I spoke with Xencelabs at Siggraph this year and really got the impression that they want to beat the snot out of Wacom and replace them. A lot of their people used to be at Wacom and were frustrated that Wacom wasn't really innovating and sitting on its laurels.
The most attractive thing about this which no reviewer seems to care about when it comes to drawing tablets is, that this one has a 16:9 drawing area. I am someone who matches the ratio of my screen to that of my tablet. So, that just wastes a lot of drawing area real estate
I have a question can you use a chrome book instead of a laptop/ computer to use these I am a student and I can’t afford buying a laptop... Btw I use an HP chrome book. Bc you know you hav to have a laptop to make the actual screen display work.
I think my Cintiq 16 is starting to sweat. I’m excited to see what else this company does. Their express key remote has an oled screen built in for $90.
Awesome line quality ✅ Sloped bottom ✅ Included slim pen ✅ Really good software ✅ How did this tablet manage to be so perfect! Really looking forward to their future products.
I definitely wanna keep my eye on this company. It’s cool to finally see a middle ground between Wacom and it’s cheaper competitors, especially for those people who will only choose Wacom. I think the design of the tablet itself is just a little off (particularly the shortcut buttons) but everything else is really good. Can’t wait to see what they do in the future.
Yes! One day that just arrived in the mail and I had no idea where it came from. I was so confused, I found out later that the Illustrator team sent it to me as a thank you gift after I jumped on a call with them one day to chat about software a few months earlier.
It’s like God erased part of Brad’s left eyebrow by mistake and then noticed it after he rendered but decided Brad would be too perfect with a full eyebrow.
I have just purchased this tablet, and I'm so impressed. I decided to downsize from my Cintiq 22hd, which Ive used since 2012, but my arm gets tired. I also get back problems, even when drawing Upright. This tablet is so comfortable to use, and really premium quality. I'm so impressed. Has anyone here downsized in a similar way?
New competitor is always good! In my opinion, it would be best to buy Xencelabs graphic display, rather than a pen tablet. The difference between Wacom and huion/xp-pen, in general, is still visible, but on displays, it is much more visible, while on pen tablets - not that much. Might be wrong though, again, my early opinion xd
Can we also just appreciate how the whole design of it, ux, pen case, tablet, simple gold and black logo, makes it look so much more elegant, like, I guess it means something when you think also at those little tiny details that will not improve your skills or make programs run better, but are just more pleasant to the eye. Gonna wait for their pen displays, they definetely got my attention
Every program you use has the ability to change these settings in the application itself. Having to install additional software for this functionality is bizarre and superfluous.
"touch-enabled waffle capabilities" really got me bro.... hahaha
3 роки тому+7
I'm still draw on my old Android tablet and just waiting for a company that is willing to make a good Android drawing tablet for budget and midrange users, I just love to take my tablet out and do some sketches when I get an random idea.
Great, in-depth review! 👑 We've been using one of these for months and the software makes it so much better than our Wacom equivalents. Physically, it's on-par or slightly ahead of Wacom. All in the details, which they have evidently sweated over.
You failed to mention the material used in the tablet’s body - metal. They do also sell what seems to be a pretty nifty wireless controller (with screen) named Quick Keys. Can’t wait for their version of a pen display…
4:43 if they were along the side, then lefties couldn't be able to flip the tablet, because the slope for comfort is only on one side. So buttons on the top are the best option.
I upgraded from a small drawing wacom intuos to a Huion 16 this Dec. I gained tilt and more pressure sensitivity. I was happy at first. I wouldn't call myself a professional digital artist, but I am a professional artist who has for a year been using drawing tablets more then 30 hours a week. I quickly stopped looking at the screen of my Huion and use it more like a pen tablet. My neck and back are happier for it. Over time I have found that while Huion might be close by whatever small margin, I can see a difference even compared to my old budget wacom. My Huion is not making consistent lines or results. It randomly lags, and other little bugs happen. I use it on two very different computers and different applications. The little problems come up with both computers and in different programs. Frankly I have found reviews like yours on Huion 16 to be misleading. I have come to the conclusion I made a mistake. That 5% difference makes a big difference over time. It's like traveling to the base of Mt Everest. Sure your almost there compared to how far you traveled from your home but you're still no where near the top. The real test is that last little bit. The longer I use the Huion the more annoyed I get. I do like the larger drawing surface, otherwise I would just put it back into the box and go back to the old intuos. I don't need bells and whistles, I just want the basics to be predictable and reliable. So is there market space for Xencelabs? YES. That is if it's pens are really equal to wacom at a lower price point.
yeah pen experience and durability make me really hesitant to completely switch from Wacom. Their new Intuoses having rougher surfaces were a deal breaker since I have a very heavy hand already, I'd burn through pen nibs in no time. Plus every alternative had the line wave. This looks nice, smoother and two pens is a good bonus, just wish buttons were included so I didn't have another accessory to carry around and potentially lose.
I don't trust this Huion to last. Which honestly is a bonus this time cause I wanna replace it so bad. I am currently thinking about finding an older intous pro model, without the nib wear issue. Ideally I will get Xencelelab if the release a large model. Their dial looks good, but I see your point about one more thing to lose.
@@mysterym9341 I'm just personally not a big fan of detached accessories - new Cintiqs and Wacom Ones coming without shortcut keys but still ginormous bezels makes no sense to me. But the oled screen on this remote that shows key names is great, I usually rely on muscle memory or have small stickers on my tablets. This would be helpful, but it still costs more than if I were to get a dedicated mechanical macropad with up to 30 keys for example. I will eventually buy this probably though, that Intuos 4-like surface is something I'm looking for and screen tablets have been an ergonomic nightmare for my spine. I am trying to use my Cintiq 13 without looking at the screen it's gotten that bad...
