It struck me a while back when I saw some designers using ONLY their tablets for all of the work. I mean even moving around the OS and launching apps. Right now desktops are basically having three input metods for designing. One is the graphic tablet, then we have the mouse which is still holding strong, and a new addition – a touchpad. Since the touchpads are pretty new and currently kinda low-res you won’t really have that much control over what you do, but soon that might change too.

I design using both the mouse and a Wacom tablet. The mouse is essential for most designs (well, for me) because simple shapes –> rectangles and ovals are easier to adjust with the mouse. I was trying to recreate the same level of precision on my tablet, and maybe it’s due to it’s relatively low-resolution but it was much harder. Still tablets are good for drawing things, for adding texture with various brushes or masking. For me the best way is to simply use both devices.

Also, the main difference between the mouse and the tablet is – if you’re using a tablet to design something for a couple hours you’ll actually feel more accomplished than if you’d just use the mouse all along. That’s probably due to the fact that using a “pen” makes it seem more like a real creation – our analogue memories kick in and bring us some positive feedback from kindergarten.

What do you prefer?