Cintiq 24HD ArtPen problem solved!

I am pleased to announce that, after some moths, Wacom has finally released a firmware update for the Cintiq 24HD. This update is required only if you are using the ArtPen and if you are experiencing problems with it.

I have been in touch with Wacom team and I have to say thank you for the work that you did. I know that the Cintiq 24HD was made to work since the beginning with the ArtPen, but I also know how hard is to fix problems after a product is released.

The new firmware revision is 109 (1.09). I received the new firmware on the 9^th of February and I had the time to properly test it.

If you need this update you can directly ask Wacom Europe(support@wacom.eu). Please notice that this file will not be available for download from any link and you will need to ask Wacom. I can’t send the update to anyone. As usual for firmware updates, the procedure is very risky if not done correctly. If your Cintiq 24HD is not properly connected or if the power for some reasons is lost while the firmware is updating that you can be in serious trouble!

All new Cintiq 24HD in production from now have already installed the new firmware.

I tested this new firmware with the more recent drivers from Wacom, in both Windows 7 and MacOS Lion OS. What I really like of this drivers is the “Pen sensibility details” panel, where you really can fine-tune  your pens to best fit your drawing style. I like to have a curve like the one that you can see in the screenshot below.

The firmware update comes in a zip file with attached PDF instructions very easy to follow, I will not explain how to do it but you can trust me if I tell you that it took about 2 minutes to do the whole procedure, including the time need to read the instructions.

What does this firmware change? Well, finally, you can properly use the ArtPen. I decided to re-do some of the tests done in the past moths to show the problems and I am happy to tell you  that the problems are finally gone. For a detailed explanation on each test you can read the original ArtPen Article.

First test is done inside the “popular” black/red line test in Photoshop. The test consists in drawing a vertical line to join two horizontal lines already drawn on the screen. This test has been done in Window 7 Ultimate. 

Here you can see the old video:

And now the new video:

As you can see the new firmware allows the Cintiq 24HD to really detect when the pressure is released. Now you don’t get any more “following” of the pen while you draw.

The first video has been made with Windows 7. I have also tested the Cintiq 24HD with the new firmware on a MacOs Lion based computer and, as you can see, the ArtPen works fine also on this configuration.

 

Now I can finally enjoy the Cintiq 24HD. Thanks Wacom!