TOP 12 best HUAWEI tablets: rating 2020-2021, customer reviews and tips on how to choose such a gadget

Specifications Huawei MediaPad M5 Lite 10.1 (model BAH2-L09)

Delivery package and first impressions

The tablet comes in a white thick cardboard box. At the top there is an inscription with the name of the model. It is worth noting that on sale you can find two delivery options for the Huawei MediaPad M5 Lite 10 tablet. The first of them does not support mobile networks. The second one supports mobile networks. So in the first case, in addition to the device itself, the box contains a USB Type C cable for synchronization and charging, an adapter for the mains, a master key for the SIM card tray, instructions and a warranty card. The second delivery option is complemented by the Huawei M Pen lite stylus for drawing. According to the manufacturer, the stylus distinguishes 2048 degrees of pressure.

As for the tablet itself, its dimensions are typical for 10-inch models: 243.4 x 162.2 x 7.7. At the same time, the device is very thin. The weight of the device is 475 grams.

The tablet can be held with one hand. True, after a couple of minutes the hand gets tired. For this reason, it is better to operate the device with both hands. In general, no fundamental shortcomings in terms of comfort were noticed. You can choose a case to protect your tablet. The choice here is more than large. Accessories can be purchased in both Russian and Chinese online stores and online platforms such as Aliexpress. When you purchase a tablet with LTE on the Huawei website, you will automatically be given a gift case and Huawei CM-Q3 headphones.

Battery

Inside the 8.4-inch model, the battery provides 11 hours of video playback, and it charges from zero to maximum in 2 hours. On the 10.8-inch model, you can watch video for 10 hours; recharging takes 3 hours. The stylus lasts 50 days without recharging. Unfortunately, there is no 3.5 mm headphone jack, which is unforgivable for a multimedia tablet. True, an adapter is included in the package.

It's still too early to judge, but the MediaPad M5 10.8-inch is the best choice of these three tablets. It's good, but the question arises how popular tablets in general are these days and whether users want to exchange old tablets for new ones.

Pros: Comfortable to hold, good design in landscape mode, large, bright high-resolution screen on 10.8-inch version, choice of several high-spec versions.

Design and appearance

The appearance of the new Huawei MediaPad M5 Lite coincides with other tablets in this series. The back cover is made of smooth aluminum, it is very pleasant to the touch, while being resistant to fingerprints and scratches. There is a plastic insert at the top - here are the radio modules for Wi-FI, Bluetooth, navigation and mobile communications (for the option where there is support).

As we noted earlier, the tablet is quite thin. The body shape is rectangular, aspect ratio is 16:10, the corners are sloping, the edges taper on the sides. The front side is protected by 2.5D tempered glass. There is an oleophobic coating, it is quite effective. The finger glides across the display easily, and any fingerprints that appear are erased quickly.

The 10-inch MediaPad M5 Lite tablet can only be purchased in a silver color option. The front side is black.

⇡#Design and ergonomics

The craze for screens with aspect ratios of 19:9, 18:9 and other oddities in the form of fashionable bangs has not yet reached tablets, so the Huawei MediaPad M5 with its modest 16:10 aspect ratio looks quite traditional: it’s just a little elongated vertically. And that's probably a good thing.

The majority (71.6%) of the front panel is occupied by the display. Above it is a tiny lens of the built-in front camera. On the right (when viewed in landscape orientation) is a thin and at the same time long sensor: this is a fingerprint scanner, which, as is customary with Huawei, works very quickly and almost always accurately.

The bezels around the display are quite thin, but not overwhelming. Your thumbs do not touch the sensors during use - there is plenty of space where you can put them. The only thing that is a little frustrating is the Huawei logo: the placement of branding elements on the “face” of the gadget is somehow not very good.

The entire back panel of the tablet is metal - it pleasantly cools the palm, and it’s pleasant to hold onto it. The surface is matte and slightly rough, the color is good - no fingerprints are noticeable on the dark gray. Since you can install a SIM card in the gadget and pick up network signals, it would not be possible without a thin plastic antenna strip. To my taste, it looks neat, there’s nothing to complain about.

The many holes along the top and bottom edges of the tablet on the back are perforations for the built-in speakers. They're here wow! Firstly, there are already four of them. Secondly, the guys from Harman/Kardon helped make them. It is clear that you won’t listen to a symphony orchestra in FLAC, shedding an esthete’s stingy tears. But for all everyday things - music in MP3 and voice-overs for films or videos from YouTube - there is enough reserve in quality and volume. External speakers are unlikely to be needed. The location of the speakers is good – you won’t accidentally cover them with your fingers.

Three shiny contacts are the platform for connecting the docking station. There is also a special version of the MediaPad M5 with a proud “Pro” in the name. There, a keyboard unit with a touchpad (and also a stylus) is included in the delivery package, and for a “non-professional” (yeah, it sounds so-so) tablet you can purchase it separately - if you decide that you need it.

The only frustrating thing about the neat design is the camera lens, which protrudes from the body by a good 2 millimeters. And okay, it would just be ugly, but it’s also easy to accidentally scratch it.

Another sudden embarrassment is the lack of the usual headphone jack. And this is not a super-thin smartphone with IP68, a vibration motor and a built-in coffee maker, where the precious space for chips inside is worth its weight in gold, but a hefty 10-inch tablet! Thank you, of course, that the adapter from USB Type-C to 3.5 mm audio jack is included in the kit, but the pleasure of using it is much below average. And you can easily forget it, and then you will either have to be sad on public transport without video and music, or irritate everyone around you with the sound from the speakers, catching reproachful glances and blushing.