Did you know Xencelabs and XP-Pen share the same parent company (Hanvon Ugee)? I hope Brad would show the pen tilt quality of this one, since one of the things that differentiate Wacom from those cheaper alternatives is the tilt sensing. I know Brad doesn't really use tilt in his drawings, but since you're saying this new model is 'Wacom good', I hope this Xencelabs can do tilt sensing as reliably as a Wacom. If you don't know what we mean by 'reliably', check out our videos on Huion H950P vs Q620M. We had to add tilt stablization and amplification in our software to compensate for that.
im using an intuos pro (2013) pth 851 , replaced my xp pen artist 12 2nd gen for the keks and the pen tilt on both pens are very very similar , i use a lot of tilt in my line drawing work on clip studio paint using the static pencil-tilt brush, sketching brush and Real Pencil (by Daub i think) and the wacom one feels exactly like xp pen's , atleast the newer models , idk about their older ones since my first tablet that i used for 8 yrs was xp pen deco 01 ver. 1
Xencelabs is such a great competitor to Wacom, and I feel that they will help advance digital art hardware very much and very well. While they are a bit pricey, they definetely have more value for price than Wacom (Accessories, personalization, etc.), and the performance seems pretty much identical to Wacom or at least almost identical. Xencelabs has staff from 3 tablet companies that I know of. Wacom, XP-Pen, and XP-Pen's parent company whose name I forget unfortunately. I've watched their UA-cam presentation and they have been in the works for years, and they revised their tablet many many times after receiving feedback from trustworthy artists. They also thought of pretty much everything, and used statistics of artists' preferences for the tablet's design. Such as the three shortcut buttons-to be used for driver settings-along the top, fun little corner lights, etc. I really advise heading to Xencelabs' UA-cam for their presentation if you are interested in the product and company.
XP Pen is owned by Hanvon Ugee, which also owns Xencenlabs. Its all the same stuff at the end of the day, owned by the same people, from the same manufacturing plant.
@@deuswulf6193 so what? many cars/phones have premium sub-brands. Whats important is the quality difference and trust me, with over 10 year XP in concept art...there is a big difference! Xencells have very premium look.
@@havencat9337 Some people like to know when a "new" brand, is actually an older one, that might not have the best reputation, especially when "new brand" tries to put itself in the Wacom price category. Its a marketing trick on their part. They are trying to create the "mind share", perception, that they are some how a Wacom equivalent simply by changing name, visual style and increasing price. Xencelabs also released a display tablet with the MSRP of around $2000. Is there anything that seriously sets it apart from the other versions of it by XP Pen and Huion with their 24 inch display tablets? Not really, as far as I'm concerned. It even has the same issue with pen wobble. Its likely the same digitizer, along with the same general manufacturing source with all the same problems, only they charge twice the price. At that point, you might as well just invest in an new wacom, which is around the same price. You would have to be a fool for falling for that marketing tactic, and not everyone wants to be a fool. Again, some people like to know this stuff, just like they might like to know that "premium" EVGA G2 power supply is just a rebranded Super Flower power supply, which can be had for a better price.
It's great to see more competition like this. And hopefully this will push Huion and XP-Pen to improve their drivers, pen and consider on different type of pens or nibs eventually. (This is coming from someone who already like Huion products, lol) PS. Would love to see you review the XenceLabs remote (and also the Huion KD100?) to see how it compares!
That is on point. I have co pen and i admit that it doesn't work well on windows. It surprised me that it really works well on linux on the other hand!
As I've grown to realize that I don't need at all display-tablets (I have one, using it solely as extra monitor) my curiosity for the future of this company goes more in the line of seeing them releasing a product of the "Large" type. The size of a Wacom Large (Intuos Pro L), for example. THAT's really a professional approach. Specially for those of us that have to make line-art in our line of work (pun intended) often, and require high precision (which small and medium tablets have a harder time to provide, without some use of software stabilization, very heavy in some cases).
Yes and pros are more likely to be using a big monitor or multiple monitors which really benefits from a larger tablet. I don't blame them for not making a large model to start with, though. I would think the market for those is smaller than S or M
The extra pen and case for nibs is awesome. I remember on my old wacom small the extra nibs were packed in a hidden compartment on the back. It took me forever to see it, and popping it open was a pain also.
When comparing to Wacom it would be nice to now if the nibs wear insanely fast like they do on the Intuos Pro's "standard" surface. When it comes down to it most of the nice features are just candy and truly not needed. If the XP-Pen Deco 01v2 had better actuation force (more sensitive) I would say it's perfect for a base model. I almost regret getting an Intuos Pro recently, mostly because Wacom pretty much doesn't support their stuff anymore by not refilling supply of texture surfaces and there is a terrible flaw with the ProPen 2 where the nib will rotate on it's own during circular movements. Third party nibs may solve this and the wear issue.
You can get a 12 inch pen display a little cheaper from xp pen or huion. They are different products as to compare with each other, it would be interesting to wait for this brand to bring out a pen display anyway I find it expensive and interesting to see more brands.
Is it silly that the different color corners per application thing excited me most? 😆 very interesting new entry. I’ve been thinking about getting a pen display to replace my old Intuos3 for a while but struggling between going for the best and the quality compromises that huion and xp pen have. I may wait to see what xencelabs comes up with.
