The Wacom tablet I get cheaper than a Cintiq

For a student, buying the Wacom Cintiq is most of the time a dream.
It was so expensive.

Let me tell you more about the alternative Wacom product I used to have.

However, note that it seems to be tricky to find a retailer if you don’t live in Japan.

The Wacom tablet I get cheaper than a Cintiq

Below, is a picture of my previous Wacom screen tablet, the Wacom DTI 520 that I bought in Japan, in 2007. I thought it would be good to share with you a few words about it. If I am not wrong most of you never heard about this tablet before.

Wacom DTI-520 – 15” – I broke the glass, so I taped a new one from a photo frame. It was just perfect. I removed the pod behind, to turn the tablet into a sheet of paper. I could use it in horizontal and vertical positions as well.

Wacom is known for its graphic tablet for artists. However, they also produce screen tablets for professionals such as medical care, accountancy, retail shop, and so on. Something that Wacom does NOT advertise publicly.

Pro and cons

The look, the size, and the price are different. However, the pen is also pressure sensitive. :D
4 times lesser sensitive than the Cintiq, but personally I haven’t noticed any difference).
Feel free to have a look at some artwork I did with that tablet on Pinterest.

• The pro:
  – Perfect screen sizes that you can’t find in the Wacom Cintiq series:
  Wacom Cintiq is available in 13”, 22” and 24” while the DTI series provides the intermediate sizes 15” and 17”. Which are to be perfect. Cintiq 13” is too small, and Cintiq 22” tends to be too big and heavy.
  – They are much more affordable.
  – The precision of the pen is perfect. (The portable Wacom Companion is not)
• The cons:
  – No option made for artists such as side buttons.
  – If you don’t live in Japan, it may be quite tricky to get it (You may try Ebay, or any official Wacom reseller of your region). If you live in the US or Europe you may look for these reference numbers instead: Wacom PL-521 LCD tablet or Wacom PL-720 LCD tablet,I found the official Wacom reseller for Singapore: Persol, a Wacom retailer. You may want to contact them.