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Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 1
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My personal experience with the 21UX has been quite rough at times.
I first had to deal with a few defects in my unit, that I can't have fixed for free, as I got the tablet in the US and flew it back to Italy (the warranty covers USA only) to save big money.
A part from the defects (I have always been very unlucky), the Wacom 21UX is a clever design, but not perfect.
Let's just split them in pros and cons:
CONS:
1) The size-to-resolution ratio is not satisfying: for such a large device I would expect a much denser display (1600x1200 on 21.3" is really little detail and you can visibly see the pixel grid while drawing, it's just as bad as an Apple's iBook 14" screen);
2) The unified cable is not isolated well enough, I couldn't manage to get a clear image with a VGA connection (but this is a common issue with large displays);
3) The unit case is made of painted plastic, which is a stupid choice, both for sustainability (it's more difficult to recycle), and for durability (after a few days of use you notice the sides are scratched and have lost the finish), the unit doesn't have a really cool look anyway (I know it looks good in photo, but in real life it's not the same), so there was no reason to use the extra finish;
4) The assembly is not good enough for such an expensive product, the front coating is not well aligned with the two side areas for TouchStrips and ExpressKeys.. it just looks like a very cheap toy for kids;
5) The design of the rear part is not good: when you disassemble the rear semi-covers to pass the unified cord through the top hole, a very delicate adhesive paper coating of the back of the screen is exposed to fingers, forgetting about the fact that the adhesive side of the paper is exposed to the air, ready to collect dust and dirt, making it ugly to look at;
6) The 5080 lpi resolution of the tablet makes it even more frustrating when thinking about the low screen resolution, I really don't think the screen part of the device is up to the capabilities of the tablet part (which can easily be true, as Wacom makes the tablet and buys the screen to apply to it);
7) The stand just doesn't meet the quality that you would expect there too, which is probably just good (better cut a few bucks from the final price, the base is going to stay behind anyway); I must say that if I had the space to do it, I would buy an architect drawing table, take the panel out of it and use the adjustable stand to make a really handy stand for the Cintiq 21UX;
PROS:
1) It's just that simple to use: you plug the VGA (or DVI) cable, switch the computer on, plug the USB cable and install the software. Then you calibrate screen and tablet and you're done.
2) It's just that flexible: you can map different functions to the express keys for any software (that means that button 1 will do something in Photoshop and something else in Word), and if buttons aren't enough you can use a pop-up menu, where you can define your own list of quick commands;
3) It's just that precise: given that you forget about using the outer portion of the screen (take that more than 30% of the screen area doesn't have full tablet resolution) and just draw in the middle portion, you are never going to get uncertain behaviours of the cursor, everything works just great; Though if you do move to the outer portions live get's more difficult: cursor vibrates strongly and if you have your pen up (out of tablet's range) and go to point directly on the "X" button of a window on the far top-right side of the screen, nothing happens: you have to take the pen within the tablet's operating range more inside the screen area and then move it to the far side;
4) It's quicker than other tablets, and than tablet pc's. This doesn't mean your cursor is going to stick to the pen, but this is the most you can get from it, for now;
5) The screen has a very, very wide angle of view. Colors aren't perfect from every angle, but this baby is ready for presentations (more people sitting around it will see what is shown on the screen);
6) It's good for everything, not just drawing: it's much better to move your whole arm, anstead of using a mouse or trackball. The screen tablet is a much healthier way of interacting with a computer. And it's designed well enough to make your work easier and quicker.
7) Your friends will like it a lot! Though it should be a very specific device for professionals, an "Interactive Pen Display" is one of those toys that those who are the farest from the computer world will enjoy the most. It's just so natural, and so different from normal pointing devices that it makes the whole experience with your computer a different thing. Plus it's a screen you can put in just about any position, or keep in your lap, unlike other LCD's.
This wasn't a complete review, but just good and bad comments on the Wacom Cintiq 21UX.
I am an industrial design student in Italy, graduating in transportation design. I decided to draw my funds to get one of this babies because it enables me to raise my drawing skills, by much. And because it just looked beautiful in photos.
Now that I have it, I know that I would have been perfectly good with a 18SX, 17SX, or maybe even with the little 15" version.
But boy does it look expensive on my desk, my home is too small for things like this!
Cheers,
Ascanio.
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