Switching from slate-style tablet to screen-style tablet

[ninjashira]

So I landed a couple pretty solid freelance comic gigs and my husband says I should Treat Myself and get a fancy new screen tablet like a Cintiq... Has anyone here ever switched from a slate-style tablet to a screen-style tablet? Did it improve your workflow? Do you think it's worth it?

My concern is that I've been using the slate-style tablets for almost twenty years, and I worry that switching might actually slow me down because I'm so used to my current workflow.

[Shadowofdeath]

i would say yes it is better but at the end of the day its a personal preference bc. screen tablets are great but you have to make sure your computer has the correct type of graphics in order for you to have a smooth experience. if you dont mind me asking what type of computer or laptop do you have so i can better answer your question

[ninjashira]

I've got a pretty solid Windows desktop PC. It's not like top of the line or anything, but it's got a 3.6GHz AMD Ryzen six-core processor and currently 16GB of RAM (though I'll be upgrading that to 32GB soon because it needs it).

[Shadowofdeath]

thanks yeah i would just make sure your graphic card can handle 4k resolution bc the wacom cintiq pro line have 4k screens. Also Huion is getting ready to lunch their Kanvas 24 pro 4k i would recommend that over the Cintiq so you can save some money but still have excellent performance.

Amazon.com: HUION Kamvas Pro 24 4K UHD Graphics Drawing Tablet with Full-Laminated Screen Anti-Glare Glass 140% sRGB - Battery-Free Stylus 8192 Pen Pressure and KD100 Wireless Express Key, 23.8 Inch Black: Electronics

[sorible]

By slate style, are you talking about a tablet without a screen like an intuos?

[ninjashira]

Correct! I've had an Intuos (or similar) for ages and I'm really comfortable with it, but I have the option to get a screen tablet, and I'm just curious about other people's experience switching from a screenless tablet to a screen tablet

[sorible]

I've tried a few different tablets to see what I liked better, and one of the biggest differences I noticed with a Cintiq and an intuos is the disconnect I felt between what I was drawing on the screen and my hand. Kind of like when you start playing piano and you have to look away from the keys to read the sheet music.

This is just from my experience, and I only used my intuos for about two years before giving it away. For context, I had an intuos M and Cintiq 16.

Summary

Intuos-
‎
Pros:
- Small, light, and portable with less clutter
- Hotkeys
- Cheaper (Mine was on sale for about $60 USD)
- Can use any size monitor
‎
Cons:
- That weird disconnect
- Pen was uncomfortable after a few hours straight, I'm not sure if you could buy a better one but I was too cheap to buy one anyway
- The pen didn't fit in the sleeve that well, and I kept losing it, so I had to keep it with the rest of my pencils
- Pen has no eraser end. It sounds minor but it's more convenient just to flip the stylus
- Occasionally the cursor would bug out and I would have to recalibrate it
‎
Cintiq-
‎
Pros:
- More like drawing on paper, so lineart was much cleaner and smoother
- Bigger screen, more space to work on
- The color display is better than my monitor, so I don't have to constantly keep back and forth checking the color
- Cintiq pro comes with pro pen 2 or higher, which is tilt/pressure sensitive and more comfortable for long term drawing
‎
Cons:
- It's heavy and hard to store if you have a small living space, definitely wouldn't recommend if you need to move around with it a lot
- Lots of cables and adaptors, especially if your computer doesn't already have a hdmi port like my old computer
- No hotkeys. I used my keyboard so it wasn't a big issue for me though. If hotkeys are important, then a Huion kamvas might be better, or I think the newer Cintiq's have a remote?
- Can't adjust the angle, so I ended up buying a stand (I use it for my laptop too )
- expensive I had to save for a while to buy it
‎
Overall, I love my tablet but it's not for everyone. I've used XP-Pen and Huion tablets and I can say those are just as decent.

[rajillustration]

Yo this is also my fear with switching to a screen tablet. My intuos is like an extension of my arm at this point and I never liked screen tablets at school. But, I've heard that using an Ipad is a good in between, and does way more for about the same cost (or less.) Only problem is there aren't as many art programs on it as a desktop, and the fact it doesn't have a good Photoshop is why I'm still Intuosing.