iPad vs. Drawing Tablet: Which One Should You Get for Drawing?

As a integer creator aliases designer, you whitethorn person wondered astatine immoderate constituent which instrumentality is champion for your imaginative needs: an iPad aliases a dedicated drafting tablet.

Both devices person their unsocial benefits and drawbacks, truthful making a last determination whitethorn beryllium tricky. In this article, we’ll research nan features that group them isolated erstwhile it comes to integer art, truthful that you tin make an informed choice.

Can nan iPad Double arsenic a Drawing Tablet?

The reply is yes. When nan iPad was introduced successful 2010, immoderate group thought it was a “giant iPhone,” hardly useful for much than browsing nan internet, reference books, and playing games. But complete nan years, nan iPad has evolved.

As it now supports input from keyboards and styluses, nan scope of its applications has increased. With nan Apple Pencil, an iPad tin easy beryllium converted to a drafting tablet. This tin beryllium breathtaking news for imaginative professionals. But erstwhile it comes down to deciding betwixt an iPad and a drafting tablet, which 1 makes nan astir sense?

That determination depends connected a operation of factors. To thief you determine which is simply a amended choice, we person curated a broad database successful which we execute a comparative study of some devices.

1. Multifunctionality

One of nan superior distinctions betwixt iPads and drafting tablets lies successful their functionality.

iPads are versatile devices tin of multitasking, web browsing, gaming, and more. While you tie aliases overgarment connected your iPad pinch your Apple Pencil, you tin easy move complete to YouTube and put connected your favourite playlist, caput complete to your message app to respond to a client’s email, aliases hunt online for reference images connected nan aforesaid device. If you for illustration to archive your process, you tin easy grounds your surface successful 4K.

On nan different hand, drafting tablets are designed exclusively for integer creation creation. They simply supply imaginative professionals pinch a integer substitute for insubstantial and pencil. You will often request different instrumentality to complete auxiliary tasks.

2. Display and Canvas Space

When it comes to creating elaborate integer art, show size matters. iPads travel successful various sizes, nan largest being nan iPad Pro astatine 12.9 inches. While this size whitethorn suffice for casual artists and beginners, immoderate imaginative professionals mightiness find it limiting for analyzable projects.

Drawing tablets connection a wider scope of surface sizes, including larger options for illustration nan Wacom Cintiq Pro 32 pinch a 32-inch canvas. The larger nan surface estate, nan much room for creativity. The ample abstraction affords imaginative professionals nan luxury of moving successful comparatively greater detail.

While drafting connected an iPad, you tin watch your imagination return shape connected nan aforesaid screen. But that’s not nan lawsuit pinch each drafting tablet. However, location are much costly and high-end models pinch inbuilt displays.

Still, immoderate drafting tablets are simply drafting surfaces you must usage alongside a computer. So, arsenic you sketch pinch nan drafting surface, you request to glimpse astatine your machine surface to show your progress.

3. Pressure Sensitivity

The higher nan sensitivity level of a stylus, nan much power you person complete nan unit of your strokes. Apple hasn’t released nan sensitivity level of its pencils. Many drafting tablets, for illustration nan Huion H610Pro V2, travel pinch styluses pinch levels arsenic precocious arsenic 8,192.

With precocious pressure-sensitivity levels, you tin person a much meticulous and earthy drafting experience. For drafting tablets, nan stylus comes pinch a scope of replaceable nibs, giving you immoderate power complete nan style of your strokes. But you don’t get this pinch nan Apple Pencil.

Additionally, you don’t person to complaint nan stylus that comes pinch your drafting tablet, arsenic they don't usually travel pinch batteries. While you do request to complaint your Apple Pencil, nan Apple Pencil 2 supports wireless charging and attaches magnetically to your iPad.

4. Flexibility, Connectivity, and Portability

You tin usage an iPad without a secondary display. So, it’s cleanable for activity connected nan go. You tin gaffe it into your container and transportation it pinch you connected astir days. It’s easy to propulsion it retired whenever and wherever, possibly connected nan train aliases astatine nan park, and proceed to activity connected your drawing.

But galore drafting tablets are often bulkier and must beryllium connected to a desktop aliases laptop earlier use. So you cannot usage astir drafting tablets alone, and erstwhile inspiration hits, you whitethorn person to hold until you get to your workspace and walk a fewer much minutes mounting up.

Many drafting pads and tablets require cables to link to your desktop aliases laptop. However, if you do determine to connect your iPad to your Mac utilizing Apple’s Sidecar feature, you don’t request cables. Also, Apple’s Continuity features are graciously extended to nan Apple Pencil, allowing you to find your Apple Pencil if ever you should suffer it.

5. Software Options

A drafting tablet useful good pinch nan desktop type of drafting software. But nan iPad is simply a mobile instrumentality that only runs package designed for it.

Although nan iPad offers a decent array of package options to imaginative professionals, from Adobe Procreate to Adobe Fresco and Astropad, your schematic package options are still limited. For instance, nan iPad type of Photoshop Sketch isn’t rather nan aforesaid arsenic nan desktop version.

Most high-end package options are disposable only connected computers. Whether it’s drafting package for illustration Krita, Photoshop, aliases 3D modeling applications for illustration Blender aliases Zbrush, you tin entree a afloat scope of options pinch a drafting tablet.

6. User Experience

When you bargain a drafting tablet, you acquisition a single-purpose instrumentality that immunodeficiency your productivity. The iPad’s general-purpose quality whitethorn make it difficult to attraction connected your drafting erstwhile you get into activity mode. An incoming notification tin distract you, and a FaceTime telephone tin disrupt your workflow.

Furthermore, utilizing nan iPad to tie mightiness consciousness unnatural to you. For one, nan aboveground of nan iPad is glossy; nan texture isn’t rather for illustration paper. If texture matters to you, nan champion drafting tablets are designed to imitate nan insubstantial and pencil experience. You can’t flip your Apple Pencil complete to activate nan erase usability for illustration a accepted pencil, but you tin pinch nan stylus connected immoderate drafting tablets.

The Apple Hover usability that comes pinch Apple's M2 iPad Pro makes nan Apple Pencil a cool instrumentality to see successful your creation process. However, only a fewer apps support nan function.

7. Pricing

Several high-end drafting tablets costs much than nan Apple Pencil and iPad. While they connection precision and accuracy, they mightiness beryllium retired of your budget. Luckily, you tin find beautiful decent drafting tablets that besides costs a spot little than nan iPad. But chances are they wouldn’t person displays.

So if show matters to you, but nan high-end drafting tablets pinch displays are retired of your budget, you should see nan iPad. It offers awesome worth for money since you tin usage it for different activities speech from drawing.

Drawing for Work aliases Fun

Deciding betwixt an iPad and a drafting tablet chiefly depends connected really overmuch drafting you do. For hobbyists, amateurs, and imaginative professionals who request a lightweight instrumentality to activity pinch connected nan move, nan iPad and Apple Pencil combo is cost-effective. It’s awesome to usage astatine leisure and offers a decent drafting experience.

The drafting tablet is simply a reasonable finance for precocious professionals who tally blase graphics software. Consequently, nan return connected their finance culminates successful a much immersive drafting experience.