Definitely seems like an interesting product. I will be keeping an eye on them; if they can produce products that are up to the same standard of Wacom for cheaper, then it'll be a no-brainer to recommend them! I'm not really a fan of other companes like Huion and XP-Pen, both tablets I had from them didn't work correctly at all, so hopefully Xencelabs have higher quality control on their products.
Yeah, Huion was definitely better than the XP-Pen tablet, but it still was not a good experience by any stretch of the imagination. The driver continually crashed and I had issues where the cursor would be right but the drawing would be in a separate spot. I don't count Huion or XP-Pen as competitors (as their products just aren't up to scratch), so I'm really hoping Xencelabs can be what we need in the market!
The Medium tablet comes in a bundle with a 3 Button "3D" Pen, Slim Pen & Remote at the same price as the Wacom Pro tablet. Only thing missing is the Waffle making capability that Wacom apparently has. - The Wacom doenst come with a remote. So you have to buy the remote extra for $100. - The wacom Pro pen 2 only has two buttons, very bad for 3D artist. So you have to buy the Wacom 3D pen for another $100. - The Wacom slim pen is also not included, another $100
@@icemarle Same. I can't believe everybody that paints doesn't use it. I can only think it's because they haven't tried it. It's so useful and does away with a lot of brush resizing or multiple brushes / blending as you can use a brush with a mix of hard and soft edges. At this point, though, I think even Wacom (the only brand that supports barrel rotation) considers it to be a niche. The only pen they have that does this (the oddly named: "art pen" - what are the other pens for?) is more than 10 years old now and is back on 2048 pressure levels. I'm not sure if they even advertise it on their website anymore. If Xencelabs supported barrel rotation then I would jump ship. But I'm guessing every artist has their own: "if this company would only change X thing then I'd go with them" feature...
Now let's see them use this tech in a pen display. Also REALLY glad to see Linux support. It's one of the few things holding me to Windows these days. Still a little expensive for what it is, but more competition should lower prices if all else is equal.
Those little design are very detailed I love how it looks and by the way you review it I am convinced that this is a great Pentax I am used to draw with this kind of gadget
At the end of the day it's just too expensive, in some places such as AU it's more expensive than the Intuos Pro. Don't get me wrong, it looks nice and Wacom need a competitor, but you can't just release your first product and expect people to pay the same or more than an old and reliable brand such as Wacom.
Kaede:Ahoy It's a Cat! Also it's has fat puff and is bloomy. Cat: I m pretty right, so will you adore me and feed me fish? Kaede: Sure why not? After all you will help me for the success of my experiment. Cat: Whot? Which Experiment? Kaede: It's actually called Schrödinger's cat but after I do it with you it will be name as KAEDE'S CAT!
Bring on a new pen display competitor! Huion and XP Pen have been closing the gap, but there's still a huge rift at the high end. I'd love to pay a startup for something disruptive if it's high quality out the gate. Great review as always, Brad!
can't wait if ever they have a display tablet in the works! thanks for this review (I've used wacom, huion as well) and would like to try this later for a more agile setup
here in Egypt, drawing tech are so expensive because the taxes here are nuts especially on drawing tools. last year I bought the huion hp 640p costaing me 100$ like the dobel of the price. so beacuse of that most artist here in Egypt uses huion and xp-pen proudctus unless you wanna to buy a wacom intous with 250$.great video btw brad I really enjoy your content and I think your art styel is very uniqe and is actully good.
I love my Kamvas 22 Plus but I can't help it when I try to rotate/zoom in/out with my fingers as if it was touch sensitive... I guess it will tough even for Xencelabs to make a 22-24 inch 4k,etched glass and multi touch that is not much more 1k. It's ridiculous to think but the new iPad Pro will be ridiculously convenient for artist considering that for a little over 1k you can get the 12.9 version and basically have a top tier touch sensitive drawing display WITH A TOP LEVEL COMPUTER BUILT IN!!! I mean if you really can't live without a huge canvas and have the best experience with desktop apps then the iPad pro 12.9 will be the final drawing tablet killer.
Great review Brad! Looks like a really decent product from the company! I wonder if their drivers are capable of correct toggling monitors without switching it manually. For me toggling is one of the wacom's hugest flaws, either you have to switch manually every time which is a bummer or use only 1 monitor. Also how does this Xencelab software handle the Windows Ink? (which is another HUGE bummer of wacon drivers). Thanks!
This product is such a breath of fresh air, it totally killed my interest to upgrade to new intuos, i have been using wacom because the linux support, and guess what this have a linux support too.
i have my intous 5 medium since 2016 (bought it second hand). changed the surface once, got nibs, still runs like a champ. let's see how long these cheap alternatives last.
"what if i told you there was a tablet out there that was the same quality as wacom and the same price as wacom? oh im sorry did i just blow your mind"
The driver and software interface thing is huuuuge. My biggest issue with most Wacom alternatives is how junky their drivers and software are - especially on Mac. Endless bugs and issues, drivers not recognising the devices, software freezing up or resetting your custom settings, pens not responding, lines being jittery and wobbly. So far Xencelabs, at least from this video, looks and sounds amazing. Really hope they decide to work on some display tablets.
@@EightNineOne That’s amazing to hear! I’ve got an XP-Pen display tablet. It’s fine and all, but the drivers are really sucky - to the point where it’s almost a deal breaker. I’d almost prefer a tablet that has ‘okay’ build quality as long as the drivers are reliable. Really spoils the experience. The Xencelabs tablets already look like they’ll have a bright future even though they’ve only released one tablet.
@@christidutoit yeah, that's been my biggest issue with companies like XP pen and huion. This is certainly in a different league, built like a wacom (maybe a bit better) and the software is just awesome, especially when you get the button pad thingy.
