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ndstrenge

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 29, 2008
146
0
Like the title says, I'm looking for one. I know I can order direct, but I'm wondering if anyone has seen any deals, knows of a good site, or maybe wants to sell one. ;)

I'm not married to this particular tablet, but breaking a grand is pretty much out of the question.
 

Jim Campbell

macrumors 6502a
Dec 6, 2006
902
27
A World of my Own; UK
Don't do it. Save the extra and buy the 21". I owned a 12" and ended up eBaying it at a loss, so unsatisfactory was the experience. In particular, I found the pen tracking on to be absolutely atrocious. I may have had a defective unit, but it wouldn't track a straight line even if you drew one with a ruler. Also, it only uses two calibration points where the 21" uses four to track the pen tip.

And, yes, the difference in size is important. The 12" feels like you're viewing the document through a tiny window, whilst the 21" feels much more like a drawing board. I would honestly advise anyone thinking of getting a Cintiq to save up and spend the extra on the 21".

Keep an eye on eBay -- that's where mine came from, and you'd have to pry it from my cold, dead hands to get it away from me.

Cheers

Jim
 

z3r0inc

macrumors regular
Oct 16, 2009
105
0
i have a 12wx also. the issue with the straight line mentioned before can be fixed through brush settings in the appropriate program you're using. it used to drive me nuts when i couldnt draw a straight line but if you adjust jitter settings (at least in photoshop cs4), you can tweak it to your hand movements. im pretty sure if you got one of the more higher models, the problem will stay the same. our hands just dont naturally stay still.

contradicting myself, i recommend the larger models also. the 12wx worked very well for me in the beginning and then i started getting frustrated constantly adjusting the viewable area.
 

Artful Dodger

macrumors 68020
I also have the 12" and I like mine because of the size, it doesn't bother me like it does to some but I always have carried a drawing pad about the same size with me so it's just a personal feel.

As of today I've had mine for about a year and if you can afford it, go for the larger Cintiq if you can. I don't have issues as some have with the 12" but I think it's all about the times they were manufactured, it happens everywhere that one has a bad week(s) with any production not just Wacoms in general.

The better thing about the larger units, the stand is really nice and stays where you need it to stay. The 12" has a floating bar if you will that doesn't lock in certain positions so if you push with your forearm a bit on the side it will slide down a bit. Don't be fooled by the claim of small space with the 12" as it still has full sized cables and a base unit (Wacom seems to not discuss this point).

I'd say if you draw with large strokes then you will want the larger unit, small to medium strokes, the small 12" would be okay but the large gives a more flexible field of drawing, painting and so on. With the 12" I always have my pallets and everything I can over on my 17" MBP's screen, only the canvas stays on the Cintiq. If I had the 21" I would have a few things on the same screen but not many. Now for anything 3D wise, go for the bigger unit. Trying to do things with the 12" in 3D makes life a bit iffy, still doable but you have to make it work, not the other way around :cool:

I got mine for a deal because Amazon had a 6 hour special at the time I was looking and it was only on the 12" so if by chance I didn't like it, not a big deal to send it back or sell it for what I paid and break even. Like I said, I like mine but the 21" would be nicer yet I still get more done with the 12" than with my 9x12 Wacom tablet because drawing on the screen is just nicer and faster for me in the long run.

Good luck and keep an eye out for daily deals. There use to be a site that would notify you if a product you wanted dropped in price because of a sale however I don't remember what it was. I think it was posted somewhere here in MR but mroogle doesn't work for me anymore so the search feature isn't finding it, sorry :eek:

Oh last, check out some drawing stuff on youtube, some folks where a half glove type of sorts so the screen stays clean as your hand rubs across it all the time even if you don't mean for it to. Great idea to preserve the screen in the long run and your hand just glides across like on ice…
 
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