Wacom Intuos Pro 2017 Release Date, Price and Specs – CNET

Darren Higgins/Wacom

As much as I like a good tablet update, what really caught my attention in Wacom’s latest pro graphics tablet announcement were the words “finetip gel ink pen.” My biggest issue with the company’s smart notebook solutions has been the restriction to ballpoint pens. I hate them. Though its latest ink-on-paper digitizing solution is just a bundle of the new Intuos Pro tablet with a clip to hold a piece of paper, the aforementioned pen and software, rather than part of Wacom’s smart notebooks, it means that the technology is in place to fulfill my gel dreams. (Wacom’s electromagnetic resonance tech requires special ink formulations.)

The most notable change in Intuos Pro for 2017 is that it works with the Pro Pen 2 that debuted with the company’s MobileStudio line of Windows tablets and that supports 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity for a smoother and more responsive feel. The tablet has also been redesigned to be smaller than previous versions but retaining the same size active area. The pen stand is smaller as well.

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As for those smart notebooks, a new Bamboo debuted as well, a small version of the Bamboo Folio.

All are available this month. The Intuos Pro will cost $350 (that’s about £285 or AU$485 converted) for the medium and $500 (about £400 or AU$690) for the Large, while the Paper Edition medium runs $50 more for each size (about £40 or AU$70). The small Bamboo Folio is $150 (£105, directly converted AU$210).

Stylus development in general seems to be gaining some traction, at least with respect to interoperability; right now, active styluses for Windows tablets are proprietary to the manufacturers and software implementations. Wacom is close to releasing one that it developed in conjunction with Microsoft which will support both its own Active ES (PDF) protocols and Windows Ink. The Universal Stylus Initiative, founded by high-profile companies including Dell, Lenovo and Intel, also announced at CES the ratification of the first version of a specification for a standard way for a stylus and a touch-enabled device to talk to each other.