Wacom Intuos vs Graphire

[Frostu]

Hi, I'm having some trouble deciding what kind of wacom tablet I want. I'm going to go for either the Graphire or the Intous product, but I'm not sure what I need in regards to the preassure sensitivity and the other features.

I am mainly interested in using this for zbrush, but I'm not sure how the different tablets interact with it. Will a graphire do? I know Intous has more sensitivty, but is 1024 really needed in order to get a good result? What about the other spesifications for the tablet? I'm pretty clueless here.

Any comments on this? Thanks.

[green]

I have used both the Graphire and the Intuos tablets, and I would say that your money will be much better spent on the Intuos.

The Graphire is a bit cheaper, but the Intuos is much more responsive in both pressure sensitivity, and pen movement.

As far as size, I would not go any smaller than a 6x8 tablet. You can find used ones on EBay for reasonable price. I bought my Intuos used on EBay several years ago, and it still works beautifully.

[DjVoyager]

Intuos3, all the way. Graphire is not really graphics specific, I haven't tried it but if you go to Wacom's website, they have a feature that tells you what tablet is suitable for your needs. (http://www.wacom.com/tabletwizard/index.cfm) Yes, Intuos is expensive than Graphire, but even if you're a Photoshop user, the Intuos is recommended. I have one, and it has made my life much easier with Zbrush, and Photoshop.
Good luck with yours.

[DjVoyager]

Green, you beat me by 2 minutes :D

[Frostu]

Haha, thanks for the replies guys. I'm definitelly going for the intous3. Now I just have to descide what size I want... A4 or A5... Also pretty big prize gap right there. The only thing that really bothers me is how it works together with my "20 widescreen display :\

[rexkramer]

@Frostu
there is also a new A5 WIDE model of the Intuos3 series! Specific for your resolution/aspect ratio ! A bit expensive, but check it out...
CU

[CoolDuck]

I would go for the Intuos3 A5. I have just bought one a month ago to model in Maya and do some texturing (and even Zbrush) and I have no regrets! I have a Graphire before and didn't really like it, but working with the Intuos feels great. The Graphire works too, but it is the surface that makes the difference to me.

[Frostu]

Sounds good, guys! Not too fond of the idea of always having to buy widescreens though, if I ever want to use my wacom in the future. Anyone know how a wacom responds to a display without the matching ratio for width and height?

[DjVoyager]

It's just gonna take in the width and the height of its own surface...kinda like using the mousepad. The old mice didn't work if you went over the mousepad.
So you will be good with any Wacom size as long as you keep in the limits of the surface...but it is better to get something matching the monitor, otherwise you'd have to endure a bit of frustration, keeping within the boundaries of the Wacom when you still have area to cover on the screen.
Hope that helped.

[Frostu]

Gah, this is hard...

I think I'll actually go for a normal "aspect ratio" for my wacom tablet, and instead invest in a new normal 20" minotor at some point. Not completely sure though... I just think I'd get more use of a normal sized wacom tablet in the future...

[DjVoyager]

You can go with the normal aspect, but make sure you don't go lower than 9x12, cuz you have a big screen.

[Frostu]

Yeah, thanks for the tip... I think I'm gonna go for the A4 sized one as you suggest. Everything above 9x12 is pretty steep in price anyway, and not something I'd consider buying.

Thanks for all the info, guys! Your advice has proven invaluable. I'll update this thread when I recieve my tablet. :)