If you want to draw, buy a Wacom — even a cheap one. All the other are really crappy device that will make you miserable — and then, they will not last. If it's to learn to draw, don't bother with a tablet : take a pencil, and draw !

I've used a Wacom for about 7 years now. An A4 Intuos 2... and I've only just realised my tablet is that old.

I remember it took about 40 minutes to get used to. Now, I use it all the time, for everything, not just design or illustration. Using a mouse for anything is painfully slow. Trackpads are better, but for speed and accuracy, nothing beats a tablet.

If you just want to give stuff a try, go look for a used Graphire (kinda hard to find now), or a used Bamboo. You can usually grab a decent (8x6) sized one for like 50-80 bucks on craigslist.

Loosing the title sensitivity, and some of the pressure precision is no loss if you're just starting out and not attempting really hardcore painting/airbrushing.

It seems that the Inkling tablet can be only used to transfer pictures you draw on it to computer. If that's true that leaves out working in graphics editing software, which is a quite big limitation. If you only want to get drawing to computer a scanner might be a better choice. And it won't limit your choice of drawing tools.

If you're just getting started and don't need any professional features that the Wacom might have, consider Monoprice's line of tablets:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=108...

They cost a small fraction of a comparable Wacom tablet.

Can it be used as a mouse in Win7 and does it even work with Ubuntu? Cannot seem to find the info..