Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My first Huion tablet was purchased approximately two years ago. While impressive for its drawing capabilities and competitive pricing, the few driver/hardware compromises made it hard to recommend. That was the Huion 1060Pro+ (the first generation with seemingly 12 buttons but only 8 were functional) (yeah, that one). And while it's still functional, I've been given the opportunity to review this newer unit, the Huion Giano WH1409 at a discounted price for my honest review. This will lean more towards a comparison review but nonetheless, here it is: This tablet is HUGE!!! The 1060Pro+'s entire body fits within Giano's surface area (pic included). I assumed a larger tablet would limit drawing speed, but not so. The Giano's surface is smooth which allows swift and effortless strokes. It almost feels like there's no limit to how far you can reach, which makes drawing very fun and unrestricted. The 1060Pro+ was the complete opposite: It would drag and scratch the surface due to its rough, toothy texture. And because of that texture, the nib would require monthly/bimonthly replacement (the chiseled/depleted nib would still work but felt awkward). Some may prefer paper-textured tablets, but it causes a major compromise for digital artists. You can only sharpen a pencil so many times before it becomes inoperable, which is the harsh yet fitting analogy to 1060Pro+'s nib and drawing surface. I ultimately had to stick with chiseled nibs since I used all my spares. Fortunately, the Giano's nib hasn't chiseled at all! Even the drawing surface is scratch-free from my first month of use. And on the topic of looks, this is probably Huion's most aesthetically pleasing tablet to date (some of their earlier tablets looked kinda... goofy. Just being honest). In short, the Giano's surface area is an absolute pleasure to draw on and an excellent upgrade from their previous tooth-textured models. It encourages broad brush strokes while enforcing good drawing habits. Which leads to my next mini-point: I tend to draw with my wrist (aka this is bad form and can lead to carpal tunnel), but because of Giano's large drawing area, I'm forced to use my entire arm to illustrate. I never thought this would happen but sure enough, my wrist feels a lot better from having a massive tablet. Pretty cool! Next is driver and hardware/connectivity. The 1060Pro+, like many Huion tablets from that era, occasionally disconnects due to its loose USB port or driver stability. It would literally stop working mid-drawing, and the only fix was to manually disconnect/reconnect the cord, restart the pen tablet driver, and hope it doesn't crash again. This would get rather annoying if you use your rear USB ports (I use my front ports for this very reason). Giano's case is the exact opposite: Both wired and wireless mode (I'll get to that later) did not disconnect AT ALL in its first month of use. It's still connected right now, even! That was the biggest compromise for 1060Pro+ and the main reason I couldn't recommend it to friends. Anything from a slight nudge of the port or moving the tablet around would render the 1060Pro+ useless. This is fixed with Giano's unique block-shaped USB cord (micro-USB this time); it ensures a very tight and secure fit. The port is actually nested within the tablet so it's not possible to nudge or disconnect in use. I even lifted and jiggled the Giano around to ensure stability. It's probably not a good idea to do that but regardless, Huion finally fixed the main issue plaguing their earlier tablets. I can respect a company that actually listens to customer complaints and acts on it. Well done! That concludes my comparison between the older 1060Pro+ and the latest Giano WH1409. A tablet with a smooth drawing surface, no more disconnects, improved drivers that work with all my art applications: that's really all I've ever wanted from a budget tablet. And yes, several hundred dollars less than the competition with a vastly larger drawing area is definitely budget-friendly and an awesome deal. With these features alone, I can definitely recommend this tablet. But the review isn't over yet! Before I get to wireless functionality, here are some of the art programs I use with Giano (Huion likely has a full-fledged compatibility list but these are the only ones I can verify) Clip Studio Paint EX/Manga Studio EX 5 (I've included four Clip/Manga Studio illustrations drawn on this tablet in the picture section), Krita 3.0, Toon Boom Harmony Essentials/Advanced/Premium, Spine Essentials, OpenToonz, Photoshop CS5, and Drawpile. Fully compatible on Windows 10. On that note, if you have tablet issues with any application, you can contact Huion and they'll likely fix it in their next driver update. Even with my lukewarm 1060Pro+ experience, Huion was committed to updating their drivers on a regular basis. Drawing accuracy improved with each driver with less frequent disconnects/crashes. (trust me, these drivers came a long way in these past two years) And finally: WIRELESS FUNCTIONALITY I thought wireless was a fad for graphic tablets; I'm not the type to draw on my lap or hold it in the air like a palette. So I simply had no need for wireless... or so I thought. The 1060Pro+ (okay this will be the last comparison) wasn't exactly small either. I couldn't move it out of the way for physical media, such as a sketchbook, because as stated earlier, it would disconnect due to the loose port. The Giano doesn't face this issue, but it's not ideal to move such a large tablet while connected through USB. This is where wireless comes in. To actually lift up the Giano, place it somewhere else, and use all that extra space for physical media, reviewing documents, or eating lunch at my desk (yeah...), it feels AMAZING!!! The Giano's size becomes a non-issue since you can literally move