Wacom Alternatives – Intuos Alternatives

This list was last updated: May. 07, 2021

Table of Contents

*You can use the links here to jump to any section.
**You can click the title of any section to be sent back to the Table of Contents immediately.

Information and Suggestions Section

Tablet Brands and Their Products

Miscellaneous

Foreword

Please note: This post only covers graphic tablets, the ones without screens.
For drawing monitors (the ones with screens that need to be connected to a separate computer to work), check this post: Wacom Alternatives – Cintiq Alternatives
If you are looking for Android/Apple tablets like the iPad Pro or 2-in-1 laptops like the Microsoft Surface Pro, you will have to look elsewhere. (Like here: http://www.parkablogs.com/tags/drawing-tablet-reviews)

This post is intended as a “first look” type of list. 
This is NOT an in-depth review of every tablet. This post aims to show you your current tablet options and only lists products that companies still advertise. In other words, if the company has stopped advertising a product on their main site, I probably won’t have it listed here! For example, tablets like the Wacom Intuos Pen and Touch version, or the Wacom Bamboo series which is not listed on the US Wacom site but still obtainable through places such as Amazon.com will not be listed in this post.

Originally, I created this list because searching “Wacom alternatives” on Google would only net you search results of “Top 10 Wacom Alternatives!” lists with completely outdated tablets (half of which aren’t even available anymore *cough designmodo.com and wacomalternatives.com cough*). I personally don’t like the top 10 approach because it’s always based on the opinions of the writer who usually value features different than the reader, so I instead opted for a “here are all the options, research the ones that catch your eye” approach.

I have some a relatively large amount of personal experience with Wacom and the alternatives, and I want everyone to know that the Wacom alternatives are completely usable and are in no way incomparable to Wacom products. Rumours about customer service being horrible are also just rumours. I have not had bad experiences with Huion, XP-Pen, Parblo, Artisul, and GAOMON’s customer services myself. However, if you buy from some really hidden and shady company that I don’t even mention here, then don’t come back and tell me I lied about the customer service being acceptable..
If you put in the time and effort to find the right one for you, you could end up saving a fair bit of money.

Anyways, it’s a long read but I hope it’s at least somewhat informative for my fellow artists looking to buy new tablets! Please spread this to all your art friends as well!
*Also, if you’re too lazy to read and consider your choices, just buy a Wacom. I don’t intend to entertain people who aren’t interested in saving money.

Things to note before you read my journal

(!!!Make sure to read these so you know you’re not going to end up wasting your time reading my journal!!!)

First, I want to start off with a few definitions so that you don’t get confused when I use words different from what you usually use.
-Pen Tablets – This is the name which is used for tablets that don’t have a built-in screen. It is also sometimes referred to as a drawing tablet, screen-less tablet, graphic tablet, slate tablet, etc. I usually refer to it as a Graphic Tablet whenever I’m talking about it in this journal.
-Drawing Monitors – This is the name I will use for tablets that have built-in screens and need to be plugged into a separate desktop or laptop to work. It is sometimes called a pen monitor, pen display, tablet monitor, etc, but I will be referring to it as a Drawing Monitor in this journal.
-Pen Computers – This is the name used for tablets that have a built-in screen and are a standalone computer. In other words, they don’t have to be plugged into your desktop or laptop to work, they work just on their own. I haven’t researched these that much so I have them excluded from this post.
-Pen Types – There are currently 3 pen types which companies use for their tablets: Alkaline, recharging, and battery-free. Alkaline pens use alkaline batteries to power them. Recharging pens use a separate cable to replenish their charge and do not require buying separate batteries like an alkaline pen. Battery-free refers to the pens which do not require any sort of charging for them to work with their tablet, the best examples being any of Wacom’s pens.
-Active Area – This is the area where the tablet senses pen inputs. The easiest way to think of active area is; the bigger it is, the more control you have over your lines. With that said, if you draw long enough on a tablet you can get used to its active area size no matter how big or small it is.
Active area is usually given in inches so I have them all written down in inches. *Active area is always an approximation when given in inches.
-Expresskeys – These are the buttons usually found on the side of tablets for custom shortcuts and such.
-Multi-touch – This is the term used for the finger touch function. If a tablet supports multi-touch, then it supports touch actions like pinching/panning which you commonly see on devices such as a phone.
-Parallax – This only applies to drawing monitors and it is used to describe the thickness of the glass between the screen and your pen. If you look at the screen from the side, you might be able to see a noticeable distance between the pen and the cursor on the screen. That is the parallax.

