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  • edited March 2012
    Nice.  I was waiting for more competition against the Cintiq.

    They can only go so long as the *only* go-to for high end tablets.
    In fact, Cintiq runs the risk of the Porsche car model.  An expensive but great car... however, the same speed can be found in cheaper vehicles.  And at a certain point the Porsche becomes more of a status symbol than a performance vehicle.  The Cintiq should consider coming down in price or making more affordable models (the Bamboo excluded... that was like a toy compared to the 21 inch Cintiq)

    As for the device in the video... it looks great, I'd like to know about Apple compatibility.  I'm running a *very* old ass mac, right now.  The OSX and the bus speed are on the low end.  I wonder how much the tablet would ask of an older processor?

    EDIT:
    I found other videos - both pro and con and some that highlight some problems.
  • you must have seen this on gutterzombie. I saw that too, and I'm kind of considering it. $500 is not chump change, but it is a whole lot better than 2 grand. I've looked it up in various places and it seems that it is "close enough" to a cintiq. I think most of the issues can be solved with the updated driver that all of the reviews say you must install.
  • Interesting -- would like to see if there is a Canadian distributor.  It's at the price point where I wouldn't mind taking a risk to see if I like working that way.
  • @Jimmie_Robinson yeah, I don't think it's a replacement for a cintiq persé, but maybe for an intuos, but with the on-screen drawing capacity, which I think is my biggest drawback with working digitally - that gap between what my hand is doing over there, and what I'm seeing over here...


    @anthonyperuzzo I did, in Dean Welsh's thread.  I kind of think if Dave McCaig is interested, it might be worth checking out...


    @Richard_Pace my thoughts exactly.  It might even be worth a run across the border if I can find one in Buffalo (or have it shipped to UPS), and pay the duty on it... didn't Harper just give us a big boost in cross-border shopping? lol!
  • @Jimmie_Robinson what are you running btw? I've got an 21" iMac that I'm pretty happy with, so hopefully it'd run on that...
  • edited March 2012
    I'm still hunting around for some solid information about computer compatibility.
    Q: Can I use it on a Mac?
    Q: Can I use it on an older Mac, running Tiger?  Old processor?

    And what am I running?
    Haha!  Sit back, son.  Let me tell you a story about an old mac.

    1.8 Ghz PowerPC G5
    2 GB Memory
    BUS Speed  600 MHz
    17" monitor
    Tiger. 10.4.11
  • @ShawnRichison  If you do, keep me in the loop -- might be the sort of thing I'd join in on.

    Though, the box I'm running has been getting a wee bit buggy lately, so an external HD with auto-back-up and a trip for a check/tune-up might be more financially responsible in the immediate.

    ~R 
  • @Richard_Pace will do, although, I think it may be a month or two off for me as well.  Just started (well, I WILL be) a new job on the 10th so I'd like to refill the coffers for awhile before I think of spending.  I'll be tracking any news on this product til then, and will let you know in advance if I'm taking a trip down there.

    (ps - you should fill in your name in your profile! ;) )
  • @ShawnRichison -- cool!

    Also, thanks, didn't realise I actually needed to do that.
  • edited March 2012
    A couple things I notice about these:
    1. They require (AAA) batteries in the pen.  Blame that on Wacom's patents.
    2. The display resolution is kinda low for screens of this size.  The 19" model is only 1440x900, the same as some 13" laptop displays.  The 10" model is only 1024x600, which is even smaller than my old HPad.
    @Jimmie: The OS X drivers call for 10.6 or later (Snow Leopard).
  • @Jimmie: The OS X drivers call for 10.6 or later (Snow Leopard).
    Quest, you're my hero!  See, that's the kinda intel I need to make a proper decision.
  • edited April 2012
    @Jimmie: The OS X drivers call for 10.6 or later (Snow Leopard).
    Quest, you're my hero!  See, that's the kinda intel I need to make a proper decision.
    Exactly: It requires Intel. :)
  • edited December 2012
    I just saw this and thought it might be of interest to some: http://frenden.tumblr.com/post/38693256477/yiynovamsp19u
    I am so very tempted to spend my Xmas windfall (plus a little) to get one of those.  Obviously much better bang for the buck than a Cintiq.  Comparing it with the various Windows tablets available is a little harder, because there's no computer included, but given the high prices of those, pairing one of these with an existing computer is a much less expensive option, despite the much larger screen.

