For as cheap as this little tablet is, it does a GREAT job! I purchased it to have an extra travel one; I have a larger Intuos that is PHENOMENAL (I won't lie, it is much more sensitive and because it is larger it is much, much, much more precise) but the problem is that it is totally unsuitable for a mobile lifestyle. This little cutie works excellent for the things I do on the fly.
Considering that I am a professional digital imaging specialist who uses my tablets constantly, I hope you'll take this advice: for those of you who are weekend enthusiasts or whom are just getting started and perhaps may have never used a tablet before, this is a good one to purchase. It does just fine for most applications and is sensitive enough to do the average things. Once you've totally become addicted to it and know for sure that it suits your needs, maybe then save up and get a larger Intuos. Wacom Bamboo Pen Tablet
I've been a long time user of Wacom tablets, so when my old workhorse Intuos finally kicked the bucket I tried the new Bamboo. One of my designers at work recommended I give it a whirl.
Installation is a piece of cake. There are practically zero adjustments or preferences to set - to be expected at this price point. This is good and bad.
I've found the drivers (or something) to be a bit wiggy though. Sometimes I have to plug in a mouse (gah!) to force the tablet to read the screen again.
The sensitivity is lackluster, again to be expected. For basic stuff it's fine, but for anything requiring brush work it leaves a lot to be desired. If you use Photoshop or Illustrator, invest in an Intuos. The money is well spent if you're using it in a professional arena.
I can only recommend this for people interested in learning the beauty and usefulness of a tablet for computer graphics work, OR anyone who suffers from carpal tunnel. As a basic input device it's effective enough. Using a pen feels more natural than pushing a bar of soap around a desk!
At first, I was looking for a new mouse, since my old one needed replacing. I have bad arthritis, so comfort & ease of use was very important. I bought the Logitech Trackman Wheel and I absolutely loved it. I hadn't even considered a tablet device, as the last time I looked around they were a bit pricy. I ran across the Wacom Bamboo, & saw it was for well under $100!? Too good to be true I figured. I always research things I buy, so I looked around. Not only is the Wacom Bamboo very affordable, but the reviews all gave praise. My concern was that If I got a tablet, it would need to replace both the mouse & keyboard. Too much switching around is just too painful for me. I bought the Wacom Bamboo straight through Amazon as I have always had great service. I'm running a desktop w/ Windows 7, & the install was fast & easy. Well, it's been a week since I got it, & I haven't even touched my keyboard. The tablet/pen makes browsing, email & everything imaginable so fast, precise & easy. As I can sit back & comfortably use the tablet on its' own box to jump around & write, do graphics and 3D CAD.... the pain for me is substantially less.
Writing is very easy, corrections are software intuitive & a breeze. You can teach it your Writing style & it will continuously learn. Enough settings so you can get it to perform as you like it, but not get lost confused with them.
I wrote this whole review on the tablet in just a few minutes. This tablet is not just for graphic designers & such! Honestly, make your computing life easier, buy a Bamboo & you will soon be bragging to your friends & family how great it is!
I an not affiliated with the company, it's just the BEST money I have EVER spent on any computer peripheral.
I bought the Wacom Bamboo Pen to aide me with my studies. I am currently a student and primarily use Microsoft OneNote to help in my notetaking. This is the most convenient for me as most of my professors utilize Microsoft PowerPoint for their lecture slides. I needed a tablet to use with my Windows 7 PC and laptop to further improve my ability to take notes and work out practice problems electronically.
When it came to installation, it was plug and play for the most part. I am running Windows 7 which comes with Tablet PC components by default. The only additional software needed was the Wacom Pen Tablet Properties software. The software allows a great deal of customization including handedness, pen vs. mouse mode, and many others.
When it comes to usage, it works as expected. Utilizing a tablet can be difficult at first like learning all new things, but I started noticing my dexterity improve over time. As stated previously, I mostly use it for notetaking and working out problems and it serves its purpose well. The only gripe I have is that it is sometimes easy to accidentally hit the side buttons on the pen as they are really soft and easy to push, but I changed the way I hold the pen to compensate for that.
Now as far as reliability, I have noticed the pen has started to malfunction. I bought the pen on 11/28/09 and the pen started malfunctioning on approximately 12/5/2009. After a restart, the Pen Tablet Properties software will not load at all. This makes the whole tablet completely functionless and unable to respond to taps. When I check Device and Printers in the control panel, there are no problems detected with the tablet. The only way to resolve the issue is to reinstall the driver, which is a pain because it must be done after every restart. I have posted on the Wacom EU support forums and searched for solutions but have not come up with anything satisfactoy as of yet. I am contemplating returning the Bamboo Pen before it is too late to do so and just saving up for a better (albeit more expensive) tablet.
Update on 12/13/2009:
I may have found a fix to the issue. What I did was unplug the tablet, uninstall the Pen tablet properties software, and remove the tablet from 'Devices' in control panel. I then reinstalled the Pen tablet properties software first, and then plugged back in the tablet. It may be crucial to install the software prior to plugging in the tablet so that Windows 7 installs Wacom's drivers instead of the ones that come preinstalled. The tablet appears to be working as it should now. I will keep Amazon informed about any new issues that may arise with the tablet.
Updated score: 3.5/5'
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