@@thebradcolbow whoa you replied,! You are like my inspiration and your videos are so educational and helpful Brad. Never stop posting,I am addicted to your videos.
I'm excited! I grew more and more dissatisfied with what Wacom actually offered for the prices they charge. Entry level pen display - sell extra pens and even the stand for a typical Wacom price. Still wears down the surface. Customer service was ... meh. If Xcencelabs fills the spot of being actually reasonable priced quality or offering more variation (I want build quality and good drivers - I don't care about touch or extra buttons or ultra-artist-mega-pen-expirience-2000(tm) ) I am more than willing to pay for it. And if their websites and Amazon descriptions then don't show really terrible auto-translations on top but actual people taking care of localization - colour me SUPER excited. Don't care if they enter the market only now. If the product is good I'm willing to give it a try. Wacom held the luxurious ultra expensive pole position for too long now.
It lives up to they hype. Build quality is excellent and unlike all of the other alternatives, in use it is absolutely as good as a wacom. I replaced an ageing 13 inch cintiq with one of these + the key remote they sell
This is interesting. I actually like regular tablets more than screens (for computer drawing). Wacom’s drivers have always felt clunky to me. I’m still using an Intuos Pro from about 7 years ago. and it works fine, but might look into this brand in the future. However, I have been doing more drawing on my iPad Pro than on my computer lately.
I hope they'll quickly come to market with a cintiq alternative in the 13"-16" range. The QC on the last gen of Wacom products was terrible. I'd be inclined to use my ipad pro and suffer without mouse hover before investing in another faulty cintiq.
Thanks for the review. It comes at a perfect time for me: I’m a beginner still really who was looking to either upgrade my Wacom Intuos or pawn everything I have, cut off my arm and rob a bank for an iPad Pro. This seems like it really might be a great choice at this time.
Haha, I’m cut between the same choice. Though I have money for an iPad Pro, I just didn’t want to spend it all on one. Prefer my laptop/gaming pc overall
I spoke with Xencelabs at Siggraph this year and really got the impression that they want to beat the snot out of Wacom and replace them. A lot of their people used to be at Wacom and were frustrated that Wacom wasn't really innovating and sitting on its laurels.
The most attractive thing about this which no reviewer seems to care about when it comes to drawing tablets is, that this one has a 16:9 drawing area. I am someone who matches the ratio of my screen to that of my tablet. So, that just wastes a lot of drawing area real estate
Wait, I don't really get it, do you have a super wide screen?
@poopoo yeah that's what I mean, most screens come in 16:9
The day we all have been waiting for
SOMEONE PINCH MEEEEE
About goddamn time. Can't wait to see the new products that competition will produce
@@koifishflavor ACK OK, thank the DOGS
im still in awe, it's just **chef's kiss**
It's always nice to see new competition in the art space, hope too see more from them, I remember when Artisul came out, look how far they've come
Omg! I’ve been binging your channel for the past few days! It’s really fun to watch!
I hope they come up with a Cintiq competitor. Great review, Brad!
You and me both!
Apparently They Have A Screen Tablet In Works! They Tweeted On Their Official Twitter Account!
Sorry for bumping a 1y/o comment, but apparently they just did! Saw their announcement in their SG Instagram profile earlier today
@@TheAlaGatorDA I'm. It normally one to jump on gen 1 products but their new pen tab is actually great.
I can totally see Brad using the pouches of the tablets he has reviewed to keep his feet warm😂
Keeping my feet warm right now 😆
@@thebradcolbow You have done the glove dance, any chance we get to see your foot pouch dance?😆
Billy Hatcher~
I have a question can you use a chrome book instead of a laptop/ computer to use these I am a student and I can’t afford buying a laptop...
Btw I use an HP chrome book.
Bc you know you hav to have a laptop to make the actual screen display work.
Lol that could make someone upset
2:48
Brad : "Wacom in the box?"
Me : I thought it was a Xencelabs...
haha, that's just me talking to fast. I said "what comes in the box"
@@thebradcolbow Haha yes! It was the joke :D Love your reviews btw! :)
I think my Cintiq 16 is starting to sweat. I’m excited to see what else this company does. Their express key remote has an oled screen built in for $90.
Awesome line quality ✅
Sloped bottom ✅
Included slim pen ✅
Really good software ✅
How did this tablet manage to be so perfect! Really looking forward to their future products.
I definitely wanna keep my eye on this company. It’s cool to finally see a middle ground between Wacom and it’s cheaper competitors, especially for those people who will only choose Wacom. I think the design of the tablet itself is just a little off (particularly the shortcut buttons) but everything else is really good. Can’t wait to see what they do in the future.
Cheaper?
@@unityindiversity1708 wdym?
Wait am I seeing an adobe illustrator pillow in the background?👀
Yes! One day that just arrived in the mail and I had no idea where it came from. I was so confused, I found out later that the Illustrator team sent it to me as a thank you gift after I jumped on a call with them one day to chat about software a few months earlier.
@@thebradcolbow oh that's pretty dope
@@thebradcolbow Doesn't scare you that adobe knows where you live? 👀👀👀
@@dermond Do you know how many companies know where you live? Most of them you don't give this information knowingly, unlike Adobe. :P
@@Yuzuki1337 p i z z a h u t.
It’s like God erased part of Brad’s left eyebrow by mistake and then noticed it after he rendered but decided Brad would be too perfect with a full eyebrow.
I have just purchased this tablet, and I'm so impressed. I decided to downsize from my Cintiq 22hd, which Ive used since 2012, but my arm gets tired. I also get back problems, even when drawing Upright. This tablet is so comfortable to use, and really premium quality. I'm so impressed. Has anyone here downsized in a similar way?