    It's still not quite the combination of features I'm longing for, though.  19" is too desk-bound, and bigger than I naturally draw.  My dream would be a self-contained slate running Windows (or OS X, as long as I'm fantasizing), with a 15" 4:3 screen, with at least 1280x1024 resolution, a battery that'll go for at least a few hours, 4 or more programmable buttons on the frame (such as for Shift/Ctrl or zoom +/-), and max 3-4 pounds.  (Batteryless stylus would be nice, but I'll settle for AAA-powered, if Wacom's patents get in the way.)  The technology for this exists.  But nothing close to this is being sold.  The self-contained units are all either iPad wannabes with little movie screens and no buttons, or clunky laptop wannabes with keyboards and little screens, and the just-a-displays are all unportable contraptions.
  • I agree.  After reading Beth's link I also found myself on the edge of purchasing one.  In fact, I put one in my Amazon shopping cart just to sit there while I think about it.

    I've watched some Youtube videos and I've read more blogs.  It is a fair competitor to the Cintiq.
    My hope is that it puts some fire under Wacom's ass.  They've been sitting on the same technology for way too long -- especially that damn 21' Cintiq.

    The other side of my problem is not having original art.  I know this isn't a factor for everyone on the forum but it is for me.  I sell a decent amount of art at conventions and online to several dealers.  It may not always be like that, but currently it is.  In a perfect world, I'd do both and be happy.  It would be good for coloring as well as drawing / inking.

    Another problem side for me is the size.  Not only the size of the tablet, but also the size of my art *box* that I currently call home to my production.  I'd have to rearrange it.  I simply do not have the room.  I'd have to create all sorts of micro-fitting-folding-collapsing-multi-purposed items and furniture to make it work.  The art box would like a transformer.

    Still, I look at these things and I drool.

    Sometimes they set up at conventions (WonderCon and San Diego Comic Con).  I can check them out then.  No rush, yet.
  • edited December 2012
    Yiynova's web site has some interesting additional information (written mostly in Engrish).  They have two 19" models: the MSP19U, which has the UC Logic digitizer that this reviewer loves (also used in the bargain-priced Monoprice Intuos-type tablets), and the MSP19, which uses a digitizer that he... doesn't.  Currently they have just one 15" model: MSP15, which I have to assume has the inferior digitizer.  If they come out with an MSP15U with the better digitizer, I might have to be all over that.
  • I do want one of these or a Cintiq for pencilling and colouring, but I have to agree with Jimmie on the importance of physical artwork at the end.  The additional $2-600 cash that can be treated as a windfall for selling a page is one of those life-saver elements in comics. Doing more comics has already kicked the hell out of my annual income, so I'm not too eager to walk away from art sales.  

    There's the added benefit of actually enjoying the tactile experience of putting ink on paper, especially after going through the early years of being terrified of doing that.

    It does makes me happy to see more and more people go fully digital, since it does mean a less crowded original art market in the future.  

    R
  • I am content to stay out of your way. :)  If anyone ever expresses an interest in buying my art, I'll have to do prints and make up for the lower price with volume.
  • I think I'm pretty much sold on this. I have a big freelance check coming in sometime next month; I guess I should plan to set aside $600 of it ...
  • SO... tempted.

