Comparison Wacom Intuos4 XL vs Wacom Intuos3 A4

The paper size that corresponds to the size of the tablet's active surface.

This parameter is specified only for traditional tablets and smart-notebooks (see "Type"). At the same time, the specific size of the device does not always strictly correspond to the specified format. For example, an A4 tablet can be either a little larger or a little smaller than a standard landscape sheet of 210x297 mm. Nevertheless, according to the specified format, one can easily estimate the dimensions of the tablet as a whole and its general “weight category”.

Nowadays, on the market you can find devices in formats from A3 to A7, and the most popular options are the A4 mentioned above, as well as A5(148x210 mm) and A6(105x148 mm). In general, larger tablets are easier to use, but also more expensive.

The exact size of the active area of a tablet (or screen in a graphic display) in width and height. In general, it is more of a reference than a practically significant parameter: when choosing a traditional graphics tablet, there is often enough information about the format (see above), and for displays, primarily the diagonal (see above) and aspect ratio (see below) are of practical importance . However, the exact dimensions can also be useful in fact: for example, you can determine the aspect ratio from them (for classic tablets, this parameter is often not indicated).

The aspect ratio of the tablet working area (width to height). This parameter allows you to evaluate the overall proportions of the device: for example, the ratio of 4:3 gives an almost square shape of the work area, and in 16:9 models it is noticeably elongated in width.

Actually, "widescreen" aspect ratios — 16:9 and 16:10 — are now much more common than the classic 4:3. The 3:2 standard is also rare, although it is actually also a widescreen. This situation is due to the fact that, ideally, the aspect ratio of the monitor and tablet should be the same (otherwise, there may be a mismatch in the movement of the pen and the cursor on the screen, or part of the screen or tablet area will be unused). And the most popular nowadays are just monitors in 16:9 and 16:10 formats, the 4:3 standard is much less common, and 3:2 is extremely rare.

The device has a touch ring for quick control of popular parameters. By simply moving your finger around the ring, you can zoom and scroll in graphics applications, switch between layers, change brush size, rotate the canvas, etc. Note that the touch ring can have several operating modes, and a physical button in the center of the circle is often responsible for switching between them. In advanced devices, the ring can be reprogrammed for certain actions, and even sensitivity (scrolling speed) can be adjusted.

The ability to work on a graphics tablet with your fingers — just like on the touch screen of a smartphone or tablet PC. Touch input can be useful both during "non-working" hours (for example, if the tablet is used as a touchpad for a PC), and when drawing, to implement some specific techniques. At the same time, note that the accuracy of typing with a finger is much lower than when using a pen.

The height within which pen movements above the working surface are recorded by the tablet electronics even in the absence of direct contact.

Many tablets allow you to work in a "non-contact" way — without directly touching the stylus to the work surface. Thanks to this, it is possible, for example, with a raised pen to bring the cursor in the graphics editor to the desired point and turn on the drawing mode by touching the tablet with the stylus. And the greater the maximum reading height, the more convenient it is to use this mode, the less demanding the tablet is for the accuracy of movements. In many modern models, this parameter exceeds 10 mm.

The number of pressure levels supported by the pen.

The more levels of pressure, the more accurately the pen tracks the force of pressure and the closer the drawing is to the drawing made by real tools like a pencil. The minimum value for a modern tablet is 512 levels, an indicator of 1024 levels is considered relatively small, 2048 is considered average, and in some models 4096 and even 8192 levels are found. At the same time, it is worth noting that the difference between pens with different accuracy becomes noticeable mainly on the thinnest strokes and on lines with a thickness that changes along the stylus; so numerous levels, even a professional artist is not always required. For this reason, this parameter has practically nothing to do with the general class of the device: for example, there are low-cost models on the market with 8192 levels, and professional solutions with only 1024.

The resolution of the graphics tablet's working area, expressed in lines per inch (lpi). The parameter includes the density of sensors on the tactile surface of the device per inch. It is these sensors that recognize the signal upon contact with the pen. The higher the resolution, the more accurately and in detail the movements of the pen across the working area of the tablet are transferred. This ensures the creation of objects with a high degree of detail.

The simplest devices are characterized by an indicator of 2540 lpi. The “golden mean” is 4000 lpi. And in professional graphics tablets the a resolution of 5080 lpi can be found. Moreover, it is important to take into account that higher accuracy significantly affects the cost of the device.