I have a 2nd generation XP Pen Artist 13. It’s a great tablet and I’ve managed to make it work with my Steam Deck too.
But…
It’s basically an external monitor with pressure sensitive surface, so still less portable than an actual stand alone table. So I’m wondering if there is a tablet with a pressure sensitive screen and battery free pen that either comes with Linux or can install Linux on.
The programs I use for making art are Krita, Gimp, and Blender 3D.
PineTab 2 works but no WiFi or Bluetooth driver for now. Possible to add a USB dongle or USB-C to Ethernet to install missing apps though then work. Also not super powerful so even though I bet Blender3D works, doubt it’d be pleasant for heavy scenes.
Hmmm… The PineTab looks incredibly experimental still. It’s a option, but I’ll wait and see how the development of this one is going.
A suggestion for you: Microsoft and Qualcomm are working on ARM based laptops with impressive numbers right now. I believe in a year after those are released you’ll see tablets using the same CPUs that will be way better to run Linux than the garbage we’ve available today.
The issue with most ARM / Android tablets right now is that besides having locked bootloaders (so much bitching about Apple and then they do the same) they don’t have an UEFI and that means the OS needs to be responsible for the low level shenanigans of booting the systems, initializing the hardware etc. making it so you’ve to create a tweaked kernel for each device. It isn’t feasible to support so much hardware thus there’s little to no Linux support on those devices.
Whatever is coming from Qualcomm right now will feature an UEFI and will be a more open platform like a generic x86 computer and we’ll get Linux support really fast.
It is, if you are not ready to tinker I do not recommend it.
Yet, it works as-is, assuming you don’t need to work wirelessly. I use it on a nearly daily basis and it’s stable.
Hmm, for drawing when travelling I wouldn’t be streaming or hanging out on discord, so being constantly connected to the Internet would not be a priority, just that it’s good for drawing without a mess of dongles and cables.
Not being able to upload a WIP or a completed commission to a customer might be annoying, though…
See other comments, apparently WiFi is working now (I’m updating right now so can’t confirm) and I forgot but for drawing it’s just a touch screen, so it doesn’t support “fancy” pens with e.g pressure iirc.
Wifi works now, the wiki is out of date.
However, the Pinetab 2 does not have the screen layer for stylus support. See the FAQ
Edit: neat, it works! No BT though
Right I should clarify I used only the “cheap” kind of pen that does not include pressure, as if used their fingers but with a smaller rigid tip.
Regarding WiFi working, thanks for the update, any pointer on how to do that? Just updating the stock Danctnix?
Are you sure those drivers will come at any point? I’m not.
Update : it works now! Just updated Danctnix and voila, WiFi networks detected and connected.
PS: no BT though
They say it works now already https://lemmy.ml/post/16943222/11704878 so updating at the moment.