Alternatives to Wacom Cintiq Interactive Pen Displays That Won't Break Your Bank
Graphics Tablets like Wacom Cintiq
Wacom Citiq seemed to have no serious competition until the appearance of several similar pen displays that allowed people to take their drawing and designing to the next level without emptying their wallets completely. Cintiq is the unprecedented champion among these devices, but it is finally good to see some more than solid competition to these devices. Among these alternatives we have several devices manufactured by well-known brands to those who own and know a thing or two about graphics tablets, and these brands include Monoprice, Yiynova, Huion, UC Logic, and more.
Pen on display is definitely something that makes designing, drawing and editing much easier and for a professional designer, this is almost a must nowadays. However, not everyone can afford to buy a Wacom Cintiq tablet, which immediately means that a lot of people still use classic graphics tablets like Intuos, Bamboo, or some of the other great devices made by Wacom, Monoprice, Huion, and so on.
It's a good thing that pen displays are no longer as expensive as they used to be, and that Contiq has some serious competition. This is why there are many alternatives to Cintiq and many cheaper versions of Cintiq as well on the market. These are all great devices, but it is up to everyone to decide what they need and what suits them best. My choice was Yiynova, but all of these devices I have mentioned are definitely worth the asking price.
Let's first go over some alternatives before discussing the details though.
Photo credit: Creative Tools / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)
Bosto Kingtee 22HDX
Huion Pen Display for Professionals
Monoprice 19-Inch TFT
Yiynova MSP19U+
Wacom Cintiq 13HD
Conclusion
Pen on display interactive tablets are the thing in designing and drawing now, but they do not come cheap. The thing is, if one wants to have one of these, they usually have to break the bank, which is exactly why some professional and semi-professional designers still stick to graphics tablets like Intuos and Bamboo. However, there are many alternatives now, and Wacom is definitely not the only brand that makes these fantastic pen displays.
Those above are only some of the best displays at the moment, and they are not only considerably more affordable, but remarkably solid as well. In fact, some of these (notably Yiynova) are outstanding devices that should not be neglected if you are considering an alternative to Cintiq. I am more than happy with Yiynova, for one.
Photo credit: jon_a_ross / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-ND 2.0)
