Over the last decade, XPPen have quickly become one of the most recognisable and innovative brands for digital artists and creatives, launching a wide variety of top-quality drawing tablets, digital art pads, stylus pens and more. Whether you’re a hobbyist with a passion for visual arts, or a professional artist using cutting-edge tools and tech to elevate your work, XPPen products stand out from the pack – and with the release of their 2024 Professional Drawing Tablet Computer Trends White Paper, they’re driving innovation and development in the industry further than ever before.
This authoritative White Paper, released in partnership with KANTAR (the world's leading data, insight and consulting company) digs deep into major consumer demands and product trends in the digital arts space. It’s packed with truly fascinating insights about when, where and how we use our tech, the features most in demand, and what the next generation of drawing tablets might look like. Most excitingly, XPPen are already using these insights to back their newest lineup of products targeted at creative professionals, including the impressively versatile, effortlessly portable XPPen Magic Drawing Pad – set to launch in early 2024.
So what can artists and creatives learn from the Professional Drawing Tablet Computer Trends White Paper? Join us as we run through some of the biggest findings – and take a look at what tomorrow might bring for digital artists and designers.
Embracing a creative lifestyle
One of the most surprising findings from XPPen and KANTAR’s research piece is that, over the last several years, more and more people are finding joy through digital drawing – both for personal pleasure and to develop professional skills. This is evidenced by a 59% and 42% increase in digital drawing searches on Douyin (known globally as TikTok) and WeChat respectively.
Driven by this greater demand, drawing tablets have shifted towards optimising portability and versatility wherever possible, so that artists can more easily incorporate creativity into their everyday lives. As a result, the latest tablets are super accessible and strive to offer a frictionless user experience, even if you’re a complete beginner – and it seems to be working, with KANTAR’s data showing that 76% of the general public purchases digital drawing products to cultivate their interest (or their children’s interest) in art.
Empowering creative professionals
This shift towards portability and broader functionality has a handful of benefits for more professional users, too, making it easier to work on-the-go or even outdoors. KANTAR and XPPen’s findings, however, suggest that there’s plenty of room to grow when it comes to supporting part-time and full-time artists and graphic designers, who require significant power and specs from their devices.
While more casual creators are largely satisfied with the latest tech, professionals are looking for brighter, more colour-accurate displays, smooth, well-configured software, and top-of-the-range stylus pens that don’t sacrifice on functionality or accuracy. Data suggests that they’re happy to pay a little extra for this superior quality, too, especially when it comes to stylus pens. In fact, a staggering 91% of people who have purchased or used digital drawing devices say that a stylus is their most commonly used tool – so it stands to reason that they’re expecting the very best.
Artistic innovation
XPPen is directly responding to this desire for superior performance with their latest stylus, which looks to be a truly one-of-a-kind tool for anyone serious about digital art. Boasting upgraded EMR technology and powered by an X3 Pro Smart Chip, this ultra-sensitive stylus features 16,384 pressure levels – double the industry standard of 8,192 – giving users unparalleled precision over the finest details.
It’s this commitment to innovation (building on major findings from the White Paper) which underpin all of XPPen’s upcoming products, including the Magic Drawing Pad. While details are still scarce, it’s clear that this game-changing piece of technology has been developed from the ground up to give professionals a major creative boost – pushing the boundaries of what’s possible by blending the versatility and portability of popular mobile drawing tablets with top-of-the-line hardware and functionality.
To put it simply, XPPen and KANTAR’s research has already begun to shape the next-generation of creative tools, and with products like the Magic Drawing Pad so close on the horizon, the future of digital art might arrive sooner than we expect.
Take a glimpse at the future of creativity by exploring the Drawing Tablet Computer Trends White Paper online.
