Help with graphic tablet..

[Sogeking]

Hi there,

I have applied for a place in a course which will require me to do lots of drawing. Now I am no expert, infact, I havent been drawing at all for the past couple of years and I am trying to get back to it, I discovered that this is what I want to do.

Anyways, I was thinking of buying a graphics tablet and after some research came to the fact that Wacom makes the best. I am however torn between the A4 and the smaller A5 Intuos3 tablets. Which size do you guys think its better?

Now I know I'll be using the piece I get for a long time and I dont want to regret my purchase since the tablets are really expensive and I got some unexpected monies and want to make the most of it

Also, where can I get they tablets cheapest? I was checking on Amazon.co.uk the other day and the A4 one was going for ?279.99 and when checked it today it was ?333.. I was ==>

I know I could get a student discount and buy the A4 for ?259.91 but are there any better deals that you've came across?

Thanks alot in advance

[Ginger Tosser]

Bigger is better! But as my Wacom pad is A6, then A5 would be fine imo.

I'd stick with Wacom, cheaper ones are available but the general consensus is Wacom seem to be the best.

[briareos_kerensky]

Bigger is better! But as my Wacom pad is A6, then A5 would be fine imo.

No, it's not. Personal experience.
If he's going to use the tablet for drawing or photo post-production an A5 will be just perfect, the A4 will be way to large to use in screen mapping mode. Too much strain on the shoulder and wrist to go around the tablet clicking, especially if you don't have a proper table setup.
A4 and bigger tablet are good for CAD/CAM use, but for Photoshop/Painter/Illustrator purposes the A5 is the best dimension you can get. You can get as low as an A6, but just if you don't have enough space.
I owned an Intuos A4 and currently own an Intuos2 A5 for PS/Painter/Illustrator and sometimes Z Brush work, and I would never change back to the A4; the A5 grants the same precision as the A4 without stressing the shoulder.
As for the price tag: although less accurate and without inclination detection Graphire tablets are extremely good for their price; Aiptek tablets are good too, less expensive than Wacom products, maybe less refined but just as effective. Just don't buy Trust or Genius, you'll end hating graphic tablets all life long.

[Sogeking]

Thanks alot Ginger and BK

I am able to buy the intuos3 model at either A4 or A5 sizes, I was just wondering which size to go for and where I can get it cheapest.

A5 seems to be popular.. does anyone know where I can get them at a good price?