Ideal for digital photographers, graphic design professionals and artists, Wacom's Intuos3 pen tablet offers a much more precise and natural way to draw freehand compared to a mouse. The A4 tablet also provides a 1:1 mapping ratio for most monitors and is ideal for artistic styles that need full arm motion. In addition, it features ExpressKeys and Touch Strips on both sides of the active area to accommodate left- and right-handed people. Doubling the resolution of its predecessor, the Intuos2, Wacom has also upped the pressure sensitivity to 1024 levels in both the pen tip and eraser of the supplied pen, so the tablet is now a lot more sensitive. It also comes with a cordless and batteryless mouse, making it one of most intuitive input systems available. You also have the option of purchasing additional programmable accessories, such as an Airbrush (a digital pen with the feel and control of a real airbrush and includes a top-mounted fingerwheel to control ink flow, a pressure-sensitive tip and eraser), making the Intuos3 pen tablet one of the best products of its type.
Pros: Fresh new look; very sensitive; customisable buttons
Cons: No transparent frame for tracing or a recess for storing the pen
Wacom's new pen tablet, the Intuos3, features new function keys and greater precision compared to the company's
Graphire 3 Studio XL (£145 ex. VAT). Aimed at digital media professionals and imaging enthusiasts, the new-look range consists of three tablet sizes: A6 (£129 ex. VAT), A5 £199 (ex. VAT) and A4 (£305 ex. VAT). We've reviewed the largest tablet here, the A4 model, which is identical to the smaller tablets except for size. All of the tablets have a USB connection and are supported by systems running Windows 98SE, ME, 2000 or XP and Mac OS X 10.2.6 or later.
If you're a budding graphic artist you may well be aware of the benefits of a graphics tablet. For most of us, the thought of placing another peripheral on our desk seems pointless. However, a tablet is an alternate type of input device that can be used in place of, or in conjunction with, a mouse, trackball, or other pointing device, so even non-artists may choose to use a tablet as it offers a more ergonomic method of input that can reduce the likelihood of developing repetitive strain injury.
Having said that, you will want to use graphics software that takes advantage of the pressure-sensitive features and tilt controls. In addition, the Intuos3 is a high-end tablet that is really suited to professionals. If you just want to explore with tablets, there are more affordable solutions available. Some artists don't get on too well with tablets either, because drawing on a plastic base takes a little getting used to compared to using a pen or painting in the way that you've become accustomed.
One way of compensating for this is to use papers that have different textures and to tape those to the surface of the tablet. The paper will create a type of friction as you draw/paint which will help to increase your comfort level. This could also be useful for creating different effects, such as a ragged look when drawing with charcoal or the look of canvas as you paint.
The Intuos3 consists of an A4-size (440x340x14mm, 1.8kg) smoked-grey tablet, matching wireless pen and 5-button optical scroll mouse, as well as a suite of software. The tablet is rectangular in shape (305x231mm active area), but doesn't come with a transparent photo frame for inserting material to trace over - unlike the Graphire 3 Studio XL. There's no recess at the top of the tablet for securing the pen when travelling either, although you do get a handy matching silver pen holder for resting the pen in either a vertical or horizontal position when not in use.
The Intuos3 range is also exclusively bundled with Corel's Painter Essential 2, a special edition of the software that offers a 'natural' way to draw. The excellent thing about the software is that it takes full advantage of the Intuos3's functionality, including the airbrush wheel, tip pressure and tilt, and eraser. The easy-to-use software also supports multiple layers and allows you to start drawing straight out-of-the-box. Of course, professionals will already have their own preferred imaging software, but it's still nice to have a bundled application.
As well as an improved resolution of 5080dpi and 1024 levels of pressure sensitivity in both the pen tip and eraser of the pen and airbrush (among the highest in the industry), the Intuos3 comes with innovative ExpressKeys and Touch Strips. These are two four-button keypads (A6 size only comes with one keypad) that can be programmed with frequently-used modifier keys, such as Ctrl, Alt, Shift and Spacebar.
The Touch Strip acts like a scroll bar with presets to allow zooming and scrolling in various applications. Pressure level refers to the sensitivity to pressure on the surface of the tablet and can control line thickness, transparency, and colour. The higher the pressure-sensitivity, the more responsive and natural your tablet will feel and the more control you will have.
Both the ExpressKeys and Touch Strips actions can be customised using the new driver control panel. With the ExpressKeys and Touch Strips conveniently situated on the left and right side of the tablet's active area, you can directly access functions such as pan and zoom, cut, copy, paste and undo at the touch of a fingertip without having to move between the tablet and your keyboard.
You can also customise the buttons, should you want to be able to reduce/increase brush size quickly. The tablet is also able to recognise the tilt angle of the pen by up to 60 degrees, which is great for realistic paintbrush simulation. The input device also responds sensitivity and precisely so that you can create smooth blends and masking effects.
The newly designed cordless and battery-less pen comes with changeable pen nibs and an erasing end. It also has a single button that can be programmed for specific functions such as a right-click or double-click, and the erasing tip can perform a delete function in one swipe, or automatically activate the eraser tool in your graphics software. Whilst the pen feels comfortable and natural in your hand, many will find it a little bulky compared to a pencil other regular drawing implement.
The fact that the pen is untethered offers more creativity and less hassle, but you'll have to be more careful about losing or misplacing it. The supplied pen holder is a welcome addition, but it would have been nice to have a recess somewhere on the tablet to store the pen in a less desk-cluttering way.
