Wacom Bamboo Stylus for iPad Review
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Everyone and their mother wants a stylus these days. And who's to blame them when so many great new apps like Paper for iPad make it all that more enticing to start using a stylus. There's a stylus out there that's considered to be the elite of all that's styli, it's called the Bamboo stylus by Wacom. Wacom's vast expertise in making professional digital styli and pen tablets has a lot to say about the success of the Bamboo stylus. What do we have to say about it? Catch our full review down below!
The Bamboo stylus isn't expensive, and it isn't exactly cheap at $29.95. Considering the final product for which you pay $30 for, the Bamboo is priced right compared to its competitors. It comes in six good looking, vibrant colors including this black and silver color scheme we're reviewing that'll make you want to collect them all. Nothing else is included with the Bamboo out of the box e.g., storage pouch and extra tips which we will further elaborate on later.
We reviewed a few good styluses before, but we think we've found a true winner this time around. Wacom's Bamboo stylus isn't only the perfect stylus for the iPad, it's the best stylus we've tested. And that comes to no surprise considering the amount of popularity it has gotten these past months from just about everyone including the company behind the amazing iOS app, Paper. When you're past scribbling and messing around with your finger, a stylus is what you should be looking to get when you want to expand into finer detail and have a more flowing comfortable experience. Ideally the Bamboo for all intents and purposes.
Everything about the Bamboo stylus is perfect. There is no comparing it to other styli, purely because of how well designed it is. It looks beautiful, elegant and something you'd want to pick up and use. Our first impressions when we first took out the Bamboo from within the packaging, it felt unlike any other stylus that we've gotten to test out even though it isn't made from unheard of materials.
The Bamboo stylus has a rounded, pen shaped body that's made entirely out of aluminum for a superior build quality from top to bottom that feels like it has been built to last a lifetime. It has a beautiful satin finish with a calm matte texture. The fit and finish is fantastic, the best we've ever felt and that's important in a stylus for obvious reasons. Wacom did an amazing job giving the Bamboo a perfect weight that isn't hefty but just right. It's also not too long nor too short and will fit in most hands very comfortably.
When you start using the Bamboo, you'll notice that it becomes very fluid and the rubber tip smoothly glides across the glass requiring very little force to be applied. The tip does smoosh quite a bit and is not firm. Its 6mm wide capacitive rubber tip is smaller than most giving you that ability to write in detail, draw and sketch better and more precise. It really is suitable for every task you have at hand. One of the most daunting tasks of all is hand writing using a stylus, and the Bamboo handles that very well to a point where you can actually use it for more than quickly jotting down notes. Although I do prefer typing myself instead of using a stylus. But for those who do a lot more than writing down ideas, the Bamboo just works and is very enjoyable to use.
This is the first aluminum stylus we've seen to have an inconspicuous grip without actually using a form of rubber grip. The entire black aluminum surface has tremendous gripping characteristics that make holding the stylus extremely comfortable for extensive use.
It's the little things that help make the Bamboo a really great stylus to own. Both the pocket clip and rubber tip are easily removable by unscrewing the metal hardware as you would a normal pen. I expected at least one replacement rubber tip to be included in the box for when the time comes to replace your worn out one with a fresh one, but instead, Wacom decided to put together a 3-pack replacement kit for $5. That's a fair price especially if you don't plan on plowing with your Bamboo stylus all day long, every day. Notably, the only stylus that we reviewed to have include an extra rubber tip was the AluPen Pro stylus by Just Mobile.
We suggest that you keep that pocket slip attached though. We discovered a neat ability when using Apple's Smart Case with the iPad. The Bamboo's stainless steal pocket clip magnetically attaches to the strong magnets inside the Smart Case and can securely cling on for transport without falling off. Note that this will not work if you're using a Smart Cover.
All in all Wacom has done one excellent job with the Bamboo stylus. It's one, if not the best all around iPad stylus currently on the market. We literally haven't found any negatives to say about the Bamboo stylus itself, it's only a shame Wacom didn't toss in an extra rubber tip for good measure. The Bamboo's excess amounts of suave design tossed with a perfect balanced form factor and wonderful accurate and comfortable performance, it's our choice for a solid go-to capacitive stylus. At $30 you are getting what you pay for, superb quality.
If you're looking to get the most out of using a stylus with some true pen action, we recommend that you take a look at the Bamboo stylus pen hybrid brother, Wacom's latest Bamboo Duo stylus featuring a traditional ink pen tip at $40.