Second, here are a bunch of assumptions that I make.

  • I assume that you use a Windows system such as Windows 8/8.1/10. Most tablets will support Windows and Mac, but not all do. I haven’t gone to check each tablet and whether it does, so those people will have to do a bit more research. Linux and Ubuntu people as well.
  • I assume every product has at least a 1 year warranty, but make sure you check about that before you purchase anything.
  • I assume you live in North America. All the prices for the products being sold on Amazon are taken from Amazon.com, the US version of Amazon. I have no way of knowing if they offer those same products outside of the US and I am sorry if they are not offered at the same price in your region.
  • I assume the tablets work with most programs, but I only use Clip Studio Paint so I cannot guarantee you anything. Make sure you check reviews if you use other programs which may not be supported. Always ask the tablet company directly about compatibility if you are unsure.

And lastly, here are the specs that I think are important while leaving out the rest that are unnecessary and not part of the “deal breakers”.
*This is also the order in which I list them under each product.
Tablet Specifications:
-Price
Price usually depends on the amount of features and the level of the specs.
I will only write down the “base” price from Amazon.com, ignoring sales.
-Active Area
I consider around 8 x 5 inches or 10 x 6 inches to be the “best” size for graphic tablets, and 15.6-inches the “ideal” size for drawing monitors. However, that is personal preference and you may prefer other sizes.
-Resolution (of the screen) (Only applies to drawing monitors)
HD (High Definition) is 1280×720 pixels, FHD (Full High Definition) is 1920×1080 pixels, QHD (Quad High Definition) is 2560×1440 pixels, and UHD (Ultra High Definition) is 3840×2160 pixels resolution aka 4K resolution.
I consider acceptable resolution 1920x1080p for 15.6-inche or smaller drawing mintors, and at least 2560x1440p or more for larger displays.
-Display Type (of the screen) (Only applies to drawing monitors)
I simplify display types into two types of TFT LCDs (Thin-Film-Transistor Liquid-Crystal Displays) for drawing monitors: TN and IPS.
TN displays have faster response times, but have very bad viewing angles causing screen colours to look different from different angles. However, TN displays are much easier to manufacture, causing them to be much cheaper than IPS displays. TN displays are more meant for gaming where fast response times are key and colour reproduction is not as important.
IPS displays have slower response times than a TN display, but allows you to view the same colours from basically all angles. An IPS display is the better choice for a drawing monitor because of the importance of proper colour reproduction in art. Better versions of IPS include: S-IPS, AS-IPS, E-IPS, H-IPS, P-IPS. I will list the version (if given) under each drawing monitor, but I will not be detailing what the differences are in this journal. Please look them up yourself if you’re curious!
Pen Specifications:
-Pen Type (Alkaline/Recharging/Battery-free)
Alkaline pens are less than ideal in my eyes, but that is personal preference. Only alkaline pens can offer pen weight which recharging and passive pens cannot.
Recharging pens are not ideal, but they are not a problem either as they last a relatively long time on one charge. The majority last at least a week on a single charge, and Huion’s pens last 800 hours (33 days) on a single charge. The con about recharging pens is that their batteries will degrade after 3-5 years of usage like a phone battery would. However, I feel that buying a replacement pen (~20 USD) is a justifiable cost after 3-5 years of usage.
Battery-free pens are the ideal because they require no maintenance such as recharging, but they are very light and people who wish for pen weight will not like them.
-Pen Buttons
Basically all tablet pens have 2 buttons on the side. Most non-Wacom pens do not have an eraser on the end.
*I personally believe that the eraser on the end is unnecessary because it’s a hassle to flip the pen every time to use it instead of just clicking the E key.
-Pen Pressure
I consider 2048 the standard, but most claim to have 8192 at present. Most people cannot feel or see the differences between pen pressures above 1024 though so keep that in mind.
Extra Features:
-Pen Tilt/(Direction)/Rotation Sensitivity
Pen tilt and direction almost always come as a set, which is why direction is in brackets. The tilt reads the angle of the pen, and the direction reads which cardinal direction the pen is tilted. Pen rotation reads the rotation of the pen barrel itself. As far as I have seen, only Wacom has pen rotation (separate pen needed to be purchased for rotation).
-Shortcut Keys
I’m not the type to use the shortcut keys on my tablets, but many people need them, so how many shortcut keys there are on the tablet is listed. They are convenient when designed well, but most tablets have uncomfortable layouts or not enough shortcut keys.
-Multi-touch
If a tablet has multi-touch, it is noted as such. Most graphic tablets and drawing monitors do not have this feature. It is more common in pricey pen computer devices.

