Remember the computer you tried with the joystick control built onto the base of the housing? Then the one with the rolling ball - then the wired mouse - then the wireless mouse? Then the tablet that you tried out in the shop? And you didn't buy any of them because you were waiting for the best thing to evolve? Time to loosen your wallet - the Wacom Intuos 5 has hit the market.
The Intuos 5 has all the capability of their earlier product - the Intuos 4 - and has added additional features that speed up your workflow and bring a more natural feel to what becomes a real artistic tool. The ability to control your operations through touch scrolling and zooming is added - of course there are even more controls built into the Express Keys and Touch Ring at the side of the tablet. The great thing about these side controls is that the tablet is ambidextrous - you can expand your ability to rotate, pan, and apply custom operations so that both your hands are comfortable - no more cross over fiddling.
If you want to know what you are doing - as opposed to why...- the tablet can send a heads-up display to your screen detailing current settings.
A simple addition of an accessory also means that this tablet can be wireless - one less electrical hose snaking across your desk. Fortunately the tablet uses the same excellent electronic brush as previous models - no need to retrain your hand.
Three sizes will be available - Small ( 6" x 4") at $ 255
Medium ( 9" x 6") at $ 385
Large ( 12" x 8") at $ 529
As a long-time Intuos user I can readily testify that this is the best way to employ the retouching and compositional features of major image editing programs. The conversion from a mouse hold to a pen hold takes about 4 seconds to feel better. The effect on the arm and wrist are also magic - you don't realize how unnatural it is to try to draw with a bar of soap as opposed to a pencil until you try it! Different of course in the shower....
