I solely encountered minor niggles when testing the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K, the worst of which being some brushes requiring way more strain for the stroke to be seen, although this might be rectified within the related design software program’s settings. This small misgiving is greater than forgivable although, contemplating the standard, equipment, and efficiency you get for the low $1,299.99 / £1,199 / AU$1899.99 price ticket. When you’ve been eyeing up a Wacom however can’t convey your self to make such a big funding, the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K is the right resolution, delivering gorgeous outcomes for an affordable value.
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K evaluate: value and availability
Introduced: October 22, 2024 Checklist value $1,299.99 / £1,199 / AU$1899.99
The XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 collection, which incorporates the 4K mannequin I’ve been testing, and a barely cheaper 165Hz mannequin, was introduced on October twenty second, 2024, and is out there now on the XPPen web site within the US and Australia. I’m sorry to say that we Brits might have to attend somewhat longer for the 4K mannequin, as on the time of writing supply is not anticipated till mid-June 2025, though there’s a handful left in stock at Amazon UK. The XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K retails at $1,299.99 / £1,199 / AU$1899.99 however at current, the worth has been discounted to $1,065.99 / £1,139.05 / AU$1,557.99 in a Valentine’s Day sale.
You get a variety of bang on your buck with the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K, as a purchase order doesn’t simply get you a large-format drawing show, but in addition the X3 Professional Sensible Chip and X3 Professional Slim styli, plus a sturdy twin styli case, an ACK05 Wi-fi Shortcut Distant, all of the cables you might ask for, and extra.
(Picture credit score: Future)
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K evaluate: specs
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Dimensions
25.1 x 16 x 1.7 inches (638 x 408 x 44mm)
Lively drawing space
20.7 x 11.6 inches (526 x 296mm)
Weight
16.1 lbs (7.3kg) (Stand Included)
Decision
3840 x 2160
Stress ranges
16,384
Compatibility
Home windows 7 or later, macOS 10.13 or later, Android USB3.1 DP1.2, Chrome OS 88 or later, Linux
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K evaluate: design
Sturdy steel stand included Handy stylus storage Three multifunctional buttons on prime of show
The general aesthetic of the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K is clear and understated. The working space has been saved sensible, with a generously sized border giving me loads of house for my hand and wrist. The one buttons on the unit itself are three multifunctional ones on the highest proper that function each brightness adjusters and sign changers.
XPPen helpfully contains all of the required cables, together with HDMI, DisplayPort, and USB-C to USB-C cables, plus totally different regional energy cables. Whereas that is undeniably handy, it feels somewhat extreme, and a few of these cables will seemingly show redundant for a lot of purchasers. Within the title of sustainability, there’s somewhat extra management over the equipment obtained when buying the Wacom One
(Picture credit score: Future)
As soon as the facility and USB-C cables have been in place there was a plastic cable cowl that helped neaten up the cables and maintain the mud at bay, although it took a good bit of persuasion to clip onto the again of the show. The pen clips on the highest of the show labored effectively, though the holder for the slim was made from a rubber-like materials that attracted lint the second I took it out of the plastic. I used to be happy with the premium-feeling stylus case and appreciated that I may stand a stylus in there, as the highest of the show was a little bit of a attain for me. If there was the choice to mount a pen clip on the facet too, that may have been excellent.
A really a lot appreciated accent that’s included as customary is the ACS02 Stand. It felt and proved very sturdy, which I ought to hope contemplating how heavy it’s. It was straightforward to regulate utilizing the central set off, with an achievable angle vary of 16 to 72 levels. The included glove, alternatively, isn’t precisely premium, nevertheless it did its job effectively; serving to my hand to glide throughout the floor of the show, eradicating the possibility of any mischief being attributable to my palm or rogue fingers.
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K evaluate: efficiency
Vivid colours and spectacular element Exact efficiency with no lag or jitter Straightforward and assignable strain and shortcut customization
The XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K got here to life and fortunately introduced an extension of my desktop, no setting tweaks required. I very a lot appreciated this easy begin, attributable to different shows I’ve examined that proved a nightmare by refusing to attach and/or maintain a connection. The UX of the XPPen Pill driver was straightforward to navigate, and totally different settings have been straightforward to seek out and alter. I used to be additionally grateful how easy it was to alter the stylus shortcut keys and alter the pen strain, and that I may assign totally different settings to particular purposes.
