Should you get a drawing tablet or an iPad?
Both drawing tablets and iPads allow for a natural drawing experience thanks to accurate styli and vivid screens with little delay.
High-end drawing tablets mimic physical paper through their impressive accuracy and pressure sensitivity. A combination of high responsiveness, adequate pressure sensitivity and accurate colors makes drawing tablets worthy alternatives to the physical canvas, paintbrush and paint.
But since Apple introduced the Apple pencil, iPads now rival dedicated drawing tablets. In addition, iPads offer more everyday capabilities than drawing tablets, and you don’t need a computer to create digital paintings on an iPad.
Drawing tablets
Dedicated drawing tablets allow you to use a stylus to draw and paint in a variety of programs by connecting to your computer via cable or Bluetooth. High-end models have displays built into the tablet itself, while less expensive tablets have no screen and require you to look at your computer screen while drawing on the tablet.
The two specifications to check carefully while shopping are the lines per inch and pressure sensitivity of a tablet. Lines per inch determines the precision with which you can draw. The best tablets offer around 5,000 lines per inch.
Pressure sensitivity levels allow you to make a variety of strokes for a natural drawing experience. Professional tablets offer 2,000 pressure sensitivity levels.
Drawing tablets range in price from $40 for beginner models without displays to $2,500 for feature-packed professional models.
Drawing tablet pros
Because drawing tablets are designed for drawing alone, they include many features to help artists work, including shortcut buttons and color-rich displays.
Drawing tablet cons
Professional drawing tablets with displays are expensive, and entry-level models without displays can take some getting used to.
Best drawing tablets
Wacom Cintiq Pro 24: Available at Amazon
Our take: The Cintiq Pro 24’s anti-glare screen ensures that your work is not inhibited by distracting reflections. The 4K display that matches 99% of Adobe RGB colors.
What we like: With a pressure sensitivity of 8,192, the included Pro Pen 2 allows you to draw detailed images on the 23.6-inch 4K screen. You don’t need to charge the Pro Pen 2 because it charges via the electromagnetic screen as you work.
What we dislike: Its anti-glare screen may make some colors appear dull, and the wired connection can clutter your desk. Besides this, its large screen makes it less portable than smaller options.
Wacom Cintiq 16: available at Amazon
Our take: The images you draw on the Cintiq 16 screen do not appear to change their position when viewed from different angles, and the low-parallax design is easy to use.
What we like: This popular tablet has an adjustable stand and a built-in slot for storing its stylus. It only has a single port that splits into USB-A and HDMI, which makes it easy to keep your desk tidy.
What we dislike: You cannot use touch to zoom in and out or to rotate the image you are working on.
Huion Kamvas Pro 24: available at Amazon
Our take: Not only is the 23.8-inch screen big enough to allow you to enhance the detail of your image, but the high-resolution screen also presents colors accurately and clearly. The screen surface has a paper-like texture for a natural drawing experience.
What we like: Displays 16.7 million colors in a crisp 2.5K screen. Its HDMI, VGA, USB and DP ports allow you to connect your Kamvas Pro 24 to almost any device. The included stylus does not need to charge.
What we dislike: Some people feel that the hotkey buttons are too squishy. This tablet is not cheap, but photo and video editing capability make up the cost.
iPads for drawing
They may not be dedicated drawing tablets, but iPads have managed to rival even higher-end dedicated drawing tablets thanks to the Apple pencil. This digital stylus has an intuitive design and does not lag when you are drawing on your iPad. It can detect many levels of pressure you apply when drawing, which allows you to draw thick or fine lines almost as easily as you would on a piece of paper or canvas.
However, not all iPads are compatible with the Apple pencil. Some stylus-compatible iPads include the iPad Pro 12.9-inch, iPad Air 4th generation and the iPad Mini. You can buy an iPad supported by the Apple Pencil for $350 to $1,200.
iPad pros
Their fast processors allow them to perform complicated tasks faster than most tablets. Unlike the majority of dedicated drawing tablets, iPads have touch screens and can access several drawing apps on the Apple App Store. They can be used for tasks like browsing the web, streaming videos and playing games. You don’t have to connect your iPad to a computer to create digital artwork.
iPad cons
With most drawing apps, you have to rotate your iPad to draw from different angles. iPad screens were not designed to simulate paper texture, which means drawing on them feels like drawing on a glass surface.
Best drawing iPads
iPad Pro 12.9-inch: available at Amazon
Our take: The liquid retina screen offers impressive color accuracy and strokes appear instantly on the screen, which makes drawing on this iPad feel natural.
What we like: The A12Z chip eliminates lag, and the excellent battery life means hours of uninterrupted drawing.
What we dislike: This is the most expensive iPad available.
iPad Air 4th generation: Available at Amazon
Our take: Artists will appreciate how stunning colors appear on the iPad Air’s immersive screen. It’s more affordable than the Pro, though its processing power is reduced.
What we like: Colors are displayed accurately. The slim design is highly portable.
What we dislike: Drawing on the iPad Air does not feel natural and is less precise than drawing on the Pro.
iPad Mini: Available at Amazon
Our take: The iPad Mini functions similarly to the iPad Air, but in a smaller form factor. Colors appear accurately on its 7.9-inch retina display and you can draw on it for about 10 hours before you need to charge the battery.
What we like: The compact size makes it the most portable iPad available. Beginner digital artists can take advantage of this significantly lower cost and use it as an introduction to digital drawing.
What we dislike: The Mini is only compatible with the first-generation Apple pencil, and the screen is too small for detailed drawing.
Should you buy a drawing tablet or an iPad?
If you are a hobby artist or do not have a computer that can support digital painting programs, an iPad is likely your best option as it does not require a computer. While Apple’s less expensive offerings work well for beginner artists, the iPad Pro is a serviceable device for professional artists.
However, most professional artists would be better off with a dedicated drawing tablet thanks to their more precise screens and pressure sensitivities. In addition, it’s easier to rotate a drawing tablet to get the right angle than to rotate an iPad. The shortcut buttons also make for quick work and can be customized to your needs as an artist.
Michael Rodgers Obunga is a writer for BestReviews. BestReviews is a product review company with a singular mission: to help simplify your purchasing decisions and save you time and money.
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