The Ugee HK 1060 Pro graphics drawing tablet is proof that it is not impossible for other tablet brands to compete with Wacom. It’s an uphill battle, sure…
…but different artists look for different things.
No matter how good the tablet is, it’s not going to satisfy everybody. Ugee is no exception, since my preference still remains to be Wacom Intuos Comic in the under $100 bracket.
However, I’m nothing if not an advocate of underdogs, and I’m constantly looking for great alternatives like the Ugee HK 1060 Pro drawing tablet.
Ugee HK1060 Pro may not be the be-all, end-all drawing tablet, but it carries itself with confidence and charm. Thanks to its well thought-out features, it has already reserved the seat in my collection.
Let’s see what exactly won me over and why I would buy this tablet again and again.
Table of Reasons – Ugee HK1060 Pro
Ugee HK 1060 Pro Price: Extremely low price barrier, well within the definition of “affordable”.
In my quest for cheap drawing tablets, I seem to keep discovering new lows (in a good sense). Perhaps it’s too early to announce the winner, but at this pace, Ugee HK1060 Pro will most likely take the cake.
Ugee’s price was so low that when I first saw it, I tried to look for the word “SALE” somewhere on the page. It wasn’t there.
To my surprise, it turned out that this tablet retails for just under $100, with regular prices floating around $50. People often conflate low price and low quality, so I wanted to know whether it was true in this case.
Spoiler alert for the rest of my review: I like Ugee HK1060 Pro a lot, not only because of its extremely low price.
I wasn’t expecting much when I purchased it, other than cheap materials, limited features, and simplistic specifications. You can’t possibly squeeze in a lot of functionality for just $50, right?
Well, join me for a story of surprise and self-discovery.
Ugee HK1060 Pro came to me well-packaged. The box held the drawing tablet, a CD driver, a manual, a pen, a USB cable, a pencil holder and 8 replacements tips.
The installation was exactly what you’d expect (delete drivers from whichever tablet you previously had, install new ones), so I won’t waste your time describing it in full.
Rest assured, we hit it off really well.
Ugee HK 1060 Pro Tablet: A sturdy model with a surprisingly big drawing area.
Ugee HK1060 Pro tablet comes in a jet-black finish. It looks very sturdy, too, so I feel safe carrying it around with me.
Ugee HK1060 Pro tablet came with a removable screen protector. If you take it off, you can see that the tablet surface is very smooth. There is enough grip on the surface to give the feeling as if you were drawing on paper.
The tablet itself has a fairly good active area of 10.0 x 6.0 inches, which will give most users more than enough room to draw with comfortably.
There are four non-slip rubber pads on the bottom for further comfortability. Just a few years ago, manufacturers would often forget that lack of friction is kind of bad, and we had to make peace with slippery tablets which messed up our drawings.
Well, not anymore. Rubber pads are, thankfully, an industry standard now, and every tablet comes equipped with them.
Ugee stands stably on the table and doesn’t budge when you work on it.
Another feature that should come as no surprise to anybody who followed the drawing tablet industry is programmable express keys.
There are eight of them in total, which is a good amount for your average artist. You can leave the presets on or customize them to your liking. It’s all pretty straightforward.
The buttons have a metal finish and a slightly raised rubber rim which I, at first, took for a Braille sort of thing (doesn’t seem to be the case, though).
The tablet has a fabric holder for your stylus on the right. Just like with Wacom Intuos, I found it to be just a bit too tight. I had to really struggle to fit the stylus in, to the point where I was unsure whether I could take it out.
Lastly, the tablet comes with a micro-USB cable. The cable fits well, and there were no issues with it falling out or disconnecting while I was moving the tablet around.
The cable plugs in on the side, which is good for flipping the tablet orientation for left-handed artists. Though I’m not left-handed, I gave it a try and found no apparent drawbacks.
(Again, I’m not a southpaw, so take it with a grain of salt.)
All in all, Ugee HK1060 Pro is a solid and competent graphics drawing tablet, with little to no surprises. What you see is what you get.
Ugee HK1060 Pro Pen: A competent, responsive tool for demanding artists.
Let’s start with the obvious.
The pen has 2048 levels of pressure sensitivity, which is more than what you’d expect from such a low-priced tablet. If you’re feeling like becoming a professional artist, 2048 pressure level is what you’d go for.
The pen also has an eraser, though I’m personally not a big fan of such features. Still, it’s a nice addition that people can put to good use.
One thing I really like about Ugee HK1060 Pro’s pen is that it doesn’t feel slippery and my fingers don’t slide off.
The one feature that’s common for most pens these days is having a couple of hotkeys on the side. Ugee HK1060 Pro is no exception.
The buttons on the pen are fairly standard, they come as a two-way rocker. All I can say is that they get the job done, though they have the same minor issue I keep running into with other pens.
Sometimes it’s hard to locate the buttons on the fly and they can also be misclicked in the “heat of the battle.”
