Buy Cintiq 16: aaronrutten.link/Cintiq16 (Affiliate link)

after watching I think I definitely prefer the 15.6 Pro. I can live with some of its flaws.

You should have mentioned how all of these Wacom accessories add up to the already higher price, and they're not cheap

Great review. Quick pros/cons summary: XP-Pen Artist 15.6 Pro Pros: $250 cheaper, laminated display, shortcut buttons, scroll wheel, cheaper nibs/pen, can be powered from a computer's USB, USB C, 88% NTSC, 3.26 lbs (1.48kg) Cons: Not color accurate out of the box, some slight wavy lines on slow lines, less accurate/ less smooth tilt, tilt may not work on all brushes Wacom Cintiq 16 Pros: Color accurate out of the box, better pen, more accuracy/no wavy lines, tidier cables, more solidly built, you can multiple Wacom pens including the art pen. (sold seperately) Cons: No laminated display, no shortcut buttons, no scroll wheel. You must buy a remote for that. 72% NTSC color gamut, 4.19 lbs, 1.9kg

The stand accessory for the Wacom 16 is $80 which is waaaaay to expensive for that in my opinion.

Love the review but you should of purchased the stand that xp pen sells to make it fair as you bought the Wacom stand and then complained about the stand that CAME with the Art pro.

Looking into a tablet for my daughter who is a student looking to make a career in digital art. This was very helpful. Thanks

Wacom is the EA of tablets many dlcs(stand,pen, etc)

What a great, in-depth review. This clears up a lot of questions I had. I am wanting to purchase a table but was not sure which way to go. Appreciate this awesome review!

Thank you! This was so helpful to give me an idea of what these tablets look like in action right down to the fine details. Since I was deciding between these two, this was just the video I was looking for ^^

This is exactly what I needed. Been thinking about getting a second display tablet, and these were the exact two that I was considering. Always been a Wacom fan, and I'm very happy for your critique and review - the little differences in the XP would have not been worth the cheaper price to me. Thank you very much for this!

Thank you very much for this comparison review. I've been going back and forth, trying to decide how much I want to spend and how much I'm willing to sacrifice. Your comparison review really hit on the issues I was debating. Thank you!

Great, fair, comparison review.However some of your complaints seemd a biit nitpicking. I can live with the small "cons" of the XP-PEN tablet and save $250. Actually I used two coupons on Amazon and saved another $60. $339 delivered. BTW, the new firmware update from XP-Pen solves the wavy-line and "shoelace ends" problems. The downside, is that the update must be done on a Windows computer only. Upside is that it takes only three minutes, so borrow a friend's Windows laptop (you need an HDMI port).

don't be an obsessive.. Over 10 years as an Wacom user, these alternative options are worth to try (Wacom Intuos 4, Cintiq13HD and 22HD)

It's interesting to see these comparison videos. I am not going to buy one anytime soon since I am very happy with my Cintiq Pro and don't think anything in the market comes even close mostly because of the etched glass texture, the fact you can use multiple pens and map them to different brushes depending on the program, and the fact that Wacom driver allows you to control almost all your settings on a per program basis. It's nice to see that the alternatives are evolving. I don't feel like they have caught up but they have definitely made great strides. I feel like it would have been fair to point out that for Wacom in addition to the expresskey remote you can set up per app OSD Pop Up controls that you can trigger with a button on the pen. Takes a bit of setting up but if you nest OSD controls you can actually execute commands very quickly and effectively and have way more options than with most hotkeys on monitor and the expresskey remote

This is the review I've besearching for! Thank you 😊

Fun fact: you don't even need to have a Wacom tablet to use that Wacom ExpressKey Remote. While I do have an Intuos, I realized that for Lightroom I was just using it for the shortcut keys (forward/backward, flag photo, etc) and not using the pen and pad at all...so I just today got the remote and it's fantastic.