If they release their Pen Displays with the same quality as this... I'm sold
Wow, this tablet seems like a dream! I like what this company is doing!
New competitor is always good! In my opinion, it would be best to buy Xencelabs graphic display, rather than a pen tablet.
The difference between Wacom and huion/xp-pen, in general, is still visible, but on displays, it is much more visible, while on pen tablets - not that much. Might be wrong though, again, my early opinion xd
Can we also just appreciate how the whole design of it, ux, pen case, tablet, simple gold and black logo, makes it look so much more elegant, like, I guess it means something when you think also at those little tiny details that will not improve your skills or make programs run better, but are just more pleasant to the eye. Gonna wait for their pen displays, they definetely got my attention
The software looks really really good! Too bad they don't ship to Brazil.
Why don't you buy it from Ebay or Amazon
Yet!
@@aminafaisal1527 It would cost more than double of just importation fees. Not worth the trouble.
tablet is the hardware not a software
Every program you use has the ability to change these settings in the application itself. Having to install additional software for this functionality is bizarre and superfluous.
Cant wait until they come out with either a wacom one or cintq alternative, its allways nice to have competition
"touch-enabled waffle capabilities" really got me bro.... hahaha
I'm still draw on my old Android tablet and just waiting for a company that is willing to make a good Android drawing tablet for budget and midrange users, I just love to take my tablet out and do some sketches when I get an random idea.
I'm a pen display user (XP-pen, which I really love) and I'm excited to see what Xencelabs has to offer with their pen displays in the future!
Drivers are super important. I hate fighting with the software trying to get things to work the way they should.
Great, in-depth review! 👑 We've been using one of these for months and the software makes it so much better than our Wacom equivalents. Physically, it's on-par or slightly ahead of Wacom. All in the details, which they have evidently sweated over.
this tablet really so cool?)
Xencelab whose parent's company is the same as xp pen
I’m literally watching your review to help educate me for my upcoming review
It’s clear who the alpha is in this relationship lol :)
Haha, well I watched your xp pen review to make sure I wasn’t crazy recently 😅
Great work on the review! Thanks to you i became aware of this great tablet~ (:
You failed to mention the material used in the tablet’s body - metal. They do also sell what seems to be a pretty nifty wireless controller (with screen) named Quick Keys. Can’t wait for their version of a pen display…
Damn, that's a really nice tablet!
If they come out with a screen tablet, I would definitely be getting one!
Sadly they don't sell in India when I checked but tablet looks so well built.
Product certification processes in India are very slow at the moment, but it should be sold there in the near future. 🙂
4:43 if they were along the side, then lefties couldn't be able to flip the tablet, because the slope for comfort is only on one side. So buttons on the top are the best option.
That's a good point.
I own the medium tablet bundle. In a word…Fantastic.
Can you review the Galaxy Book Pro 13? Edit:I mean the new Galaxy Book Pro 360 13"
Yep! it's on my list!
I upgraded from a small drawing wacom intuos to a Huion 16 this Dec. I gained tilt and more pressure sensitivity. I was happy at first. I wouldn't call myself a professional digital artist, but I am a professional artist who has for a year been using drawing tablets more then 30 hours a week. I quickly stopped looking at the screen of my Huion and use it more like a pen tablet. My neck and back are happier for it. Over time I have found that while Huion might be close by whatever small margin, I can see a difference even compared to my old budget wacom. My Huion is not making consistent lines or results. It randomly lags, and other little bugs happen. I use it on two very different computers and different applications. The little problems come up with both computers and in different programs. Frankly I have found reviews like yours on Huion 16 to be misleading. I have come to the conclusion I made a mistake. That 5% difference makes a big difference over time. It's like traveling to the base of Mt Everest. Sure your almost there compared to how far you traveled from your home but you're still no where near the top. The real test is that last little bit. The longer I use the Huion the more annoyed I get. I do like the larger drawing surface, otherwise I would just put it back into the box and go back to the old intuos. I don't need bells and whistles, I just want the basics to be predictable and reliable.
So is there market space for Xencelabs? YES. That is if it's pens are really equal to wacom at a lower price point.
yeah pen experience and durability make me really hesitant to completely switch from Wacom. Their new Intuoses having rougher surfaces were a deal breaker since I have a very heavy hand already, I'd burn through pen nibs in no time. Plus every alternative had the line wave. This looks nice, smoother and two pens is a good bonus, just wish buttons were included so I didn't have another accessory to carry around and potentially lose.
I don't trust this Huion to last. Which honestly is a bonus this time cause I wanna replace it so bad. I am currently thinking about finding an older intous pro model, without the nib wear issue. Ideally I will get Xencelelab if the release a large model. Their dial looks good, but I see your point about one more thing to lose.
@@mysterym9341 I'm just personally not a big fan of detached accessories - new Cintiqs and Wacom Ones coming without shortcut keys but still ginormous bezels makes no sense to me.
But the oled screen on this remote that shows key names is great, I usually rely on muscle memory or have small stickers on my tablets. This would be helpful, but it still costs more than if I were to get a dedicated mechanical macropad with up to 30 keys for example.
I will eventually buy this probably though, that Intuos 4-like surface is something I'm looking for and screen tablets have been an ergonomic nightmare for my spine. I am trying to use my Cintiq 13 without looking at the screen it's gotten that bad...
If you're looking for reviews about durability, you're clearly in the wrong place. I doubt this guy uses any tablet for longer than a year.
