[student’s article]

A Modern Way to Draw – What is a Tablet Pen?

Clearing up the confusion

Perhaps, the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a Tablet Pen is the pen used to tap on screens. Which is not completely wrong. A tablet pen is an input device which, by sensing pressure, translates the position of a pen or pointer on a special pad into a digital signal for a computer, allowing the user to draw shapes onto the screen and into the memory. The pen that is used to tap on screens, is called a stylus. Both are similar, but have their advantages and disadvantages.

How a tablet pen works

So you “write” on a tablet surface, but it shows up on the screen? For stylus users it might be quite weird to start using a tablet pen. After all, you’d be looking at one place while drawing on somewhere completely different. But a tablet pen works similarly to stylus pens. First, the tablet surface sends out an electrical charge. The electrical charge then reacts with the pen because of the coil and chip inside the pen. The chip functions as the one who identifies the position of the pen on the tablet by sending out a signal.

What are the uses of a Tablet Pen?

Tablet pens are mostly used by digital artists to draw. Artists, architects, interior designers and other careers, a lot of them use a tablet pen to work. Some people even use it to play a game called osu. But let’s talk about why digital artists choose to use a tablet pen.

Why digital artists love tablet pen

To compare, you might see that a lot of digital artists also use a stylus and a tablet to draw. And while most digital artists started out by using a stylus or even their own fingers, a lot also changed to using a tablet pen. So here are some reasons why most digital artists transitioned from a stylus to a tablet pen.

  1. Doesn’t cover your drawing

    source: unkown

    From the picture on the right you can see that the drawings are covered by their own hand. By using a tablet pen you’d be able to see what you’re doing without your hand obscuring the screen.

  2. Doesn’t leave smudges on your screen
    Because you won’t actually be in contact with your screen, there wouldn’t be a smudge fest on it. Your wrist, fingertips would only be in contact with the tablet surface and your tablet pen.
  3. Larger screen size
    The tablet pen connects to your pc/laptop. You wouldn’t be limited to the small screen of tablets. You’d have the whole screen in front of you to use.
  4. Budget friendly
    The price compared to a drawing tablet is very far. For a much cheaper price, you can get a decent tablet pen to start your path to digital artists or even work with it.
  5. Faster workflow
    By connecting it to computer softwares like Adobe Photoshop, Core Painter, GIMP and many others, you’d be able to have a faster workflow, edit and transfer images quicker.

written by: Karyna Budi Sanjaya (IMT 2022)

References

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