Mouse vs. tablet

[RPMiller]

I'm currently considering buying a tablet to switch to for doing all my graphic and 3D "art" (I use quotes as it is a far cry from being worthy of the title), and I'm hoping to get some good advice and tips regarding the idea.

I've heard nothing but good things regarding using a tablet and so I'm pretty much sold on the idea however I am curious about a couple bad things I've heard that makes a mouse sound better.

• The stylus wears out within a years time of use.
  If you don't get the right size tablet for your needs it will frustrate you.
  They are very expensive.
  If you don't have the right calibration software they won't work right.

In addition I've heard that Wacom is "The" only tablet you should consider buying.

Now I actually have some experience with a tablet, but it used a puck not a stylus and I was using this full time as an AutoCAD draftsman for an engineering company. However this was a very specialized application and tablet and wasn't a stylus so I don't feel it is entirely accurate for my analysis.

So, what can folks tell me about the points and comments above, and does anyone know of any great deals out there that I might be able to take advantage of?

EDIT: I just wanted to mention a couple things as I've seen a couple posts directed at me. You'll notice that this thread was started many years ago. I bought an Wacom Intous a few years ago based on comments from back then. Please feel free to continue commenting on this thread to help others that may have similar questions. In fact, I've posted to this thread a few times in the past about various deals and specials that I've found. There are also some great pointers scattered throughout the comments about what to look for when you decide to get a tablet yourself.