My advice is to just keep an eye on the buttons and not turn your pen around too much. I hope tablet manufacturers will come up with a nice solution some time soon.
Ugee HK1060 Pro pen has a good feel to it. Not only it feels good in my hand, but it also glides across the tablet beautifully. If you want some additional friction, you can put a removable screen protector atop.
The nib is made of plastic, though, which makes it wear out quickly. Ugee HK1060 Pro has eight extra nibs so you wouldn’t run out of them any time soon, but do be prepared to change them quite regularly.
(Pay attention to the nib in your pen, as a worn out, pointy nib can leave scratches.)
My only real disappointment with the pen comes from the fact that it’s battery-powered. It was quite surprising to come across a pen that uses AAA batteries, especially in this day and age. I haven’t seen those in quite a while.
I guess I should’ve expected at least some drawbacks from a low-price tablet like that. But if my worst complaint is about some batteries, it says a lot about the HK1060 Pro, doesn’t it?
So my advice is, keep spare AAA batteries handy. This may inconvenience you somewhat when you’re taking your tablet abroad, but for the most part, it’s not that big of a deal.
Plus, Ugee HK1060 Pro’s battery life is more than adequate. I’ve yet to change a single battery, and I’ve been using the tablet for a few weeks now.
Ugee HK1060 Pro Features: A standard pack + universal compatibility for a smooth drawing experience.
Since I’ve already talked about Ugee’s 8 express key, the ability to flip orientation, and even eight spare nibs, all I can do is mention the tablet’s compatibility.
Of course, Ugee HK1060 Pro worked well with Photoshop from the very first second I connected the tablet. In our day and age, that’s almost a given.
But there are a lot of artists who use other, sometimes less-known drawing programs. Take me, for example. I sometimes prefer Clip Studio Paint Pro to Photoshop when I’m drawing comic-related art.
Whatever your preference is, Ugee HK1060 Pro will have you covered.
I tried it with many Adobe products, including Photoshop and Illustrator, and found no issues. Corel Painter and Manga Studio worked equally well, too.
I tested the tablet’s response time, express keys, pressure sensitivity, and everything was working properly with no need to fiddle about with settings.
At that point, I realized I wasn’t going to test all programs on the tablet on. From what I understand though, people successfully use it in LightRoom, Autodesk, etc.
Your mileage may vary, but unless you use some really obscure piece of software, the tablet will most likely be compatible.
And even if you do, Ugee HK1060 Pro may surprise you still.
Ugee HK1060 Pro Specifications
Here are the official specifications for Ugee HK1060 Pro, directly from Ugee Co., Ltd.:
- Type: Pressure-sensitive
- Size: 15.3 x 10.1 in
- Active area: 10.0 x 6.0 in
- Connection: USB
- Express keys: Yes, 8 with application specific settings
- Multi-Touch: No
- Pressure levels: 2048
- Wireless support: No
- Spare nibs: Yes, 8
- Resolution: 5080 LPI
- Reading speed (pen): 230 RPS
- System requirements: Windows XP or OS X
TL;DR – Ugee HK1060 Pro competes with extreme affordability and provides everything you need as a digital artist.
In my opinion, Ugee HK1060 Pro is able to satisfy both beginners looking for their first tablet as well as veterans looking for a new one.
Even ignoring the price aspect, which is often the barrier to entry, Ugee HK1060 Pro offers enough versatility to be a great introduction to the technology.
I try to approach every cheap tablet from a beginner’s viewpoint, and I think Ugee did a good job of making everything intuitive and responsive. From installation to drawing, every step is very straightforward and confusion-free.
As for veterans, you might really look into purchasing such a cheap but reliable model which you can take with you on a trip.
Ugee HK1060 Pro’s capabilities are nothing to scoff at, and by that, I mainly mean levels of pressure and active area. Though other aspects are of similar quality, it all comes second.
8 express hotkeys? Take it or leave it. I personally know artists who never use them, since your keyboard is always near you anyway.
So, to sum up the Ugee HK1060 Pro:
- Extremely low price. Ugee HK1060 Pro’s biggest selling point is, of course, its low price. I’ve never stopped feeling like it was all part of some special promotion, even though I knew that was not the case. Recommended for artists on a very limited budget.
- Reliable performance.I haven’t run into any performance issues so far. No lags, no bugs, no nothing. The tablet works well with every software I’ve tried.
- Good build. A sturdy build makes Ugee HK1060 Pro an ideal choice for bringing it with you on a trip. Sometimes I doubt I could break this tablet even if I tried. The feeling when drawing feels smooth, yet I could also feel the friction of the pen as it simulated the sensation of drawing on paper.
- Good range of features. The range of features is a cherry on top. From the change of orientation to 8 programmable express keys, Ugee HK1060 Pro graphics drawing tablet has everything that a digital artist will need.
