Bamboo (Small) Pen Tablet with Pen Only
Review by Frank L. Morales : A no BS review from a graphic artist.

So i recently purchased a Genius tablet which i just returned and decided to purchase a Bamboo tablet instead. Now my goals for using a tablet are simple:

- Learn to use a tablet for graphic designillustration
- Buy something that won't break after 2 weeks
- Buy something that can grow with me for a couple years

This tablet by far exceeds these very simple expectations and then some. I don't care about writing in documents, nor do i care about signatures etc... I care about using a tablet for one reason, drawing. From that point of view here's a list of proscons as they've applied to me:

Bamboo Pros:
- Small foot print absolutely ideal for on the go work or small spaces
- Very sturdy feeling! Genius tablet felt a little flimsy on my lap, this feels rock solid.
- Function keys up top are quite helpful
- Scroll wheel up top is awesome for zooming inout great feature to have on the fly
- Pen holder is helpful so the stylus doesn't get dirtylostdamaged
- Stylus is comfortable to hold and has a slightly "rubber" feel on the outside easy to keep a good grip
- Stylus comes w/ 2 buttons on the side that have assignable functionality
- Eraser on the top allows you to flip over & erase as you would a pencil
- Nib (tip of stylus that touches tablet) is replacable if need be (good since i've heard they can wear down over long periods of time)
- Stylus itself is battery FREE, AND, wireless, doesn't get much better then that
- Software is amazingly easy to install. Plugged in tablet, threw in CD, installed device drivers, didn't even have to reboot to use it. (A+ for Wacom having the easiest to install USB device i've ever owned)
- Easy to understand configuration software makes it very simple to customize the special function settings and stylus buttons.
- Movement is VERY smooth and fluid, i don't see any jitters at all while moving or drawing (and that's going through a USB Hub w/ 3 other devices connected to that
one hub, and a total of 5 other USB devices connected to this computer. All but 2 are currently in use)
- I can easily see this lasting me much longer than through my "beginners" years.
- Very sleek looking. (Lets face it looks go a LONG way w/ product happiness) Even the packaging was sleek, very remniscent of Apples product packaging, which in my experience has been some of the nicest in the industry.

Bamboo Cons:
- Small footprint = small drawing surface. Some may not like the smaller drawing surface! (It truly doesn't feel odd at all especially for a beginner.)
- Although the high gloss finish on top is very nice looking, it gathers dust real quick.
- Pressure sensitivity is only 512 levels it's slightly noticable but for a beginners tablet no worries.
- Eraser not pressure sensitive
- 2 buttons on stylus are VERY sensitive and they don't "click" like you'd expect. Just be careful it's easy to press one and not know it which can be frustrating.

That's basically it. I need it for one purpose, and thus far it's proving to absolutely exceed all expectations for that (and many other) purpose(s). So if anyone is thinking of getting into digital art, or if you're thinking of a gift idea for someone, this is absolutely my recommendation hands down!

Hope it helps,
Frank...

Bamboo (Small) Pen Tablet with Pen Only
Review by Shanshad "shanachie_shadowfax" : The Write Stuff!

I'll be the first to mention that computer toys are not a specialty of mine and I seldom jump for bells and whistles where I don't require them. Given that, I was excited to get the opportunity to work with a tablet device and see how it integrated into my everyday use on the computer. Bamboo's Small pen tablet fit the bill for my needs.

Advantages: The first advantage that comes to mind is size. The overall size of this tablet about the area of a typical mouse pad. This means on a cluttered desk, the entire desk surface does not have to be cleared to use it. The design is appealing and relatively comfortable to use--it can be easily tucked into a corner and looks at home on the desktop. The "pen" pointer comes with a small stand so that it can be kept in reach without risk of it becoming lost or damaged.

Not being a tech otaku of any sort, the installation was very simple and the attachment took merely plugging into the nearest USB port--no extra power cord needed. From there both mouse and tablet could be used interchangeably. Holding the pen point over the tablet surface would bring the cursor under the control of the tablet, placing it back in its holder and moving the mouse would shift it back to mouse control without any hiccups or glitches. Since I do like to work with art on the computer, the tablet was an absolute delight for allowing the more precise control needed to actually sketch images and work on tiny details in the picture. What was clumsy with the computer mouse was world's easier with the tablet. Likewise, certain games lent themselves to the tablet function, although I still like to use the mouse for certain functions. The ability to consistently switch back and forth is very appealing.