Thank you very much for your review! I am very new in it and tried to find out information about differences, but could find only adverts so I am happy to find your video which helped to make a decision :) I chose Wacon :)))

Thank you so much for making this video, I want to buy a screen tablet but I have no idea which tablet I want to buy. Your comparison is so detail and I myself even miss out some of the important details that could be really useful to me, especially the texture of the screen and the tlit pen affections. Thank you

the offset problem on the XP Pen is probably caused by driver issue. According to the spec, the hardware is suppose to have tilt support. They just need to correct the cursor position based on the tilt angle and the distance between the display penal of the pen tip.

On the Wacom you can peel off the protective film that gives the paper like resistance. You'll get directly on the glass that way. I did on a 13" I had before, and it felt a lot nicer I think.

I asked for the xp pen 12 pro for christmas, and my brother suprised me with the wacom cintiq 16! And it's an amazing tablet. I don't mind any of the cons mentioned In the video even though they're fair points. For me, for my first display tablet, it feels amazing, looks amazing, and it's everything I hoped for!

Thanks for this video. I've been looking to upgrade to a tablet with the display on the screen. I've always had Wacoms and currently have a Intuos Pro. I'm thinking of getting the Cintiq Pro 24 and stand.

Thank you very much for such a comprehensive comparison! Just what I really needed before deciding on a budget tablet!

Can you compare Wacom Cintiq 22HD and XP-PEN Artist Display 22 Pro, please?

In this video I can feel that you are wacom brand lover and yes it is good but you can not be indiferent in this review

Mr Rutten, I commend you for doing this comparison, I do not think anyone else has on KZfaq. I have a few criticisms and comments though. I wish you would show us the aspects you are comparing either ideally side-by-side or one after the other more often. For example at the 14:21 minute mark you show us the distortion on the Xp product but at 14:28 you tell us there isn't any on Wacom's product from a different view. I think it would have been more effective had you shown the same close-up view. To add, at 2:04 while comparing the straying of the cursor while tilting the pen, it looks like you've tilted the Xp-pen so much that it is parallel to the screen and that the nib isn't even touching the tablet anymore. Seconds later when you're showing Wacom's pen, the angles of tilting look significantly less extreme. You tell us that the Xp tablet is not as well built as the Cintiq and even mention at 13:36 that you could crack it if you step on it. How would the Cintiq fare if one stepped on it? The problem is, and it may just be mine, is that I have watched this already knowing you prefer the Wacom tablet, not only in this head-to-head where you've even had to defend yourself, but in general and had no interest in looking alternatives till very recently. I've no doubt that Wacom is better, and I do not even think Xp-pen are trying to be better than Wacom, and I also think you've tried your best to be fair, but I think it is unfortunate that often in this video, many times when Xp-pen has a slight advantage, you tell us "it doesn't really matter because" or Wacom is better if you buy something that isn't included.

Very thorough video, I appreciate that. Great stuff!

What do you recommend for my kind of work (architecture), I mostly sketching, overlay a sketchup model to trace, and rendering using Photoshop and Autodesk Sketchbook?

Thanks for the review. I picked up the xp-pen based on your demo of the brightness, thinking I could use it outdoors in bright, direct sun. Just got it and checked that out, with mixed results: It's clearly legible at face-up at noon in the Mojave desert, but 1) the laptop's battery drains fast keeping the tablet at maximum brightness, and 2) the laptop and tablet get pretty warm in direct sunlight, which may not be good for 'em. BTW, I was looking at this model or the cintiq because wacoms have good community support to make them work on linux, whereas xp-pen has vendor support. The driver's in beta and doesn't support tilt yet but everything else works great.

Now THAT was an in depth review! THANK YOU so much! And FINALLY someone mentioned the barrel rotation!! In my opinion, this feature is even more important than the tilt support. My only suggestion here is that please use a ruler for line & jitter tests. Because sometimes the jitter on the volume & the power buttons are misleading. Thanks again.

