It's fairly common for light box tracers to have ruler edges, which may measure in inches, millimeters, or both. They're great for use on the go or anywhere you might not have access to a power outlet. These can generally be powered using an AC or USB adapter when desired, switching to battery power when you need it. There are also light box tracers with built-in batteries. You may find that your USB light box won't reach its full brightness unless you power it from an outlet. Others are powered by USB cables, which can be plugged into either a computer, power bank, or power outlet using a USB plug adapter. Some light box tracers use standard AC adapters.

Some only have low, medium, and high brightness options, whereas others can be set at any point between the lowest and highest possible brightness. Almost all light boxes have adjustable brightness, though the adjustability varies. Dimmer options are fine for basic use, but if you need the light to make its way through two pieces of heavyweight paper, such as watercolor paper that’s 160 grams per square meter (GSM), you'll need at least 4,000 lux.

The brighter the light box, the more clearly it will show the image underneath your drawing paper. The brightness of a light box tracer is measured in lux and generally ranges from around 1,500 to 5,000 lux. Always check whether the given dimensions are for the drawing surface only or include the edge (the part that doesn't light up). You can find light boxes all the way up to size A1 (approximately 34 by 24 inches), though these are pricey. For instance, most inexpensive light box tracers are size A4 (approximately 11.7 by 8.3 inches). Light box tracers either indicate their size in inches or tell you what paper size they fit.

A compact light box tracer won't be much use to you if you usually work on huge sheets of paper. Size: Choose a light box of an appropriate size for the projects you want to work on. Unless you prefer the extra depth in your light box tracer, we'd generally avoid models any thicker than 0.32 inch (8 mm). Today, thanks to improved LED technology, even cheap light box tracers are often less than 0.25-inch thick. Light box tracers used to be several inches deep to accommodate light bulbs, which could make the box awkward to work with. Key considerations Dimensionsĭepth: If it's been a while since you used a light box, you might be surprised by how slim they are now. However, most LED light boxes last for 30,000 to 50,000 hours of use.

LED light boxes do have a shelf life, since LED bulbs don't last forever and usually can't be switched out.

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