WP5540 5.5x4" USB Graphics Tablet w/Cordless Pen (Black)

Greetings,I'm a graphics arts and media professional having executed all kinds and levels of fun and successful projects for the last 25 years or more.I have never used (though have owned) a tablet before, and not sure why. Just never needed it I guess. Recently, I've been frustrated drawing caricatures and things by hand, then digitizing and cleaning them up or struggling over line thickness, smoothness etc. Believe it or not, on a Win 7 system, I'm still running Corel Graphics 6 (1995) and Photoshop 6 (2003ish) and the tablet works perfectly.In making a purchase choice, this item created some interesting reflection and consideration - given the wide array of tablets and prices, but I wanted something small, entry level and simple, that would allow me to draw and create more easily. This product is, quite frankly, all that and more, and quite the hoot to have. I love it.More, the on-board applications, which do NOT match the manual at all, allow me to use it live in a kids presentation show, either as a mouse, a full, opaque drawing tablet, or to annotate nearly anything on or in the screen. The only exception is animations, video and any program that uses the video layer - which is understandable. For these...it seamlessly grabs a still shot of the screen, allowing you to annotate while the video plays behind the scenes. Otherwise, it is fully functional - amazing.The size is great, fits well on the left, my wireless mouse on the right (I'm left handed so this is REALLY COOL) and my computer supports both...so I can draw and create with the left, and use the mouse simultaneously to click, save, etc. VERY COOL and productive.The only drawback I see, is the manual (not proper English or close, and barely correlative with the disc and product), but it gets you through. Oh, two others....the pen is touchy. If you're annotating and either touch the tip and pen switches to close or in succession, the program crashes. NOT COOL depending on what you're in the middle of...and there does NOT seem to be an adjustment. Also, the pen could use a power switch to save battery. At first, I laid it on the side - but always worried I was jostling it and wearing down the battery by waking the unit up. Then, I tried putting it upside down in the on-board pen well, but it fits poorly. Finally, after giving that the proper thought, I saw the pen well had a recess for the pen tip - so contrary to all the OTHER posts and my efforts, I've now found that that's EXACTLY what you do...put the pen in the pen well. It hasn't turned on or run down yet. Why none of us reviewing got that, I don't know, lol.So, it's way cool! Cannot BEAT the price or features. Supercalifragilisticexpialladocious!

Good tablet. If it cost twice as much I would of given it a lower rating or likely gone with the Wacom Bamboo Splash. Good for a hobbyist that wants tablet input without spending much. I don't plan on using it a lot but it is nice to have another option for input.Pros+/Cons-+Inexpensive+Accurate+Sensitive pressure+Not Lagging+Recently updated drivers+works with windows 8-Cheap plastic feel-Battery powered pen-Pen twice as heavy as wacom-Pen button can stick-No eraser-Drivers may not be as reliable as wacomHardware:Note the included AAA battery is in a hard to see plastic sleeve be sure to remove it. Pen is like a big ballpoint pen. It is heavier than a wacom but still not a big issue. Base has plastic feel. Pen contact feels like a pen on glossy/wax paper thankfully not too slick like glass. I found that the pen button was sticking a bit but fixed it by putting a drop of oil on my finger and rubbing it around the button. The pen slot is on the center of the top of the tablet not separate as pictured. I'd prefer it be separate as I place it in front of my keyboard but I can just place the pen aside.Setup:I recommend ignoring the CD and GO TO uc-logic.com to the support section to get the latest driver software. I was pleased to find it was updated May 2013, a few days before I received the tablet! The installer did crash after installing so I had to force close it. RESTART after or pressure won't work. A good amount of Settings can be found but clicking the tablet button in the system tray.To get the maximum surface area and avoid annoyances I recommend doing the following: In settings go into hot cells and disabling all of them, if using a widescreen you may want to keep it on top on bottom since the space is otherwise wasted. Then go into the Scope tab and select Full Area(allows you to go all the way to the edges) AND then press Screen Ratio(to avoid distortion caused by mismatch aspect ratios). I also recommend looking over Monitor Setting if interested in isolating the tablet to a small part of the screen.Drawing:Has a nice smooth feel on screen. My worry was lag but didn't notice any. It is a bit awkward compared to drawing on paper looking at the screen but that is true of most graphic tablets. Pressure works well. Lacks tilt but can't expect it.Software:Note that this uses the UC Logic driver and pressure may not work with some programs, but should work in all apps with mouse support sans pressure. Fortunately the recent drivers means it likely won't be abandoned with bad drivers. I am using 64-bit Windows 8 without issues with software, a few I needed to google to find tips/solutions. I avoided the included programs and found it odd they didn't include a graphics/drawing app but instead focused on productivity apps when I'm guessing 95% of people getting this are using it for graphic arts. A lot of productivity apps have pen annotation built in and the windows 7/8 snipping tool is good for annotating screen shots. If having issues with software try restarting your pc.Works good with these FREE opensource programs:Gimp 2.6.11(AVOID version 2.8 for now, currently has issues with tablets)Mypaint 32-bit(couldn't get the 64-bit version to work)Inkscape (Works good with the calligraphy pen and tweak tool)Blender (Handy for 3d sculpting)

If you can't afford a Wacom tablet, this is a good alternative. My Wacom was too old to work with Windows 7 and I really couldn't afford a new one. The DigiPro installed easily and seems to be working fine. It definitely is not as good as Wacom, but not everybody can afford the best. The software seems to work well and allows for fine adjustment of touch and buttons. If you've just learning or on a tight budget, this will certainly work. Keep in mind it does require a battery for the pen, which may or may not turn into a problem. I haven't had it long enough to find that out. If you have kids, this would be a great idea for them as long as they don't bang on the tip. It does come with three spare tips but, again, I haven't had it long enough to know how long each tip will last. One warning-support is very limited. The DigiPro site is in China and there is no way to register your tablet. I tried to contact them to ask about registering the tablet but kept getting a message "All connections busy". I tried their email contact and just kept getting the message "Your email not sent". Still, the product is worth the low cost and will at least get you started.