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[lazygecko]

I've decided to take a serious stab at learning 2D character art and animation, so I'll need a Wacom to sketch out baselines with. It's very confusing looking at all the different brands and price tiers not knowing what would be best suited for my needs though.

There's the Intuos Art ones that are among the cheapest. But then there's also Intuos Comic which is one tier up in price. But what exactly is the difference in the featureset between these? Is it just the kind of extra software that comes bundled with them?

 

[Cmagus]

If your just starting out I'd suggest getting the Intuos or if you have a little extra money the Intuos medium pro is a nice tablet with a good size. Going from traditional to digital takes a little bit but worth it imo. Software wise doesn't really change between the models, I've owned tablets from Intuos to cintiq so its mostly just drivers.

The higher up you get in models give you a few more perks like built in customizable buttons and the intuos medium lets you pinch and zoom.

 

[Servbot24]

Art and Comic appear to be the same thing, but with different software included. I actually wasn't aware of these, they must be new. Seems kind of strange to treat them as two different products.

Btw I'd recommend at least getting a medium. The small size forces you to draw with very small gestures which isn't great.

 

[Dunkley]

At least from an amateur perspective I haven't noticed much difference between the Wacom tablets I used beyond some of them having extra buttons.

Even the smallest ones I used (Wacom Bamboo) had features like turning around the pen to erase and overall all of them seem very solid. Having stepped up to an Intuos all I can say is that there's some extra buttons and more space which did make a difference for finer detail, however not to the extent I was assuming. That is however not saying you shouldn't go for a medium sized one, since while it is possible to draw on a smaller one, I do have to note it's a ton more comfortable with a bit of space.

With that said since I am really happy about the Intuos I have. I can definitely vouch it is solid, but as said since I am an amateur perhaps more professional artists here on GAF could share more insight on finer differences between the models that I don't notice.

With that said however I'll be subbing to this thread to educate myself a bit on the topic too.

 

[Shredderi]

I'm still rocking my Wacom Graphire 4 Ten years now and works like a dream. The stylus is pretty fucking worn out, but I don't want to order a new one because they're expensive.

 

[Holdfing]

What you have to look out for is the size difference between the tablets. I started with a small (A6) Bamboo years ago, just got a medium (A5) Intuos 3D, and I would definitely recommend getting a medium at least.

 

[Fancolors]

My first Wacom tablet is an Intuos4 Small and have been using that to this day. I occasionally had to use other models because of some freelance studio work, and I've come to the conclusion there's hardly ever a good reason to get something beyond what a Bamboo may offer unless you are talking about a display like the Cintiq.

Having a wheel to adjust the size of your brush is nice, but it saves less than a second and touchscreen support is cool for software that supports it like Manga Studio, but you can do the same stuff if you just memorize a few basic shortcuts.

So you should be fine with the cheapest models. Maybe even a Monoprice might do.

Art and Comic appear to be the same thing, but with different software included. I actually wasn't aware of these, they must be new. Seems kind of strange to treat them as two different products.

Btw I'd recommend at least getting a medium. The small size forces you to draw with very small gestures which isn't great.

This too. I got used to the small area, but I can tell medium is a lot more comfortable. Big is a little too much for me.

 

[Cmagus]

At least from an amateur perspective I haven't noticed much difference between the Wacom tablets I used beyond some of them having extra buttons.

Even the smallest ones I used (Wacom Bamboo) had features like turning around the pen to erase and overall all of them seem very solid. Having stepped up to an Intuos all I can say is that there's some extra buttons and more space which did make a difference for finer detail, however not to the extent I was assuming. That is however not saying you shouldn't go for a medium sized one, since while it is possible to draw on a smaller one, I do have to note it's a ton more comfortable with a bit of space.

With that said since I am really happy about the Intuos I have. I can definitely vouch it is solid, but as said since I am an amateur perhaps more professional artists here on GAF could share more insight on finer differences between the models that I don't notice.

With that said however I'll be subbing to this thread to educate myself a bit on the topic too.

There really isn't a huge difference between them all under the Cintiq. Like you said it's mostly just extra buttons and surface area sizes. I do agree with Servbot24 though, medium is probably the best choice as the smallest one is a bit cramped and if the op wants to do animation you'd be better off with a large surface area.

That being said they will all do the trick just fine because at the end of the day they all let you draw. If this is your first one I wouldn't go crazy expensive since you'll wanna see if you like drawing digitally and getting use to how it feels using the device, if you don't like it then you don't wanna be caught spending a lot of money.

As for drawing and animation I'd recommend checking out some of these programs.These are just my personal picks and others may know better stuff or recommend different things.

Software:
Clip Studio Paint ~$49.99
This is a good alternative to Photoshop for drawing. It has a nice set of features, great for line work and the price is great.

Adobe Photoshop~ It's Photoshop, they offer nice features and monthly plans that guarantee you the newest update all the time. *read the fine print on the monthly subs though, certain packages lock you in for a year* ~ Monthly plans starting at $10

Toon Boom Software
Toon Boom is some nice software for animation and it's a great price for a full animation package. I know I messed around with this in school and personally and it was some really nice features. ~ Monthly plan starting at $21

 

[CyclopsRock]

Just get the cheapest one. There's some subtlety to the better Intuos Realistically it'll take you quite a long time until the thing that differentiates your output is the tablet you're using. My girlfriend's a professional illustrator and she has one of the old, giant 24" cintiqs but she's literally on it 8 hours a day - before, when she worked at companies, she was perfectly happy with a 5 year old Intuos (though that was back in the day when the Intuos range was the best Wacom available other than the Cintiqs, admittedly). I had a Graphire for years and, again, the reason she was better than me was because she was better, not because of the tablet!

 

[lazygecko]

I ordered a Intuos Art small. Not even sure if I could feasibly fit a medium one on my desk as it is right now.

 

[sixteen-bit]

I remember getting a cheap bamboo tablet several years ago

 

[Pai Pai Master]

I'd recommend looking on amazon for a refurb. You can get the slightly older model (which comes with the eraser pen, the new tablets do not include it) for quite a bit cheaper. My medium sized Intuos refurb looks and feels brand new and I saved a good chunk of cash.

 

[itwasTuesday]

Paging shogmaster.

I have a current gen intuos pro small wireless. I would say stick with bacon for the drivers. Ive third party tablet that worked great but you will have to fight with the software at some time. Get any size that will work for you but I do love the wireless and scroll wheel of the pro.

 

[Werd]

Lazy Nezumi is worth checking out as supplementary software. Adds a lot of options for tablets- stroke smoothing, perspective rulers, etc. that not all core software provides and some neat control options.

Also while definitely best to start with a basic one, I'll mention that there have been some viable Cintiq (Wacom's monitor tablet line) alternatives in recent years. I have an XP-Pen Artist 22 (mostly a rebranded UGee 2150) that goes on sell under $500. Has it's quirks and lacks features, but the core pen pressure functionality works well and the screen is solid.