The totally laminated show did an excellent job of decreasing the parallax, however as there was nonetheless some current to a level, I accomplished the calibration sequence within the settings, which knocked it on the top.
I discovered the show’s anti-glare etched glass floor pleasant to sketch on – it had the proper of texture to really feel like I used to be drawing on paper. I didn’t discover both stylus catching at any level, which was good to expertise from a drawing show. The show is said to be anti-glare and I’m inclined to agree – even with a vibrant daylight bulb in my desk lamp, I didn’t encounter any issues with reflections on the display screen.
I additionally (very reluctantly) put my fingers on the display screen in a number of areas to check the anti-fingerprint coating and no pesky prints have been left behind. Nonetheless, after choosing up the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K, I may undoubtedly see the place my arms had been on the black border. However I’m nonetheless happy that it did not decide up any marks whereas I used to be engaged on it, plus the XPPen cleansing material eliminated each fingerprints and dirt.
The XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K can reportedly show 1.07 billion colours and has a typical colour gamut ratio of 99% sRGB, 99% Adobe RGB, and 98% Show P3. For individuals who need a sophisticated degree of management over the display screen’s output, the free XPPen ColorMaster software program appropriate with this mannequin offers freedom to calibrate in real-time, to make sure the show is producing probably the most correct outcomes. The software program has been developed with colour calibration aficionados Calman and makes use of their colour accuracy engine, nevertheless it’s value noting {that a} colorimeter is required for full colour calibration.
Colours seemed oversaturated within the first occasion when a few of my images (lots of which, sure, featured alpacas, in the event you’re asking). This was as a result of default colour house being set to Adobe RGB, which, predictably, was your best option for after I was doing graphic design or drawing, however a fast change to sRGB within the driver settings made my images rather less psychedelic.
(Picture credit score: Future)
The brightness of the show was enough. I did discover myself growing it to the max degree quickly after I started testing it, because the desktop was noticeably dimmer than my MacBook display screen. Nonetheless, after I opened a brand new (startlingly white) doc to attract on, I rapidly regretted that call. The standard of the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K’s show was spectacular; it delivered nice readability and vibrancy, bringing fond recollections again to life whereas additionally enhancing the element in my images, just like the one above of Ernesto the alpaca.
Though drawing slates just like the XPPen Magic Drawing Pad
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K evaluate: stylus
Two pens, every with customizable buttons Ergonomic, comfy design 8K strain sensitivity with programmable curves
The XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K comes with the X3 Professional Sensible Chip and the X3 Professional Slim styli, each of which boast 16,388 strain ranges. Whereas that is twice as a lot strain because the styli included with the well-rated Xencelabs Pen Display 16 8K business customary, so a strain sensitivity of 16,388 isn’t fairly as spectacular as it might sound.
One difficulty I encountered was that strokes from sure brushes, equivalent to pencils, didn’t all the time present up on the canvas, so I discovered myself needing to place extra strain down than felt obligatory. This may be labored round by altering the strain within the design software program’s settings, nevertheless it was somewhat irritating switching between brushes to seek out the stylus had seemingly run out of lead.
Each styli felt light-weight, with the Slim stylus weighing 10g, and the Sensible Chip weighing 16g, however they have been nonetheless heavy sufficient that it felt like working with hole plastic. The styli can assist a satisfying 60-degree tilt. This gave me extra management over my line variation and allowed me to write down and draw the way in which I might with a pen.
(Picture credit score: Future)
There are customizable buttons on each the styli, and so they assist pen ID recognition, which proved useful whereas I used to be switching between them each throughout testing,. Nonetheless, the X3 Professional Slim stylus rapidly proved to be my favourite of the 2 offered, as I beloved the way it felt like a conventional pen in my hand. To be clear, the X3 Professional Sensible Chip stylus can also be nice, particularly as the usual nibs will be swapped out for felt nibs, 4 of that are included, together with an additional ten customary nibs. The X3 Professional Slim stylus has fourteen replacements too, so I can’t see myself needing to buy replacements any time quickly.
