The Wacom Cintiq Pro 27 is Both a Pen Display and Reference Monitor

Wacom has announced the Cintiq Pro 27, a new pen display that features an updated thin-bezel design around a true 10-bit 4K reference monitor-quality display, a customizable pen, and a more compact overall footprint than its previous models.

The company says the new pen display is purpose-built for creative professionals and offers a large 27-inch digital canvas that Wacom says represents a major step forward in virtually all categories thanks to improved pen performance, multi-touch, better ergonomics, faster refresh rates, accurate color, and a focus on comfort and customizability.

Perhaps the most notable change on the Cintiq Pro 27 is the design, which is much sleeker and despite its 27-inch display, the footprint is actually smaller than Wacom’s Cintiq Pro 24 models due to significantly slimmer bezels. Since the bezels are so much smaller, Wacom moved all the physical ExpressKey buttons behind the display inside the grips on both the left and ride side of the Cintiq. While they are not visible when looking directly at the monitor, they can be easily felt and activated.

The rear of the device features an HDMI 2.1 port, two USB-C ports, a USB-A port, and a MiniDisplayPort in addition to power input.

In speaking with Wacom, the company says that the Cintiq Pro 27 was designed to fit into multiple use scenarios that have been a pain point of large pen displays in the past but have become more common with the advent of work from home. Basically, large pen tablets have typically taken up a lot of space on desks, which makes it hard to fit multiple units in a common workspace. This issue is exacerbated through the rise of work from home, as they are even more difficult to fit into smaller home offices.

A Reference Quality Display

That same mentality is likely why Wacom went all-in on the display quality as well, outfitting the Cintiq Pro 27 with a 4K, IPS, 120Hz, true 10-bit (not FRC), reference-quality panel that is capable of covering 98% of the DCI-P3 color gamut and 99% of Adobe RGB. It has a peak brightness of 400 nits, which is technically enough to display HDR (though many argue at least 600 nits is required to actually appreciate the value of HDR) and it is compatible with the HLG (hybrid log gamma) and PQ (perceptual quantization) to allow users to both edit and display HDR content.

The panel is also Pantone validated as well as Pantone SkinTone validated, which means it meets the Pantone standard for accurately displaying the entire range of human skin tones.

The company says that, typically, its Cintiq users have used its pen displays for work while also keeping a reference monitor so they can verify colors with team members and clients. The goal here was to pack those reference quality colors into the pen display itself and eliminate the need to pay for two expensive devices at the same time. While it is likely that users will still own at least one other computer display, at least now the other monitors can be more affordable than the typically very expensive 10-bit monitors from the likes of Asus, Eizo, or NEC.

Wacom says the new display features virtually no parallax or latency thanks to the 120Hz refresh rate and the cursor can track twice as fast as previous models.

The display supports multi-touch, which allows users to pinch, zoom, and rotate subjects (dependent on the program) with their non-dominant hand. For those working in a virtual production environment, the ten-point selective touch allows users to precisely manipulate on-screen sliders and other navigable features for an extremely efficient workflow. Since the pen display can work with both Mac and PC, operating system gestures are always available as well. Multi-touch with Linux is dependent on application support.

For those won don’t want multi-touch, the company has included a physical on/off button on the back of the Cintiq.

The New, Customizable Pro Pen 3

While the new design and display are the major eye-catching updates, Wacom has also updated its pen. The company says that the pen-on-screen experience of the new Cintiq Pro 27 has been “vastly improved” thanks to the new Pro Pen 3.

Users now have the ability to change the weight, barrel size, and center of gravity of the pen with interchangeable components that come with it. In a demonstration with PetaPixel, Wacom showed that not only can the grip and nubs be adjusted, but an internal weight can be turned around or completely removed so that the pen feels exactly how a user wants it to. While the company removed the eraser-style button on the back of the pen, Wacom added a third button to the body which allows it to retain the same functionality. If buttons aren’t of interest, they can be completely removed with an included plate.

In addition, Wacom says the Pro Pen 3 has enhanced tilt recognition and still features the battery-free EMR (Electro-Magentic Resonance) technology with 8,192 levels of pressure operation. The pen also ships with five standard and five felt nibs.

A New Stand

The new Cintiq Pro 27 stand is designed to be fully adjustable and meet a wide range of working positions, even supporting plus or minus 20 degrees of screen rotation to adapt to different postures or for users who prefer to physically move the display rather than rotate objects on screen.

The stand isn’t included with the new pen display, however. Older ergonomic arms that work with previous Cintiq models can be modified to work with the new display though, so those who are upgrading to the new Cintiq Pro 27 might not need to purchase the new stand. The Cintiq Pro 27 is also VESA mount compatible.

While the new display can be kept simple, Wacom also has a set of accessories that mount to the sides of the Cintiq Pro 27 and allow users to mount stands for smartphones, keyboards, or even cameras to it via quarter-inch UNC threads.

Finally, Wacom expressed some skepticism about the quality of the cables that most people own and includes a DisplayPort to MiniDisplayPort, USB-C, and HDMI 2.1 cable in the box.

Pricing and Availability

The Cintiq Pro 27 pen display is available for $3,499.95 directly from Wacom and select retailers starting today. The custom Wacom Ergo Stand is priced at $499.95. The company did not state if the new Pro Pen 3 would be available separately.