*I’m leaving out Program Compatibility because there are far too many programs to cover. Most “major” programs are said to work, but check with the company to make sure beforehand.

(Just to make it clear, this journal is made from my own experience and opinions, and although I do try to make sure I look at everything from many different views, I’m mostly biased towards the usefulness of the tablets with regards to anime style drawing in Clip Studio Paint.)

Why I do not recommend the Wacom Intuos

March 6, 2018 update!
There is now a new Wacom Intuos (CTL4100) series which is replacing the previous Wacom Intuos (CTL-490) series. It is not an upgrade of the previous version. It is basically just a refresh.

Read why I think the Wacom Intuos isn’t worth your money here: Why I do not recommend the Wacom Intuos

All tablet brands (that I have found)

Here is a list of all the brands I have found which sell tablets just in case you want to do your own research on them:
-Wacom
-Huion
-XP-Pen
-GAOMON
-Xencelabs

-Yiynova *only offers drawing monitors

The following companies are separate because they were confusing, had bad reviews, or had some other reason which made them not worth considering.
Monoprice has a few tablets, but they are not a tablet specific company so their software can have many issues. The biggest problem is that they haven’t updated their drivers since 2013.
Turcom has options, but they are also not a tablet specific company so their products and drivers may not be as advanced. I don’t think they are worth considering compared to the other companies.
Fex Technology has bad reviews about its customer service, has basically no products, and they were so obscure it was really hard finding any information on them.
Adesso is overpriced for no apparent reason. They have a XP-Pen Star 03 look-alike which costs 50 USD more and their 22-inch drawing monitor costs way more than the other alternatives.
Bosstouch has some tablets that could be worth looking into, but there are far too few reviews to figure out whether they are trustworthy or not. You can also tell that their tablets are just rebrands of the tablets offered by Huion and XP-Pen, and the only difference is that the recharging pen is different.
PenPower offers some graphic tablets that seem good, but their prices are too high compared to the alternatives which are just as good in terms of specs. Perhaps their prices are lower in Asia.
Trust offers two graphic tablets and no drawing monitors. Both their tablets use battery powered pens. I do not think they are particularly worth mentioning.
iBall is a non-tablet specific company which only has old battery-powered pen tablets. Their site also does not list their prices. I do not think they are worth mentioning as tablet specific companies are most likely better in both tablet hardware and software.
Acepen is a very obscure tablet specific company which has no company site as far as I know of. This means that you have no access to updated drivers. The simple fact that you will not be able to get driver updates when Windows inevitably ruins WinTab functionality with feature updates is reason enough for me to keep Acepen off this list. (Edit: They now have a website, but the fact that they were selling products without a site is a problem. I will consider including them in the future when they solidify themselves as a trustworthy company.)
Bosto is a rather… interesting company. They were one of the better alternatives in the past, but they appear to have stagnated since. It is very difficult to find places to buy their tablets legitimately aside from on their site, and it appears frauds of their devices appear frequently online. I will be removing them from this list until they do something noteworthy.
Ugee was a fairly competitive company until the start of 2018. Now they are inactive in the North American market which is why they were removed from this list. They are currently working with XP-Pen.
Artisul was a somewhat competitive company, but issues with their tablets and drivers caused people to turn away from them at one point. Although they have released some new tablets, it is relatively unknown how good their new devices and drivers are with so little coverage to go off of.
Parblo is a relatively enthusiastic company, but their drivers and quality control have been lacking when I have tried their tablets. I will need to revisit their products in the future to see if they have improved enough to still be considered.
VEIKK appears to be a somewhat competent company if you go off of their high star ratings on Amazon, but my experience with the A50 was quite disappointing and I do not imagine their other products are much better. With that said, I need to revisit their products in the future to see if my experience was a one-time thing, but for now they are not included in this list.

Other art tablets/computers which I did not include in this journal:
-Microsoft Surface series
-Dell Canvas
-iPad Pro

My personal suggestions

These are just the tablets that I personally think are the most worthwhile Wacom alternative options in each category. I chose these based on value per dollar (compared to all other available tablets), how “new” they are (which means longer driver updates and support), and uniqueness of the tablet.
*I put (My review) beside the tablets that I actually own and drew on, the rest are my recommendations based on specs and other reviews. Aside from that, they’re in no particular order.
**If you need both pen rotation or multi-touch, to Wacom you go.
***If you know a good reason to take a tablet off this list, please inform me!