I'm here checking out reviews because I noticed an advertisement that the XP-Pen tablets are on pretty decent sales. The 15.6 is going for $300 as of the time of this posting (Christmas season 2019). I'm not sure that it'd be worth it at $400 (might as well go the little extra to get the Cintiq), but with that extra $100 off for the sale, it seems like a pretty decent entry-level tablet that's less than half the cost of the same-sized Cintiq. Thanks for the honest review.

I recently got the xp-pen 15.6. Your critiques seem fair to me. I had an ugee 1910b before and couldnt use it for 2d art if I tried, it stunk. They've really come a long way for me to be able to say the 15.6 is fine, nice even. I got mine for $340 from amazon, People just shouldn't expect premium Wacom quality out of it. those wacom features of alternate nibs and being able to bind different physical pens to different brushes, sound awesome. Never knew.

Love this review everything I wanted to know! :)

Hi, it is possible to have the calibration file for windows ? Also do you have tested the xp pen 16 pro ? thk.

Overall, I feel like you'd want better color calibration than anything else! I really appreciate all the goodies that Wacom has, but for the price, and color accuracy of the XP Pen, it's just too good to pass up.

Really nice job. Just what I was looking for!

Does the XP have a blank screen / intuos mode? So it can be used as a tablet to drive an external screen?

Oh yeah I have been waiting for this ;) thanks

Yesss! Was hoping for this!

A quick fix for making the cheaper huion,xpen etc models have that paper like feel when drawing on the screen is to put a textured screen protector over the screen which will also reduce glare. The huion I have even provided me with one for free pre attached.

Thanks, I'll stick to my Wacom Intuos 4 :D I always have a layer of paper and plastic over the surface for the correct feel while working :)

Thanks, this has given me much buying info.

For hobbyists and students, I think for the price and features the XP would be the choice. For working professionals, I don't think anybody has the time to waste and be messing around and that's why Wacom is still found in many people's workspaces.

It's funny how the pauses he makes when speaking, makes me think the video will end up suddenly, but no...it continues!

Thanks for such an informative video. Very helpful 🙂

One advantage you didn't mention about the XP-Pen's USB-C connection is that you can use an easily available extension cable with it. That's not something you can do with the Wacom cable due to its proprietary connector.

Amazing . Thank you . Are the pixels noticable with naked eye ? Because i dont wanna buy the wacom and see pixels when i sculpt on it ..plz amswer me.. thank you

I bought an XP-Pen Deco 01, and I'm loving it. But one of my biggest gripes about the company is the lack of intercompatibility vis-a-vis pens and tablets. I don't care much for the default pen, and I was pretty disappointed to find out that I'm stuck with it. But I can put up with it as I learn, until I can justify the cost of a Wacom tablet.

In China, the XP-Pen Products go by a different name: Ugee . In this case, the drawing tablet is called the Ugee Exrai Pro 16 and is sold for a bit cheaper in China at about 2300 yuan ($342) (XP-Pen and Ugee are in a technology partnership)

Can you do a video Wacom Cintiq 16 VS KAMVAS Pro 20?

Dude, this is a great comparison review. Talk about in-depth. Thank you for taking the time to put the homework into making this resource for us!

The XP-Pen also has drivers for Linux on their website which is nice.

You did an awesome job in this video, best comparison I have seen and I've been watching a lot to make the right choice. Could you do one just like this between have you gotten a chance to look at the 2019 HUION KAMVAS Pro 16 if so what are your thought on it compared to the XP-Pen Artist 15.6 Pro?

Tilt tracking is very important for me. Thanks for covering that Aaron!

