablet driver can map the sensor coordinates to a virtual coordinate system that includes multiple displays.

Overview

13" pen displays very popular, often representing great choices for beginners. In this document I compare some popular options in the market in 2023.

• Huion Kamvas 13 (GS1331) - (user manual | product page | model year 2020)

• XP-Pen Artist 13 GEN2 (CD130FH) - (user manual | product page | model year 2022)

• Wacom One 2019 GEN1 (DTC-133)

Summary

These are very, very similar tablets. There is NO CLEAR winner - each has positives and negatives.

• Huion Kamvas 13

  • slightly less pointer lag (GOOD)

  • slightly more more anti-glare sparkle

• XP-Pen Artist 13 GEN2

  • a tiny bit more pointer lag

  • less anti-glare sparkle

Evaluation notes

Testing Setup

• Driver versions used

  • Huion: 15.6.2.80

  • XP-Pen: 3.4.0

• Operating system of test machine

  • Huion: Windows 11

  • XP-Pen: Windows 10

• Specs

  • The tables of specs come from the Huion and XP-Pen websites. For some specs, I did some testing to come up with the numbers.

• Variances

  • Please remember that how tablets work can vary even with tablets that have the same model number. I cannot guarantee everyone will experience what I encountered.

• Pen labeling

  • I used gaffer tape to identify the pens. Green = XP-PEN, Red=Huion.

Pens

• X-Pen Artist 13 GEN2 - X3 ELITE

• Huion Kamvas 13 - PW517

• Wacom One 2019 GEN1 - CP-913

Center versus Corner accuracy

Accuracy in both tablets is very good for a pen display

In my testing

• Both have similar center accuracy. I agree with their listed specs of ±0.5mm

• Both have similar corner accuracy. I measured at ± 2mm

Diagonal wobble

Both tablets have excellent diagonal wobble (i.e. very low amounts of diagonal wobble) with both slow and fast strokes.

XP-Pen Artist 13 GEN2 (CD130FH) wobble

Huion Kamvas 13 (GS1331) wobble:

Compare it to the most expensive pen tablet wacom makes the Wacom Intuos Pro Large (PTH-860):

Both the Huion and XP pen are on par with

Anti-glare sparkle

Both tablets exhibit some anti-glare sparkle. Ideally tablets should exhibit no sparkle.

• iPad -> no observable sparkle

• Wacom Cintiq Pro -> very low sparkle

• Wacom One -> low sparkle

• XP-Pen Artist 13 (2nd gen) -> On the low end of moderate sparkle

• Huion Kamvas 13 -> moderate sparkle

For both tablets you'll notice the sparkle if your eyes are close, at a normal drawing distance I don't notice it.

The XP-Pen tablet is clearly the winner over the Huion tablet for AG sparkle.

Drawing Experience

Both tablets handle these cases well

• drawing lots of dots

• drawing many small quick tiny low pressure lines - hatching

• keeping pressure constant

• moving between high and low pressure smoothly

• Tapering - typical for every pen display I've seen.

Overall drawing experience is very good for both tablets.

Pressure range

• Remember: Pressure is detected by the pen, not the tablet.

• The lower bound on the pressure range is called the Initial Activation Force.

• To test this I hung each pen from a string and dragged the tip of the pen across the surface. The goal is that the minimal weight for the pen will draw a continuous line. Here's how they ranked:

  • XP-Pen Artist 13 2nd Gen -> made no marks whatsoever

  • Huion Kamvas 13 -> half the time made a mark. if pen moves slowly mark is captured usually but if there the pen is moving a little faster the mark is not registered.

  • Wacom One -> about same as the Huion Kamvas 13

  • Wacom Intuos Pro Large (PTH-860) -> draws a continuous line

  • Huion Giano (G930L) -> draws a continuous line

• Between the two, Huion is the clear winner with its lower IAF.

Pointer lag

Both Huion and XP-pen models tested exhibit the typical pointer lag present with all pen displays. The lag is comparable to the Wacom One pen display (DTC-133).

Manufacturers don't publish lag numbers. So, this is subjective:

• The Huion has about the same amount of lag as the Wacom One

• The XP-Pen model has a bit more more lag than the Huion model

Both tables can be successfully used for creative applications. But Huion is the winner here over the XP-Pen model.

Parallax

Thanks to their laminated displays both have very good parallax. They match that of Wacom One.

Below is a parallax photo for several pen tablet models. The XP-Pen parallax similar to the picture of the Wacom One and Huion model in the photo.

Connecting with a 3 in 1 cable

Both tablets come with a 3-in-1 cable.