For Graphic Tablets, I recommend looking at:
-Huion H640P (My review)
-Huion H950P (My review)
-Huion H1060P (My review)
-Huion H1161
-Huion HS611
-Huion Keydial KD200
-XP-Pen Star G640 (My review)
-XP-Pen Star G640S
-XP-Pen Deco 03 (My review)
-XP-Pen Deco Pro S/M (My review)
–XP-Pen Deco Fun S/L
-Xencelabs Pen Tablet Medium

For Drawing Monitors, I recommend looking at:
-Wacom One
-Wacom Cintiq 16
-Huion Kamvas 12/13/16
-Huion Kamvas Pro 12
-Huion Kamvas Pro 13 (My review)
-Huion Kamvas Pro 16 (My review)
-Huion Kamvas 22 Plus
-XP-Pen Artist 13.3 Pro
-XP-Pen Artist 15.6 Pro (My review)
-XP-Pen Innovator 16
-XP-Pen Artist 22R Pro
-XP-Pen Artist 22 (2nd Generation)
-GAOMON PD1560

For Pen Computers, look at:
-2-in-1 computers and laptops. There’s no need to stick to Wacom for this kind of thing if you’re looking for a pen computer.
Recently, there have been a lot of computers coming out with pen input as a feature. The Microsoft Surface Pro, for instance, has a lot of good reviews. Well, I don’t have much research done on pen computers so you’re on your own for that.
*My personal experience with a Surface Pro 3 is that it has a ridiculously small amount of parallax, so the Microsoft Surface stuff is surely something worth looking at (but I absolutely hate the pen pressure of the Surface pen).

Wacom

Their Site: http://www.wacom.com/en-at
Their Store: Accessible from their site.
Driver Download Page: http://www.wacom.com/en/support/product-support/drivers
*But buy their products from your regions Amazon.com because Amazon has more sales than the main Wacom site.

Wacom is the leader in terms of graphic tablets and drawing monitors, so much so that we call any alternatives “Wacom alternatives”, but as you might already know, the prices they charge for their products are pretty high. I personally think that most people should not consider Wacom for their beginner tablets, and should only consider them for future “upgrades” to a Cintiq. However, even for future “upgrades”, people should only consider Wacom if they absolutely need the features offered exclusively by Wacom (such as multi-touch, pen tilt, and pen rotation).

Personal Notes
-If you do not absolutely need multi-touch/pen tilt/pen rotation on your tablet, then I suggest you avoid Wacom.
-They are the most secure when it comes to software compatibility, meaning that any program which has pen pressure should work with it. Alternative tablets work with most “major” programs, but if you know you use a “minor” program, you may want to consider Wacom.
-The majority of the time when I visit it, Wacom’s site is such a tragedy. Links that lead to nowhere, pages that don’t load, store links sending me from the NA site to the EU store… It’s horrendous, really. I honestly can’t believe this is the site for the leading tablet company.

Is Wacom worth looking at for graphic tablets?
-No, I don’t think their graphic tablets are worth it for their small active area sizes.

Wacom Graphic Tablets

-One by Wacom Series-

The One by Wacom is the most accessible graphic tablet available from Wacom. It directly competes with the Wacom Intuos, although my own opinion is that the One by Wacom makes the Wacom Intuos obsolete because it has everything necessary for art for a lower price.
Personally, I think the only reasons why you would pick the Wacom Intuos over the One by Wacom would be because of availability in your region, the included programs, or the Bluetooth feature.
*The One by Wacom was not on this list previously because it was only available in Asia before.

-One by Wacom (Size options: Small (CTL472), Medium (CTL672))
Price: 59.95 USD (Small) Amazon.com
129.99 USD (Medium) Amazon.com (Unavailable when last checked)
Active Area: 6.0 x 3.7 inches (Small)
8.5 x 5.3 inches (Medium)
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 2048
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: None
Multi-touch: No

-Wacom Intuos Series-

The Wacom Intuos series of graphic tablets is meant to be cheap and accessible for beginners. Arguably, the price is actually kind of high for the small drawing area it offers, but the price may take into account bundled drawing programs. If you don’t need any bundled drawing programs, you may want to consider Wacom alternatives where that extra money goes into the tablet itself, rather than on bundled programs you won’t use.

