Xencelabs Pen Tablet Medium Bundle PACKAGE DEAL
Xencelabs’ pen and tablet package takes on Wacom with its expert product design and competitive pricing
The team behind Xencelabs includes ex-wacom employees, and they’ve put all their design and industry know-how into the Pen Display Medium. It’s as user- and artist-friendly as you’d hope.
The Pen Display Medium Bundle, which includes the Xencelabs Pen Tablet, two pens (the three button and Thin Pen) and a case, a Quick Key remote, a drawing glove and a very nice soft tablet carrying case, comes in at just £320. The tablet sits just under a 13-inch Macbook in size and at only 8mm thick it looks and feels lovely. It has an ergonomic curved front edge, and is super-sleek, solid and well made. From the texture of the active drawing zone, to the metal
alloy underside with six rubber nonslip pads, it all adds to a build quality you might expect from a more premium piece of kit.
The active area is delineated by four corner LEDS you can customise in eight different colours. You can set these for different programs: blue for Photoshop, pink for Affinity, say.
REMOTE WORK
Three small customisable buttons sit at the top of the tablet. They’re perfect for accessing the tablet or pen settings, or for switching programs. As for the rest of the shortcut buttons, that’s where the Quick Key Remote comes in. Those quick key shortcuts have been lifted off the tablet and configured into a separate, OLED display and nine-button remote with physical scroll wheel. The remote itself is as nice a build as the tablet and is customisable with up to 40 shortcuts. A bit of time spent in the settings means a relatively easy configuration of dial sequences – ideal for scrolling, zooming and changing brush sizes.
You can configure the eight buttons into different sets for different art jobs:
Set A for sketching, B for editing, C for colouring, and so on. The OLED display makes everything easier. Compared to other drawing tablets, this – as well as the initial setup and driver installation – is stress free.
DOUBLE THE PEN FUN
Wacom sells its slim pen separately, but kudos to Xencelabs for including one with the Pen Tablet Medium Bundle. You get a regular three-button pen and a slim two-button pen.
Being able to customise both pens to different settings is a nice touch – you can grab one for shading or light pencil work, and use the other for inking or painting in, for example. Both pens have the standard (and very high) levels of pressure sensitivity, and 60-degree tilt functions, as standard. The drawing experience with the pens is very good – no lag, smooth lines, and no marks missing when sketching at speed. Again, it’s Wacom-like.
Ten extra nibs are included in the case. Four of them are made of felt for extra ‘tooth’ to get that paper feel, plus a nib extracting ring.
The pen tablet and Quick Key Remote both link up with to your computer via USB and once charged, are both connected to the tablet via Bluetooth. The battery of both the tablet and remote lasted a fair few hours. The pen takes less than an hour to fully recharge (while using it), and the remote about half an hour. The pens are, of course, battery free.
Between the Deco Pro and the Intuous Medium and this tablet, Xencelabs comes out on top. The Xencelabs Pen Display Medium bundle is a clear signal that the Xencelabs team is a serious competitor in this market, offering a capable tablet and accessories set that’s understated yet cleverly designed, for a sensible price.
Whether you’re a professional digital artist or are just starting out, it’s hard not to recommend this well-designed tablet and bargain bundle of goodies and extras.
Wacom sells its slim pen separately, but kudos to Xencelabs for including one with the Pen Tablet Medium Bundle