The end that goes into the tablet is USB-C.

The other 3 ends are:

• HDMI - connect to computer

• USB-A for data - connect to computer

• USB-A for power - this cable is colored red.

  • if your computer can provide enough power you can plug the cable into the computer

  • Or you can connect to a USB power adapter. Neither tablet comes with a USB power adapter.

Connecting with one USB-C cable

For both tablets, I was able to use a single USB-C cable to connect them to the computer. More here: Connecting a pen display with one USB-C cable

Overview

As of June 2024, there are three 22" pen displays to consider buying. All three are acceptable choices depending on your budget.

• Wacom Cintiq Pro 22 (DTH-227)

  • If you want the same Wacom drawing quality but are willing to use an older device consider the Wacom Cintiq 22 (DTK-2260). My notes on this tablet

• XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus (MD220FH)

• Huion Kamvas 22 Plus (GS2202) - my notes on this tablet

Ranking

Note: I personally own all three of these tablets

• #1 Wacom Cintiq Pro 22 (DTH-227)

• #2 XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus (MD220FH)

• #3 Huion Kamvas 22 Plus (GS2202)

The Cintiq Pro 22 (DTH-227) is the clear winner on almost every level. However it is expensive.

If the Cintiq Pro 22 is out of your price range I would pick the Artist 22 Plus over the Kamvas 22 Plus. but to it having a better pen than the Huion and simpler cabling.

Display specs

Pens

• The Pro Pen 3 is clearly the superior pen.

• The X3 Pro pen is a big improvement from previous generations of XP-Pen pens. The X3 Pro pen is also better than the Huion PW517 pen.

• The PW517 - The IAF is good at around 3gf but the max pressure is highly variable. Instead consider getting the PW550 pen which is also compatible with tablets that use the PW517 pen. my notes on PW550.

Pixelation

• Cintiq Pro 22 - very hard to notice pixels

• The Artist 22 Plus - pixelation obvious

• Kamvas 22 Plus - pixelation obvious

Noise

• Cintiq Pro 22 - SOME NOISE - has a fan that is constantly on. It's not loud but it is audible and could be an irritation for some people.

• The Artist 22 Plus - SILENT

• Kamvas 22 Plus - SILENT

Diagonal wobble

• Cintiq Pro 22 - EXCELLENT

• XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus - EXCELLENT

• Huion Kamvas 22 Plus - EXCELLENT

Tilt compensation

• Cintiq Pro 22 - VERY GOOD

• XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus - VERY GOOD

• Huion Kamvas 22 Plus - I didn't measure yet

Edge and corner accuracy

• Cintiq Pro 22 - EXCELLENT

• XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus - EXCELLENT

• Huion Kamvas 22 Plus - OK-ISH

Pointer lag

• Cintiq Pro 22 - TYPICAL for a pen display. When using 120Hz visual effect of lag only slightly improves (maybe 10%).

• XP-Pen Artist 22 Plus - TYPICAL for a pen display

• Huion Kamvas 22 Plus - TYPICAL for a pen display

Notes on 3-in-1 cable

The Kamvas 22 Plus uses a proprietary 3-in-1 cable. And now matter how you try to conenct it, this 3-in-1 cable must be used.

Introduction

The active area of a drawing tablet is the rectangle region of the tablet's surface that detects the EMR pen. Some drawing tablet manufacturers (Wacom & XP-pen) use the term active area while others (Huion) use the term working area.

When we talk about the "size" of the drawing tablet, we are referring to the active area.

Active area of pen tablets

The active area is usually marked in some way on the surface. Sometimes it is marked at its four corners. Some tablets show a grid of of dots.

Active area of pen displays

The active area of a pen display is very easy to detect because it is the exact the same area of the display panel.

Size

Aspect ratio

Introduction

The aspect ratio of your drawing tablet's , can have a big impact on how good it feels to draw on them.

Basics

Any rectangular area has an aspect ratio. Which is the relationship between the width and height. Usually we will express the AR as a ratio like 16:9 or 16x9.

Displays (monitors) tend to have aspect ratios like 16x9 and 16x10. 16x9 is the most common aspect ratio.

Aspect ratio mismatches with pen tablets (IMPORTANT)

If you are using a pen tablet, it mostly likely does not match the aspect ratio of your monitor and you will see some distortion when you draw.

Pen displays and aspect ratios

The active area of a pen display and their display panel inside the pen display are equivalent. So they always match.

Reference

A survey of aspect ratios of Wacom pen tablets

As of 2023, NONE of Wacom's pen tablets have an exact 16:9 aspect ratio.

