Ok, so I’m thinking of getting a Wacom (pronounced “Wah-come” BTW) Intuos3 6x8. Is this a good tablet for beginners? Maybe the 9x12 is better? I’m also wondering if anyone’s heard of/bought a Hanvon tablet, specifically the Hanvon Painting Master 0806.
Wacoms are the best tablets, right? If Wacoms aren’t, then what is?
Thanks ahead of time.
-Funddevi
EDIT: A beginner that only ever needs 1 tablet ^
wacoms are the best, there maybe decent competition these days, but a bad tablet is usually really bad… the wacoms are always goodso low risk.
in my view the larger the better. I have the A4 i think that’s the 9x12… sorry, uk paper sizes and and A 5 (half the size)
many people find the larger sizes awkward at first, but you’ll get less strain, much more precision and ultimately better control. (like trad painting and drawing, it’s better to move your arm than your wrist and fingers…)
Perhaps if you are beginner with the 6x8 is OK for your purpose. And yes, Wacom make the best tablet in the market. Also I prefer small tablets because require small space on the desk and also need only little movements of the hand.
Thanks for the replies, I think if I can get a good deal on a 9x12, I’ll definitely get that, but considering they’re $400 some-odd I’ll probably end up getting a 6x8. Another question; should I go all out and get the special edition Intuos3 or is it just a waste of money?
Dang, I need to learn international measurements and such…
-Funddevi
The Intuos tablets are really only useful if you plan to use Corel’s Painter app. I dunno if Photoshop has much use for the pen angle function, but in a nutshell, the intuos allows you to ‘roll’ the pen and to use it at an angle to further simulate a paintbrush in Painter. If you’re into traditional painting, then it’s a great thing to have, but if you’re lust lookng for more precision in your drawings than a mouse will give you, then a Graphire will work fine. I have an older model Intuos, and I never use the additional functionality. I only bought it over a graphire due to it having been used and thus cheaper.
If you think you’ll use that sort of functionality, then go for it. It also has a better resolution and better pressure sensitivity, but the difference you’ll get in use is negligible.
Well, Wacom (I heard it was WAY-come) has about 98% market share, so there’s not a lot of other really good stuff out there. I admit I haven’t tried anything else… but nobody ever complains about Wacom tablets, they’re great quality, there are models for all purposes. The company has such a great reputation because of all of the above. IMO you can pretty much guarantee that anything from Wacom won’t be “bad”.
Tablets work with GIMP right?
Tablets are fully functional with the gimp. I’ve had a few weird bugs though, but they aren’t bothersome enough for me to want to do something about them.
Ok cool :ba: I think Im going to get a Wacom Bamboo MTE450, I use Vista and on reviews it says they are natural to Vista with some additional features so should be good 
Think about how large you typically draw before you get one. The 9x12 may be to large. I have an Intuos 4x6 and it gives me more than enough room to work. I’d definitely go for the Wacom; they’re wonderful!
I got’s me a wacom with a one year warranty. Here’s hoping I break in 11 months time so I can get me a new one for free. But I can’t believe I did so long without a graphic tablet . . . it’s just the best!
I’ve decided to resurrect this thread again rather than make a new one.
Well, I’ve had a reality check and I’ve decided to go with something a bit cheaper. So my new question is, Bamboo Fun medium or Intuos 3 4x6 (A6 wide) or should I really save up and get the 6x11 (A5 wide)? I now have a widescreen monitor so I’m looking for a widescreen tablet (or one that easily converts into a widescreen).
Hopefully I can find some sort of stable income soon…
-Funddevi
Sorry funddevi, this is a bit of a thread hijack, but I didn’t want to make a new one when this was so close.
Does anybody know of a video or something that explains exactly how you work with a tablet? Such as how you know/adjust where it is going to draw when you put your pen on the tablet.
Funddevi: This depends on the relative prices, how much you are willing to spend/how long you are willing to spend saving, and how portable you want the tablet to be. I’m thinking that my next tablet will be a smaller one (compared to my current, which is bigger than my laptop!) so it can fit in my laptop bag, so I can use it other places. Other than that, my instinct would to be to go with the larger size, for more precision (feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, blenderheads).
Atemporalskill: This is the calibration of your tablet. This depends on what OS you’re using, the driver, and also the brand/model of the tablet. A good bet is googling the “[tablet make], [tablet model], [drivers]” if you’re in windows. For linux google “[distro] [tablet make, model]”. For Ubuntu this often involves editing xorg.conf.
Always remember that (especially here) more input means more output!
I was thinking about getting a cintiq (the smallest one) but then I realized, I don’t have that much space at my desk, and I didn’t know how much I’d use it…
I settled on getting a bamboo fun, and that’s all I really need for most of my stuff :yes:
I’ve been able to use it for hours on end without any wrist problems… in blender image editor , too… however the cntrl+z feature in the blender image editor sux only3 undo’s & it crashes about once every 3 hours of use 
still fun to use in blender, though 
made this with the small $85 tablet & blender 
(attatched)
now, gimp, yes… definitely go with the gimp … that thing is awesome! (especially for tablets / special effects / layers)
but yeah, my recommendation: start small, and if you reeeeeeealy NEED a bigger one later on, you’ll have all these skillz you’ll be able to transition over
That’s perfectly fine Atemporalskill, hijack my threads at any time as long as it doesn’t turn into a religious flame war shudder. If I’m reading your post correctly, you’re wondering where the cursor appears on the screen when you press down on the tablet? The pen actually controls the cursor so when you hover above the tablet the cursor moves with the pen, cool huh?
Well, I currently have only around $100 (USD) or so that’s spendable (for you Europeans that’s around 55 £) though with the holiday season coming I’ll probably be able to get near $250-300. I have a 17" laptop so the 6x11 should fit in the laptop’s case. I’m wanting to get a tablet as soon as possible so I can hone my skills for a longer time :yes:.
Thanks for the replies.
-Funddevi
EDIT:Thanks for the reply AMDBCG, I’ll definitely take what you say to heart :yes:
