Panos Moesis
Posts: 64
London, England, United Kingdom
I am interested in purchasing either the Bamboo fun pen and touch small (I believe this is the 2nd generation), VS the 3rd generation Bamboo pen graphics tablet. Apart from the colour, the specs look almost the same.. so I was wondering if someone could give me a better insight as which to choose..
The specs for the fun pen and touch is as follows (gen 2):
• Overall tablet size: 248 x 176 x 8.5 mm (9.8 x 6.9 x 0.3 in)
• Pen active area size: 147 x 92 mm (5.8 x 3.6 in)
• Touch active area size: 125 x 85 mm (4.9 x 3.4 in)
Considering that the above information is correct(?), both also have 1024 levels of pressure sensitivity.. though the first option has touch capabilities and express keys.. though I'm not sure if I will utilise these features in day-to-day working. I have also read that the fun pen and touch pen doesn't have a comfortable grip.
I will be using this for retouching and digital art work, though I'm still uncertain on which to choose. Currently the price difference on the high-street is only around £5..
I would not bother with touch. I never use it on mine. All the express keys, keys on the pen and touch disabled. The shortcuts on the keyboard are good enough for me
The pen and touch model you are looking at is the previous model, compared to the touch you are looking at which is the latest model. It's not that bad an idea to get the previous version as the price should be better, however the price quoted on the site you list seems a tad high to me, I would keep looking for a better price if possible.
As stated, the touch function is pretty redundant (at least to me) and I too revert to hotkeys and the like. Horses for courses I suppose.
Panos Moesis
Posts: 64
London, England, United Kingdom
Thanks for your help! ..I didn't expect to use the expresskeys or touch, as I can't see how they would improve my workflow (as I use keyboard shortcuts). Taking that into consideration I think I will purchase the newer Bamboo pen tablet, which seems to have a more comfortable improved pen design.. and looks nicer.
Even if they would improve your workflow, it just doesn't work. Wacom has admitted that they didn't really figure out how to develop a proper touch model for their tablets. For instance, a multitouch zoom with the tablet is equal to doing cmd+ cmd+ repeatedly. The zooming is not smooth and neither is rotation. They said on a forum that Apple didn't let them access the same parameter that Apple-branded touch devices have access to.
I have an intuos5 L. For the same price, I would have preferred to buy an Intuos4 in its XL version, which would be handy with triple monitor setups and the potential arrival of high-resolution resolution displays like the retinas.
Darren Brade
Posts: 1,547
London, England, United Kingdom
I'm also planning on upgrading my first gen Bamboo to a newer and larger model. Does anyone use the touch functionality, I tend to use the mouse to zoom.
Also I'm wondering if thee touch functions work with thee new Windows 8 start screen?
Darren Brade wrote: I'm also planning on upgrading my first gen Bamboo to a newer and larger model. Does anyone use the touch functionality, I tend to use the mouse to zoom.
Also I'm wondering if thee touch functions work with thee new Windows 8 start screen?
Read my previous post. Zoom and rotation are sluggish on the touch tablets. Not like on apple branded touch devices.
In my opinion, the best way to zoom is to hold the Z key while you drag the cursor (pen or mouse). For rotation it's the same but holding the R. That way, with R, Z or the Space key you have full control of the canvas (rotation, zooming and panning).
Darren Brade
Posts: 1,547
London, England, United Kingdom
FLEXmanta wrote:
Read my previous post. Zoom and rotation are sluggish on the touch tablets. Not like on apple branded touch devices.
In my opinion, the best way to zoom is to hold the Z key while you drag the cursor (pen or mouse). For rotation it's the same but holding the R. That way, with R, Z or the Space key you have full control of the canvas (rotation, zooming and panning).
Thanks, the link was an interesting read, still none the wiser on windows based systems, wacom didn't seam to under and the windows related question.
Panos Moesis
Posts: 64
London, England, United Kingdom
Just an update.. the day after this post I purchased the standard Bamboo.. and have been using it ever since. Though after 3 days of retouching the end of the pen has worn down a lot! ..is this normal.. am I pushing too hard? ..or am I just retouching too much? :p
Wow.. surprised to hear about the bad touch capabilities in the forum.. so good job I didn't go for a tablet with that feature.
BeauTouch
Posts: 46
London, England, United Kingdom
Panos Moesis wrote: Just an update.. the day after this post I purchased the standard Bamboo.. and have been using it ever since. Though after 3 days of retouching the end of the pen has worn down a lot! ..is this normal.. am I pushing too hard? ..or am I just retouching too much? :p
Wow.. surprised to hear about the bad touch capabilities in the forum.. so good job I didn't go for a tablet with that feature.
Hi Panos,
Wacom nibs wear off very easily. I use Intuos5 and the nibs would wear off considerably within a few hours of retouching. However, if you follow a little trick you could be using one nib for months - get yourself a thin self-adhesive book cover. Look for it online, I can't remember which site I found mine on but it didn't take me long to get one. Then cover the surface of your tablet with it and Bob's your uncle. I've been using the same nib since May (that's when I got Wacom) and I still can't see any wear off.
Darren Brade
Posts: 1,547
London, England, United Kingdom
I'm still procrastinating over my next tablet. I have the cheap as chips Bamboo fun and was considering going for the Intuos5 with the view of it lasting me 4-5 years. However I've heard the nibbs are a problem if used regularly.
Panos Moesis
Posts: 64
London, England, United Kingdom
BeauTouch wrote:
Hi Panos,
Wacom nibs wear off very easily. I use Intuos5 and the nibs would wear off considerably within a few hours of retouching. However, if you follow a little trick you could be using one nib for months - get yourself a thin self-adhesive book cover. Look for it online, I can't remember which site I found mine on but it didn't take me long to get one. Then cover the surface of your tablet with it and Bob's your uncle. I've been using the same nib since May (that's when I got Wacom) and I still can't see any wear off.
Good luck and happy retouching
Thanks Beau, that is a great tip! ..because I don't really want to be purchasing/ changing the tip that often.
Do you think that a sheet of transparency film or a sheet of acetate would work? HmMMmm.. I will have a look down at my local WHSmith.. *fingers crossed*
i owned a bamboo pen for about a month before i decided to sell it and go back to using my old graphire. the stylus fits my hand better and the nibs last forever (the working surface is less abrasive than the pen's).
So I went with this in the end. Pretty amazed at the size difference from my old Bamboo fun. Lol.
So far not experiencing any problems with touch, it seems pretty responsive under Windows 8 64_bit Release Preview. I'm using the Wacom Windows 7 driver and its very responsive.
BeauTouch
Posts: 46
London, England, United Kingdom
Panos Moesis wrote: Thanks Beau, that is a great tip! ..because I don't really want to be purchasing/ changing the tip that often.
Do you think that a sheet of transparency film or a sheet of acetate would work? HmMMmm.. I will have a look down at my local WHSmith.. *fingers crossed*
Hi Panos,
I was looking for the link for ages and finally got it. This is what I purchased:
Panos Moesis wrote: Just an update.. the day after this post I purchased the standard Bamboo.. and have been using it ever since. Though after 3 days of retouching the end of the pen has worn down a lot! ..is this normal.. am I pushing too hard? ..or am I just retouching too much? :p
Wow.. surprised to hear about the bad touch capabilities in the forum.. so good job I didn't go for a tablet with that feature.
I put my Bamboo inside the pouch of a legal writing pad holder, and it works great.
Panos Moesis
Posts: 64
London, England, United Kingdom
Mike Needham Retouching wrote: I use this bit of software, it makes using the wacom so much easier and really eases up on wrist aches and strains Tablet Pressure Curve Tool
Thanks for the link, I haven't used the curves tool yet, I thought there was a way to adjust this setting in the preferences menu (but my tablet is not connect atm so don't quote me on that) :p
BeauTouch wrote: Hi Panos,
I was looking for the link for ages and finally got it. This is what I purchased:
I chose the one at the top of the list - a bit more than £5.00 but worth every penny
Hope it helps!
Thanks for finding the link Beau!!! ..I was thinking about purchasing this one: ((http://www.costuk.co.uk/StoreFront/Tenz … 20-P-32437)
), but I think the working surface may have too much grip? ..which will stop me using smooth strokes.. so I am looking for a thin sheet of plastic, like a phone screen protector. I recently used a glossy piece of printing paper.. it's better, but still feels slightly alien.
Angela Perez wrote: I have the bamboo pen and touch (small) And it works fantastic no need for me to upgrade.
I don't use the touch or the express keys either. In use my keyboard and just the pen on the tablet
..by the sounds of it the express keys seem like a waste of time, at least when it comes to retouching. The only possible flaw I can see after using the tablet for 5 hours or so, is that the muscles in my hand are REALLY cramped.. so I'm trying to remember to have some breaks in-between and relax my hand a bit to avoid RSI. Who said that retouching wasn't dangerous??! :p
mshi wrote: I put my Bamboo inside the pouch of a legal writing pad holder, and it works great.
Thanks for the tip, but doesn't the plastic surface have too much grip?
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