opinions needed on Huion GT220 tablet

pior

Hello all,

So, my Intuos4-gen 21UX Cintiq just died on me the other day (no more pen tracking and pressure reading, with the problem happening with different pens - meaning that the digitizer panel failed) and besides looking at repair options I am also considering upgrading to a more recent device. Getting another Wacom device would be the natural choice, either the widescreen 22 incher, or the recent 27 ; but I feel like the drivers becoming more and more bloated can eventually cause issues.

Fortunately I am still on win7, meaning that I don't have to concern myself with whatever is happening with the recent tablet-specific features of win8 and later, and I am not interested in touch features or any other advanced options. Ideally I'd love to find a 4:3 device as they are great for character work (more vertical real estate) but I understand that these might be out of fashion now.

Looking at various reviews I am now considering the (slightly risky) option of getting a Huion GT220. I am a bit reluctant to go chinese on this, but who knows ! Here are a bunch of reviews.
http://www.parkablogs.com/picture/review-huion-gt-220-pen-display-tablet

And most importantly, I am very impressed with the stroke quality demonstrated here.
https://youtu.be/KEVT_tGsUL4?t=13m

But still I would like to hear more about it from first-hand users. Has anyone used this specific device ? In retrospect, do you regret going with such an alternative rather than shelling out for a Wacom product ? Is there anything that annoys you in particular about it ?

Thanks !

Gmanx

I have a Huion H610 pro - a standard tablet with no screen and while it performs well, the drivers can be very temperamental. I often have to turn the tablet software off and on again and re-activate the pen to get it working.

When it does work, it's excellent - but not 100% reliable which can be a pain.

I still prefer my old Intuos 3 but it's too big and heavy for my laptop bag.

Personally I wouldn't spend so much on a Huion product, their support is pretty flaky.

Muzzoid

Have you looked at the Yinova?

This is a review from a friend.
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmRqGCp48rE[/ame]

pior

Dustin, good point about the return policy, I will investigate.

Gman, great input, thanks. I've had my share of troubles with Wacom drivers too (like having to alt-tab out of Photoshop to somehow force the 21UX back into accurate tracking) therefore I am not too surprised to hear that tablets from other manufacturers can have their own issues as well.

Muzz, yup, and I've actually stumbled accross that video Their new 22 model seems interesting, but I am concerned about that huge bottom edge as I tend to mostly draw on the lower half of my 21UX. The Pen requiring a battery is a concern too, not because of it relying on batteries per say but simply because I cannot really stand huge styluses (I remove the grip portion and even the buttons off my Wacom ones). But regardless, Yiynovas sure are a valid option, especially since there seems to be more of then out there than Huions.

Thanks for the input guys. I am still hoping to hear about more first-hand experiences on the recent iterations of these alternatives !

thomasp

these driver issues seem really machine dependant. on my current win7 one there are exactly zero whereas on other machines i had all sorts (including zbrush complaining about some wintab error on occasion).

might i suggest the problem is simply windows? not trying to start a fanboi war here but i've used wacom products on an assortment of macs and encountered zero of these issues.

as for the cintiq, my recommendation would be if a new one is required to go widescreen and get the high resolution one. they have a great stand that does not force one to hunch over the drawing surface and from working with 27" inch screens i can say the extra horizontal space can be put to proper use for interface elements.
first monitor size/screen resolution in a long time for me that makes it possible to work on just one screen.

Stinger88

Yeah, I'm interested in the GT-220. Watched a bunch of reviews.

Most say its a great tablet for the price, not as good as Cintiq but still great. Biggest downside being the Drivers. Apparently the rule is "Do not plug in the Huion before installing the drivers" or vice versa, cant remember. Follow guides before doing anything!!! Other than that it seems like an extremely good alternative for the price.

http://rahll.deviantart.com/journal/Cheaper-Cintiq-Alternative-Huion-GT-220-review-478193607

Reason I was looking at it is because I have never used a Cintiq and I'm not sure I'll like the drawing position, cursor lag, etc. So before dropping £1500 on a Cintiq 22HD I thought this might be a good option to get started.