Review: XP-Pen Artist 10S 10.1" Graphics Display Tablet

Artist10S tablet

Review: XP-Pen Artist 10S 10.1″ Graphics Brandish Tablet

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If you lot want a display tablet that won't break the banking concern then you'll be pleased with the XP-Pen Creative person 10S. Information technology'southward a lot cheaper than even the cheapest Cintiq and it works just like whatsoever display tablet.

I love the smaller screen and the 10" display offers more than enough space to paint and describe. This tablet is lightweight, easy to transport, and super easy to work on.

The setup procedure is a bit involved so it's definitely not the simplest tablet to install. Just if you lot're OK with a wired tablet so I think you'll be impressed with the Artist 10S.

The Overview

Everything yous need comes in the box and it's packaged well. Aught was loose or at risk of being damaged.

The physical device itself is glorious. The offset thing that defenseless my eye was the black matte finish and the thin tablet base.

Information technology'south only 6mm thick so it feels easy to move effectually.

Although the device brands itself every bit a 10.1" screen, that 10" measurement is merely the diagonal. The full dimensions are viii.5" wide past near 5.3" tall.

I like this smaller blueprint considering I feel more than in command over the drawing surface. If you're looking for a smaller display tablet then you'll experience the aforementioned style.

The specs say it uses a 1280×800 resolution but I set mine to 1280×720. Once it was calibrated the screen worked great for me and I speedily got lost in my artwork. I'm surprised how natural this tablet feels under your mitt!

Resolution looks great although the LPI metric is gauged at a 5080 LPI resolution. This is far beyond the usual 2048 LPI which is more often than not the highest LPI that matters.

We have a post on LPI for tablet resolution if you lot desire to learn more than about how the LPI metric is calculated.

In the box you get a ton of cables and extras. Here'due south a brief rundown of everything:

• XP-Pen Artist 10S display
• Bombardment-gratis stylus
• Stylus holder
• Replacement nibs(x8)
• Ability adapter/cable
• USB/HDMI cable
• HDMI to Mac adapter cable
• Drivers CD
• Install manual
• Cleaning material
• Anti-fouling glove

A lot of stuff right?

The replacement nibs have their ain compartment in the stylus holder and so they're nestled away comfortably. And you won't demand all the cables only you will need at least ii: i for the power and some other to connect into your computer.

I don't take whatever demand for the Mac adapter cablevision simply information technology's included as a precaution for MacBook users.

I'll also say the install guide is surprisingly easy to follow. I don't carp with manuals very oftentimes merely I'll always skim them to run into how they read. This one is really written in clear English which is a overnice surprise.

The screen is crystal clear and I never plant myself needing the cleaning textile(although it'due south a nice bonus). I did use the XP-Pen brand creative person glove and information technology'due south fantastic. Great quality for a freebie and it keeps the screen free of smudges.

There's a lot to say most this tablet and my general stance is positive. But here are some quick pros & cons to look over.

Pros

• Bombardment-free stylus
• Six custom hotkeys
• Clear display with a nice cease
• Extras similar cleaning cloth/artist glove are a nice bonus

Cons

• Using 2 cables is a pain in the butt
• Setup is not easy
• Sleeky screen tin can cause bug with a bright light

I detest desk clutter. It's something I go out of my style to avert.

The Artist 10S requires two cables that must exist plugged in while you're working. This is probably the biggest annoyance when compared to the slim wires of the Parblo Coast10 which has very similar features.

I do recollect the drawing experience on the Creative person 10S is slap-up. I tin can't imagine anyone having major complaints about the tablet'south surface or quality of output from the stylus.

But the setup is a big process and it might be a reason to scare away potential buyers.

Device Setup

The beginning affair I do earlier installing whatever tablet is to start remove all previous tablet drivers. This isn't always mandatory but I do information technology anyway as a failsafe to avoid potential conflicts.

In this example the Artist 10S manual does enquire you lot to uninstall previous drivers.

Annotation: if you lose your manual yous can find a digital copy on the XP-Pen website.

Once that'due south done you'll insert the drivers CD into your computer and let information technology load. If you don't have a CD drive yous tin can download the drivers and mountain the CD digitally.

At the early installation phase you'll exist asked to plug the tablet USB cable into your figurer. This tin can exist confusing if you lot don't know which wire to use.

Make sure you have the USB-C cable that connects directly into your calculator from your tablet.

The other cable should go to the power string, seems obvious but information technology's easy to mix these up.

The longer USB cable should connect into the power adapter with a smaller port that looks like an auxiliary cable. The shorter USB cablevision is only for your computer and so make sure this is how you setup your tablet!

If yous mix up the USB cables the installation will not work.

I know this is super annoying. Figurer-illiterate users may have trouble just if y'all check the wire lengths and expect closely at the ports you should be fine.

Once you plug in the right cables your installation should finish smoothly. If you take whatever problems during the install you should double-check the cables and check your computer for missing drivers.

Windows users can cheque for drivers using this guide but Mac users may accept a tougher time. I found this thread covering Wacom driver locations but you'll probably have to dig around OS X to encounter if there are whatsoever left.

If y'all withal can't figure it out and so contact XP-Pen support. They're normally pretty quick and tin can help you track downwardly the problem.

Right after the installation you'll be asked to calibrate your tablet.

Information technology has a four-point or 9-betoken scale option. I went with 9-point only your results may be find using the four-point calibration.

If you're always cartoon and yous detect the stylus is slightly off-kilter you can recalibrate your screen. This is a good idea to do every and then often simply equally a touchup.

Once your Artist 10S is installed you should see a picayune icon in the system tray(Windows users). Click this to open the settings window where you can change a few default settings:

• Express keys
• Pressure
• Calibration
• Stylus buttons
• Monitor settings

I immediately set my stylus button settings and adjusted my monitor settings. To change the tablet's monitor characteristic brand sure information technology's gear up to the 2d monitor and that information technology has the aforementioned resolution equally your monitor.

