Wacom Cintiq 12WX Interactive Pen Display

When it comes to buying a graphics tablet, it comes down to several important points that you have to consider. The first being what you actually are going to use the tablet for and secondly how much you are prepared to spend to get what you want. There are many different models, sizes, makes and styles you can buy these days and they also range from the first time home user types to the industry standard models used by professional artists.

The Wacom Cintiq 12WX is one that falls into the middle of these categories. It is an interactive pen display rather than a USB graphics tablet, which allows you to draw directly onto the screen of your application rather than having an external pad that acts as an input to a separate screen. Imagine if you could take your flat screen monitor, angle it to suit and then draw directly into Corel Painter with a cordless pen. That is the benefit an interactive pen display gives you over a graphics tablet. But it is not too expensive or large to be a professional product, and not too small or feature lacking to be a consumer item.

The Wacom Cintiq 12WX houses a bright 1280 x 800 pixel LCD screen, which is a diagonal equivalent to a 12 inch monitor. Onto this screen, you use the supplied cordless pen or stylus which is sensitive to 1024 levels of pressure, giving you finer control over your strokes and marks. The display also allows for 16.7 million colors to be displayed, as per a normal TFT flat screen monitor.

The Cintiq 12WX can be used flat, like a pad or at an angle which can be defined by an adjustable stand on the rear. The connection to your PC or Mac is via a standard USB cable, DVI or VGA and an additional power connection is also required. It also has a pretty long connection wire too, so you can quite comfortably rest it on your lap whist drawing or find the perfect angle to suit you.

As with all other graphics tablets, you simply move the pen over the display and the location is tracked as you move. When you place the pen onto the screen, it is as if you were clicking with your mouse apart from the extra levels of pressure you can apply if you are using a supported graphics program. When you then move the pen, a mark is left on the document you are working on. It is exactly like drawing on paper really and requires no further explanation.

The Wacom Cintiq 12WX also provides 10 programable buttons that are under your left or right hand as you draw which allow you to select zoom levels or layers within Adobe Photoshop. These can also be customized to launch applications too if needed.

The pen is a standard Wacom “grip pen” and features 2 buttons for mode switching or right clicking and also the ability to turn it over to rub out a mistake, which is taken care of automatically as you do it. No need to swap to the eraser tool with this baby. A pen stand is also provided to stop it from rolling under the desk when you leap up to answer the phone.

Overall, the Wacom Cintiq 12WX is a great interactive pen display and everyone will benefit from drawing directly onto the screen. Compared to using a standard graphics tablet, the Cintiq 12WX is light years ahead and it is definitely one of those products that you will love immediately.

There have been complaints of issues where the pad gets hot and has issues with tracking the motion of the pen, but these are few and far between and overall this is an excellent product if you are interested in moving into digital artwork or image editing.

Incoming search terms:

interactive pen display tablet, Interactive graphic tablet, interactive display tablet, interactive graphics tablet, interactive graphic tablets, wacom cintiq 12wx interactive pen display review, pen tablet with display, interactive drawing tablet, interactive graphics tablet review, is there a graphics tablet that is interactive

Genius G-Pen M712 Graphics Tablet

The manufacturer of PC and Mac hardware peripherals, Genius has pulled it out the bag again with the Genius G-Pen M712 Graphics Tablet. This space age, uniquely designed tablet offers many things that more expensive manufacturers do not. The range of G-Pen graphics tablets they make are all classed as entry level due to the price they are sold at, but they are by no means inferior to their more expensive cousins.

The G-Pen M712 is the flagship, top of the range Graphics Tablet in Genius’s product line. It has the largest active drawing area of any of their tablets and also provides some physical buttons and interfaces to be used with your fingers too. It has a high 4000lpi (lines per inch) resolution which is great for working with larger images and will give you better and finer control over the output of the pen. The M712 also has the ability to switch between standard and widescreen sized active working areas, so those of you who are still holding onto that old CRT monitor will be glad.

