Brad Colbow: The Drawing Tablet Reviewer Who Has Tested Everything
Brad Colbow reviewed 30 drawing devices in 2025 alone. That is not a typo. Thirty devices in one year, each one tested by actually making art with it, not by reading spec sheets into a camera. His channel has 919,000 subscribers and 147 million views, and his back catalog covers virtually every significant drawing tablet, display tablet, and art-focused device released in the past decade.
What makes Brad uniquely valuable is his perspective as a working illustrator and comic artist. He does not evaluate tablets as tech gadgets. He evaluates them as creative tools, focusing on the factors that actually matter to artists: line quality, pen pressure accuracy, parallax, drawing surface texture, driver stability, and real-world performance during extended creative sessions. His reviews answer the questions artists actually ask, not the specifications that tech reviewers typically obsess over.
The Reviews: Artist-Perspective Hardware Testing
Brad tests every device by actually creating artwork with it. His reviews include drawing demonstrations, close-up comparisons of line quality, and honest assessments of how each device feels during extended use. This artist-centric evaluation methodology produces reviews that are directly useful for purchasing decisions in ways that standard tech reviews cannot match.
His comparison videos are among his most valuable content. Side-by-side evaluations of competing tablets (Wacom vs. Huion vs. XP-Pen, iPad Pro vs. dedicated drawing displays, budget options vs. premium alternatives) provide the direct comparisons that make complex purchasing decisions manageable.
He also provides follow-up reviews after extended use, updating his assessments based on long-term reliability, driver updates, and real-world durability. This long-term perspective reveals issues that initial reviews miss and provides a more complete picture of a device's value over time.
The Annual Buying Guides: The Definitive Tablet Rankings
Brad's annual "Best Drawing Tablets" roundup videos are the definitive buyer's guide for digital art hardware. His 2025 roundup and "10 Best Drawing Devices of 2025" video distill years of testing experience into actionable, current recommendations organized by budget tier and use case.
The 2025 list included devices like the Wacom Movink 13 (his pick for mobility, with an OLED screen), the Huion Canvas 13 (best budget pick with a 2.5K display), the Wacom Cintiq 16 (same Pro Pen 3 as the high-end Cintiq at a lower price), the M3 iPad Air, the M5 iPad Pro, and the Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra. He also reviewed 13 Android tablets in 2025, a new record for the channel.
His website maintains a continuously updated ranking of all reviewed tablets, which is more useful than the videos alone because you can compare devices side by side without scrubbing through video timestamps.
iPad and Mobile Art Coverage
Brad has been a consistent chronicler of the iPad's evolution as a professional art tool. His coverage of iPad Pro and Apple Pencil combinations, Procreate software updates, and the broader iOS art ecosystem provides essential guidance for artists considering the iPad as a creative platform. His comparisons between iPad-based workflows and traditional drawing tablet setups help artists understand the genuine trade-offs between portability, software ecosystem, and raw creative capability.
The channel also covers Android-based drawing devices, Samsung Galaxy Tab S-series with S Pen, and other mobile art platforms. This cross-platform coverage ensures artists can make informed decisions regardless of their existing technology preferences or budget constraints.
How He Compares to Other Hardware Reviewers
Brad and Aaron Rutten cover overlapping territory, but their approaches are different enough to be complementary. Brad's reviews are punchier, more entertaining, and have higher production value (4K video, better cinematography, tighter editing). Aaron's reviews are slower, more methodical, and go deeper into the painting experience itself. If Brad is the reviewer you watch to narrow down your shortlist, Aaron is the one you watch to make the final call.
Brad also stands apart from general tech YouTubers who occasionally review drawing tablets. He is a working illustrator whose own comic and illustration work appears throughout his videos, demonstrating the level of creative output that the hardware he recommends can support. This proof of concept adds credibility that specification-focused reviews cannot replicate.
Sponsorship Transparency
Brad has worked with 23 distinct brands according to SponsorRadar, including XP-Pen, Best Buy, and Huion. His top sponsor is XP-Pen with 5 sponsored videos. This is worth knowing because it means he has financial relationships with some of the companies whose products he reviews.
However, Brad has built exceptional viewer trust through consistent editorial integrity. He clearly discloses when devices are provided by manufacturers for review, provides honest assessments regardless of the source of the hardware, and is willing to criticize products from companies that sponsor his content when criticism is warranted. The transparency is the key: you know exactly which videos are sponsored, and his non-sponsored reviews maintain the same critical standards.
Who Should Watch
Anyone buying a drawing tablet should watch Brad's reviews before spending money. His annual buying guides alone will save you hours of research and help you avoid bad purchases.
iPad artists deciding between iPad Pro, iPad Air, or a dedicated drawing tablet will find his cross-platform comparisons essential for understanding the trade-offs.
Artists on a budget should pay special attention to his budget-tier recommendations. He regularly tests inexpensive tablets from Huion, XP-Pen, and other brands, and he is honest about which budget devices are genuinely good value and which are false economy.
Insider Tips
- Check his website rankings before watching the videos. The written rankings let you quickly compare devices by price, features, and his overall rating, then watch the full video review only for the devices that make your shortlist.
- Pay attention to his "honorable mentions" in annual roundups. These are devices that did not make the top 10 but are still worth considering, often at lower prices.
- His coverage of Android tablets has expanded significantly. If you are in the Android ecosystem, his 2025 reviews of 13 Android tablets are the most comprehensive comparison available on YouTube.
Final Verdict: Who Is This Actually For?
Brad Colbow is the single most valuable resource for drawing tablet and digital art hardware purchasing decisions on YouTube. If you are buying your first tablet, upgrading to a professional display, or deciding between an iPad and a dedicated drawing tablet, his channel is essential viewing. His artist-perspective approach, thorough testing methodology, comprehensive catalog, and editorial integrity make his recommendations genuinely trustworthy.
Start with his annual best-of video for current recommendations, then check his website rankings for the full list. For complementary reviews with a different perspective, see Aaron Rutten, and for software to pair with your new tablet, check out our Procreate and Clip Studio Paint reviews.