Introduction

As a rectangular region, we can discuss the size of the active area in different ways

• Width & Height

• Diagonal length

• Area

But most often we will talk about active area sizes using the diagonal length.

If you need help picking the right size for your tablet, consult .

Size in tablet names

You can often see the diagonal length in the names of pen displays. For example:

• Wacom Cintiq Pro 27

• Huion Kamvas Pro 16 Plus 4K

For pen tablets, manufacturers often use descriptive names such as "small", "large" instead of numbers.

• Wacom Intuos Pro Medium

• Wacom Intuos Pro Large

Standard sizes

By looking at the Wacom's product line and naming, we can establish a decent framework understanding how descriptive words like "small" and "large" map to numbers. Note that the size names are different for pen displays and pen tablets.

Distribution of active area sizes

If we look at how drawing tablet models are distributed along this scale we'll see that there is a lot of variation.

Diagonal vs Area

Is it reasonable to use the active area's Diagonal length vs the Active area's area measurement.

I think it is, because the diagonal is reasonably well correlated with area for drawing tablets.

Let's see how diagonal and compare buy plotting the values for 180 different tablets.

For pen tablets:

And for pen displays:

Overall, I think using the diagonal is reasonable.

Overview

The undisputed leading brand is Wacom (). They have a variety of products and different price points that should fit everyone's needs. If you don't want to weigh the pros and cons of different brands and want an easy answer then choose Wacom.

My experience: I currently own 39 Wacom tablets (6 pen displays and 33 pen tablets). I have extensively used every tablet in their professional series.

Some basic summaries of their leading series of tablets

• Intuos Pro - professional pen tablets. continue to be the best pen tablets ever made

• Cintiq Pro - professional pen displays - continue to be the best pen displays ever made

• One by Wacom - consumer pen tablets - are terrific beginner tablets

• Wacom One - consumer pen tablets an pen displays - mixed bag of results here.

What Wacom does well

• Best EMR tech. This may not be obvious just by comparing specs, but their EMR tablet technology is ahead.

• Long-term reliability. Their older tablets (20+ years old) still work today if you use the appropriate driver.

• They have products for beginners, intermediate users, and professionals - but even their beginner products are very high quality.

• They have good support.

• They monitor and respond to questions on

Feature availability

One thing you'll notice about Wacom is that they tend to keep certain features in their professional line of products. In fact over time they have tended to remove features from their consumer tablets and move them only to the pro line. Other manufacturers tend to have those features consumer and professional lines.

Overview

Pressure is the physical force being exerted on its tip. Remember that it is the pen that measure the pressure, not the tablet surface.

The Initial Activation Force (IAF) is the smallest amount of pressure that an EMR pen will detect and report. The maximum pressure the maximum amount of pressure that an EMR pen can detect and report. The pressure range is the range of physical force the pen is capable of sensing and outputting as pressure. In other words its lower bound is the IAF and its upper bound is the maximum pressure.

• A wide pressure range is very desirable. It contributes a lot to a good pressure experience. A wider pressure range is even more important than the number of pressure levels.

• A lower IAF is good because it allows you to draw finer details better.

Rating scale for IAF and max pressure

To get a broad view into how different pens handle IAF and max pressure, consult this document:

The importance of low IAF

Some people REALLY need that EXCELLENT IAF of <1gf.

Others like (myself included) work fine with a 3gf IAF. I definitely notice the difference but it doesn't effect me with the kind of art I create.

Pressure levels

These days tablet brands say that they can handle 8K (8192) levels of pressure. Some tablets even claim to support 16K pressure levels.

Pressure level hype

Don't get caught up in hype about pressure levels.

Disabling pressure

Notes

• Pens - even if they are of the same model - differ a little in their pressure sensitivity

• Pressure sensors are subject to wear. Over time, you may find that a pen is less sensitive to pressure than it used to be. Though in practice, I have never experienced this in any noticable way myself.

How EMR pens measure pressure

There are two techniques. The techniques have two things in common:

• The pressure is measured by the pen.

• Then transmitted to the tablet.

The modern technique: the nib contacts a pressure sensor inside the pen. The nib goes through the hollow ferrite rod and then the nib touches the pressure sensor deeper in the pen. The ferrite rod does NOT move. The pen digitally encodes pressure data into the electromagnetic signal generated by the inductor coil. The tablet then decodes the digital pressure information from the signal.

The very old technique: Nib goes into the hollow ferrite rod but does not come out the other side. The nib is shaped in such a way that it is firmly embedded in ferrite rod. Ads the nib moves, so to does the ferrite rod. The movement of the ferrite rod changes the resonant frequency of the inductor coil. That change in frequency is then sensed by the tablet and translated to pressure.