Disadvantages: Perhaps one of the biggest disadvantages is that I couldn't fully test the capabilities of this tablet due to the fact I do not have Windows Vista. According to the information provided with this device, it is specifically designed to interact with the new Windows software, so may offer more to a user that has Vista on their PC.

As to the performance of the device itself, overall it worked very well, but I found the cable connection to be loose on the USB connection, which meant jostling the cable at all would result in the device losing power. While inconvenient, it was possible to adjust the connection and the placement of the cable so that it rarely was a problem. The other issue was that while the side button on the pen for the tablet allows the user to utilized it as they might buttons on a mouse, I found my natural grip on the pen tended to hit the button inadvertantly, selecting items and clicking on links I hadn't intended. This is probably something that could be gotten used to with more practice, but is something I have to be aware of when I use the device.

Overall, the downsides are few. The size of this tablet may not work for everyone--especially those who want a larger surface for art or movement--but it's perfect for the average PC user, and a lot of fun to play with! I'm going to enjoy working with Bamboo's tablet in the future and seeing what I can create on my PC.

Happy computing ^_^ Shanshad

Bamboo (Small) Pen Tablet with Pen Only
Review by Y. Tang : You may need just a Bamboo, not a Bamboo Fun

I'm taking personal/family digital photos for 5+ years and using a D-SLR for 4 years. I need a tablet for photo post-processing not digital drawing/painting. I choose Bamboo instead of the Bamboo fun after I made an on-line survey. Bamboo Fun has some bundled softwares such as Adobe Photoshop Elements 5 and Corel Painter Essential 3. Neither is of the most updated version. As I have Nikon Capture NX and Corel Paint Shop Photo Pro X1, I don't need the Elements 5. Also I don't do any digital painting, so Painter Essential 3 has no use for me. Nik Color Efex Pro 2.0 GE bundled with Bamboo Fun actually contains almost no useful filters. It's just a "trial" for Efex Pro 2.0 and 3.0 now. Bamboo fun has a pressure-sensitive eraser while Bamboo's eraser is not pressure sensitive. Bamboo doesn't have some the 3 extral pen nib as the Bamboo Fun has. Bamboo Fun also has a wireless mouse which can be only used on the tablet. This is not a good idea because it competes with the using of the pen. That's the difference between Bamboo and Bamboo Fun. For all other parts, the Bamboo is the same as the Bamboo Fun except the apperance is a little different.

My 4x6 Bamboo works perfectly for my need. I don't find the small size is a problem for me. I do almost blemish-removal and teeth whitening on every photo with Capture NX. The tablet is sensitive and accurate. You can use it after the easy installation without any customizing. But I turned off the functions of the two funtion buntons on the pen because I found that I always touch them unintentionally.

The tablet will not replace a mouse. In fact, I am used to using a mouse for my work. But in some tiny areas, I do prefer to use the accurate Bamboo pen. It doesn't take long to get used to drawing on the tablet with eyes keeping on the computer screens.

There can be a little improvement I think will be valuble and a software update is able to do the improvement. Although I can set the area on computer screen that is corresponding to the tablet area, I do want a setting that the display in the active window is corresponding to the whole area of the tablet.

The Bamboo cost me $60 and a Bamboo would cost $90. You may not need it, but it does provide a lot convenience.

Bamboo (Small) Pen Tablet with Pen Only
Review by William P. Hammond "Webwriter" : Bamboo and OS X Tiger

I owned a 9x12 Wacom and it suddenly shot craps after 9 years. I couldn't afford to replaced it with the current high prices so I bought the Bamboo as a tablet patch until I could afford to buy another 9x12. To my utter surprise the bamboo preforms all the function I used with my old tablet. I have a wireless bluetooth mouse who's batteries went dry and was forced to use the Bamboo as my only input device. Before I could buy batteries I found the Bamboo to be the only input device I need. I have batteries in the mouse but now never use it. The 4 programmable buttons can be configured easily to preform many function. I use the top 2 buttons as the back and forward function for enhanced web browsing. I use the bottom 2 as control Z and reveal desktop. The only problem I encountered was the pressure sensitive function with Photoshop CS2 did not work until I downloaded the latest driver from Wacom's website which updated the supplied driver. Go for it Mac addicts, your going to love it.