@@brzt4256 more like a few hours. Longevity, aside the lagging and other random bugs didn't become apparent until after using heavily for 2 weeks.
Did you know Xencelabs and XP-Pen share the same parent company (Hanvon Ugee)? I hope Brad would show the pen tilt quality of this one, since one of the things that differentiate Wacom from those cheaper alternatives is the tilt sensing. I know Brad doesn't really use tilt in his drawings, but since you're saying this new model is 'Wacom good', I hope this Xencelabs can do tilt sensing as reliably as a Wacom. If you don't know what we mean by 'reliably', check out our videos on Huion H950P vs Q620M. We had to add tilt stablization and amplification in our software to compensate for that.
wow youre doing such a wonerfull thing!
im using an intuos pro (2013) pth 851 , replaced my xp pen artist 12 2nd gen for the keks
and the pen tilt on both pens are very very similar , i use a lot of tilt in my line drawing work on clip studio paint using the static pencil-tilt brush, sketching brush and Real Pencil (by Daub i think) and the wacom one feels exactly like xp pen's , atleast the newer models , idk about their older ones since my first tablet that i used for 8 yrs was xp pen deco 01 ver. 1
I’m so glad you pronounce Wacom the correct way. People at my company look at me funny because I don’t say Way-com. 😂
I would love to see a Xencelabs Pen Display!
Xencelabs is such a great competitor to Wacom, and I feel that they will help advance digital art hardware very much and very well. While they are a bit pricey, they definetely have more value for price than Wacom (Accessories, personalization, etc.), and the performance seems pretty much identical to Wacom or at least almost identical.
Xencelabs has staff from 3 tablet companies that I know of. Wacom, XP-Pen, and XP-Pen's parent company whose name I forget unfortunately. I've watched their UA-cam presentation and they have been in the works for years, and they revised their tablet many many times after receiving feedback from trustworthy artists. They also thought of pretty much everything, and used statistics of artists' preferences for the tablet's design. Such as the three shortcut buttons-to be used for driver settings-along the top, fun little corner lights, etc. I really advise heading to Xencelabs' UA-cam for their presentation if you are interested in the product and company.
XP Pen is owned by Hanvon Ugee, which also owns Xencenlabs. Its all the same stuff at the end of the day, owned by the same people, from the same manufacturing plant.
@@deuswulf6193 so what? many cars/phones have premium sub-brands. Whats important is the quality difference and trust me, with over 10 year XP in concept art...there is a big difference! Xencells have very premium look.
@@havencat9337 Some people like to know when a "new" brand, is actually an older one, that might not have the best reputation, especially when "new brand" tries to put itself in the Wacom price category.
Its a marketing trick on their part. They are trying to create the "mind share", perception, that they are some how a Wacom equivalent simply by changing name, visual style and increasing price.
Xencelabs also released a display tablet with the MSRP of around $2000. Is there anything that seriously sets it apart from the other versions of it by XP Pen and Huion with their 24 inch display tablets? Not really, as far as I'm concerned. It even has the same issue with pen wobble. Its likely the same digitizer, along with the same general manufacturing source with all the same problems, only they charge twice the price. At that point, you might as well just invest in an new wacom, which is around the same price.
You would have to be a fool for falling for that marketing tactic, and not everyone wants to be a fool.
Again, some people like to know this stuff, just like they might like to know that "premium" EVGA G2 power supply is just a rebranded Super Flower power supply, which can be had for a better price.
It's great to see more competition like this. And hopefully this will push Huion and XP-Pen to improve their drivers, pen and consider on different type of pens or nibs eventually. (This is coming from someone who already like Huion products, lol)
PS. Would love to see you review the XenceLabs remote (and also the Huion KD100?) to see how it compares!
That is on point. I have co pen and i admit that it doesn't work well on windows. It surprised me that it really works well on linux on the other hand!
As I've grown to realize that I don't need at all display-tablets (I have one, using it solely as extra monitor) my curiosity for the future of this company goes more in the line of seeing them releasing a product of the "Large" type. The size of a Wacom Large (Intuos Pro L), for example. THAT's really a professional approach. Specially for those of us that have to make line-art in our line of work (pun intended) often, and require high precision (which small and medium tablets have a harder time to provide, without some use of software stabilization, very heavy in some cases).
Yes and pros are more likely to be using a big monitor or multiple monitors which really benefits from a larger tablet. I don't blame them for not making a large model to start with, though. I would think the market for those is smaller than S or M
Im gonna be excited for their pen displays, can't wait for your review in the future!
The extra pen and case for nibs is awesome. I remember on my old wacom small the extra nibs were packed in a hidden compartment on the back. It took me forever to see it, and popping it open was a pain also.
You've sold this for me over the Intuos Pro Med
I was thinking about upgrading to intuos pro in the future but I guess I found my to go tablet now 👀
I think the Intuos Pro Paper Edition is a better choice
@@proximacentauri9509 how so? , was considering it too but wacom here in my country doesnt sell their pen anymore (the inking one)
I now have one of these tablets. It is awesome and has totally replaced the Wacom that I have been using for many years. Love the quick keys.
wacom driver really sucks, yea...glad i got this one too
When comparing to Wacom it would be nice to now if the nibs wear insanely fast like they do on the Intuos Pro's "standard" surface. When it comes down to it most of the nice features are just candy and truly not needed. If the XP-Pen Deco 01v2 had better actuation force (more sensitive) I would say it's perfect for a base model. I almost regret getting an Intuos Pro recently, mostly because Wacom pretty much doesn't support their stuff anymore by not refilling supply of texture surfaces and there is a terrible flaw with the ProPen 2 where the nib will rotate on it's own during circular movements. Third party nibs may solve this and the wear issue.
