wacom intuos vs. bamboo

[photostein]

Ok, if you would please, I would like advice from those with experience with both the Intuos 4 and Bamboo tablets (see the Bamboo I am considering below):

Wacom - Bamboo Pen Digital Tablet - CTL460 - B&H Photo Video

I need a pen tablet, but I do not believe in am the league of needing my Intuos 4 medium tablet which I purchased a few months ago.

I am not planning to do any serious painting or commercial work...only a hobbyist; therefore, if I am just looking to do better than average retouching and post-production work on my photos with a pen tablet, would the Bamboo above be a big downshift from my Wacome Intuos 4? The levels of pressure sensitivity, etc... don't concern me.

My setup is a Macbook Pro 17 inch with additional 24 inch monitor suited for photo editing.

Please advise as I really need to downgrade if at all possible.

Thanks for the time and advice.

[tukaniray]

From some graphic friends of mine. They state that both are pretty good. The reason the Intruos are more expensive because they are angle and pressure sensitive where the Bamboo is not. And their are extra tools you can get for the Intruos as well.

For digital freehand, the Intruos is best hands down. For basic needs, the Bamboo fits the bill.

The Bamboo is a good start to get used to pen tablets. I am thinking of doing the same thing until I get the hang of it.

-Ray-

[Zack Davis]

Completely agree with Raymond, I have a Bamboo and it fits my needs in Photoshop at least for now while I'm still using my mouse more.

[srwatters]

I have used Graphire, Bamboo, Bamboo Touch, and Intuous 3 tablets for editing. My biggest issue with the lower end tablets is the space. When using a larger format display, I feel you lose 'touch' because of the ratio of tablet to display space causes very small movements of the pen to cover large areas of the screen. True you can zoom in, but there are some operations that seeing more image is beneficial. Even more so when you are shooting high resolution images (above 20MP).

I currently use the Intuous 3 in 6x11" & 6x8" sizes and am very happy with the results on 22" & 24" displays. As usual, YMMV.

[photostein]

I just hooked up to an HP ISP based 24" monitor and have the Intuos 4 medium. I think that srwatters makes the point I was thinking in that if the difference b/w the tablet real estate and the monitor is too great, then you end up having to compromise somewheres.

I decided to keep the Intuos 4 as the tablet is something I want to ensure is top notch.