There have been 3 versions of Wacom Intuos up to this date which should NOT be mistaken with one another.
–CTL-480/CTH-480/CTH-680 version: This is the earliest version with a silver and black design and a rubber grip pen. Loved by all who bought it.
–CTL-490/CTH-490/CTH-690 version: This is the second version with many colour variations around a black drawing area and a black plastic stick for a pen. The cheap plastic stick pen made it debatable whether its higher price was worth it or not. It was a clear downgrade from the previous version.
–CTL4100/CTL4100WL/CTL6100WL version: This is the newest version which comes in black or pistachio colours and has a rubber grip pen. The rubber grip pen is the exact same shape as the previous plastic pen, but it has a hard rubber grip now. It’s more of a refresh of the previous version than an upgrade.

***I do not recommend buying the Wacom Intuos. Refer to the section near the top of this post about why if you haven’t already.***

-Wacom Intuos 2018 without Bluetooth (Size options: Small (CTL4100))
(My review: Wacom Intuos 2018 Review)
*Comes with Corel Painter Essentials 6 (value of 50 USD) and Corel AfterShot 3 (price unavailable, estimated value of 20 USD).
**You can only redeem 1 program. (US Amazon offers all 3 programs.)
Price: 79.95 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 6.0 x 3.7 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 4096
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 4 buttons
Multi-touch: No

-Wacom Intuos 2018 with Bluetooth (Size options: Small (CTL4100WL), medium (CTL6100WL))
*Comes with Corel Painter Essentials 6 (value of 50 USD), Corel AfterShot 3 (price unavailable, estimated value of 20 USD), and 2 year Clip Studio Paint Pro (value of 50 USD for a full license). Clip Studio Paint Pro downgrades to Clip Studio Paint Debut at the end of the 2 year license.
**You can only redeem 2 programs with the small version (US Amazon offers all 3 programs), and all 3 with the medium version.
Price: 99.95 USD (Small) Amazon.com (Black) Amazon.com (Pistachio)
199.95 USD (Medium) Amazon.com (Black) Amazon.com (Pistachio)
Active Area: 6.0 x 3.7 inches (Small)
8.5 x 5.3 inches (Medium)
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 4096
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 4 buttons, bluetooth button
Multi-touch: No
Other features: Bluetooth wireless

-Wacom Intuos Pro-

This tablet replaced the Intuos Pro Pen & Touch which was the previous Intuos Pro. It’s basically a beefed up version of the previous Intuos Pro Pen & Touch. The tablet surface is also replaceable so you can swap it out once it gets rubbed off, but it’ll probably eat through your pen nibs like no tomorrow if you do that.
There is also the option to get a specialized inking feature for people who wish they could ink on paper and have that transfer over to digital (costs an extra 50 USD), but you’ll have to read about that yourself on the Wacom site if you’re interested in that feature.
I suggest not buying this unless you need the pen rotation (requires separate pen purchase for rotation) which no other graphic tablet currently offers.

-Wacom Intuos Pro (Size options: Small, medium, large)
(My review: Wacom Intuos Pro M 2017 Review)
Price: 249.95 USD (Small) Amazon.com
379.95 USD (Medium) Amazon.com
499.95 USD (Large) Amazon.com
Active Area: 6.3 x 3.9 inches (Small)
8.7 x 5.8 inches (Medium)
12.1 x 8.4 inches (Large)
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, eraser on end
Pen Pressure: 8192, both pen tip and eraser
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 levels
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons, 1 Touch ring
Multi-touch: Yes
Other features: Bluetooth wireless, pen rotation (buy separate 100 USD pen)

Huion

Their Site: http://www.huion.com/
Their Store: https://www.huiontablet.com/
Their Amazon Store: https://www.amazon.com/s?marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&me=A30BRCK3LE6SB5&merchant=A30BRCK3LE6SB5&redirect=true
Driver Download Page: http://www.huion.com/download/driver/
*Note: The prices on Amazon are often lower than the prices they have listed on their main site, so I suggest buying from Amazon when ordering one of their tablets. The shipping speeds and return policy are also better on Amazon. I use the Amazon prices instead of the prices listed on their main site here wherever I find that it is lower.