The ACK05 Wi-fi Shortcut Distant was an incredible addition to my drawing periods, for probably the most half. It sits flat on the desk, and since it’s compact, I may match it between myself and the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K, offering easy accessibility to the customizable keys. There’s additionally a dial for actions equivalent to zooming out and in and adjusting brush sizes, however I discovered it inefficient as I couldn’t make changes in small increments. The bounce between every click on of the dial appeared unreasonably giant, so it supplied imprecise management. Apart from that factor, although, I used to be very keen on the ACK05 Wi-fi Shortcut Distant, as a result of easy connection course of, satisfying scissor switches, and spectacular 300-hour battery life.
(Picture credit score: Future)
Ought to I purchase the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K?
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Worth
XPPen are providing an entire lot for a modest price right here. Contemplating you get a high-spec drawing show with a bunch of equipment for round $1,000 lower than an identical Wacom system, that is unbelievable worth.
5 / 5
Design
A really beneficiant sized and height-adjustable working space and handy stylus storage make this a very gratifying drawing show to create on. I simply want they’d permit cable customization earlier than buy to cut back waste.
4.5 / 5
Efficiency
I used to be dazzled by the attractive colour and immersive expertise of this show. The floor of the display screen had the perfect texture, and I had zero points with jitter and lag, which means I had an enjoyably pure drawing expertise.
5 / 5
Stylus and Shortcut Distant
Each of the included X3 Professional styli proved extremely succesful, and I appreciated the button customization and good quantity of alternative nibs. The shortcut distant was handy too, however the dial proved disappointing.
4 / 5
Purchase it if…
Don’t purchase it if…
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K evaluate: additionally contemplate
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Header Cell – Column 0
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K
Xencelabs Pen Show 16
Xencelabs Pen Show 24
Dimensions
25.1 x 16 x 1.7 inches (638 x 408 x 44mm)
16.1 x 10.2 x 0.47 inches (410 x 259.4 x 12mm)
24.4 x 15.3 x 1.4 inches (619.8 x 388.6 x 35.6mm)
Lively drawing space
20.7 x 11.6 inches (526 x 296mm)
13.55 x 7.6 inches (344.2 x 193.6mm)
20.75 x 11.7 inches (52.71 x 29.72cm)
Weight
16.1 lbs (7.3kg) (Stand Included)
2.67 lbs (1.21kg)
13.3oz (6kg)
Show decision
3840 x 2160 pixels
3840 x 2160 pixels
3840 x 2160 pixels
Stress ranges
16,384
8,192
8,192
Compatibility
Home windows 7 or later, macOS 10.13 or later, Android USB3.1 DP1.2, Chrome OS 88 or later, Linux
PC: Home windows 7 or later (newest service pack/construct); Mac OS X 10.13 or later (newest replace); Linux – Ubuntu 14.04 or above, Debian 9.5, CentOS 7.0 or above, RedHat 7.0 or above
PC: Home windows 7 or later (newest service pack/construct); Mac OS X 10.13 or later (newest replace); Linux – Ubuntu 14.04 or above, Debian 9.5, CentOS 7.0 or above, RedHat 7.0 or above
(Picture credit score: Future)
XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K evaluate: how I examined
I spent many hours drawing on the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K over one week I used it for photograph modifying and drawing utilizing Affinity software program I examined for parallax, lag, and jittering, and created some graphic script utilizing varied brushes for linework and texture.
Throughout my week testing the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K, I examined the benefit of setup and value. I did some photograph modifying on Affinity Photograph, and did a number of experimenting with totally different settings and instruments on Affinity Designer, utilizing my favorites to attract some lettering and add texture. I additionally examined how the Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K dealt with different duties equivalent to finding and previewing information in Finder and opening totally different file varieties.
I carried out line assessments to examine for jitter and lag and examined the lean angle and strain sensitivity to get a really feel for a way responsive and lifelike the drawing expertise was. I additionally in contrast the XPPen Artist Professional 24 Gen 2 4K and its equipment in opposition to earlier pen shows I’ve examined, in addition to its specs in opposition to equal merchandise available on the market.
By way of expertise, I’ve used many a drawing pill through the years, proper again to once they have been teeny-tiny pads with flimsy plastic pens. I’ve additionally had a few a long time of expertise with Affinity (previously often known as Serif), Inventive Cloud software program, and loads of applications in between.
First reviewed: February 2025 Learn extra about how we test
