New Delhi, June 19 – In a world where smartphones and tablets have started to displace paper it is only appropriate that the company that creates digital tools for creative people makes a pen and a scale for the iPad. The pair when broken down to their bare essentials are basically a Pen and a Scale built to work with the iPad. Made for two companion apps that Adobe calls Sketch and Line, they promise to make drawing easier and more realistic on the glass screen of the iPad. While styli for the iPad have existed, Adobe promises a better experience. The Ink, or the pen, which it essentially resembles has a triangular shaft and is as thick as a pen or a sketching tool. It has an unusually thin tip, which Adobe claims will ensure precision. It’s also pressure sensitive which means that it will recreate a thicker or thinner line according to the pressure the user has forced upon it. There’s also a button, which brings up a quick access menu for preferences and tools. It’s quite intriguing as it is battery powered with a claimed life of 10 hours. It also has an LED light built-in, which will act as an indicator for the battery life. The Slide, is a different animal altogether. Adobe may call it a ruler, a digital ruler that be, but it does not look anything like one. Using the Sketch and Line apps one can keep it on the iPad display and it will sprout what Adobe likes to call hint lines. Using the Ink stylus, users can trace sloppily along to produce a perfectly straight line. Basically it helps creators create precise diagrams and drawings with perfectly straight lines. The Slide also has a button on it, which triggers various geometric shapes, French curves, some common natural shapes like trees, tables, chairs, people and animals. As for the apps – Sketch and Line, they are basic drawing apps for the iPad that offer tools like Pencil, Pen, Brush, Marker and Eraser and some colours. Using Sketch users can create bitmapped art, the type of creation one will do on Photoshop. On Line users can create Vector based content, the type of creation that is done on Adobe Illustrator. Users can import content from both the iPad and also Adobe’s Creative Cloud on both the apps. Adobe plans to launch the product at later stage. For now, it is available in US for $199. -INDIA TODAY
