Wacom's pen tablet for students now works with Chromebooks

For all their strengths as eduction tools, Chromebooks have their limitations. Most don’t come with a stylus, and even if they do, they’re usually not the most accurate. Enter Wacom.

The company’s One by Wacom tablet now works with Chrome OS devices thanks to the fact it recently earned Google’s Works with Chromebook certification. Not to be confused with the $400 Wacom One tablet, the One by Wacom doesn’t feature a display. Instead, it’s exclusively a compatible surface for the stylus that comes inside the box. While by no means the most capable pen Wacom makes, it’s no slouch either. With 2,048 pressure points, it’s comparable to a previous generation Surface Pen.

To make everything work, you simply connect the pen tablet to your Chromebook through a USB-A port. There’s no need to install any separate drivers or software. What’s more, you don’t even need to charge the stylus as it works without a battery, and if own a Chromebook that already comes with a USI-compatible pen, the One by Wacom stylus won’t interfere with it. With the tablet and pen together weighing in at 259g, the entire device is also light and small enough it can easily fit in a backpack, which makes it easy to see why Wacom thinks it’s a great fit for students.

As is the case with most accessories, how useful the One by Wacom tablet ends up being will depend on third-party support. Out of the gate, the tablet is fully supported by Clip Studio Paint (as long as you have Chrome OS 8.7 or later installed on your device), as well as education apps like Kami, Pear Deck, Limnu and Explain Everything. It’s also worth noting you can use the device with Mac and Windows computers, so it’s more than just an accessory for Chromebooks.

The tablet comes in two sizes: small and medium. In the US, it’s only available in the smaller 8.3 by 5.7-inch size, which you can already buy for $59.95.