Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I've been using Wacom tablets since they were Beige and had two different cables, one for the pin port and one for the wall. I noticed a lot of first-time-tablet-user ratings so thought my two cents could be helpful. I'm upgrading from an Intuos 3 Medium, which still works great but I literally wore the surface off the tablet (in the middle, most common area) after many years of daily use. I'm a professional designer and use a Wacom every day, which is who this tablet is mostly aimed at. I don't use a mouse at all, from every day tasks to high end retouching, my right hand is pen and tablet. I skipped the 4 and 5 because the 3 was still doing just great. PROS * Best tablet I've used yet. If you do this even remotely for a living, 300 dollars is a small investment in your work. If you are looking to try a pen tablet and are concerned on price get the cheaper Intuos models and try it out. From a usability perspective using a pen is far more natural for your hand than a mouse, which could help with carpal tunnel/wrist strain potentially. One thing I will say is the Pro stylus is far better in size than the little pen on the base (white) Intuos tablets. I hated using that little thing and got rid of the one I had for traveling almost immediately. * The USB cable connection issue seems to have been solved, mine snaps in just fine and stays there. * Touch is a nice feature that I use occasionally for web browsing. It's nice how easy it is to toggle this on and off with a physical button on the tablet itself. * Lots of nibs (and nib remover) included in the base of the pen stand. Handy they include these instead of selling you an extra $40 kit as they did in days past for something so necessary to the product. * Pen pressure and overall working feel are great. Texture of the tablet feels right, a little more matte/toothy than the Intuos3 I used previously. * If you care about such things, it looks and feels great. The black is slick, nice fit and finish on the tablet surface and slightly rubberized surrounding areas. CONS Only minor quibbles here. * I don't use the buttons on the tablet much, never have. That's what my left hand and the keyboard are for. With their current position I sometimes lay my pen hand on them but this has never caused any issues, just a brief HUD popping up on screen. * As other reviewers have noted, the black standard nibs seem to wear down rather quickly. I can attest to this. After only a few weeks I've already replaced one. N/A * I have no opinion on the wireless option since it sits on my desk and plugs in to a USB port not more than a foot away. No need to waste batteries to have one cable off your desk. I couldn't imagine using a tablet in my lap from across the room, but if that's what you do then the option is there and I'm sure their are reviews of it. * For what it's worth I'm using a maxed out 2013 15" Macbook Pro hooked up to a Thunderbolt Display, so a lot of horsepower. Some reviewers seemed to have issues with a laggy computer, but if you use a tablet like this there's a good chance you've got a decent setup. I can't comment on any input issues, everything is smooth. * I've never had installation or driver problems from Wacom, maybe I got lucky. Just go to the site and download it. Not sure why they even bother including CDs in the package anymore. * Intuos Confusion - As someone who works in branding I could argue both directions on this, but it's not even remotely a dealbreaker. It's pretty clear what the Pro and Consumer (old Bamboo) differences are. Color and price for starters, but if you're new to the space I could see how this could take some digging to figure out. * Wacom is pretty much the industry standard. I don't have any opinions on other brands of tablet personally but have heard frustrations from friends and colleagues who tried to save a few bucks on a 'knockoff' brand. I'm sure there are other decent options, but this is the flagship. * Surface wear: Of course I can see some marks and sheen on the surface of the tablet, I drag and push a piece of plastic all over it every day. So far nothing to complain about. It's like a stainless steel sink, it's going to have scratches from doing what it's for. All in all best tablet you can buy. I've yet to try a Cintiq for work but maybe someday. I personally like the Medium size. Small is too small for the type of work I do and I found it uncomfortable, though having not used the larger version I can't comment on that. Friends with larger tablets love them, so there's that nugget. Happy de-mousing.