You can get a 12 inch pen display a little cheaper from xp pen or huion. They are different products as to compare with each other, it would be interesting to wait for this brand to bring out a pen display anyway I find it expensive and interesting to see more brands.
This is so exciting. Looking forward to their screen tablet display
Is it silly that the different color corners per application thing excited me most? 😆 very interesting new entry. I’ve been thinking about getting a pen display to replace my old Intuos3 for a while but struggling between going for the best and the quality compromises that huion and xp pen have. I may wait to see what xencelabs comes up with.
Thank you!! You help me soooo much I can't even repay you
Definitely seems like an interesting product. I will be keeping an eye on them; if they can produce products that are up to the same standard of Wacom for cheaper, then it'll be a no-brainer to recommend them! I'm not really a fan of other companes like Huion and XP-Pen, both tablets I had from them didn't work correctly at all, so hopefully Xencelabs have higher quality control on their products.
Yeah, Huion was definitely better than the XP-Pen tablet, but it still was not a good experience by any stretch of the imagination. The driver continually crashed and I had issues where the cursor would be right but the drawing would be in a separate spot.
I don't count Huion or XP-Pen as competitors (as their products just aren't up to scratch), so I'm really hoping Xencelabs can be what we need in the market!
Man, now I have to buy two of these to keep both feet warm
The having an eraser at the other end is amazinggg
The Medium tablet comes in a bundle with a 3 Button "3D" Pen, Slim Pen & Remote at the same price as the Wacom Pro tablet.
Only thing missing is the Waffle making capability that Wacom apparently has.
- The Wacom doenst come with a remote. So you have to buy the remote extra for $100.
- The wacom Pro pen 2 only has two buttons, very bad for 3D artist. So you have to buy the Wacom 3D pen for another $100.
- The Wacom slim pen is also not included, another $100
I am still waiting for a company to produce a pen like the Art pen from Wacom that allows barrel rotation. I use that all the time in my digital work.
Was looking for this comment. If this company can produce something with barrel rotation, I'm jumping ship.
@@icemarle Same. I can't believe everybody that paints doesn't use it. I can only think it's because they haven't tried it. It's so useful and does away with a lot of brush resizing or multiple brushes / blending as you can use a brush with a mix of hard and soft edges.
At this point, though, I think even Wacom (the only brand that supports barrel rotation) considers it to be a niche. The only pen they have that does this (the oddly named: "art pen" - what are the other pens for?) is more than 10 years old now and is back on 2048 pressure levels. I'm not sure if they even advertise it on their website anymore.
If Xencelabs supported barrel rotation then I would jump ship. But I'm guessing every artist has their own: "if this company would only change X thing then I'd go with them" feature...
The buttons (and cable) being up is AMAZING for left handed people. No longer I need to be annoyed by turning the damn thing;P
Now let's see them use this tech in a pen display. Also REALLY glad to see Linux support. It's one of the few things holding me to Windows these days. Still a little expensive for what it is, but more competition should lower prices if all else is equal.
Finally a new company enters the arena.
Glad to hear you pronounce Wacom correctly.
Those little design are very detailed I love how it looks and by the way you review it I am convinced that this is a great Pentax I am used to draw with this kind of gadget
I'm already pretty happy with huion
I will be interested if they release a 16 “pro” version. Very happy to see this pass the wave test lol
That's definitely Wacom under a new name.
At the end of the day it's just too expensive, in some places such as AU it's more expensive than the Intuos Pro. Don't get me wrong, it looks nice and Wacom need a competitor, but you can't just release your first product and expect people to pay the same or more than an old and reliable brand such as Wacom.
The normal ipad is 299 right now👀
Galaxy tab s6 lite is also on sale
You still need to buy the Apple Pencil and that is not cheap.
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Does this have touch capability? Why isn’t that standard on these. I can’t work without it!
Bring on a new pen display competitor! Huion and XP Pen have been closing the gap, but there's still a huge rift at the high end. I'd love to pay a startup for something disruptive if it's high quality out the gate.
Great review as always, Brad!
Brilliant, thorough review. Thank you. I have an XP Pen Deco, and this might be my next upgrade. I appreciate your insight. Love your videos.
Man, I really want that 3 button pen, been wanting wacom to do that for years. Heck add a 4th one even.
can't wait if ever they have a display tablet in the works!
thanks for this review (I've used wacom, huion as well) and would like to try this later for a more agile setup
here in Egypt, drawing tech are so expensive because the taxes here are nuts especially on drawing tools. last year I bought the huion hp 640p costaing me 100$ like the dobel of the price. so beacuse of that most artist here in Egypt uses huion and xp-pen proudctus unless you wanna to buy a wacom intous with 250$.great video btw brad I really enjoy your content and I think your art styel is very uniqe and is actully good.
I love my Kamvas 22 Plus but I can't help it when I try to rotate/zoom in/out with my fingers as if it was touch sensitive... I guess it will tough even for Xencelabs to make a 22-24 inch 4k,etched glass and multi touch that is not much more 1k.
It's ridiculous to think but the new iPad Pro will be ridiculously convenient for artist considering that for a little over 1k you can get the 12.9 version and basically have a top tier touch sensitive drawing display WITH A TOP LEVEL COMPUTER BUILT IN!!! I mean if you really can't live without a huge canvas and have the best experience with desktop apps then the iPad pro 12.9 will be the final drawing tablet killer.