The most important factor for me in reviews is the ability of the reviewer to weigh all the factors and give information in am manner so I can translate to my use case. I watched your video about reviews, and I gather that this is the one they wanted you mention price difference in relation to the stand. I don't think that was unreasonable. I can see you even got comments about that. Also your expectations of the manufacturers ability to receive critique graciously seems greater than those of yourself. When there is a price difference of 100% to 150% you shouldn't expect the same quality and feature set. Most people who ask for these product to be reviewed do it because Wacom is too expensive. Refusing to take cost into perspective seems like an oversight. There is tendency on YT to be very worried about shilling, but being fair is being fair to everyone. If you can remain in good standing with the companies and not tell lies, I don't see the problem. If they tell you to leave out important details that would be a problem. But including truthful info is not.

just recently purchased the XP Pen 15.6 pro for 372.00 total with 20.00 amazon voucher added. I would've saved up to $1,500.00 but meh.... Im fine with 1080p, I can always get a 4k variant down the road.

You convinced me when you moved the pen holder on the left side for the lefties. on the cintiq. Hahaha! I'm joking, I was already decided on Wacom cintiq 16, I just wanted to see other similar products before actually purchasing it. Great review and comparison.

To me you can get the same results with cheaper Cintiq alternatives. You don't HAVE to have a Wacom. I've been happy with my Huion screen tablet for years. I think Wacom is good, but its over priced considering you can get something just like it for HALF the price.

Finally a good review... Thanks!

Here's a more unbiased look at the two :P I don't own either display, I'm not an artist, I don't draw, and I don't have any sort of graphics tablet period :) My recommendation: If you're a professional and need this in a work environment, don't buy either of these >.> If you have to choose between the two for work with no other options, go for the Cintiq. Reliable support and actual warranty service is worth far more than the $200-250 extra you pay for the Cintiq over the XP Pen display. If you're a hobbyist and this is further your hobby, I would recommend the XP Pen Artist hands down. XP Pen - Pros:(only ones that are of functional use and/or of any real value) 200-250$ Cheaper Has built in express keys and rotary knob Laminated display You could buy the Express Key Remote and have even more express keys and it'll still be cheaper than buying the Cintiq alone. *YES the Express Key Remote works 100% without a Cintiq tablet/display For the price of the Cintiq 16 alone, you could buy an even bigger and higher end model of an XP Pen pen display XP Pen - Cons:(only ones that take away function and/or any real value) You have to calibrate the color out of the box Crappy stand with no option for attachable stand directly to the tablet but here's the next best thing :) www.amazon.ca/Parblo-Universal-Adjustable-Graphics-Monitors/dp/B07B2DCCMN/ Pen display is rather flimsy; but hey, everyone uses 5+lbs of force while they're drawing right ? Pen isn't tracked as well when tilted Don't expect any support or warranty service Cintiq 16 - Pros:(only ones that are of functional use and/or of any real value) Color calibrated out of the box Pen is tracked really well even when tilted Professional support and actual warranty service(or at least I'm assuming) Cintiq 16 - Cons:(only ones that take away function and/or any real value) Quite a bit more expensive No express keys Crappy stand but here's a cheaper alternative :) www.amazon.ca/Parblo-Universal-Adjustable-Graphics-Monitors/dp/B07B2DCCMN/

@19:36 How do you set different pens to specific tools like pencil or ink?

i've been settled in buying an xp-pen after watching so many reviews, the price is just too good to pass up. But after watching as many reviews as I have, there's one thing still holding me back. How bad is the glass feeling when drawing? I ask this, because I tried drawing on an iPad pro before (without the fancy drawing screen glass) and I absolutely HATED it. I couldn't get used to the feel of drawing in glass. So on a fair comparisson, how different is xp-pen from that? Or how different is wacom from that? Should I just stick with non-screen tablets? I've been using a small intuos CTL-480 for 7 years now, and I really think my hands could use an upgrade. And also how durable are xp-pen's products? As I said I've had a single wacom tablet serving me for 7 years, I obviously trust the brand after this many years and I'd like another tablet that would last me that long. Can I trust xp-pen to be that?

I wonder about build quality. I expect the Wacom will still be working in 5 years time. Not so confident about the XP.

Do you have any tips when using a drawing tablet for the first time? I have bought the intuos small and are wanting some tips?