    But yeah, Richard Pace hits it on the mark *for me*.
    In fact, just today I had a request for a commission piece via email.
  • edited December 2012
    And this is why I figured that I'd mention it.
    I've hung out around Dave McCaig while he's working on his cintiq and as a result I've been very curious as to whether or not it would be the right tool for me. $2,000 is a bit pricey for me (especially if there is a new computer in my future) but $600 I may be able to set aside. Still, I'd like to play around with one before putting any money down.
  • Looks like The Panda City (selling thru Amazon) is out of stock.  As I remember, they were listing availability of January 7... looks like they've received orders for all of the units they ordered.  Hopefully they have more in production.
  • Yeah, I put one in my Amazon cart, just for shits and giggles.
    Today I went back to Amazon.com (for something else) and noticed that my cart was *empty*.
    As suspected, all sold out.
  • edited January 2013
    They're back in stock They were briefly back in stock from Panda City (thru Amazon).  I just spent my Xmas money on one... and sorry, but I placed my order before coming here to tell you they're they were available. :)  The seller notes say they expect to have more in on 1/31.  There's also someone (apparently a different distributor) selling them thru eBay.  Both are charging $599 for it ($30 more than Panda was selling the last batch for)... and since the product appears to be a hit, I can't really blame them.
  • I'm gonna testdrive one in a fortnight when I'm going to the Angoulême festival where they'll have a setup. 
    Will report :)

    It'd cost me 700 euros to buy one (they have a French distributor who delivers to Belgium, whee!) , but they're giving out discount coupons 
  • I got the unit I ordered yesterday.  It looks nice.  The display is the same resolution (1440x900) as my 13" MacBook, just 46% bigger, so it won't win any awards for pixel density, but I knew that when I ordered it.  I had to hook it up to my PC laptop to see how it looks, because I can't hook it up to  my MacBook yet.  Unfortunately adding a DVI-to-VGA adapter to my Thunderbolt-to-DVI adapter (this device is VGA only) doesn't work, so I had to order a Thunderbolt-to-VGA adapter. 

    I didn't try to install the drivers on my laptop because I don't want to screw up the Wacom drivers that are already on that, so I can't report on how well the stylus works, but it feels good on the surface of the display.  I can see that parallax is going to be an issue, though: there's a noticeable gap between the front surface of the glass and the LCD panel behind it (and the digitizer sensor grid is behind that), more than on any of the TabletPC devices I've used.  I remember being annoyed by the gap on the big Cintiq I played with several years ago, but I don't think it was this big.
  • edited January 2013
    I had heard that the parallax was not any worse than the cintiq, but I'm very interested to see if it becomes a problem for you, once you test drive it a bit.
  • edited January 2013
    Well, I've used it a bit now.  My reaction is mixed.

    The driver options are pretty limited.  There's no calibration option on the OS X driver, which means that you can't adjust the positioning to accommodate the parallax.  Not a huge deal, because you can still see where the pen is going to draw (hovering just off the tip), but disappointing. 

    I knew ahead of time that there was no "erase" feature with the stylus.  There's a pair of buttons on the side, like on Wacom's, but they only set it to left-click/right-click/double-click.  And no eraser on the stylus, so the only way to erase is to select the Eraser tool, do it, then reselect the tool you were using.  Or select Undo if you want to totally erase a mark you just made.  This means either a lot of extra tapping, or relying fairly heavily on the keyboard (which is something Manga Studio normally doesn't require).

    My biggest disappointment at this point is jitter.  The review that Beth linked to (by Frenden) complained about the jitter on the earlier model of this, but said it was gone with this one, because of a different digitizer.  But I'm seeing some.  I've seen worse jitter than this (on a flaky tablet laptop with the stylus near the edge), but... it's kind irritating.  I don't have the steadiest, smoothest hand to begin with, and this makes it a little worse. :-w  Panda City said it was probably caused by interference from the Wacom drivers previously installed on this computer.  As a test, I hooked it up to a friend's computer (one that had never had the Wacom drivers installed) and most of the jitter was gone, so it sounds like a driver issue.  But I've already tried uninstalling them from my computer, with no improvement, so I'm not sure how to fix it.

    One thing I remember being annoying from the Cintiq I used a few years ago was lag: it didn't quite keep up with me as I moved the stylus around.  I haven't noticed that with this, which is very encouraging.

    The inability to erase just by squeezing the stylus means that I'm probably not going to be able to use this for penciling.  I do way too much erasing as I go with that, so I'll have to keep doing that on my Thinkpad tablet.  If I can fix the jitter, I should be able to ink with it.  I've been doing coloring on it, and jitter isn't as much of a problem for that... but I'll need to work on better calibrating the color/brightness/contrast.
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