Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad, or Wacom Tablet?

[melbrooke]

I have been using my Macbook on its own for a year and a half, and I decided to start a new work setup, Macbook on a stand with wireless keyboard. At first I thought I should get a Magic Mouse. I'm a graphic designer, I've been using a laptop trackpad for 8 years and while it is sometimes very tedious on applications like Photoshop, I very rarely do use a mouse now. I was thinking Magic Trackpad, but I really want to improve my workflow, so I'm not entirely sure getting a Trackpad is the way to go. Is the Magic Trackpad any better than the regular trackpad already on my laptop? A few years back I started using a tablet as a trackpad, but this was before I had a laptop that had multitouch gestures. I'm also concerned navigating around a 10 inch tablet might be a bit much for regular usage.

Basically, I'm deciding between a Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad and the Wacom Intuos Pen & Touch Tablet. Any thoughts?

Also, if you have any other suggestions for a start up setup, I'd love to know what works for you? Thanks!

 

[Apple fanboy]

Why limit yourself to just one? Lots of people have the Magic Mouse and the trackpad in their set up.
As for the Wacom. Keep that for your graphic design work.

 

[kristenp]

The magic trackpad isn't necessarily any better than the one on your macbook. Its a little bigger surface area to perform your gestures on though if that's important.

 

[mgipe]

This is obviously a matter of personal preference, so here's mine.

With my rMBP, I use a wired keyboard, Magic Trackpad, and Wacom Intuos medium trackpad.

The wired keyboard because it has the numeric keypad, which is essential for anyone who does a lot with numbers.

The Magic Trackpad because it is awesome. It is exactly the right size for precise manipulation without having to overextend. The Multi-touch features work very nicely. The size and design allow placement next to the keyboard with minimum movement to go back and forth.

The Wacom is primarily used for graphics work. No mouse or trackpad can give you the precise control needed for this kind of work. At first, I tried to use the tablet's touch feature for general use, but this didn't work very well for me, and I ended up disabling it and sticking with the Magic Trackpad. Wacom's touch doesn't seem to work exactly the same way as Apple's, so it isn't as natural and instinctive. Even worse, switching between stylus and touch mode is imperfect at best, and you frequently make unintentional touch commands or you need to awkwardly shift the way you hold the stylus when you want to use touch. The size of the tablet is too large for easy movement back and forth from tablet to keyboard -- even if you can fit both side by side on your desk, the keyboard is too far to the left, and the tablet is a long reach to the right. When I need to use the tablet for graphic work, I move the keyboard back and put the tablet in its place alongside the trackpad.

note: I tried the Magic Mouse. Yuck! Worst ergonomics ever unless you have tiny hands.

 

[takeshi74]

Basically, I'm deciding between a Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad and the Wacom Intuos Pen & Touch Tablet. Any thoughts?

What do you prefer? As stated above, the tablet and another pointing device are not mutually exclusive.