Huion is one of the names you hear the most often when people talk about Wacom alternatives, and they have really come a long way over the last couple of years with the quality of their products. They used to only offer tablets which use recharging pens, but now they have quite a large selection of tablets which use battery-free pens instead.
Honestly, the success of Huion could be one of the main reasons why Wacom had to finally release a Cintiq with a much more affordable price.
If you want a good tablet, I can wholeheartedly recommend checking out Huion. (Check lots of reviews though because some of their products aren’t as good as the others.)

Personal Notes
-Huion is a fairly established company now, so they are quite trustworthy.
-Their older graphic tablets have lower build quality than their newer ones. To list most of them, I suggest avoiding their Huion 420, H420, 580, 680S, 680TF, H610, and H610 Pro as they are built to a lower standard than their more recent tablets.
-Their older monitors are cheaper because they use TN screens which are not ideal for art and colour reproduction. For this reason, I suggest avoiding their Huion GT-190, GT-190S, and GT-185SD.
-I have heard that the Huion GT-156HD v2 and Huion GT-191 often has problems with PaintTool SAI, but only SAI. There are also cases with Nvidia drivers messing up resolutions. Aside from those, I have not heard of any other “common” problems.

Is Huion worth looking at for graphic tablets?
-Yes. However, their older tablets should be avoided.

Huion Graphic Tablets

There are series to classify their tablets by, but I find it easier to sort them by their sizes.
The prices of their tablets are mainly decided by the type of pen the tablet uses, the size of the tablet, extra functionalities such as expresskeys, and then any other extra features.
*I excluded the 4 x 2.23 inch pen tablets because I believe that size is much too small for anybody to comfortably draw on.
**It’s hard to keep up with which tablets have Android compatibility, so my “extra features” does not reflect that feature properly.

-6 x 4 inch Graphic Tablets-

-Huion Inspiroy H640P
(My review: Huion H640P ReReview 2019)
Price: 39.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 6.3 x 3.9 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 6 buttons
Multi-touch: No

-Huion Inspiroy HS64
Price: 39.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 6.3 x 4.0 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 4 buttons
Multi-touch: No

-8 x 5 inch Graphic Tablets-

-Huion Inspiroy H950P
(My review: Huion Inspiroy H950P Review)
Price: 69.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 8.7 x 5.4 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: No

-Huion Inspiroy Ink H320M
Price: 79.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 9 x 5.625 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 11 buttons
Multi-touch: No
Other features: Android compatibility (OTG adapters included), digital chalkboard on back of tablet.

-Huion Inspiroy Keydial KD200
Price: 249.00 USD Huion Store
Active Area: 8.9 x 5.6 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 5 programmable keys, 23 standard keyboard keys, 1 dial
Multi-touch: No
Other features: Wireless via USB dongle or Bluetooth 5.0.

-Huion Inspiroy H580X
Price: 74.99 USD Huion Store (Pre-sale)
Active Area: 8 x 5 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: No

-10 x 6.25 inch Graphic Tablets-

-Huion H610PRO V2
Price: 49.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons, 16 soft keys
Multi-touch: No

-Huion NEW 1060 PLUS (8192)
Price: 66.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Recharging
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 12 buttons, 16 soft keys
Multi-touch: No

-Huion Inspiroy H1060P
(My review: Huion Inspiroy H1060P Review)
Price: 82.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 12 buttons, 16 soft keys
Multi-touch: No

-Huion Inspiroy HS610
Price: 69.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 12 buttons, 1 touch wheel, 16 soft keys
Multi-touch: No

-Huion Inspiroy HS611 (Colour options: Coral Red, Starry Blue, Space Grey)
Price: 79.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 10 buttons, 1 touch strip, 8 multimedia keys
Multi-touch: No

-Huion Inspiroy Dial Q620M
Price: 109.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10.5 x 6.56 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons, 1 physical wheel
Multi-touch: No
Other features: Wireless via USB dongle.

-Huion Inspiroy H610X
Price: 99.00 USD Huion Store (Pre-sale)
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: No

-11 x 7 inch Graphic Tablets-

-Huion INSPIROY Q11K
(My review: Huion Inspiroy Q11K Review)
Price: 89.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 11 x 6.875 inches
Pen Type: Recharging
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: No
Other features: Wireless via USB dongle.