Introduction

Almost all drawing tablets can detect the tilt of the pen. The support tilt for drawing tablets usually ranges from 0 degrees to 60 degrees.

How tilt is used in drawing applications

Think about how you use a pencil - when you want a fine line you keep the pencil more perpendicular. However, when you want a wider line - maybe you are shading in an area - you tilt the pencil.

Many drawing applications have digital brushes that mimic that same behavior.

For example, here is a stroke I drew with Krita. I configured the brush to ignore pressure entirely, but to let the amount of tilt control the width of the brush.

As draw left to right I started with the pen very perpendicular and gradually started tilting the pen.

Mapping tilt to brush width is just the most common way of using tilt. However, depending on the application you could have tilt control other attributes of the stroke.

Which tablets support tilt

For many years now tilt has been a common feature on drawing tablets. And today the vast majority of tablets support tilt.

However, Wacom seems has traditionally included tilt only on its professional models. In particular tilt is NOT supported in these entry-level Wacom tablets:

• One by Wacom Small (CTL-472)

• One by Wacom Medium (CTL-672)

• Wacom Intuos Medium (CTL-6100 & CTL-6100WL)

• Wacom Intuos Small (CTL-4100 & CTL-6100WL)

Do need tilt support in your drawing tablet?

The vast majority of drawing tablets have tilt support, but a few entry-level Wacom ones do not.

For some people tilt is critical and for others, it is not useful at all. It strongly depends on what they are doing.

• whiteboarding -> tilt not useful

• taking notes -> tilt not useful

• educational videos -> tilt not useful

• digital painting with natural media brushes -> can be very useful if you would like your brushes to respond to it.

• line art -> can be useful but many people do line art without using any tilt features

Technical details

Tilt angle range

• The standard range is +/- 60 degrees for both X and Y directions

• I don't know of any tablets that support a wider range

Tilt support in applications

• Even if your tablet is sending tilt data to your computer, your application may or may not be using the data.

• Some applications don't use the tilt data at all. An example would be most note taking applications like OneNote. They tend to recognize pressure but not tilt.

• Other applications do recognize tilt but the use of the tilt data is only for specific brushes. So for example, typically a "pencil" brush would support tilt. But other kinds of brushes may not. Even then, these brushes has settings that let you customize whether and how tilt is used for the brush.

• Here's a good example for a brush in Krita. You can seee that the Rotation of the brush is set to the Drawing Angle, but that it could also be set to the tilt.

Tilt affect on pen tracking accuracy (tilt compensation)

To calculate the location of the pen, the tablet must take into account how much the pen is tilted. This process is called tilt compensation. Remember: no tablet has perfect tilt compensation and at extreme title angles you might see some deviation - This is normal.

Disabling tilt

The bezel of a drawing tablet is essentially all the area on the surface of the drawing tablet that is not the .

For many devices such a phones and TVs, people make a big deal about having the smallest bezels possible. For drawing tablets, it is good to have a wide bezel.

Ergonomic benefits

• Avoids your pen uncomfortably "dropping off" if you are making strokes near the edge of the active area

• Provides a place for you rest your wrist or forearm so that the edge of the tablet is not digging into them.

Drawing benefits

The EMR sensor (digitizer) needs to be a bit wider than the active area so that it is still accurate at the edges. A wider bezel provides that extra space for the digitizer.

Reddit threads

Overview

Besides drawing, pens have varying support for specifically erasing things. Typically this is done either with an eraser on the pen or using the pen buttons to perform the erasing.

Erasers

Below you can see the nib and the eraser for the Wacom Pro Pen 2 (KP-504E). As you can see the nib is quite a bit larger than the nib.

The eraser is also pressure sensitive and retracts into the pen. The eraser has a much bigger retraction distance than the nib.

Pens that have erasers

Erasers are relatively uncommon for EMR pens.

App support for erasers

Drawing apps have to add deliberate support for erasers. Some do have support. Some do not.

Usage of erasers

Lots of people do use the eraser and find it critical, but then lots of people never use the eraser. I'm one of the "never use" category.

For me flipping the pen around to use the eraser feels like it disrupts my flow and sometimes I simply am too clumsy and I have dropped the pen while I was rotating it. Also I just think it is faster to use a keyboard shortcut or to use my tourbox device.

Pen compatibility with tablets

Using the side buttons to erase

Another option is to map the side buttons to switch to the eraser tool in the app you are using. You can do this in the tablet driver app.