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Feb 17 - Feb 24, 2002 |
Graphire2 - Wacom
By Alessandro Cancian
Originally Published: 2001-11-11
From the days when Apple introduced the first "point and click" system, mice travelled quite far. One-, two- and three-button mice, wheel-scrolling mice, wireless mice, etc - all appeared, with their own different characteristics, with their own strengths and weaknesses. And yet, using a mouse is not always the simplest and most appropriate operation. The most significant example is the use of software, e.g. Corel Painter, allowing us to add a digital touch to our art. Selecting a part of a photo, combining shots or painting on the screen is not that easy when one tries and uses a mouse. Interesting solutions include the graphic tablets, mostly used by digital artists. Wacom, a market leader in this field, recently released Graphire2, a USB graphic tablet equipped with pressure sensitive pen & cordless, batteryless mouse. The price is definitely interesting at $99 US, and Graphire2 is therefore a most affordable tablet.
Out of its 8.2" x 8.4" x 0.4," the tablet has an active area, where both the pen and a mouse can be used, with the dimensions of 4" x 5".
Using a pen when drawing is much more instinctive, and the pressure sensitive pen offers no less than 512 levels of pressure, so you can easily edit your artwork.
Perfectly compatible both with PCs and Macs, Graphire2 only needs a USB port available for connection. After installing the drivers, which by the way allow an extremely good control of the settings, you will only need to reboot your computer and that will be that.
The Graphire Power Suite ships with Adobe Photoshop LE, Corel Painter Classic, Sensiva handwriting notation software; these packages offer excellent performance and features for consumers. The pressure sensitive pen, comfortable enough in handling, has a pressure button and a double-ended button that can also be programmed as an eraser, according to the need.
The pen can even be used with other, non-graphic programs, such as a word processing application; just copy, paste or select as you would normally do. The active area of Graphire2 is more than enough for working on a specific part of the screen, such as a photo. Some practice is needed with wider areas, although probably the bigger Wacom models make life easier; at $99, however, Graphire2 is the ideal tablet for those who want to be creative without going broke.
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