The Vista drivers for this version are much more stable than the ones for the Intuos3. With my Intuos3 I am constantly getting error messages and having to restart the computer. Even though I love the device, I don’t use it as much as I would like because the driver situation gets so frustrating. I’ve been using the Intuos4 all day and have not had one single problem with the driver. It was easy to install and has worked pretty much flawlessly. The only issue I had was with the eraser not working in Photoshop. After doing some searches on the internet I found out that this is related to a conflict when more than one tablet is installed. The solution was to unplug the tablet, use the “Wacom Tablet Preference File Utility” to delete all of my preference files, and then plug the tablet back and and restart Photoshop. Now it works like a charm.

One of my favorite new features of this version is the pen base. Whoever designed it was a genius. When you turn the base the bottom comes out and all the pen nibs are stored in there. It’s really brilliant. Another neat thing about it is that there is a small metal ring with a notch in it with the nibs. You use the ring to grip the nib when you want to remove it from the pen. It works really well on most of the nibs and makes it much, much easier to change the nibs. The only nib it doesn’t really work with is the black and white “flex” nib. Because the tip of that nib is hollow it is really difficult to grip it with the ring, or anything else for that matter.

In this model the shortcut buttons are all on one side and the drivers allow you to set the orientation for right or left handed use. There are a lot of buttons, eight to be exact. Next to the buttons is an LED display showing what the buttons do. I’m always forgetting what the buttons do on my old tablet, so I can definitely appreciate this. You can customize the display, too. When you set it to a keystroke you can name it and the name will then be displayed next to the button. It’s pretty cool. When you switch between applications the buttons change instantly to show you the custom settings for the specific application.

There is also a “touch ring” that allows you to scroll or cycle through options. It can hold four settings. You click the button in the center of the ring to toggle through your settings. I haven’t used this feature much, but I’m sure it will be useful.

The tablet is very sensitive. I’m not a professional graphics designer, so I can’t give a lot of details on this aspect, but it is definitely more sensitive than my old tablet.

At the time I am writing this the Intuos4 website hasn’t been setup. As a result I am unable to download the bundled software, so I can’t review that yet.

I’ve never really used the mouse that came with my old tablet because I don’t like the feel of it. The mouse with this one has the same feeling, so I won’t be using it either. It is very nicely made, though.

Overall I am very happy with the Intuos4. It is definitely worth upgrading to the new tablet. You won’t be disappointed.

The first thing I noticed was that the new tablet is thinner and lighter than my old tablet. It also has LED displays next to the buttons that tell you what each button does, these can be customized. I couldn’t get a good picture of the LED displays, but it looks very cool. I love that feature because with my old tablet I am always forgetting what the buttons do. I also like the design of the pen base. The bottom comes off and it holds the extra nibs (pictured above). It comes with 11 nibs total (one on the pen and ten in the base). There are color coded washer like things that you can put on the pen. I’m guessing the idea is that you use different colors with different nibs so you don’t forget which nib you are using.

Amazon hasn’t put up a product page for the Intuos4 yet, and Wacom hasn’t added anything to their website, so this is pretty much the only information that exists:

“The medium Intuos4 tablet is the most popular and versatile choice among creative professionals. With 48.5 square inches of working area, this tablet provides ample workspace for most tablet users. The medium size is built with eight ExpressKeys and illuminated ExpressKey displays that provide easy reference to your assigned functions. Like all Intuos4 tablets, the Intuos4 medium features Wacom?s new tip sensor technology to deliver an even finer level of control. You can initiate pen pressure control with near-zero starting pressure and a feather-light touch. With 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity and 60 degrees of tilt recognition, the Intuos4 pen simulates like never before the natural feel and accuracy of working with traditional brushes, pens, and markers. Improve your workflow and productivity, while enabling creative expression in numerous professional software applications. With the purchase of any Intuos4 tablet, you can participate in the Intuos4 bundled software download program. Intuos4 purchasers are eligible to download the following valuable software applications for free: Wacom Brushes 3.0., Nik® Color Efex Pro? WE6, and Corel® Painter? Sketch Pad. In addition, Intuos4 owners may choose between Adobe® Photoshop® Elements 7 for the PC, Adobe® Photoshop® Elements 6 for the Mac, or Autodesk® SketchBook Express® 2010. Actual offer may vary. Professional photographers, designers and artists agree: Intuos4 pen tablets speed production time for photo editing, design and art creation. When working with digital assets, there isn?t a more natural tool than a pen for increased comfort and control.”

I’m a member of Amazon Vine. Amazon Vine is a service through Amazon.com that sends products out to members to be reviewed. Well, yesterday Amazon offered me the new Wacom Intuos4 for review. This is pretty significant because at the moment I am writing this Wacom doesn’t even have the Intuous4 on their website, and the only information about it at all on the internet is some blurry photos of the product package.

The best part is that my new Intuos tablet was shipped from the Amazon warehouse that is right down the street from my house. According to UPS it is already out for delivery and will be on my doorstep some time today. So, not only am I getting a super awesome new graphics tablet, I am getting it before anyone else!

Keep an eye on this page. I plan on uploading my first impressions as soon as the doorbell wrongs.