Bamboo (Small) Pen Tablet with Pen Only
Review by B. Howard : Professional use possible even at this price

Let me just start by saying that I am not someone who can draw worth a lick. I do not use the pressure sensitivity features at all (when I want to draw a line that is 9px wide, I don't want the option to have it be larger or smaller). However, I do a lot of editing of photos for web pages where I have to clean out the backgrounds. I've been a mouse user all this time and always spent hours upon hours having to retouch mask lines in Photoshop to get it just right.

I came upon this tablet from Wacom and figured for its price, how could I go wrong? The second I installed it... I put away my mouse for good (well almost*). Out of the box, I was amazed at how small yet large this thing really is. It's so thin I actually had it next to my mouse pad and they were even in height off my desk. Yet browsing the screen from edge to edge seems like it would take forever with anything bigger (I'm using a 19" widescreen). Also it's well built and feels like it could actually withstand a fall or two (not recommended of course). The buttons are easy to access while using it with the pen and quite comfortable in conjunction with the touch ring. The buttons on the side of the pen (though easy to hit accidentally until you get used to holding the pen) work well and the default settings of the one closest to the tip being a scroll/pan effect are GREAT!

The first thing I did was install the drivers. They are a must if you want to unlock the customization in the buttons. With it, you can set the 4 buttons to do pretty much anything you want. They can open a program, act as keyboard strokes of combo keys (ctrl + alt + s for example), just about anything you like. Also I went right to wacom's website and downloaded the latest drivers though the one's on the CD weren't all that old. Not a single problem with the install.

Next I jumped right into Photoshop and opened an unedited photo. I zoomed right in with the touchpad and made sure I was so far in that I had to pan the photo to mask the entire object (was using the lasso tool for those familiar with Photoshop). I wanted to see how easy it was to pan while tracing the outer edge of the object. I was amazed to see that not only could I get right up to the edge with little effort, by pressing the button on the pen closest to the tip my cursor changed to the pan (the little hand) and allowed me to move the photo... let go... and keep right on using the lasso tool. I was actually able to trace the entire object in one pass even with all of the panning around. Remember this was my very first time EVER using a graphic tablet to boot. That is how natural this felt. I am also able to sit this right next to my keyboard like my mouse was and keep my left hand on the keyboard for shortcuts while the right is on the pen. It does take a bit to get used to the pen on the screen being exactly where you place it on the tablet, but it's so much more exact then mouse mode (which is an option with the drivers) that it's worth getting used to.

Next I jumped into the internet (using Firefox) to see how it was to browse around. The touch ring is usable for scrolling up and down, but you have to understand it's not going to work like you think at first. In order to use the zoom, you slide your finger around the circle in a clockwise or counter-clockwise motion. However, in order to use the up and down scrolling of the touch ring, you don't slide your finger up and down. You actually just press either the up arrow or the down arrow. Once I figured that out it was easier. But even better I found that you don't even need to use it to scroll. Again the magic scroll/pan button on the pen allows you to press that while touching the pen to the pad. You can then literally drag the page up or down as needed with the pen. That was just too easy and more precise control then even the scroll wheel on my mouse.

*As for that "well almost" from above, the only place that I couldn't use the tablet for and had to switch back to my mouse was for games. Not simple point and click desktop games which it works just fine for, I'm talking about MMORPG's or First-person Shooters, etc. The control just didn't seem to translate. But that hardly scar's my impression of this little gem.

Bottom line (and long rambling post aside) the Bamboo from Wacom has spoiled me for life. I now look upon a computer with only a mouse as pure torture. Of course now my wife wants one too, but at this price... eh why not.

**************
EDIT 9/26/08: Well I broke down and bought my wife one as well. She simply LOVES it. Her mouse has been put away as well. She doesn't do any graphic design or anything that one would normally use a tablet for either. She just loves the control it provides. She is an iPhone user and a long time PDA (with touch screen) user as well, so I think that using a tablet just feels more natural then a mouse does. So ease of use does depend on your background. Still 5 stars all the way... I'm even thinking of getting one for use at work now!