Wacom CTH480 Intuos Pen and Touch Small Tablet

I bought this tablet strictly as a mouse replacement and this review is about my experience trying to find relief for my RSI. As a Mechanical Engineer I spend 6-8 hours a day in front of a computer, mostly using 3D CAD programs such as Solidworks and Pro E. These programs are VERY mouse heavy and require precise movements. I had always used a traditional mouse (because I didn't know anything else existed) with no issues until one day I noticed some pain in my right forearm. Thinking I was just tense that day, I powered through. The pain came back the next day even worse. I dealt with that for about a week, hoping it would go away or I could find a way to hold my mouse that would minimize the strain on my arm. I even tried mousing with my left hand for a week and the pain turned up there too! I turned to the internet for a solution and after a couple Google searches all roads seemed to point me towards a vertical mouse (Evoluent has some great SEO). Not wanting to drop too much money, I settled on the Lugulake vertical mouse for $11. For a single day I thought I had solved the problem because the pain was less intense in my forearm than it had previously been, but within a week the pain had moved from my forearm to my hand due to the new clamping force necessary to click the mouse and the new muscles that were now in a constant tense state. I knew this product would not work for me so I turned to the internet again and this time wound up at the trackball. I purchased the Kensington K72337US trackball and again I thought my problem had been solved. But after a week, the pain in my forearm returned with a vengeance due to all the finger movements necessary to operate a trackball. I began to panic. I make my livelihood off my ability to manipulate a cursor on a screen and thus far ALL my attempts at doing this seemingly simple task without pain in my arm had failed. After several more hours of research I was led to the pen tablet which is where my quest for painless computing has ended. I purchased this tablet after reading good reviews and after a week of using this device nearly all my pain is gone (can you hear the hallelujah chorus?). My hand feels much more relaxed holding the pen than a mouse. My biggest worry about switching to a pen tablet was a loss of productivity, but after a few days of getting used to using the tablet I believe I'm even FASTER with the tablet than I am with a traditional mouse (even with Solidworks). This is due to the fact that every point on the tablet is mapped to an exact location on the computer screen so with some practice you can move around the screen with much less hand movement than with a traditional mouse. This tablet is extremely well made and it has far exceeded my expectations. Coming from a non-Adobe / Photoshop user I can easily say that this works well simply as a mouse replacement. In fact had pen tablet technology been around when Xerox first invented the mouse, perhaps we'd all be using these. NOTE: If you're buying this as a mouse replacement there are a few things you should know before you buy. 1. Pen tablets work much differently than traditional mice. With a mouse, you move the cursor and it stays put until the mouse is moved again. With a pen tablet, the cursor is moved by HOVERING the pen over the tablet and where you touch the tablet is where you CLICK. This really concerned me when I first started using it because I was nervous it would cause my forearm to tense up to make fine movements. This was not the case, however, and believe me you want it like this. If you moved the mouse by contacting the surface you would have to make significantly more movements to move the cursor across the screen, thus increasing the toll on your hand and arm. The way this tablet is designed, once you "learn" your screen you are much faster and more efficient moving the cursor but it will take some patience to get used to. 2. The buttons on the tablet and stylet can be programmed to any key or mouse click you want. This, in addition to a key remapping software can make you much more productive. 3. In retrospect it probably would have been worth the extra money to get the Wacom Pen & Touch tablet just in case I ever wanted to use the touch feature. But with how well like the pen mode I don't think I'll switch. BOTTOM LINE: I'm so thankful for Wacom and this product because it has saved my career. If you're experiencing any pain from a mouse (or simply want to join the 21st century), learn from my experience and get this as soon as you can. You'll be extremely glad you did. *************Update: 4/23/2014*************** Shortly after posting this review I exchanged my pen tablet for a Pen & Touch tablet despite what I said earlier. The combination of pen and touch is amazing. The touch feature is accurate enough to use as a mouse replacement alone and I find myself using the best of both worlds with this device. I use the pen when I have any heavy mousing to do, but if I am just typing a report I can use the touch feature to mouse where I want to be without having to pick up the pen. The two finger scrolling with the touch feature is also really easy to use. After using the tablet for 4 solid months I still love it. The wrist / forearm pain I was feeling is still gone, though some slight soreness happens if I use the device for 8 hours straight (as can be expected with any repetitive activity). All in all this is a great device that works extremely well as a mouse replacement. **********Update 1/20/2015********************* I have been using this product as a mouse replacement for over a year now and I can say that I am pain free. If you are on the fence about getting one you should definitely pull the trigger. Your health is worth so much more than any product. I don't think I would be able to continue working as a Mechanical Engineer were it not for this product. I will say that now that my pain is gone I occasionally use a traditional mouse for some specific work with Pro E, but 90% of my work is done with my pen tablet. And when I do use a mouse I limit myself to using it for 30 minute stretches. If you're struggling with RSI you know how scary that issue can be. This product, along with improved posture (which is key for RSI) has helped me gain my back my confidence that I can be an engineer for years to come. If anything changes with my satisfaction with this product I will be sure to post another update. There were some questions as to which specific model I purchased and I bought the Small Pen & Touch model.