Design and Technology: the best tablets for artists and designers

Tank Studio Lab
4 min readMay 17, 2022

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As a designer or draftsman, many of the projects begin to be developed with a pencil and a sheet of paper as sketches, but when it comes to bringing them to their final result, technological tools have evolved in such a way that they allow us to enhance our creativity to the maximum. We have tablets or iPads for designers and artists that greatly facilitate our work and if you are wondering which one is best for you, today we will talk about some models that are extremely practical and functional to develop your ideas.

Let’s see what the best tablets for artist and designers are.

How to know which is the best tablet for designers and artists?

Tablets as an example of the best for designers and artists

Tablets for artists and designers allow them to illustrate and create animations in the third dimension, as well as retouch images and photographs, obviously draw and perform other design processes through their functions and the pencils they have.

To know which tablet to choose, we must first know the characteristics of these devices and what each of the different models on the market is for. Each tablet has different storage capacities, resolution, compatibility with other devices such as digital pens, price, and other factors.

The factors to take into account before choosing a tablet as an artist or designer are:

  • The size of the screen: larger screens can exceed sizes of 10 x 6 inches and are the most used by professional designers since they need to pay more attention to details.
  • Resolution: Resolution is the number of lines that can be drawn per inch. The resolution determines the quality of detail that can be achieved on the surface of the tablet screen. Small tablets boast a resolution of 2,540 Ipi, while larger tablets reach 5,080. In both cases, professional details are obtained.
  • Input delay: this is not a factor that usually appears within the characteristics of tablets but it is essential since this determines the programs that can be run on the tablet.
  • Price: this can be a determining factor when choosing the tablet with which you are going to work. Those that are designed for beginners, have lower resolution values, while the professional ones have a multi-touch screen and other factors that reach higher prices.

Stylus

For designers and artists, the tablet they choose should have a stylus and there are plenty of options on the market. Some are recharged with the same screen as the tablet, others require batteries that have additional functions. Some models allow you to change the tip of the pencil.

  • Shortcuts: Tablets can allow you to program some shortcuts from the stylus or on the tablet itself. The larger the tablet, the more icons you’ll find to streamline your creative process.

What are the best tablets for designers and artists?

Tablet with stylus.

Below we will give you a small list of some of the best tablets for designers and artists on the market.

Let’s start with Mac tablets like the 12.9-inch iPad Pro. This tablet is perfect for artists and designers who need to have a large storage capacity. It has the Apple Pencil that is able to adhere to the screen easily and at the same time recharges magnetically when on the screen. It is recommended for illustrators who need a tablet that they can take anywhere and that offers extremely creative tools.

  • Surface Book 3

This tablet for artists prioritizes its functions over the design of the device. Its aesthetics are of industrial trend in silver color. It has a screen that varies according to the model; the 15-inch has a Pixel Sense screen of 3240 x 2140 while the 13.5-inch is 3000x 2000. Its operating system runs on windows which can cause certain limitations but its use is simple and intuitive, but it is the most powerful tablet with the Microsoft account.

  • Wacom PC Tablet

This tablet features Wacom Pro Pen 2 and is capable of working with programs such as Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.

It is available in two sizes and the resolution of its screen can be compared to some laptops.

Hand drawing with stylus on tablet
  • Samsung Galaxy Tab S7+

This tablet for artists and designers is one of the best alternatives to those offered by Apple. It has a resolution higher than 2800 x 1,752 with HDR support, which is presented as one of the best options against the color resolution. Although it does not have a True Tone screen (particularity of Mac tablets), it makes it slightly reflective. It has the S Pen pen that is 4 times more sensitive than those of the Apple brand. These characteristics make it one of the best in its category, so it is one of the favorites for draftsmen, illustrators, and designers.

It is a hybrid team that helps you perform any type of work, in addition to helping you manage your emails and social networks as an artist or designer.

Which one best tablets for designers and artists suits your needs? Let us know in the comments.

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