MiniSun | A2 LED Modern UltraSlim Art Craft Design LightPad | Novelty, Home Décor & Improvement Essential

To lend some context to the review and my experience with this item; I have a degree in Illustration with Animation and have tried various lightboxes and cobbled together workarounds.I treated myself to this after a couple of attempts of making my own lightbox (I had a desk with a glass panel and attached a SAD light underneath).I had been coveting one of the expensive lightboxes for a while, the university had huge light desks in the animation suite, but they are incredibly expensive. The other light boxes I saw were either cheap, small, slanted craft boxes or large, aluminium but expensive options. I cant remember exactly how much I paid for this (I have been using it for a couple of years now) but I remember the price was very reasonable and cheap compared to some options. I decided to take a punt with it, and was not disappointed.I went for an A2 box, which is bigger than I ever work, but has the advantage of having a nice large space to move my papers around, and minimise the chance of squashing paper against the raised edge and creasing it. The light is all over and very bright and evenly diffused and the whole thing is very slim so it doesnt alter the drawing height very much. I find the A2 size to be large enough to just have ar the edge of my desk and rest my arms directly on it.It is bright enough to trace my sketches and working drawings onto a sheet of thick Bristol board or heavy watercolour paper to start the final peice. I have a translucent cutting mat too, and it will shine through this (though the occasions that I have cut out a tracing using the lightbox have been few and far between)I leave it on my desk when it is off and just use it as a drawing surface, very smooth and no grain.Ideal for anyone working with traditional animation or people like me that like to trace sketches onto a nice clean sheet of paper for the final peice!

I decided to buy this because it's very slim so it doesn't get in the way on my desk. The light is very bright but if you want to trace something make sure the lines are very dark in the original drawing as they don't show through very well. The wire can also be detached which makes storing it so much easier.BUT there are some clips that come with the pad that are supposed to be used to secure your work. DO NOT USE THESE. Mine were cheap and had ragged edges that scratched my pad! I was really upset that this happened considering it's so expensive :( Luckily my brother was able to file the edges down but I still refuse to use them. I use masking tape now which works perfectly and I don't have to worry about causing more damage.

I purchased this product several years ago and it became an essential part of my kit. Unfortunately, it suffered the fate as so many have mentioned in reviews here, of the severed adapter cables due to the poor design of the cables resting against a sharp hole in the back of the board.However, I purchased it again because I needed to replace it urgently and when it arrived, I was over the moon to see that the product manufacturers have clearly taken the feedback into consideration and adapted the design!The cables now come out through the side of the board meaning there is less friction and pressure on them when you're working. The cables themselves have been reinforced and the entry is a lot smoother. A really great improvement and a very much needed one as it was clearly a common issue with the original design of the product.All other functions are fantastic. In the years that I have had the pad, the light has always been bright and even. It is lightweight and looks brilliant. Now, with the improvement of the cable placement, I would recommend this to anyone and everyone.

This lightbox is cheap and cheerful, and does a great job.I've been thinking about getting a lightbox for a while now, and I didn't really want to spend £500 on one, so I knew I'd need to go for one on the lower end of the spectrum. I read all the reviews and decided that this was the one for me.£75 for an A2 light box is a bargain.I saw that some people said the build quality was not fantastic, and in some respects they are correct...but for the money it's the best you'll get.DESIGNLED lighting5" lead out of the side of the light pad that plugs into an cord (UK plug)Padded feet at the backIt is cut perspex layered, not 100% straightly eitherThe light is on or off, there is no dimming option (for me not a problem!)ASPECTSIt works perfectly well with photos, thin paper, tracing paper, and even 300GSM watercolour paper! This made me very pleased as it was one of the reasons I wanted it.It is thin and lightweight enough that I can have it on my drawing table and angle my drawing board and still use it. The feet hold it in place just fine and if it's at a high angle then my drawing boards ruler helps to hold it just fine.It doesn't get hot thanks to the LED lights. It does get warm, but not hot.Comes with clips, but don't use them, you'll just scratch the pad!

I've mixed views. On one hand, it is bright (almost too much so) and does what it is intended to do. I had no problem using it for tracing documents and back lighting maps. The clips are okay. On the other hand, the unit I received showed definite signs of a lack of manufacturing quality. When lit, the background shows distinct signs of variation in light intensity in places that seem to be the result of palm prints on the underside of the top sheet. Maybe it should have been cleaned before the unit was constructed. There are also finger prints that show up white in the black border. Finally, where the power lead feeds into the back of the unit, it is susceptible to being cut or damaged by the rather sharp edge of the plastic if you are not careful in handling the unit. I would be wary of using this in a place where it needs to be moved around a lot; the chances are someone is going to put the unit on its edge and damage the lead. I can't help but feel it is a good product that is let down by poor attention to detail.