Please post a video on mac M1 and how xp pendeco v2 works on that
The tablet seems awesome, I checked out their website and saw the remote controller. I like that it has a dial I can set to brush size etc
Great review Brad! Looks like a really decent product from the company! I wonder if their drivers are capable of correct toggling monitors without switching it manually. For me toggling is one of the wacom's hugest flaws, either you have to switch manually every time which is a bummer or use only 1 monitor. Also how does this Xencelab software handle the Windows Ink? (which is another HUGE bummer of wacon drivers). Thanks!
This product is such a breath of fresh air, it totally killed my interest to upgrade to new intuos, i have been using wacom because the linux support, and guess what this have a linux support too.
i have my intous 5 medium since 2016 (bought it second hand). changed the surface once, got nibs, still runs like a champ. let's see how long these cheap alternatives last.
I've owned an intuos 3, 4, pro, three cintiqs and a bamboo. I now own one of these.
It is built as well or better than wacom products.
I still have my Intuos 5 large since 2013 and I’ve used it more than my recent Cintiq 16
"what if i told you there was a tablet out there that was the same quality as wacom and the same price as wacom? oh im sorry did i just blow your mind"
Except the Intuos Pro Medium is $100 more.
The driver and software interface thing is huuuuge. My biggest issue with most Wacom alternatives is how junky their drivers and software are - especially on Mac. Endless bugs and issues, drivers not recognising the devices, software freezing up or resetting your custom settings, pens not responding, lines being jittery and wobbly. So far Xencelabs, at least from this video, looks and sounds amazing. Really hope they decide to work on some display tablets.
The drivers in my experience are actually better than wacoms. This is something that has bounced me off all of the alternative brands
@@EightNineOne That’s amazing to hear! I’ve got an XP-Pen display tablet. It’s fine and all, but the drivers are really sucky - to the point where it’s almost a deal breaker. I’d almost prefer a tablet that has ‘okay’ build quality as long as the drivers are reliable. Really spoils the experience. The Xencelabs tablets already look like they’ll have a bright future even though they’ve only released one tablet.
@@christidutoit yeah, that's been my biggest issue with companies like XP pen and huion. This is certainly in a different league, built like a wacom (maybe a bit better) and the software is just awesome, especially when you get the button pad thingy.
Before I watch this review, are you sponsored or affiliated with Xencelabs? Or like, paid to review their product?
i noticed that Xencelabs also have a remote 👀 it'd be cool to see a review of that too
That pen case is just killing me! So nice!
Notification gang where are you ?
Sure if you say so good sir
*high five*
@@thebradcolbow whoa you replied,! You are like my inspiration and your videos are so educational and helpful Brad. Never stop posting,I am addicted to your videos.
Did I miss you saying what the actual price was? I will search for it, just used to you including it in your videos. Thanks for all you’re doing 😀
He always places it at the beginning of the video. Lower right corner
Thanks, I totally missed that!
I was super suprised to, when they reach out for me to test it out. They knocked it out of the park!
Yeah, I didn't expect much and was really surprised by how well they did their first time out.
@@thebradcolbow my thoughts exactly, I excited to what the display tablet is going to be like if this is what the reg tablet is like!
@@thebradcolbow my thoughts exactly, I excited to what the display tablet is going to be like if this is what the reg tablet is like!
That form factor... someone at the company was loving the intuos3
I'm excited! I grew more and more dissatisfied with what Wacom actually offered for the prices they charge. Entry level pen display - sell extra pens and even the stand for a typical Wacom price. Still wears down the surface. Customer service was ... meh.
If Xcencelabs fills the spot of being actually reasonable priced quality or offering more variation (I want build quality and good drivers - I don't care about touch or extra buttons or ultra-artist-mega-pen-expirience-2000(tm) ) I am more than willing to pay for it. And if their websites and Amazon descriptions then don't show really terrible auto-translations on top but actual people taking care of localization - colour me SUPER excited. Don't care if they enter the market only now. If the product is good I'm willing to give it a try. Wacom held the luxurious ultra expensive pole position for too long now.
It lives up to they hype. Build quality is excellent and unlike all of the other alternatives, in use it is absolutely as good as a wacom. I replaced an ageing 13 inch cintiq with one of these + the key remote they sell
This is interesting. I actually like regular tablets more than screens (for computer drawing). Wacom’s drivers have always felt clunky to me. I’m still using an Intuos Pro from about 7 years ago. and it works fine, but might look into this brand in the future. However, I have been doing more drawing on my iPad Pro than on my computer lately.
Pretty excited about this brand, I hope they do well. I'm so curious about that remote, but wish it were cheaper.
I love these videos even if I won't buy the tablet I still watch these as the jokes are so funny. Love this channel!
I'm glad you covered this!
Thankyou for covering this product review.
The pen tablet section of brad.site could use some updating ngl
$90 for the remote? That better be amazing.
When u make these types of video’s i need after watching them use my device to calm my self that i didn’t waste my money
wacoms drivers are like drunk penguins in the streets of nyc
Waiting for the pendisplay release
never been this early, nice vid!
I hope they'll quickly come to market with a cintiq alternative in the 13"-16" range. The QC on the last gen of Wacom products was terrible. I'd be inclined to use my ipad pro and suffer without mouse hover before investing in another faulty cintiq.
Thanks for the review. It comes at a perfect time for me: I’m a beginner still really who was looking to either upgrade my Wacom Intuos or pawn everything I have, cut off my arm and rob a bank for an iPad Pro. This seems like it really might be a great choice at this time.
Haha, I’m cut between the same choice. Though I have money for an iPad Pro, I just didn’t want to spend it all on one. Prefer my laptop/gaming pc overall