The instructions say to use 1280×800 but I went with 1280×720 since it fit my resolution. Yous may need to tinker in these settings to get information technology working properly.

Also once you lot've calibrated the tablet yous should go back into the settings menu and mess with the pressure settings.

You lot tin move the pressure downwardly towards "lighter" to make thinner lines(requiring more pressure) or move it closer to "heavy" for naturally thicker lines(requiring very little pressure).

I adopt the lightest pressure possible and I had no issues with this.

The monitor setup was a bit of a pain and so was connecting the proper USB cables. I fully understand that some artists may loathe this setup procedure.

But if you're willing to see information technology through and get it all setup you'll be pleased with the drawing experience.

The Best Features

I primarily apply Adobe Photoshop and the XP-Pen Artist 10S works flawlessly with CS6(my version) and likely the newer CC version.

Brightness settings work well enough that y'all should be able to use this anywhere. It does catch a glare near bright lighting considering the screen has a glossy end.

Merely the drawing feel isn't degraded much at all.

Cartoon with the battery-free stylus feels incredible. It'south so lightweight and information technology matches the thinness of the tablet.

It also has 2 buttons on the side that tin replicate mouse clicks. And the stylus tip can stand for a 3rd tap/click, forth with the "directly pointing" feature where you can hover the stylus to move your mouse anywhere on the screen.

Some tablet styluses accept difficult ergonomics where the buttons feel uncomfortable. Simply the Creative person 10S stylus is fantastic and it feels like information technology's working with me, not confronting me.

I volition say the screen has lilliputian-to-no resistance so you lot may experience like yous're gliding along a smooth surface. I dear this blueprint choice but not everyone will.

All the shortcut keys work like a charm. I even so prefer the longer Wacom-mode hotkeys, but the Creative person 10S keys office only every bit you'd await.

Combining the express keys and the stylus buttons tin pb to a powerhouse workflow. These are my master thoughts:

• Express keys are like shooting fish in a barrel to customize
• Like shooting fish in a barrel to click while drawing
• Notwithstanding they might be bad-mannered for left-handed artists

Also while cartoon on the display I never had any problem with lag or cursor jumps. This was a large business concern when I was offset trying this tablet, but remainder bodacious the sensitivity is articulate as twenty-four hour period.

Since I like to sketch ideas fast it'south common for me to make dozens of marks quickly. The Artist 10S outperformed what I expected by reading these marks apace and placing them accurately.

I think the anti-fouling glove helped a lot to remove pressure level and heat from the screen. This is a great bonus item and I'm thrilled XP-Pen ships this tablet with a free cleaning material & glove.

Overall the drawing feel was exemplary and it far surpassed what I expected.

Downsides

Screen glare and the slick drawing surface are likely to impede some creative person's experiences.

I really like the slick cease so I wouldn't say this is my effect. Yet I do know some artists like a scrap of resistance on the drawing surface. Would this be a deal billow? Hard for me to make that call.

If you lot're willing to get used to a slick display then you will probably enjoy everything else. I don't similar the glare but if y'all turn upward the effulgence and shift your drawing position you can usually block out the light source.

I did have a mild event with calibration during setup but it wasn't a major concern for me. It took a few tries to go the scale only correct. But I didn't accept to adjust my resolution or re-install the drivers or anything like that.

Touch brandish tablets can be catchy to calibrate. They often need an exact resolution to ensure the on-screen tablet matches your computer monitor.

If you run into scale bug definitely call or e-mail XP-Pen back up. They're much easier to contact than other tablet brands and they'll walk yous through troubleshooting the install/calibration.

Also this is a very minor complaint, merely I kinda wanted a swivel stand up with this tablet. Information technology doesn't come up with i and it's not built into the pattern.

XP-Pen does sell a tablet stand that fits the Creative person 10S model. Simply I don't think information technology'southward worth paying extra for what could've been built into the design.

One other mild complaint that I'll throw out there is the lack of mobility. This can work as a portable tablet that you utilize with your laptop on the become. Simply the cables crave you to piece of work near a ability outlet.

I knew this wasn't a wireless tablet but I just didn't expect having two cables to be so annoying.

Granted they do stick out the aforementioned side of the tablet and they're contained in i area which makes them easier to handle. XP-Pen did the best they could with a wired design. This is only something that bellyaching me while drawing and I think over time it'll get easier to adjust.

The accented biggest downsides are 1) the setup procedure, and ii) the slick & sleeky screen.

If you lot can button through the setup and get by the display's glossy build then y'all'll be thrilled with this tablet.

Final Summary

When it comes to performance I have to give the XP-Pen Creative person 10S a big 5 out of 5. It outperformed what I would've imagined and the battery-free stylus feels incredible.

It's lightweight, fun to depict on, and offers plenty of customization with the limited keys. Plus the creative person glove & cleaning cloth are squeamish extras.

If you're looking for an IPS display tablet with a lightweight feel then this is the tablet for y'all. It may be a pain to setup but XP-Pen support is actually helpful. They tin assistance you to get past the setup stage so you can actually sit down and kickoff having fun with your tablet.

If you want a comparable model with a slightly larger display so check out the Parblo Coast10.

Information technology's some other display tablet with like specs/pricing and you tin even read our review for the Coast10 to compare & dissimilarity.

But if you're like me and then you lot'll love the Creative person 10S for its cozy design and lightweight drawing experience.

And if you lot've used XP-Pen earlier then y'all'll know exactly what to expect. For those who haven't, I'll just say you'll likely enjoy their tablet designs.

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Source: https://conceptartempire.com/xp-pen-artist-10s-review/

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