-Huion INSPIROY Q11K V2
Price: 143.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 11 x 6.875 inches
Pen Type: Passive
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: No
Other features: Wireless

-Huion H1161
Price: 89.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 11 x 6.875 inches
Pen Type: Passive
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 10 buttons, 1 touch strip, 16 soft keys
Multi-touch: No

-13.8 x 8.6 inch Graphic Tablets-

-Huion WH1409 V2
Price: 182.00 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 13.8 x 8.6 inches
Pen Type: Passive
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 12 buttons
Multi-touch: No

XP-Pen

Their Site: http://www.xp-pen.com/
Their Store: http://www.storexppen.com/
Their Amazon Store: https://www.amazon.com/s?marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&me=AABH22FTN87KM&merchant=AABH22FTN87KM&redirect=true
Driver Download Page: http://www.xp-pen.com/download/index.html

XP-Pen is an artist specific company which only makes artist supplies such as tablets and light pads. They are also one of the companies most mentioned when speaking about an alternative to Wacom.

Personal Notes
-XP-Pen is fairly established company alongside Huion, so they are quite trustworthy.
-XP-Pen is currently the only company which offers company-developed Linux drivers (still in beta testing). Wacom’s Linux drivers are community-developed, and are not actually official drivers, so XP-Pen is the first to do this.

Is XP-Pen worth looking at for graphic tablets?
-Yes.

XP-Pen Graphic Tablets

-XP-Pen Star 06
Price: 85.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 6 buttons, 1 spin wheel
Multi-touch: No
Other features: Wireless

-XP-Pen Star G640
(My review: XP-Pen Star G640 Review)
Price: 39.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 6 x 4 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: None
Multi-touch: None

-XP-Pen Star G640S
Price: 39.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 6 x 3.75 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 6 buttons
Multi-touch: None
Other features: Android Compatible with OTG Adapter

-XP-Pen Star G960S
Price: 69.99 USD XP-Pen Store
Active Area: 9 x 6 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 1 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 4 buttons
Multi-touch: None

-XP-Pen Star G960S Plus
Price: 79.99 USD XP-Pen Store
Active Area: 9 x 6 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 1 side buttons, eraser on end
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, levels unspecified
Shortcut Keys: 4 buttons
Multi-touch: None

-XP-Pen Deco 01 V2
*Uses nicer and better pen than V1.
Price: 69.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: None

-XP-Pen Deco 03
(My review: XP-Pen Deco 03 Review)
Price: 109.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 5.62 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 6 buttons, 1 spin wheel
Multi-touch: None
Other features: Wireless

-XP-Pen Deco 02
Price: 79.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 5.63 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 1 side button, eraser on end
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 6 buttons, 1 roller wheel
Multi-touch: None

-XP-Pen Deco Pro (Size options: Small, Medium)
(My review: XP-Pen Deco Pro Small Review)
Price: 99.99 USD (Small) Amazon.com
129.99 USD (Medium) Amazon.com
Active Area: 9 x 5 inches (Small)
11 x 6 inches (Medium)
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, levels unspecified
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons, 1 physical wheel, 1 touch wheel
Multi-touch: None
Other features: Android Compatible with OTG Adapter

-XP-Pen Deco Mini 7
Price: 49.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 7 x 4.37 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side button, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: None
Other features: Wireless version available called Deco Mini 7W via USB dongle

-XP-Pen Deco Fun (Size options: S, L)
Price: 39.99 USD (S) XP-Pen Store (Pre-sale)
49.99 USD (L) XP-Pen Store (Pre-sale)
Active Area: 6.3 x 4 inches (S)
10 x 6.27 inches (L)
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side button, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons
Multi-touch: None

GAOMON

Their Site: http://gaomon.net/
Their Amazon Store: https://www.amazon.com/s?marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER&me=A25R223IRQIN3O&merchant=A25R223IRQIN3O&redirect=true
Driver Download Page: http://www.gaomon.net/download/

GAOMON is a fairly new competitor in the tablet market, but they received very good reactions to their tablets which make them worth considering to a certain extent.

Personal Notes
-They are quite active on social media, and I believe the GAOMON PD1560 was quite a successful product.

Is GAOMON worth looking at for graphic tablets?
-Maybe.

