SketchBook Pro Review

If you just like to doodle, you'll probably have fun with Qvik Sketch Pro. If you want to really get your hands dirty, though, you're going to need a richer drawing app. You can pay a few hundred to get a professional suite on your desktop, sure, but that's a big investment. If you've already invested in an iPad, SketchBook Pro is an affordable and fully featured app that could satisfy your needs.

One of the biggest draws, beyond the fact that SketchBook Pro is cheaper than its leading competition, is the inclusion of layers. You can use up to six layers at a time, including an imported photo as one of them, with control over transparency, opacity, merging, and duplication. This level of customization allows for the creation of professional-grade images. But layers are just the beginning of the app's feature set.

Pressure-sensitive strokes, 75 brushes, shapes, 2500% zoom capability, smear tool, high resolution images (1024x768) . . . the list goes on. About the only really big feature missing is filters of any kind. Even if many are too processor-intensive for the iPad, some basic filters would have been nice to have.

The engine behind the app is quite powerful, but it does noticeably lag when drawing. The lag is not enough to cause any serious issues, but there is a visible, albeit minute gap between when you move your finger and when a line appears. The responsiveness might be a turn-off to some, but ultimately it did not hinder our ability to draw as we wanted to. Brush strokes still look amazing with clearly defined or softened edges, depending on the brush.

There are only 10 levels of undo and redo, which might not be enough when you change your mind and need to apply drastic alterations; this is an area in which we'd love to see the app grow. Adding more levels could impact the memory allocation, though, so it might not be possible and continue to maintain stability.

A number of other smaller features that we loved include the ability to create shortcuts by tapping the corners of the screen--as well as three-finger swiping shortcuts--and the ability to export to PSD (Photoshop file extension) with all your layers saved. You can't import a PDS file, strangely enough, though. The app also supports video out, which is great if you want to use the app in a demonstration setting.

Is it the most powerful drawing software? Not by a mile. Nevertheless, it's still of professional caliber, and it has room to grow over time should the developers continue to support it with updates. It's priced just right, and for the budding artist with an iPad, you can generate truly excellent works of art. SketchBook Pro has quickly become our drawing app of choice.