it anywhere you want. If you're so inclined, you can draw away from your desk and on a couch/bed; I've tried it! (you'll need a pretty large monitor to see what you're drawing, which is why I don't do that) (okay it actually feels kinda nice to draw on one's lap...). In short, the wireless functionality is phenomenal and it's my primary connection method. Top points for making me a believer! Before I discuss the only negative (yes, there's one compromise!), I'd like to explain how to charge your tablet. It's... different. There's an ON/OFF switch near the top-left (bottom-right in left-handed mode) corner of the Giano. Interestingly enough, you can still use the tablet in OFF mode while connected through USB, which led me to believe ON was only for wireless. I also assumed OFF was the best way to charge your tablet since activating wireless mode would deplete the battery, right? WRONG! It turns out the Giano will NOT charge in the OFF position; you have to switch it "ON" to active charging mode! The tablet detects when the cord is connected so it won't activate wireless. I can only blame myself for not reading the two-line instruction earlier... so just to review: Charging: Plug USB cord to PC/Mac. Switch ON (drawing while charging is possible) Wireless: Disconnect all cords and plug wireless receiver to PC/Mac. Switch ON Wired-mode without charging: Plug in USB cord and leave OFF Another important note: the low-battery indicator blinks while charging. This is normal operation and simply an indicator for low-battery or charging mode. Wireless lasts approximately 40hours so it's a good idea to charge every two days or so. Drawing time varies per person, but in my experience, it runs a solid 3 days. The tablet will jitter/drop accuracy on the third day (towards midnight) (again, just my experience) which is why I recommend charging at the end of the second day. The device will not overcharge (verified by Huion) so if you want to charge it overnight while sleeping, you can do so with a separate USB outlet/hub. It should be more than enough time to fully charge the Giano (which I believe is 5-7 hours). And now for that one compromise! The wireless USB receiver also serves as an 8gb flash drive. I already have multiple high-capacity drives/storage devices but it's a nice gesture for those who need it. Unfortunately this nice gesture becomes a slight hindrance because the actual USB receiver/flash memory (aka not the tablet itself) will heat up. I have another flash storage that does the same, namely the Sandisk Ultra Flair 128gb, and I haven't had any issues with that device (personally the Sandisk gets a lot hotter than this wireless receiver). As another comparison, smartphones and routers get pretty hot but that doesn't affect their wireless capabilities. With that reasoning, I don't think the heat will affect Huion's wireless in any way for the time to come. And just to reassure, if I should ever come across an issue with wireless, I'll update this review. If I forget, feel free to contact me in a year or so (by then you'll probably want the latest Huion tablet :P). ALRIGHT that was a lot of text! Here's the tl;dr version: PROS: -Ultra affordable tablet with twice the active-drawing area of overpriced competitors -Smooth surface area protects nib from depletion/chiseled-effect (millage may vary from hand/grip pressure) -Promotes healthy drawing habits by encouraging full use of arm as opposed to wrist -Stable and improved drivers/firmware for accurate drawing (I've had their previous tablet for two years now; I can assure you the drivers work fine now) -12 physical hotkey buttons -Wireless functionality offers multiple placement options -Improved USB cord/port for stable connectivity -Aesthetically pleasing compared to previous Huion models -2048 pressure sensitivity (totally forgot to mention this but most Huion tablets have this standard so I didn't feel the need to include it in the review.) CONS: -Massive size can be daunting (you can resize the active area in the tablet settings if you'd like) -Wireless USB receiver becomes hot in use (not sure if this is a problem yet. Will be beneficial in winter tho...) Things not included in the review but would like to see improved: -While 12 buttons are great, it'd be nice to set different profiles for each program. 12 buttons could easily become 144 and would absolutely bring Huion to the big leagues and further encourage my recommendation. -Left-handed mode does not re-map hotkey configuration (this is confusing so let me explain). In right-hand mode, the very top-left button is called "K1" and goes all the way down to K12. In left-handed mode, our top button is K12 and goes all the way down to K1. Assigning the keys is confusing because left-handers have to map their shortcuts in reverse (aka, our K1 is labeled K12, K2 is K11, K3 is K10, etc). I understand left-handers are a small percentage of the world but it bares mentioning. Hopefully this can be easily fixed (I'll likely email them about it soon) In short, right handers have an easier time remapping keys because the software labels each button correctly but not in left-handed mode. CONCLUSION: The Huion Giano WH1409 is phenomenal. It improves everything offered in previous models while greatly enhancing drawing speed, connectivity, and accuracy with improved drivers. Much of that is thanks to a company that listens and responds to customer feedback. It's a gesture I can truly respect. And we can't forget about price. Several hundred dollars less than the competition is a service to the illustration and animation community. I'm not sure where I'd be without their products and pricing, and I'm certain others in a similar monetary situation would agree. The Giano is, without a doubt, the current Budget-King of Massive Wireless Tablets. Thank you, Huion, for sticking around and improving your craft.