Paraphernalia.

So, lately I came across this thing called Bamboo Pad. Hands down, it's the most petite gadget I've ever come across. I'm no big shot corporate nerd, but a definite junkie when it comes to any gadget. I'm, as I'm called, a tech dolt. So, shifting topic to Bamboo Pad, it is by far the best thing that's happened to me ever since my job started.

To look at, it's a timid machine, look a little more carefully you'll preach it. The number of purposes this one little touchpad solves for me, it's absolutely brilliant. Why do I keep calling it things like 'little' or 'petite', is because this flexible touchpad, for starters, is 145 g light. Its sleek design doesn't make it look obnoxious inside my bag with the laptop, unlike mostly all other heavy and huge tablets. That said, it makes my laptop a more innovative work place. I use a Windows 8 back at home and a Mac at work, and knowing Bamboo Pad is compatible with both of them equally was something I just couldn't believe. I can point, click, scroll, zoom, browse, rotate and do so much more by using familiar gestures on this ample device. What's even better, my non-touch sensitive laptop doesn't seem like one anymore. Hidden in a compartment away in the Bamboo Pad is also a pen like stylus which you can use to write, doodle or annotate.

As a first-time user of a graphic tablet, I was debating whether or not to purchase this or one of the more simple Wacom tablets.  I have used friends Bamboo's before and enjoyed them, so I decided to go all out and get a Intuos Tablet.   I prefer the medium-sized one as it is comfortable to hold while using, but large enough to work on.

A lot of users wonder what the heck they’d need a tablet for. Many mistakenly think it’s only about drawing and illustration.  The tablet is more of a control surface however and one that reduces wear and tear on your body.  For me it’s a matter of comfort and control.  The whole tablet behaves as a multi-touch trackpad and it allows me to change my grip from time to time (switching from touch to pen to mouse) to reduce physical stress.

The tablet feels great to the touch.  While similar in design to the previous models, the buttons feel distinctive and easy to locate by touch. What I really like is that wireless accessory kit is included (previously you had to order). This allows the tablet to run off a rechargeable battery and connect to a USB dongle. The dongle has a secure compartment on the side of the tablet for travel. With the adapter, you can work up to 30 feet away and easily reposition the tablet as you see fit. 

The Intuos Pro comes with a Bluetooth adapter for those times when you want to work without the clutter of any cords. That’s a great little bonus from Wacom in my opinion.

This is my first tablet, so I was a little unsure of what to expect. I ordered it quite wearily as others said that it tended to draw in a straight line and i wanted to create smooth digital drawings with my mac. But i wanted to test the water so to speak as to whether or not i wanted to go into digital drawing. I decided to order and i am so pleased i did and i havn't stopped playing with it!

For starters, it makes the navigation of your machine alot more quicker and easier Secondly, it is a brilliant first time tablet... the tutorial is quick and really helps you to get going. The first drawing I did with it turned out alot better than i had expected and i hope to get better with practice. I've always been a traditionalist at heart and have much preferred using good old graphite and rubber. However this tablet has changed my opinion and i now appreciate digital drawing more than i used to. I was also worried about the size of the surface... but it matches with my screen perfectly and is easy to draw with. The size is also brilliant if you have a laptop because it is easy and light to carry around with you.

Even someone who has never used a stylus before already knows how to use one, because using a stylus feels just like using a regular pen. A capacitive stylus interacts with the touchscreen exactly like a finger does, so it requires no special set up.

I found the Bamboo Stylus very comfortable to hold, and it worked fine for general navigation as well as working in art apps. Being that the Bamboo is a Wacom stylus, it requires no batteries. There is also no calibration and it works right out of the box. The rubber Bamboo tip feels great against the iPad, and flows smoothly  I found it preferable to a finger for day-to-day use. While it may leave a faint black smudge from time to time, it doesn't muck up the iPad display with fingerprints after steady use, and it allows me to see more of the screen, portions that would be otherwise blocked with my hand, ultimately giving me more control.

 Navigating the iPad and common apps with the Bamboo just feels more natural, too.  I was happy to discover that it works with other tablets and smartphones. I tested it on the iPhone, Asus Transformer, BlackBerry PlayBook, Motorola Xoom,  and Motorola Droid X.

 Wacom Bamboo Pad

The Wacom Bamboo tablet is the most natural input device if you are comfortable with a pen or a pencil which is true for most people. It allows you to put the cursor instantly to the area of your interest. You don't need to drag the cursor over the screen to get from the menu to the trash bin. On the downside the cursor is not absolutely stable like you are used to it with a mouse. Because your hand is not still all the small movements are picked up and your cursor will move about just a little.

 The pen has 2 buttons too, which turned out to be very useful. They can be configured in many different ways. I set one up to allow scrolling, which is effectively a click and drag operation. The other one as a double click. 

The Wacom is ideal for retouching and painting because it's pressure sensitive and feels most natural when making small movements.

when it comes to straight lines or broad strokes it wins over other devices by far.

  Apple Magic Trackpad

The Magic Trackpad is a new piece of hardware from Apple but is based on refined trackpad technology present in laptops for years. The Magic Trackpad however is much bigger

 In comparison the tablet was good in straight lines and not so good in circular movements, 

It feels slow compared to the tablet just like the mouse because you have to drag the cursor around You can't use anything on the trackpad but your fingers. Not sure why the pogo stick doesn't work. It must be a different technology from the iPhone and the iPad in this regard.

It tires your fingers at first. And even after weeks of using you will still feel strained after a busy day.

At times, I miss that phase when the touch phones had just hit the market. Each one came with a stylus by default, giving you that experience of a digital pen-paper along with finger gestures. I miss that because one wasn't confined. And stylus was a luxury that was complementary.

So, when I went in about a year ago to treat myself to a Galaxy Note and expressed this thought out loud, the vendor diverted my attention to a shelf section full of styluses. He hand picked one of them called Bamboo Feel in white to match the white Note and handed it over to me for trial. Not a word exchanged, without an explanation, I took the Note in my hand and tried working on it with the pen-like stylus. Pen-like because the slick white stylus is of the apt diameter to be comfortable in your hand to write with and comes with the most stylish cap to it that has a steel clip.

I put pen to paper, or rather stylus to screen, i was thrilled to bits. The screen recorded every subtle detail of my sketching. And as though that wasn't enough to impress me, handwriting precision on it was an absolute delight. For your information, according to your desire for grip and firmness, the tips are interchangeable. For me, it gave innovation and technology clubbed with digital note-taking and sketching experience a new high.

I'm a designer reviewing my designs, my equipment and 'gadgetry'. I'd tell you more, but first I must get off my chest the crushing feeling recently installed into my system.