Best laptops, tablets and desktops for creatives in 2018 – CNET

Pro artist on the go: Wacom MobileStudio Pro

If your main criteria for a system are stylus sensitivity and feel, and if you need a powerful processor or use a Wacom Intuos Pro or Cintiq when stationary, Wacom’s Windows 10 tablet is pretty much your only option. 

Thankfully, it lives up to the Wacom name for feel and quality with the latest version of its EMR technology with 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity and a matte display, rare among tablets. That speedy processor comes in handy for fast thumbnail creation on ingestion, running complicated filters and complex autotraces.

It uses the same ExpressKeys as the pen tablet, which helps since you don’t have a keyboard (though you can connect one through Bluetooth). And with an optional accessory, you can connect it to your desktop system as a monitor.

It’s also one of the few laptops or tablets to still offer a version with the Intel RealSense camera, for your 3D input needs.

Go for the Core i7 processor. Since it’s still using 6th-generation parts, the i5 option is still dual-core compared to the newer quad-core parts. If performance is more important than portability (or budget!), the 16-inch model will deliver better performance and workstation-application support thanks to discrete mobile Quadro graphics.

Updated:April 5, 2018
Caption:Photo:Sarah Tew/CNET