Wacom Intuos 9 x 12 Graphics Tablet

Richard Price
5 December 2000

For the last few weeks I have been playing around with a Wacom Intuos 9 x 12 graphics tablet. This is a wonderful tool for any designer or artist and it runs on both Macintosh and Windows-based PCs.

The tablet plugs directly into any computer's USB port and installation is so easy, "it practically installs itself". I had no trouble setting up the tablet which was recognised by all of my software. The manuals are in Adobe Acrobat's PDF file format.

The tablet includes a cordless, pressure sensitive pen and a five-button mouse. The mouse doesn't have a rolling ball - it can only be used on the tablet. It is easy to swap from pen to mouse, depending on the task. In fact I was even able to continue using my old mouse at the same time!

The pen is intuitive to draw with. No matter how much ergonomic design has gone into a mouse, you can't beat the shape of a simple pen. A 2-button duo switch on the side of the pen can be operated with either thumb or forefinger and can be set to simulate a mouse click, keystroke or a keyboard shortcut.

Not only is the pen pressure sensitive but it senses the tilt angle as well. This means that, for example, a brush effect would change to reflect the angle of the pen.

The back of the pen has a built in pressure sensitive eraser function - just like the eraser on the back of a school pencil. You need never select the eraser tool! It even deletes text in Word documents.

While the 4D mouse supplied with the tablet does not enter hyperspace, it can also be used to orient 3D objects with pitch, yaw and roll control. It is a very capable mouse with simultaneous x/y/z axis manipulation and rotation A thumb wheel on the side makes scrolling, panning and zooming easy. Like the pen it is cordless and does not need batteries. Amazingly, it can easily be converted for left or right hand use, but I found the five buttons took a bit of getting used to. The left and right buttons work like a normal mouse although all the buttons can be customised.

As well as setting the feel of the pen or mouse, it is possible to set them to behave differently with other applications. Settings could be customised so that the pen was firm and sharp in Photoshop and more delicate when used with Painter. There would be no need to change settings between applications!

The active area of the tablet is 9 x 12 inches, and offers a 1-to-1 mapping ratio that should work with most computer monitors. There is also a transparent overlay to hold artwork that can be traced. A programmable menu strip at the top of the pad can be used in place of keyboard shortcuts.

The package includes MetaCreations Painter Classic 1.0, a competent, easy-to-use graphics program that simulates real-life tools and textures such as felt pens, charcoals, oils and so on.

Wacom PenTools is a set of pressure sensitive plug-in tools that can be used in Photoshop and Painter.

Sensiva, a program that allows the user to draw symbols that execute commands or programs. For instance drawing a big S will save a document, while a W will open a Word document.

I have enjoyed using the Intuos tablet and am going to miss it when I have to give it back.

www.wacom.com
www.videobytes.com.au
Price AU$945 (incl GST)

By Richard Price, Editor EnergyME.com

For information on getting a product reviewed email richard@energyme.com