Finally someone has made comparison of these models :) now it's time to pick up one for myself

I have an Artist Pro 13.3 that's been acting up but I can say it's served me well for a little over a year, but the color inaccuracy would drive me crazy and I wasn't interested in spending $150 on Spyder5 just to calibrate my colors for a $300 tablet. I just bought the Cintiq 16 just because I wanted something bigger, and this review helped tons. Accurate colors, better build quality, bigger (than what I currently have), superior pen, less lag, it's all stuff I prioritize the most. I'll miss the little scroll wheel, though. The new Artist Pro 16TP looks great as well.

I own a XP pen artist Pro 15.6 tablet. Your comments are all pretty spot-on. I will point out that the previous generation of the XP pen artist Pro had a much better stand, basically a knock off of the Cintique stand. When considering the tablet and the stand, however, I find the XP-Pen with its cheap plastic stand pretty portable. That may not be a concern for many digital tablet owners, but...

This video is not sponsored by Wacom or XP-Pen, but they did send me these tablets to review. ​I may earn revenue from purchases made through the affiliate links in this video. All opinions in this review are my own.

Have you tried drawing on the Microsoft surface studio 2? Or on the surface pro/ surface book 2?

for someone who is a Wacom user and lover in my opinion your review is unbiased, thanks a lot the review was helpful

So what's recomend pentab for artist who lacking at budget so aimin the cheaper price but has kind a good work as well? . Maybe Wacom cintiq is not recommended for this one because the price but it's become the target aim for quality for drawing purpose like pressure, wavy or not etc Even xp pen has more pro for NTSC but still a Lit bit lacky at the pens "i guess . So how about the other competitor alternate like huion?? . In the end, wich one is the best choice for cheaper but kind a good things for drawing for workin purposed with their lacky things . This one will be helping a lot of artist with minimum budget they have for upgradin their tools "except for rich one

i have a question sir i recently purchase a wacom mobile studio pro i haven't been using it that much but yesterday i decided to use it for sketching and quick coloring i noticed the color on my wacom screen is more saturated and a bit to the warm tone than my laptop screen which is cooler is this normal or do i have to calibrate my wacom MSP colors?

I've been wondering if the color calibrate manager works with wacom cintique 16

As an xp pen 15.6 and wacom intous pro owner I feel this review was very fair. Even looked at details most people don’t. Just seeing that line drawn on the Wacom makes me want to go out right now to go buy a Wacom. On screen keys 🤤

Thanks for the reviews! I am new on digital drawings so I think with the cheapest one I will be just fine 😄

Very nice and fair review. One question I have concerns being a lefty. Can the XP-Pen be turned around so that the buttons will not be under my hand?

Aaron, I am doing a lot of black-on-white cross-hatching. I had XP PEN 16 Pro (it broke) and XP PEN 22, and both of them had a significant "fish hook" problem. Meaning, when I draw quick lines one after the other, the ends of the lines are not straight, there is a little "hook" at the end of each line even though I lift the pen off the screen when finishing with one line. Seems like XP PEN tablets have a little lag when it comes to noticing whether the pen is lifted from the screen or not. Is this problem familiar to you, and do you notice the same issue with these two tablets you tested? Thank you!

so, i have now the xp pen artist 15.6 pro for 360 euro. but theres an offer for the wacom cintiq 16 which costs me just 485 euro. also i need to buy the drawing program which costs me 43 Euro. i want to use the tablet long-term and i am just a beginner, the express buttons on the XP Pen are very useful but working only on certain drawing program. I don't know if i should return the XP Pen and get the cintiq instead. as long as the xp pen can survive for at least three years , i might stick to that tablet then but not sure quality wise.

Why do you have that fur all over ur desk? Is that for audio noise silencing, or to hold the tablets?

Did something change with the drivers in the past 3 years that improved the pen?

