Up to 30% off my favourite iPad alts for digital artists, including Samsung, Ugee and XPPen

Overview: The UT3 is a well-made Android tablet with a large display that has digital artists in mind. Ugee has included a good MediaTek CPU that can handle all Android art apps I used with it, and its display it large, vibrant and good for art and media, and includes three colour modes for video, art and reading ebooks.

The only niggle I have is with the this tablet’s included stylus, which has 4,096 levels of pressure, as opposed to the XPPen Magic Drawing Pad below that has 16K pressure levels, and is more accurate. Samsung’s S-Pen is also better.

But you won’t find an Android tablet for artists with a display this large, with this build-quality and performance, for this price, elsewhere.

Key features: 14.25-inch, 2400x x1600 resolution, 60Hz display | Android 14 OS | dimensions: 32 x 22 x 0.7 cm | weight: 760g | CPU: MTK Helio G99 (MTK8781) Octa-Core | 8GB RAM, 256GB storage) | 4 speaks, 2 microphones | WiFi, Bluetooth 5.0, headphone jack, Type-C (supports mouse and keyboard) | stylus: 4,096 levels of pressure, active capacitive pen

Release date: 11 October 2024

Price history: This is the first discount in Ugee’s new iPad alt Android tablet.

Current price: Ugee: $369 / £388

Review Consensus: Sadly our sister sites, who aren’t specialists in drawing tablets or digital art, have yet to review the Ugee UT3.

Overview: The Magic Drawing Pad from XPPen was the first Android tablet released by a traditional drawing tablet brand to feature a display, stylus and design aimed at artists.

This remains one of my favourites, not least because its textured, ant-glare display gives a genuinely ‘toothy’ drawing experience, and the stylus is the best you’ll get on an Android tablet.

The downside? It’s MediaTek CPU is older than that found in the UT3 and lacks the power of both the Ugee and the Samsung Ultra below. In my review it performed well when using ibisPaint but lagged when using the paint sims of ArtRage (unlike the UT3 which was a joy).

Key features: 12.2-inch, 3:2 ratio, matte anti-glare finish, 60 Hz, 2160 x 1440 resolution display | Android 14 OS | dimensions: 27.9 x 19.2 x 0.69 cm | weight: 559g | CPU: MediaTek 8-core MT8771 | 8GB RAM, 256GB storage) | stylus: 16,384 levels of pen pressure, EMR tech

Release date: 22 January 2024

Price history: Since it released earlier this year this tablet has been at this sale price three times before, but to date it’s not been cheaper.

Current price: XPPen: $424.99 / £424.99

Review Consensus: Our sister sites reviewed this and agree it has an excellent drawing experience but lacks processing power.

TechRadar: ⭑⭑⭑⭑ | Digital Camera World: ⭑⭑⭑⭑

Overview: For its spec, the Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra is my preferred model in the Samsung tablet range, as while the Tab S8 Ultra is still good and the Tab S10 Ultra more powerful, this release offers a healthy mix of tech and value (if you want a little less power the cheaper Tab S9 Plus is also good).

Compared to the Ugee and XPPen this Samsung has the best display, best performance and more RAM and storage. It’s more akin to Apple iPad Pro (2022) than the lower specced iPad.

The downside is that price tag, but also a stylus that under performs compared to the Magic Drawing Pad and glossy display, that while superior, has the kind of ‘slide’ that needs to be adapted to when sketching.

Key features: 14.6 Inch, 2960 x 1848 (WQXGA+) resolution AMOLED display | Android 14 | dimensions: 27.9 x 19.2 x 0.69 cm | weight: 725g | CPU: Qualcomm Octa-core | 12GB RAM, 256GB storage) | stylus: S-Pen with 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity

Release date: 1 August 2023

Price history: This is the lowest price the Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra has been at since launch, and indeed, after a brief launch offer it has been sold at its higher recommended retail price.

Current price: Amazon: $1,219.87 / £899

Review Consensus: Our sister sites also love this tablet, with TechRadar calling it the ‘biggest and best’ in its price range.

TechRadar: ⭑⭑⭑⭑½ | Tom’s Guide: ⭑⭑⭑⭑