Wacom Graphire4 vs Intuos3

[NikonUser]

Hi there,

Well I have a graphics tablet again... I feel whole once more.

After selling my Graphire4 6x8 to a member of this board I ordered an Intuos3. It took a while to get here as the warehouses were closed after Christmas but it finally got here today.

I paid $430. Could have gotten it slightly cheaper but that would mean a longer wait... and I'm impatient

Anyway. First impressions..... It's definately a better product!!

1) It looks a hell of a lot better (IMO) than the Graphire4

2) The pen is a lot more comfortable to hold. It's longer and I think a little fatter. The grip is also softer. The two button switch is slightly in the way compared to the Graphire4 but I've already gotten used to a slightly different grip to get around this. No problems at all. Also it comes with a lovely little pen holder.... yay.

3) The surface of the tablet is a lot better. When the pen slides across the surface there is a little more friction than on the Graphire4. It feels a lot more like pen on paper than the very frictionless 'pen on plastic' feel of the Graphire4

4) The touch strips and function keys work as they are supposed to. Time will tell how much use these get but so far they are comming in quite handy

5) The pen driver is VERY customizable. You can get the various buttons and options to do different things in different applications. Also (and I'm not sure if this was the case in the Graphire4) you can get different pens and the tablet will recognise which one is which and apply different settings (would be good for different users)

6) The doubling of the pressure sensitivity really is noticable. (Graphire4 = 512 levels, Intuos = 1024 levels). It just gives a feel of being more in control of how hard you are pressing

7) The different nibs you can use on the pen are quite cool. At the moment I just have the default one in... but I tried the felt tip one and it was quite good. Really feels like you are using a felt tip pen! There is also another nib with a spring in it that is supposed to give a more 'brush' type feel. Haven't really tried that one out much yet.

That's about all I can think of for now.

Definately a nice upgrade from the Graphire4. Worth double the price? Who knows... but I'm happy

Any questions or comments then please feel free to ask.

Paul

[petal666]

I'm getting used to your old Graphire 4 now and using it a bit more. The pressure sensitivity of the pen would definetely benefit from the increased number of graduations. The graphire 4 is a bit hit and miss in this respect, and it sure is ugly.

[NikonUser]

I just put in the pen nib with the spring in it. Very nice.

I think I'll be keeping this one in for a while. Feels very soft and comfortable to use. mmm

Paul

[DVEous]

... Obsolete ...

[Oneputt]

I also use the Intous 3 and after an initial learning phase could not now do without it.

[gleff]

I had a Graphire 4 but just couldn't get used to it. I went out today and bought the Cintiq 21UX and it's the ants pants. I absolutely love it. I've been playing with it all day just learning how to use it properly and it's like second nature using a pen now.

Wacom rules!

http://www.wacom.com.au/products/cintiq ... iq21x.html

Ps. not trying to hijack the thread.. my comments are really about how good Wacom tablets are, and the Intuos 3 (which the 21UX uses). It's much smoother than the graphire, and the pen is nicer and feels better too.

[adamj123]

I went out today and bought the Cintiq 21UX and it's the ants pants.

holy thats one awesome piece of machinery! when i can afford one that will be my next upgrade!

anyways, i just upgraded my old Genius tablet with the Wacom intuos3 6x8 student edition and its amazing how much better quality that wacom is, not only in terms of design but also functionality and how natural the pen feels against the surface. I have basically given up on my mouse and use the tablet pretty much full time now.