Thank you so much for this review! I just bought an XP-Pen 15.6 and despite maximizing the sensitivity on the drivers and CSP itself, it won't register light strokes at all which makes sketching next to impossible!! I've reinstalled the drivers twice, switched to an older driver, and tried playing with settings as much as possible but nothing is going right. I see at about 18 minutes in you mention that the XP-Pen has issues registering the lightest strokes, but are you really supposed to jam your stylus into it to receive the right weight? I feel like I might scratch the screen!

Could it be that XP-Pen Artist 15.6 Pro is a bit laggier becasue it is powered by the same USB cable that connects it to the computer?

Thank you Thank you very much Thats the best review and comparison display drawing tablet ever... ❤❤❤

Great review Aaron...One question, is parallax on Cintiq 16 is more or less, and is it noticeable ?... And one thing, does Cintiq 16 have callibration setting ?..

I have the XP-Pen 15.6 Pro, and I won a Cintiq 16. Right now, I have both models and am deciding which one will be my main tablet. This comparison was very helpful. The only thing I will miss about the XP-Pen is the brighter screen and vivid colors; the Wacom screen looks a little glare, desaturated.

which would you choose between XP-Pen Artist22E Pro 22inch FHD IPS Graphic Pen Display v wacom cintiq DTK- 1660 graphics tablet? please I need advice. Thanks

Coudn't really afford the cintiq over the xp so I pulled the trigger on the huion kamvas pro 16 tablet hoping it had a better pen to screen feel over this one in regards to your opinión but it seems this xp is better than the huion I bought. I should have done more research. I'm not saying your opinion on the xp is note acurate. I'm hust saying I should have done more research before buying the huion in hopes it was better

As always very informative review from Aaron, thank you!

@Aaron Rutten Are you sure that the xp-pen tablet can connect via usb C only? I was told it needs the 3 in 1 cable.

That SNES at the back, as with most SNES, needs some color calibration. 😁

Does the Cintiq attach to a monitor holder?These ones they sell at Amazon with an arm?

I recently got a cintique Wacom ( I don't know what type it is ) And when I try to use the provided pen, the tablet doesn't work and when I tried doing the sensibility and touched the screen with my pen, it does show the pen's sensibility. Does anyone know how to fix this?

Как работает XP-Pen Artist 15.6 Pro с наклоном в Corel Painter? Чувствуется ли наклон? Я про кисть, настоящий карандаш 2B.

Would you get an iPad Pro 12.9 instead of any of these tablets? As I’m stuck on what to get. Any help would be much appreciated thanks

Hello! I was wondering if you think the quality and reliability of the Cintiq 16 is more important, or if it’s better to get a bigger tablet (I’m looking at the xp pen 22 e pro) I’ve been spoiled by my school giving us access to Cintiq 24 HD’s. Those definitely have their problems, but the large screen size makes for a more ergonomic device. I’ve been struggling with my wrist so comfort is pretty much top priority. In your opinion (or anyone else in the comment section who reads this) is 16 inches too small?

I've been torn between buying these two tablets and honestly I'm leaning more towards the Cintiq 16, especially since Wacom tablets are all I've used in my personal career

Thank u, this help me a lot💙

thanks for review, almost buy xp pro but finaly get cintiq 16 :D

A Wacom stand costs three times as much in my country, so I have only Cintiq 16 with an ExpressKey Remote without a stand, which costed out around $2,000 in the country I'm based in (Brazil). Yeah, I could only afford that because I'm a veteran artist. If it wasn't for that, I'd buy a Huoin for sure, but the only trustworthy tablet shop was Wacom in here. The Huion re-sellers are totally incompetent in my country and I didn't know if I'd receive my product after paying for that. One day, I'd like to test other tablet brands and give them a chance (I'm a Wacom user for 15 years). TIP: For the first-time Wacom users, do yourself a favor. Buy as many RAM memory as your machine can support or you'll experience that weird lag Aaron is showing in his video (16 GB RAM is decent, if you can, go for 32GB RAM). AND, use a second monitor, or you'll end up blind in a few months...