Wacom's MovinkPad Pro 14: Trying Something New

Recently, I had the chance to try out the new Wacom MovinkPad Pro 14. It wasn't that long ago that I experimented with Wacom's One 13 Touch. Although the MovinkPad Pro 14 isn't built specifically for photographers, the upgrade in my experience over the Wacom One Touch was significant. As an adventure guide and photographer, I travel to a minimum of four continents a year, and the portability of the MovinkPad Pro 14 really does draw me in past the drawbacks of pushing it outside its native operating system or purpose.

The MovinkPad Pro 14 is marketed as a focused, premium drawing tool, distinguished from other tablets by choosing to concentrate on the needs of artists, designers, and illustrators. Think of the MovinkPad Pro 14 as a creative digital sketchbook with a variety of additional uses that can help with a photographer's workflow. 

How Does the MovinkPad Pro 14 Stand Apart?

The MovinkPad Pro 14 is a standalone tablet running on the Android operating system (more on that below) with built-in sketch, design, and illustrating apps. Users interact with the device using Wacom's pressure-sensitive Pro Pen 3.

Having the ability to run the MovinkPad Pro 14 without having to attach it to a computer with cords is a huge benefit for designers and illustrators. 

If you're looking to run Photoshop, which is central to my workflow, you'll need to use Wacom's Instant Pen Display Mode. The Instant Pen Display Mode app allows you to mirror or extend your desktop (Mac or PC) and use the tablet as a pen display while relying on the processing power of your computer to drive Photoshop.

The Pro Pen 3 provides users with 8,192 levels of pressure sensitivity and a 60-degree tilt. This allows for very precise control over Photoshop's brush tools, making opacity and flow tools exceptionally dynamic. Adopting a pen as sensitive as the Pro Pen 3 is a shortcut to more control over your work. It's been said before, and I'll say it again: a mouse click either turns pressure on or off; the Pro Pen 3 allows for 8,192 different levels between on and off. The Pro Pen 3 makes masks, opacity, flow, and brush size much easier to manipulate once you get over the mouse-to-pen-and-tablet learning curve. 

The MovinkPad Pro 14 is only 699 grams, or 1.6 lbs. That's light. Wacom's Cintiq line of the same size weighs in at 4.2 lbs. This results in a significant weight reduction for my carry-on bags, given how much other gear I'm carting around the planet. 

For me, the two real benefits of using the MovinkPad Pro 14 come down to the quality of the tablet's display. The MovinkPad Pro 14 provides 100% DCI-P3 color gamut and a near-infinite black contrast ratio through a 3K OLED display. I can't emphasize enough that this setup affords extreme color accuracy for photographers working on print projects. I'm also a big fan of the anti-glare matte surface of the MovinkPad Pro 14, allowing me to edit in different locations outside of my darker office, even on my front porch. 

The MovinkPad Pro 14 can hit a brightness of 900 nits versus the Cintiq, which maintains only 300 nits. Again, great for working outside. 

Drawbacks for My Workflow

As a big caveat, I am not an illustrator, and so the bulk of the MovinkPad Pro 14's tools aren't directed at me. Despite the standalone features of the MovinkPad Pro 14, I need to have it connected to my laptop or desktop to use Photoshop. This does, in part, negate the weight reduction, which is still great, but I'm still having to cart my laptop if I want to shoot tethered or edit on the porch or in the field.

The MovinkPad Pro 14 can work without a wired connection, but, as others have reported, I noticed an input lag that would encourage me to always be connected via cable.

Even though I learned to enjoy using the Wacom One 13, I'm not a power user and don't rely on a series of advanced express keys or customizations related to tablet use. I do understand, though, that unlike the Cintiq series, there is limited customization in the MovinkPad Pro 14. Unlike the Cintiq line, the MovinkPad Pro 14 doesn't have express keys for mapping your most-used Photoshop features. 

In trying to create some customized setup, I did get a little frustrated with the interface. You can create radial or grid menus, but these will take up real estate on your screen. Again, though, I'd point out that I'm not an illustrator. 

Is the MovinkPad Pro 14 Worth the Investment for Photographers?

The weight and display quality are very serious draws. If you're a photographer and an illustrator, this could be the tool for you. The ability to ideate lighting setups was fun for me, much better than drawing on paper and then losing said papers later in the day, or maybe having my cat chew them. If I were an illustrator, I'd love the ability to sit outside or in my favorite chair by the window to create. The brightness and anti-glare of the screen mean I could work outside without much trouble from the sun. This really did help with my mental health, as I didn't feel trapped in my office.

For me, paying for the MovinkPad Pro 14 would be a little overkill; it sits at a premium price tag without offering me more photographer-friendly features. However, if you're a photographer and illustrator, I suspect that this tool would provide you with a series of valuable benefits that would make the price tag worth it. 

Note: Wacom did provide a MovinkPad Pro 14 for me to review, but did not have any input or preview of this article. 

All images from @letusgophoto or Wacom.