[Wacom] Bamboo Touch & Pen Tablet Review

I bought this on July 27, 2010 at CanadaComputers when there was a $5 discount, at $90. There were a few reasons for the purchase. Even though I can speak for myself that they weren't well justified. But since I bought it, I might as well give a review on the product. So future consumers will have an additional option for checking product reviews.

The main reason for me was because this version does not require batteries at all. AT ALL!
No more dying in the middle of a stage on osu because battery was low. I couldn't be happier. Also, the multitouch idea was great, since my parents aren't good at a mouse. Eventually, I'll be giving this to them when I either buy a new one or stop using them all together. So its better to plan ahead. I've never really used multitouch on a window 7 computer before, so I was kind of excited.

I will mention first that these photos were done on my iphone 3GS, in very bad lighting conditions (I tried my best with a ceiling light and desk lamp). The phone just has incredible amount of noise! Unforgivable !

Lets start with the box. Its very nice, as you would expect from a product of such a price tag.


The box came with a bunch of stuff.
- Tablet (USB cable attached)
- Stylus
- Installation CD
- Software package CD
- Replacement pen-tips

There were alot of packaging on each of the item. Paper wrap around the tablet, plastic wrap for the stylus, ziplock bag for replacement pen-tips, cardboard CD case for the CDs. Good thing I wasn't charged based on weight. Alot of dead weight in the box. Haha.

Now lets get onto the actual product. And what it looks like. The pen feels good and solid, nothing seems loose other than the pen tip and the eraser which are both loose so you can apply pressure without damaging anything. I would have liked it a bit more if the stylus was thicker, it would make it easier to hold onto. Also, I found it rather easy to press the buttons. Perhaps I'm just gripping too hard though. I often press the buttons when I play osu, which is bad.

New Wacom stylus on top, Old Genius stylus on bottom

The eraser tip works fine after installing the driver, needless to say, before that, nothing works, only your fingers are registered on the tablet (not stylus, not multitouch). I would have to say something I don't like about the stylus though. The pen-tips are relatively easy to use up. What I mean is, every time you use the pen, parts of the tip is "eaten". Until the length is no longer there and they give you replacements. Thank god they do give you some extras. Or perhaps, Im just a heavy user (with osu and all).

Replacement pen-tips (3x) and tool for taking out pen-tips (1x)

After installing the driver, you can setup your pen with the feel of the tip/eraser (ie how hard you need to press), the double clicking speed, the boundaries, the buttons, and some other options. Likewise, you can also calibrate your sensitivity for the finger control on the tablet, as well as which gestures (2 finger scrolling, dragging, etc) you can enable and disable. You can also set up the 4 buttons on the tablet for pretty much anything.

The tablet is somewhat more resistive than the genius one I had. Be it good or bad. Its generally more resistive than your standard laptop ones. About the same as those HP ones with the glossy finish. I'm used to using the touchpads on the Asus laptops and theirs were pretty smooth. This was definitely more resistive than that. The tablet generally work well, but takes time to get accustomed to. The 4 buttons are useful but I hardly use them. The multitouch gestures are all that I use, of course, I still need my keyboard (nothing is currently there to replace that, as typing is a must).

One special feature of the tablet is the light on the left (or can be right depending on whether you are left handed or right handed, you can set that up in the tablet options). Its off when its not plugged in (duh). White when its not in use but powered. Bright white when your finger is touching it (ie. touch recognition). Red when stylus is in close proximity or touching the tablet. It has a smart system where when the style is within range, all finger input becomes ignored. The idea is so you can rest your hand on the tablet when you draw. But I personally like to be able to use my left hand to navigate the painting canvas while my right hand draws. If I want to do that, I have to first remove my right hand, navigate, then put the pen back onto the tablet. Oh well, maybe next time.

This new tablet is smaller than my previous but I've gotten used to it now when I play osu. I didn't use the old tablet for anything other than photoshop work and osu, but atleast this new one, I use it to surf the web too.

Tablet size comparison, along with my current desk setup

The gestures on the tablet basically all work on window computer, with exception to the rotate on window picture viewer but thats not too much of a problem for me. Since I use the keyboard solely when I browse photos. The zooming and scrolling also isn't smooth as I would have liked. Although I don't like Apple, I must say that their touch pads are spectacular. Or it might be their OS. This tablet works on a mac too, but I just haven't tried it myself to give you an opinion. The scrolling feels the same with a mouse scrolling, it goes in chunks, not like the mac where its smooth. I assume this is an OS problem though.

Last topic, usage intergration.

I call it that because at the end of the day, what separates this (with the price tag and features) is ultimately the multitouch. You can easily find a Genius or even another company that features a tablet without multitouch for a fraction of the cost. Heck, even Wacom has a just pen version or just multitouch version.

So the question here is, was multitouch really worth it?

I will give you my honest opinion.

No, it wasn't. Why?

Its simple. For people like me, who has grown up in this world using a mouse since grade 3, I've completely familiarized myself with a mouse. There is nothing (almost nothing, I'll go over the things later) I can do with a tablet faster than with a mouse. One can complain my mouse isn't a crappy mouse, yes, thats true, but most mouse have the same features mine does.

So lets compare what you can do on a mouse vs tablet in a few of the most normal things you do on the computer.

Web browsing:
Neither really have any advantage in this area, except I am more precise with the mouse than I am at the multitouch interface. One may however argue, but 2 finger scrolling !

Yes, but my mouse has a wheel, which is pretty quick and easy to use. But you may then say, you can zoom in/out with pinching!

Yes, but zooming is done by holding control on keyboard then using the wheel. One may then ask, but 2 finger side scrolling goes back and forth pages!

Yes, but theres a button on my mouse for forward and one for backward.

Typing:
Keyboard is the main thing here, but in the cases of scrolling down to find something in the document, again, I find myself more efficient on the mouse than on the multitouch tablet.

Gaming:
I think its safe to say that no one games on a tablet, should it have multitouch or not.

Photoshopping:
I can see a good use of multitouch in this aspect, especially the panning left and right and up and down with 2 fingers scrolling in photoshop. Unless there are shortcuts which I'm not familiar with, I always have to use the navigator tab to pan around my image when I'm in photoshop. So the multitouch tablet definitely takes this round. Also, its near impossible to draw with a mouse.

As you can see, for people who are already proficient in the mouse, multitouch tablet isn't going to be much use. Even after you practice. But Steve Jobs (Apple CEO) might be pushing towards that kind of computing. So its not too bad of an idea to pick up one if you decide the price is just right. However, it does not replace your mouse anytime soon.

If you're a new computer user, by all means, you might as well pick one up. The reasons are simple. Mouse is only for desktops, and maybe laptops if you don't mind carrying an extra mice with you, but most people will have a laptop in their life at some point. So its not a bad idea to start familiarizing yourself with multitouch and the touch pad which is on almost all laptops (minus some Lenovo ones).

If you're into art, you're going to have a tablet for sure, so might as well make it a multitouch tablet, since you're the kind of people who likes to touch things anyway. Though I realize the expensive Wacom tablets don't offer multitouch.


Even though I said that it wasn't worth buying the tablet, I don't regret it. I've never really bought much for myself. I wanted to try something new. And now I have, so I'm happy. I'll continue to use it. Since its nice to surf with your fingers instead with a mouse from time to time. Makes you feel more in control.

Please be advised that although this is a review, this is still filled with alot of opinions. So if you do not feel convinced to buy, Engadget does provide a video review for your satisfaction.

Gallery: Here.