Bamboo Fun (Small) Black Tablet with Pen, Mouse & Graphics Software Review

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(More customer reviews)Wacom has brought this technology a long way. Many shopping for Wacom tablets probably have owned similar products in the past. This product is more affordable than the higher end Intuos3 models, yet powerful enough for many pros.
For me, the small size is perfect. The "medium" sized tablet is suited for hard core graphics people who need to work at the pixel level for large images. Those using this for the mouse also may prefer the medium size. However, most users will find the small size probably fits their needs. Either way, the tablet maps to your screen size for any of these models.
This unit comes in a variety of colors and configurations. I prefer the look of the black tablet, but there are silver, white and blue ones also.
Bamboo Fun (Medium) Silver Tablet with Pen, Mouse & Graphics Software
Bamboo Fun (Medium) Black Tablet with Pen, Mouse & Graphics Software
Bamboo Fun (Medium) Blue Tablet with Pen, Mouse & Graphics SoftwareUpon plugging in the device, the mouse worked immediately! The pen also works as a mouse or as a pen/brush for drawing applications.
The mouse is nice because it allows you to free up a USB port if you're using a USB mouse. Power users will need more from a mouse though. If you're anything like me, you prefer a mouse with many more options than this one provides.
Installing the drivers and software allows you to access the settings and tools that make this device versatile and customizable. The Bamboo software also allows you to customize the buttons. Left-handers will greatly appreciate this! Be prepared to spend some time tweaking this unit to your likes.
The software included with this device is a nice to have. Many people who buy this will already have or need full blown Adobe Photoshop. Adobe Elements gives you everything casual users need. The Corel application is nice to play with. But other than a few "macro" type functions I have yet to find anything I can't already do with Adobe. Perhaps newer users may find the Corel product more user-friendly.
Pros
+ USB connection
+ Works on XP and Vista almost plug and play - before software installation
+ Nice customizable software
+ Nice bundled applications - Adobe Elements and Corel Draw
+ No additional power adapter needed
+ Traditional or pen mouse for casual users
+ Small size is perfect for users not using the mouse
Cons
- The scrolling zoom function does not work uniformly on all applications
- The mouse with this model will not suffice for power users
- Default settings require a lot of adjusting for graphics editing
- The tablet would have been ideal with several additional USB ports
Overall, the graphic artist or visual junkie NEEDS one of these. If you are a casual user, it is worth getting one on sale. The small model with pen only will meet most users' needs.
Enjoy.


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Now there's a simple, easy, and fun way to harness your creativity. Bamboo Fun makes your computer your canvas, allowing you to freely express yourself by simply touching the pen tip to the tablet. Touch up digital photos, draw by hand, create artwork and paintings, and even write in your own handwriting.Bamboo Fun includes full editions of valuable creative software to help get your creative juices flowing. Edit photos with Adobe Photoshop Elements, create artwork with Corel Painter Essentials, and apply photo effects with Nik Color Efex Pro. Bamboo Fun is available in a variety of colors and sizes. FEATURES: Works with new handwriting recognition, inking and pen features in Windows Vista (all editions but Home Basic) and Apple operating systems (OS X)Supports widescreen displays and has a textured work surface for a natural pen-on-paper feelHigh resolution and report rate for outstanding accuracyPrecise control and 512 levels of pressure sensitivity on the pen and eraserQuick access to user-defined shortcuts with four Express KeysEasy scrolling and zooming with finger-sensitive Touch RingPatented, battery-free pen with customizable buttons for comfort and reliabilityDetachable USB cable unplugs from your computer and your tablet for easy storage and transportErgonomic design provides a comfortable supplement to mouse and keyboard inputIncludes one year warrantyFree US-based technical support

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Lenovo ThinkPad X201 12.1" (2985F4U) Tablet PC i7-620LM 2G DDR3 320G HDD Docking Station (Windows 7 Professional) Review

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(More customer reviews)Long story short: this is an amazing computer with very few, forgivable, flaws
I spent a lot of time looking into the X201T because I'm someone who likes to buy computers rarely. The last computer I bought was a Thinkpad R61 in 2004, it did me well for six years and my wife uses it to this day. I have little doubt that the X201T will do the same.
The X201T is less a computer and more a collection of functions, which are made possible by the many ways to provide the computer with input. You have two mice (a red dot and a touchpad), two keyboards (a fantastic real one and one on the touch screen), a stylus (which is both a mouse and a keyboard), and your finger (the most intuitive way to operate Windows or use the internet, even if you're using the built-in keyboard). If you get a set of Bluetooth headphones/microphone you can even do a lot of things with your voice (the pre-installed speech recognition software works better than I expected), and you can control music from your ear. With such a wide range of options, interacting with the computer is smooth and natural.
Good thing too, because it can do so much. My work requires me to read and write, all the time, and the X201T is perfect for that. It is a great word processor - all the more so because editing Word documents with the stylus is quicker and easier than the mouse/keyboard combination. Instead of keeping a pad of scratch paper around for ideas, I just run OneNote in tablet mode. If you work with pdf's, the X201T will become your library and your filing cabinet. Having used the tablet to surf the internet, I am now convinced that the web was not meant to be accessed with a mouse. The X201T has all the same functions as an iPad, which makes it an extraordinary media player - I hook up my Bluetooth headphones and play the thing from my bag. If you want a television, the widescreen is actually pretty big and very bright (even without the extra brightness upgrade), and you can always hook it up to an external monitor. Of course, this thing destroys email, spreadsheets, and other normal computing tasks.
The computer isn't cheap and without a few accessories and upgrades it's not worth having. The docking station is a must, and Lenovo's tablet bag is critical if you want to work on the go. The multitouch option is a necessity; the 8-cell battery provides a little less power than I'd like (~ 5 hours of full functionality and about two more without internet or Bluetooth) but it's a heck of a lot better than the 4-cell battery; you'll want 4 GB of RAM (expandable to 8); and the 2.13 GHz processor is worth the investment. The upgraded warranty (the one that covers accidents) makes sense for me. That said, I was able to get all of this for about 2K in August 2010 - sellers on eBay buy these packages in bulk and undercut the manufacturer.
A couple of relatively minor downsides: forget about gaming (though Halo 2 works well on an external monitor), Windows Media player sometimes skips when I have the computer in the tablet bag and I go up or down stairs, it sometimes gets hot on the bottom when it runs for a long time in tablet mode, and multitouch capability is not built seamlessly into Windows. (You can zoom in Word, but only in 10% increments, and many Windows options are too small to touch with your finger. That said, Windows 7 is very well suited for a touchscreen on the whole.)Overall, I'm looking forward to the next six years with my new computer. I have no idea what we'll have by then, but I do know that the transition from notebook to tablet has reaffirmed my admiration of technological progress. The experience was similar to the one I had in 2004 when I moved from a desktop to a laptop. If you want to invest in a serious (and seriously fun) piece of technology, dump the iPad and pick up an X201T.

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Lenovo ThinkPad X201 2985F4U Tablet PC 2985F4U Tablet PCs

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