Cintiq vs. Tablet Computer

[keac]

I've been planning to get a new hardware for drawing in the future. I've seen a lot of tablet computers like Surface Pro 4, and it has pen features and a detachable keyboard, and other Surface-like products which are cheaper.
I've seen Cintiq, on the other hand, and when I saw the price tag, it's pretty high as fudge. But according to reviews I've seen, the Cintiq's screen has a paper-like feel so that when you draw on it, it feels like you're really drawing on paper.

Now, I don't know which one could be worth it. Since it would be my first time to make digital art directly on the screen, I'm not really sure

[respheal]

I went from a Surface Pro 2 to a Cintiq 15HD and I will admit it is really hard to go back. There's probably some vast improvement with the Surface Pro 4, but...

Surface Pro 2:
- Get a matte screen protector and it'll feel pretty much the same as drawing on a cintiq
-- Actually, just get a screen protector no matter what. Seriously.
- Much smaller size, which is a plus for portability, but man there's just no room for activities.
- Portable! I can draw on the couch or in bed, whereas the cintiq has me tied to a desk.
- Occasionally forgets how to wifi (which is great for avoiding distractions!)
- Wacom drivers didn't work for calibrating, had to stick with default windows drivers, which Photoshop doesn't like.
- SSDs are beautiful and made this thing boot up like a tiny little beast.

Cintiq:
- If you don't want to be tied to a desk, you could get one that comes with its own OS
-- (On a side note, my fiance got one of those and it had soldering problems with the charging cables, so...look up reviews to check for common issues and hold on to that warranty)
- Much better pen pressure detection and more pressure levels
- Bigger screen size and physical programmable buttons
- Only as strong as the computer it's plugged into.

If it's your first time, I'd go for the Surface tbh. It's cheaper and makes for a fine computer on its own that you can also use for non-drawing things.

Edit: Also gonna drop in a recommendation for one of these: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B018DHY4WQ

[NanettesClouds]

I wanna throw in my experience, I use a Surface (not pro) 3 (128gb version) and its pretty rad for drawing. I got it when it was fairly new for $800 (thats including the keyboard and the pen and whatnot). Now you could probably find a used one for $500, which is a quarter of the cost for basically the same functionality as a SP4. The things you're missing out on are a fancy kickstand, a larger screen, abd less pressure sensitivity, which honestly doesnt matter at all unless you're working on large canvases, like 24x17 at 800dpi, which is overkill for most comic stuff. I work on a 11x17 canvas at 350dpi.

Personally, I dont really care about the kickstand, i've used Pro 3's before and thought it was neat but realistically I dont use any of the weird angles you can get. The kickstand on my device is good enough.

I also didn't really care about the larger screen, in fact the smaller screen on the S3 was a big selling point for me, because it makes the device easier to carry around in my bag.

The only reason I would consider upgrading to a SP4 is that it has newer and fancy-er guts, which would be good for doing video editing, detailed 3D rendering, and videogames. I'm not working on video editing stuff any time soon, I dont do any 3D rendering, and I'm fine playing games from 2011 or indie stuff, so yeah.

The newer model of the pen (which works on all surfaces after the SP2) comes with a couple of different nibs that have different textures, the one that I use is just the default one, it feels sorta like using a Nintendo DS stylus. Keep in mind that with any digital drawing device you're going to have to get used to how it feels, wether it has a paper texture or not.

The last thing I would point out about getting a surface tablet is that they're REALLY awkward to get used to in general, not just for drawing. It took me like, two months to get to a point where I was comfortorable using the thing. My girlfriend has to use it sometimes and she absolutely hates it. If you can I would recomend going to a store and getting some hands-on experience with it first just to see if you can stand it. There are still some quirks that I haven't gotten used to, and I've had it for almost a year now.

[Shanny8]

I couldve gotten a Surface this year(they had on sale for $600 at Best Buy on Black Friday) but I needed a new laptop. Gonna hold off til next year to see if I can invest in a Surface, coz I really do want to carry my work everywhere without having to lug around a heavy ass laptop(though this new laptop is bigger than my old one, but lighter).

[keac]

The only problem with Surface is that they don't sell it in many countries, including mine

[serenitysquirrel]

I have a 19" Yiynova tablet monitor and a Surface Pro 4 M3 and love both! They also cost me about the same, though the Yiyinova may be a little cheaper than the surface now that Black Friday is over.

The yiyinova is sturdy and big and works wonderfully, at a professional level.

The Surface is smooth and can even run things like Skyrim and WoW

[DMBrigman]

I have a Cintiq Companion which is the portable tablet version of the Cintiq monitor. I have had mine for two years this Christmas, and it is where I do all of my creative work. I really enjoy the portability of it and I get good results. I have often hooked up a second monitor, mouse, and keyboard for some projects and it seems to handle heavy lifting.

Prior to that I had an HP touchscreen convertible laptop, and that worked well. Ultimately, you will have a learning curve with any new hardware and end up getting used to it. When I switched from my HP to the Cintiq I initially regretted it because things felt different, but now I can't imagine going back. I would suggest coming up with a list of features that are important to you. Portability? Number of Ports? OS? and seeing what fits your needs. If this is your first foray into a tablet computer you might want something you can use for regular internet use. I have heard great reviews of the Surface from other artists.

[keac]

Yes, Surface is really good! And again, the only problem is that they don't sell it in many countries like mine.