Sharing the same (albeit smaller) grip-handle design as the Wacom Cintiq Pro 27 that was released last year, the new 17.3-inch and 21.5-inch models both feature a 3840 x 2160 (4K) 120Hz touchscreen capable of displaying up to 1.07 billion colors. That includes 99 percent DCI-P3 and 95 percent Adobe RGB color gamut coverage, alongside being validated for Pantone and Pantone SkinTone to ensure the colors used in your on-screen designs and photos are accurate. They also feature HDR support — a useful feature for video editors — and a reasonably fast 12ms response time for the pen input to register on the display.
There are eight programmable buttons located on the rear-grip handles of the Cintiq Pro 17 and Cintiq Pro 22 that can be used for assigning macros or shortcuts in creative software applications like Adobe Photoshop. One notable difference between the two models is the port placement — on the larger Cintiq Pro 22, the HDMI, mini-DP, USB-A, and two USB-C ports can be concealed behind removable covers on the back of the device. The smaller Cintiq Pro 17 doesn’t include a USB-A port, and those connections are instead located along the top on the rear of the tablet lacking any port covers.
Both of the new tablets ship with Wacom’s fully customizable Pro Pen 3 stylus. Users can change the style of the pen’s silicone grip to improve comfort and weight and even switch out the physical buttons for raised or flatter variants to help improve tactility or decrease the chance of accidental presses. The Pro Pen 3 supports 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity and can be purchased separately for $129.95.
The Wacom Pro Pen 3 (pictured) can be customized with different weights, grips, and button inserts. Image: Wacom
Like the larger Cintiq Pro 27, these new additions to the lineup don’t include any kind of mount or stand to angle the display tablets while in use. Instead, they both support VESA mounts (VESA 75 for the Cintiq Pro 17, VESA 100 for the Cintiq Pro 22) that will need to be purchased separately. Alternatively, Wacom is selling an official Cintiq Pro 22 stand for $499.95 and a Cintiq Pro 17 stand for $449.95, which have been “designed to match the aesthetics” of the Cintiq product family.
Even considering this is a range primarily targeting professional artists and designers, these prices are hard to swallow. Wacom’s display drawing tablets are widely considered to be the best in the industry, which almost justifies the eye-wateringly expensive $3,499.95 price of the larger Cintiq Pro 27. Most creative professionals working in industries like animation and video editing tend to prefer a larger display tablet because it’s easier to achieve finer details, so the market for these smaller offerings feels especially niche.
Smaller display tablets tend to be preferred by folks who use them for their hobbies more than their design careers. Image: Wacom
It’s also a huge leap in price from the budget-friendly Wacom One lineup that was refreshed recently. Rival offerings from companies like Xencelabs and Huion are improving in quality every year and are always much cheaper than equivalent Wacom products. Considering you don’t even get a stand with these new Cintiq Pro tablets, even loyal Wacom fans may be tempted to try out other more affordable alternatives.
