Look Ma, no batteries

Last week I treated myself to a Wacom Graphire2 mouse and pen set from dabs. I've been thinking about getting a graphics tablet for some time now, and I'm glad I finally went for it.

Costing me just under £60, my new toy has proved very easy to setup and use, and as a result my Logitech Cordless Mouseman Optical which served me fairly well up until recently is now gathering dust sat next to my monitor.

The thing is, both the pen and mouse do not require batteries. I don't quite understand it yet, but they work a treat and I'm certainly not complaining. Previously I had to charge up a pair of AA's every couple of weeks or so, but not any more! The downside of course is that the mouse only works on the tablet. This is rather annoying at first, but I've quickly gotten used to it. I can always resort to the Logitech if needs be as both input devices co-exist in harmony within Windows XP and I can change between as and when I please.

The pen feels comfortable to use, and certainly helps me to be a bit more creative in JASC Paint Shop Pro than I normally am with a mouse.

Overall, I have no regrets at all about my purchase. Obviously it's not for professional artists, but it suits me just fine for now, and was very reasonably priced. The mouse works much better than I expected, and I even find myself using the pen to navigate around the desktop sometimes.