kaixax555
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Introduction
Think about a graphics tablet, and the first thing you think about, is a Wacom. Wacom is currently the leading manufacturer of graphics tablets for personal and industrial use, with over 85% of the world market share (about the same percentage as the number of Windows users in the world), making it almost a virtual monopoly. This gives very little space for other brands (which uses AAA batteries instead of the battery-less design of Wacom) to compete (for example UC-Logic, Hanvon and Genius).
Now let us bring our attention to the company Monoprice. To many online shoppers, the name Monoprice would be familiar. To TV owners and videophiles, they are known to carry cheap yet high quality HDMI and optical cables. To audiophiles, the Monoprice 8320 and 8323 are known to offer great sound for a budget price. However, few people are aware that Monoprice actually offers their own line up of graphics tablets, from the small yet powerful 4” x 3” to the mammoth 12” x 9” graphics tablet.
Today’s review is going to cover the Monoprice 10” x 6.25” graphics tablet. There are two versions of it, one with hot keys (Monoprice 6814) and one without (6251). This review will cover the one with hot keys. At the same time I will cover the Monoprice stylus you can buy separately in the website.
Packaging
The Monoprice 6814 comes in a pretty large box with a handle. The box is approximately the size of what you get in the Wacom Bamboo Fun or Wacom Intuos5 Small. The box looks pretty professional, though not packaged at the level of the Intuos5 or even the Bamboo Fun.
Inside the box, you will find the Monprice 6814 (which almost fills the box), a graphics stylus, an AAA battery, a pen stand with nib remover, the instruction manual, the driver CD and a pack of replacement nibs. Pretty basic, but all the essentials are inside.
The Monoprice 6814 itself is pretty large, with dimensions close to a 14.1 inch laptop, but much slimmer. The tablet is mostly plastic at the top, and metal at the bottom. The design of this tablet is definitely less attractive than the Bamboo but not that it matters anyway. The active surface area is pretty large, about 1.5 times the size of an average manga or translated light novel. 8 buttons run down the side which allows for various functions such as zooming, copying and pasting. On top are also various hot cells which can be configured to run your desired programs. All this makes this graphics tablet great for daily use.
The stylus is pretty long at more than 6 inches long. It does not have an eraser at the top, and it runs on an AA battery, which makes it heavier than the Wacom stylus, which is battery-free. The design, while looking like the one used by the Wacom, does feel pretty cheap. However, despite the cheap looks, this stylus looks durable and should be able to withstand the daily rigours of digital painting.
The pen holder is pretty nicely designed. The pen stands upright (pretty much like fountain pens) when not in use. There is a good weight to it, which prevents it from toppling over easily. At the bottom, there is a nib remover which allows you to change nibs when it wears out.
Think about a graphics tablet, and the first thing you think about, is a Wacom. Wacom is currently the leading manufacturer of graphics tablets for personal and industrial use, with over 85% of the world market share (about the same percentage as the number of Windows users in the world), making it almost a virtual monopoly. This gives very little space for other brands (which uses AAA batteries instead of the battery-less design of Wacom) to compete (for example UC-Logic, Hanvon and Genius).
Now let us bring our attention to the company Monoprice. To many online shoppers, the name Monoprice would be familiar. To TV owners and videophiles, they are known to carry cheap yet high quality HDMI and optical cables. To audiophiles, the Monoprice 8320 and 8323 are known to offer great sound for a budget price. However, few people are aware that Monoprice actually offers their own line up of graphics tablets, from the small yet powerful 4” x 3” to the mammoth 12” x 9” graphics tablet.
Today’s review is going to cover the Monoprice 10” x 6.25” graphics tablet. There are two versions of it, one with hot keys (Monoprice 6814) and one without (6251). This review will cover the one with hot keys. At the same time I will cover the Monoprice stylus you can buy separately in the website.
Packaging
The Monoprice 6814 comes in a pretty large box with a handle. The box is approximately the size of what you get in the Wacom Bamboo Fun or Wacom Intuos5 Small. The box looks pretty professional, though not packaged at the level of the Intuos5 or even the Bamboo Fun.
Inside the box, you will find the Monprice 6814 (which almost fills the box), a graphics stylus, an AAA battery, a pen stand with nib remover, the instruction manual, the driver CD and a pack of replacement nibs. Pretty basic, but all the essentials are inside.
The Monoprice 6814 itself is pretty large, with dimensions close to a 14.1 inch laptop, but much slimmer. The tablet is mostly plastic at the top, and metal at the bottom. The design of this tablet is definitely less attractive than the Bamboo but not that it matters anyway. The active surface area is pretty large, about 1.5 times the size of an average manga or translated light novel. 8 buttons run down the side which allows for various functions such as zooming, copying and pasting. On top are also various hot cells which can be configured to run your desired programs. All this makes this graphics tablet great for daily use.
The stylus is pretty long at more than 6 inches long. It does not have an eraser at the top, and it runs on an AA battery, which makes it heavier than the Wacom stylus, which is battery-free. The design, while looking like the one used by the Wacom, does feel pretty cheap. However, despite the cheap looks, this stylus looks durable and should be able to withstand the daily rigours of digital painting.
The pen holder is pretty nicely designed. The pen stands upright (pretty much like fountain pens) when not in use. There is a good weight to it, which prevents it from toppling over easily. At the bottom, there is a nib remover which allows you to change nibs when it wears out.
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