The tablet itself is wonderful—sleek, robust milled-aluminum gives the impression of quality. So the structure and durability is to par for regular use. Not sure about travel endurance, this has pretty much sat on the computer desk, but I assume it would hold up quite well.
I’ve seen many reviews complaining about the surface of the tablet, however, noting the rough texture eating away at nibs rather quickly. In my experience it took several hours of drawing for a flat surface to become noticeable, but the nib worked enough for me to entirely overlook its presence. If you draw for a living I could see needing to replace these somewhat often, but the nibs are honestly quite cheap. I spend more on average quality drawing paper per month—using one nib per week is two and a half months for ~$10. TL;DR even if the nibs wear away quickly they should be easily replaced at little cost, but on principle this might be a negative for some. Just do some research and know your preferences before you buy.
The surface itself is replaceable, which I love to be honest, for when you create smooth friction spots. You can easily peel of the original surface (its attached via adhesive) and replace it—these are somewhat pricy for the large sized tablet. These last much longer than the nibs. No noticeable wear after a month of use in my case.
The pen gives the impression of fragility, as it is extremely light due to its battery-free operation. I can’t attest to how durable it actually is though, no accidents (knock on wood). Works well, and confirms to the ergonomic standards Wacom has established.
My major complaint with the product is that it doesn’t seem well optimized for windows users. Out of the box, having installed the latest drivers, the $400 (got mine on sale) tablet ceased to function within ~45 minutes of use on a Friday evening. I had to wait an agonizing weekend to receive a response from their customer support. The issue was resolved promptly, and although the call center was clearly outsourced, the representative was knowledgeable, polite, and efficient. After essentially fixing some run files the tablet works like a charm.
Keep in mind, having worked in a domestic call center that was supposedly customer support, our main focus was sales metrics. Hideously pressured to the point most reps outright lied to push numbers—not once was I pressured for a purchase. Although I would have enjoyed a native English speaker, US customer service isn’t the best. Mostly due to corporate policies rampant in the industry—at best they offer quick fix solutions like encouraging a return of the product, which is more often than not a waste of time.
This product should really work out of the box for its price, but my issue was resolved promptly. So I can’t ding Wacom for having the appropriate resources in place.
All in all, I would buy this again and highly recommend it to any artist/educator. Personally I prefer ”regular” tablets to cintiqs which hardly give you an increase in quality for the gratuitous expense. You can expect this tablet to perform if you make a living off such devices.
| Standing screen display size | 9 Inches |
|---|---|
| Screen Resolution | 1920x1080 |
| Max Screen Resolution | 1920 x 1080 Pixels |