GAOMON Graphic Tablets

-GAOMON M106K
Price: 59.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Recharging
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 2048
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 12 buttons, 16 soft keys
Multi-touch: No

-GAOMON M10K 2018
Price: 75.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 1 side button, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 10 buttons, 1 touch ring
Multi-touch: No

-GAOMON M10K Pro
Price: 78.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 10 buttons, 1 touch ring
Multi-touch: No

-GAOMON M1220
Price: 89.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 8 buttons, 1 touch ring, 13 multimedia touch buttons
Multi-touch: No

-GAOMON M1230
Price: 69.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10 x 6.25 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: Yes, +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 13 buttons, 16 multimedia touch buttons
Multi-touch: No

-GAOMON S620
Price: 39.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 6.5 x 4.0 inches
Pen Type: Battery-free
Pen Buttons: 2 side buttons, no eraser
Pen Pressure: 8192
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: None
Shortcut Keys: 4 buttons
Multi-touch: No

Xencelabs

Their Site: https://www.xencelabs.com/
Their Amazon Store: https://www.amazon.com/s?me=A2AO8XL38SU3ST&marketplaceID=ATVPDKIKX0DER
Driver Download Page: https://www.xencelabs.com/support/download-drivers/

Xencelabs (pronounced sense labs) is a fairly new competitor in the tablet market with the unique aim of being a premium high quality alternative in the same higher price bracket as Wacom, whereas every other alternative company has opted to be a lower price alternative instead.
Unfortunately, this means their products are as pricey as Wacom and are not for those on a budget. However, it will still be interesting to see whether they can succeed in the higher price bracket that Wacom has been dominating up to this point.

Interestingly, their team is made up of many veterans in the tablet field with developers and designers who previously worked at Wacom and other established tablet companies. Initial reviews of their first tablet, the Xencelabs Pen Tablet Medium have been positive, so there are high expectations that they will introduce more high quality products in the future.

Personal Notes
-I am very interested in seeing whether they can succeed in the higher price bracket they chose to participate in. Personally, I thought the higher price bracket for pen tablets was obsolete now that 100 USD pen tablets have basically everything a higher price pen tablet would have, but perhaps Xencelabs can show us some innovation that will change the pen tablet category forever and justify their prices?

Is Xencelabs worth looking at for graphic tablets?
-Yes.

Xencelabs Graphic Tablets

-Xencelabs Pen Tablet Medium
Price: 279.99 USD Amazon.com
Active Area: 10.33 x 5.8 inches
Pen Type: Recharging
Pen Buttons: 3 side buttons, eraser on end (3 button pen)
2 side buttons, eraser on end (Thin pen)
Pen Pressure: 8192, eraser levels not specified
Pen Tilt Sensitivity: +-60 degrees
Shortcut Keys: 3 buttons
Multi-touch: No

Journal Changelog

Last updated: May. 07, 2021
May. 07, 2021 -Added Xencelabs to the list as they have a unique target audience and good initial reviews.
May. 07, 2021 -Removed Parblo from the list as I have not seen anything noteworthy from them.
May 01, 2019 -Chose to only list “base” prices and ignore sales as they change too often.
Oct. 03, 2018 -Removed Ugee from this list as they appear to no longer be active in the North American market. It is possible they are still active in the Asian market, but I have no method of checking as I cannot read Chinese.
Apr. 19, 2018 -Personal Notes added regarding each tablet company.
Mar. 25, 2018 -Changed the term “passive” pen to “battery-free” pen as passive refers to a different touch technology.
Oct. 12, 2017 -Added Driver Download Page links for each company.
Oct. 11, 2017 -Artisul removed from this list.
Aug. 05, 2017 – GAOMON added to the list.
July 21, 2017 -Moved this list from DeviantArt to WordPress.
May 01, 2017 -Removed Monoprice from this list. But kept in Cintiq alternatives list.
Apr. 13, 2017 -Changed section name from “Why no one should buy the Wacom Intuos”, to “Why no one should buy the Wacom Intuos Draw”.
Apr. 12, 2017 -Added in some of Ugee’s selection of graphic tablets.
Apr. 02, 2017 -Artisul added to the list.
Mar. 27, 2017 -Removed Resolution (in LPI) because it is unintuitive and unnoticeable in basically all cases.
Feb. 25, 2017 -Added “Buy here” type links to help people find where to buy the products.
Feb. 25, 2017 -Split list for graphic tablets and drawing monitors.
Feb. 24, 2017 -Added a table of contents for easier navigation.
Feb. 23, 2017 -Fixed Wacom Intuos multi-touch information.
Feb. 22, 2017 -Corrected Wacom Intuos Pro specs which I listed wrong.
Feb. 15, 2017 -Current Sales Worth Noting section added.
Feb. 14, 2017 -Parblo added to the list.

Please tell me in the comments if there are other tablet companies worth mentioning, and/or if you believe it’s worth making a section for one of the companies I considered as “not worth listing”.

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