Wacom has been providing artists with digital drawing accessories for years, but its electronic canvases haven't gone mobile . . . until now. The company just unveiled the Cintiq Companion and Cintiq Companion Hybrid, two standalone tablets packed with everything users need to create art in any environment.
Powered by Windows 8, the Cintiq Companion packs a 3rd generation Intel Core processor and Intel HD Graphics 4000. The device is optimized for the latest build of Photoshop Creative Cloud, and works as a standard Windows 8 tablet when not being used as a mobile workstation.
Those who want to take their Cintiq on the go while retaining the PC and Mac interactivity of Wacom's older devices can opt for the Cintiq Companion Hybrid. The Hybrid allows for standard sketching and painting when connected to a computer, but becomes an Android tablet when used by itself. Powered by the Nvidia Tegra 4 processor and running on Android Jellybean, the device comes with the new Wacom Creative Canvas drawing app and ASTRO File Manager for quick creating and sharing.
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Both of Wacom's new tablets are Wi-Fi and Bluetooth enabled (4.0 for the Companion and 3.0 for the Hybrid) with an 8-MP rear camera, 2-MP front camera, headphone jack and microphone. The Hybrid model is set for a mid-September release and will launch at $1,499 for 16GB and $1,599 for 32GB. The Cintiq Companion is launching in October at $1999 with Windows 8 and 256GB SSD and $2499 with Windows 8 Pro and 512GB SSD.
For creators who prefer to get their digital drawing done on the iPad, Wacom is also launching the Intuos Creative Stylus for Apple's tablet. Promising the "best drawing experience on an iPad," the Intuos Creative Stylus has 2048 different pressure levels in order to recreate the experience of drawing or painting with a physical pen or brush. The Bluetooth 4.0-capable device works with most of the iPad's creative apps, including ProCreate, ArtRage and Wacom's own Bamboo Paper. This iPad-ready pen will be available early October at Best Buy for $99.