Around the inside of the sleek, black bezel you will find 34 fast shortcut keys that give you access to frequently used applications, macros or menu commands. These can all be customized using the software and drivers supplied on CD. The border also contains 2 “rolling pads”, one each for right and left handed users. These pads, when used in conjunction with 5 selector buttons in between will give you access to control things like scrolling, zooming and even adjusting the volume by the use of rotating the rolling pad left or right.

The supplied cordless pen features 2 buttons that allow you to quickly and easily adjust the style of your stroke when writing, annotating, note taking,drawing or painting and also features 1024 levels of sensitivity which will allow you to be very precise with your work. The pen sits neatly in a separate holder when not in use.

As with all of the other graphics tablets supplied via Genius, the M712 is fully plug and play compatible with Microsoft Windows Vista and can be used with the “write anywhere” functions is provides.

Again, Genius have pulled one out of the bag against the likes of Wacom or Vistablet. The G-Pen M712 is an accomplished USB graphics tablet and is worthy of your attention and consideration. Although some people prefer to opt for a more expensive model from a known brand name such as Wacom, Genius are here to tell you that, all things being equal - they are a great alternative.

Detail	Value
Model Name	Genius G-Pen M712
Includes Pen	Yes (cordless)
Includes Mouse	No
Widescreen format	Yes (and standard)
Supprts left and right handed users	Yes
Active Area Size (inches)	12 x7.25 (wide) 9.5 x7.25 (standard)
Physical dimensions (inches)	19 x 14 x 3
Pressure sensitivity levels	1024
Programable Keys	34

Incoming search terms:

genius g-pen m712 review, genius m712 review, Genius G-Pen M712 Pen Tablet, genius G-pen M712X review, g-pen m712x review, genius m712 price, Genius Multimedia Tablet G-Pen M712, genius pen refills, genius tablet m712 pen tip, genius tableta g-pen m712 review

Genius MousePen 8 x 6 Graphics Tablet

Where Wacom lead, other manufacturers follow in their footsteps hoping to pick up the stragglers who are more price conscious than image or brand affected. Although, having said that the graphics tablet products by Genius are by no means of lower quality or standard. In fact, if you are looking for the most bang for your buck, the Genius range may be the better option.

The Genius MousePen 8x6 is a USB product designed for both the home and the office. It gives you a spacious 8 by 6 inch active area to work with and also has a series of programable “hot cells” around the edge which allow you to quickly and easily access commonly used functions, menu items or macros. The supplied software comes pre-configured with “Hot Cell” combinations for the common graphics applications such as Adobe Photoshop or the supplied 30 day trial of Corel Painter 8.

As with the comparable Wacom graphics tablets, the Genius MousePen 8x6 comes supplied with a cordless pen with 1024 levels of pressure sensitivity. When turned on it’s end, the pen also doubles as an eraser, quickly switching to the erase tool in the relevant application. Also provided is a cordless tablet mouse with a 3D scroll wheel which operates in the same way as a normal cordless optical mouse when used in conjunction wit the MousePen tablet.

So if you value price over popular, named brands and a possible perceived benefit of using a more professional product, the Genius MousePen is perfect for you. It is lightweight, compact, has a large active area but only truthfully supports Windows computers. The Genius MousePen 8x6 is a perfect entry level graphics tablet for the whole family whether you are a digital artist or someone who simply wants to try their hand at being creative.

Detail	Value
Model Name	Genius MousePen 8x6
Includes Pen	Yes (cordless)
Includes Mouse	Yes (cordless)
Widescreen format	Yes
Supprts left and right handed users	Yes
Active Area Size (inches)	8 x 6
Physical dimensions (inches)	10 x 8
Pressure sensitivity levels	1024
Express Keys	None - hot cells available

Incoming search terms:

Genius MousePen 8 x 6-Inch Graphic Tablet for Home and Office, Genius MousePen 8 x 6-Inch Graphic Tablet, Genius MousePen 8 x 6-Inch Graphic Tablet review, genius mousepen 8x6 graphic tablet for home and office, genius mousepen 8x6 replacement pen, genius mousepen 8x6 graphic tablet for home and office review, genius mousepen 8x6 review, mousepen 8x6, genius 8 x 6 inch graphic tablet, genius mousepen replacement pen