The Wacom Bamboo Fun gives you the choice of using a pen, or alternatively simply using your hand like you would a touchscreen phone. It's available for less than £80 and is good value for money with the included software and would therefore make an excellent first graphics tablet for someone who wants to get more involved in graphic design, photo retouching or drawing.

The Bamboo Stylus supplies an impression of increased accuracy and fidelity rather than the real thing, but when the experience of using it is so positive - and the price so reasonable - we don't really care. As the iPad's capacitive screen is already so finger-friendly, the audience for this stylus is likely too limited, but it makes freehand writing feel far more natural than with a finger.

Overall, I found this stylus to be a pleasure to test, and would recommend it highly for those interested in drawing or writing. However, if you’re looking for a simple navigation device, or you don’t have $30 to blow on a stylus, this may not be the tool for you.

The ability to scroll, zoom, rotate and flip, make marks and erase them, and switch effortlessly from pen to multitouch input makes the Bamboo a versatile input device, although it won’t yet replace the traditional mouse-and-keyboard combo just yet.