Wacom Intuos4 Wireless – $50 more for the Bluetooth

Mice — On April 27, 2010 at 4:40 am

I had reviewed Wacom Intuos4 series last year and this is basically the same device but it comes with Bluetooth connectivity now. This device costs $399 and is $50 more than the USB model. I will recommend this unit for illustrators as well as artists for use while travel. People who hate cable mess will also love this.

Wacom Intuos4 Wireless is based on lithium ion battery. It is user replaceable and can be charged through USB. You will have to install a driver for this on the computer and you will also have to charge it fully before using it wirelessly. Bluetooth set up is easy, you just turn the device on. The computer will automatically detect the tablet when you press the “I’m here” button. It can now be used like a mouse.

In order to save the battery juice, Wacom Intuos4 Wireless enters the sleep mode if you don’t use for thirty minutes. You get an icon on the status bar which shows the battery life but you don’t get this in the USB mode. Rated battery life is about 18 hours but it doesn’t take continuous use in to consideration. Charging is done through USB. I was concerned about the battery though. The manufacturer mentions in the manual that if the tablet is on a low charge and if it remains on for too long (a week or more) then the battery’s internal protection circuit gets activated and the battery is discharged with the available current. Further more, the manual says that you will not be able to use the battery after this. Replacement batteries will put you back by $39-$49.

I ran in to some problems when I tried to hook this up to my computer for detection. For MacBook Pro (with OS X 10.5.8), I had to run the Bluetooth Setup Assistant. Then I tried the Wacom Intuos4 Wireless on Windows Vista (Business, 64-bit) and here I had to run the install for several times even though the device was detected. Apart from the wireless connectivity, this model is quite similar to its predecessor. Operating the tablet was a breeze and there were no hiccups which is ubiquitous in Bluetooth mice and keyboards.

There are LED labels close to the ExpressKeys which makes it more productive. You might think it is a bad mainstream application but a lot of people (including me) will like the Radial Menu’s media control functions. I don’t like using RM for tasks like paste and copy but it is easier to use the keystrokes with the left hand. The menus were useful for launching the Photoshop actions. I would have liked if the manufacturer gave the capability for loading the saved settings. This will let third parties or the manufacturer give some presets. Configurations, particularly for the multiple applications can be monotonous.

More buttons on the Wacom Intuos4 Wireless would have sweetened the deal further. Some thing like a Shift button would have given more functions to the keys. The buttons are identical and hence it is easy to get confused with them. I would like to tell the manufacturer to take these three things in to considerations for future iterations of this product. They tilt a bit and are packed closely. Some soft of indents of bumps would have been good; it would have made it easier to press the buttons without looking at them.

I really liked the Touch Dial and I would strongly advise you to fine-tune the sensitivity according to your preferences. The buttons lets you move through the variety of Touch Dial functions and has a small LED dot for indicating your position. I would have appreciated if the manufacturer gave labels for this as it was quite tedious to pull up the onscreen reference. Radial Menu has one feature which annoyed me a bit, it pops under the cursor and instead of appearing in same spot, it crawls up on the screen for each sub menu.

Wacom Intuos4 Wireless is improved a lot over its predecessor, the Intuos 3 and I will recommend this device to you if you spend the whole day with a pen in your hand. You might be turned off by the high price but let me tell you that it is worth your hard earned money. If you’ve ever imagined adding a tablet to your input device array either for business related ink note taking, for retouching your digital photos or for drawing, this is the gadget you are looking for.

Pros

Attractive design, easy to use interface, fluid pen operations.

Cons

No bundled Bluetooth adapter or mouse, keys could have better tactile differentiation, mouse feels awkward sometimes, configuration needs real time feedback, glossy plastic panel is a finger print magnet.

Outcome

Inclusion of Bluetooth has made this device even better than its predecessors. I will recommend this to artists or illustrators.

Specifications

Bundled components

Intuos4 pen tablet
Quick Start Guide
Nib extractor
Ten replacement nibs (5 standard nibs, 1 flex nib, stroke nib and a 3 hard felt nibs)
Pen stand
Intuos4 Grip Pen
Intuos4 mouse
2.5m USB cable
Installation CD which has an electronic manual and software for the tablet driver)

Supported OS