Screen, graphics capabilities

MediaPad M5 Lite is equipped with a 10.1-inch screen made using IPS technology without an air gap. Frames – 15 mm on all sides. The capacitive sensor supports up to 10 simultaneous touches. Resolution - 1920x1200 (224 ppi). Thanks to the aspect ratio, the display is great for watching movies, TV series and other videos.

The screen is bright, with true colors. Viewing angles are maximum without purple and yellow tints. The automatic brightness control system, which can also be enabled in the options, works reliably. But manual control is not the best in practice - the brightness levels are too large.

The tablet has a ClariVu chip, which is responsible for image transmission. There is also “Eye care mode” technology, when the screen turns into warm colors to reduce eye strain.

The picture on the display looks realistic, with high contrast. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. The mode with automatic brightness adjustment in the dark works adequately. There are no questions here. But in the sun, the information on the screen is not readable as well as we would like. Even maximum brightness doesn't help much. If you do not have the best eyesight, you will have to peer closely, which is not very convenient.

If we talk about the sensitivity of the screen, it responds quickly to touches and recognizes gestures without problems. The display supports work with the Huawei M Pen lite stylus, which is included only with the LTE version of the tablet.

As a result, the display of the Huawei MediaPad M5 Lite is high-quality and bright, but in the sun it does not behave one hundred percent out of a hundred.

Results

The MediaPad M5 Lite is a workhorse in the class of affordable 10-inch tablets with drawing capabilities. The device offers a good balance between price, functionality, appearance and performance. Watching movies, mobile games, reading books, communicating on social networks and instant messengers - the tablet does all this properly. The 10-inch screen is also convenient for drawing. If you purchase a tablet with LTE support, the user receives a stylus included. If you purchase the Wi-Fi-only version, you will have to buy an additional stylus.

The advantages of the device include appearance, assembly and sound quality. Four stereo speakers provide high-quality and spacious stereo sound. Fans of watching movies and video clips will definitely appreciate this opportunity. Not every tablet for 50 or 70 thousand rubles can boast such great sound. It's here.

The MediaPad M5 Lite does not have any unusual flaws. The only thing is that it was possible to equip the tablet with more productive hardware and a larger amount of RAM. However, for its price category the device is very decent. It is also worth noting a slight fading of the screen when working in bright sunlight. The information in this case is not read in the best way. In other scenarios, the device works without problems.

Hardware platform: processor, memory, performance

MediaPad M5 Lite is equipped with a 64-bit HiSilicon Kirin 659 chip with an 8-core processor: 4 Cortex A53 cores at 2.36 GHz and 4 Cortex-A53 cores at 1.7 GHz. The processor is manufactured using a 16 nm process technology. Graphics coprocessor Mali-T830 MP2. RAM 3 GB, built-in flash memory for data storage – 32 GB. You can expand the built-in memory using microSD cards. The device has a corresponding slot for this.

If we talk about the operation of the interface, then in most work scenarios we did not notice any glitches or slowdowns. The picture and transitions are smooth, launching applications is fast. Browser, video - here sometimes there are slowdowns and slowness. All this is related to the speed of the hardware used. In Antutu tests, the tablet scored about 87,610 points. This suggests that we have a fairly simple model.

Communication capabilities

On sale you can find a Huawei MediaPad M5 Lite tablet without support for mobile networks, where there is only Wi-Fi and with support for mobile networks. It is worth noting that the Wi-Fi here is dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 ac/b/g/n, which operates in the 2.5 and 5 GHz range. There is also Wi-Fi Direct, you can organize a wireless access point via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth channels. All modules work quickly and without failures.

The version with support for mobile networks works with SIM cards of all Russian operators in 2G, 3G and 4G standards on Russian frequencies. The quality of signal reception is not satisfactory; the tablet confidently maintains communication indoors and does not lose the signal in areas of poor reception.

Among the additional communication tools, it is worth noting GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou (standard Google Maps cartography is built into the smartphone). The navigation error radius during testing was about 5-10 meters, which is not always convenient for the city.

Duration of work

The tablet has a lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 7500 mAh. The battery life is sufficient to work under an average load for 2-3 days. Operating time in FullHD video viewing mode at 50% display brightness is about 10.5 hours. These indicators are typical for many devices of this level.

It is also worth noting that the tablet supports fast charging. You can fully charge it in a couple of hours; a corresponding charger is included.

Model differences

First, we need to discuss the differences between the MediaPad M5 Pro and the standard model. The first one has stylus support and comes with an M-Pen stylus. The stylus does not work with other tablets in this line.

Both 10.8-inch models have connectors for a keyboard case, which allows you to turn the device into a kind of Windows laptop with a desktop for increased convenience and speed. Otherwise, the key characteristics are the same.

The compact version of the tablet has one key difference. It offers dual speakers while the rest have four speakers. This has implications for the consumption of multimedia content.

User Interface and Operating System

The 10-inch MediaPad M5 Lite runs the original Android 8.0 operating system with Huawei's proprietary shell installed - EMUI 8.0.

All programs are displayed in one list on the main and adjacent screens.

In the settings of the MediaPad M5 Lite there is an option for eye protection (it is turned on only during reading - the amount of blue color decreases, that is, the picture becomes warmer).

Among the pre-installed programs, it is worth noting office applications from Microsoft, social network clients, a file manager, a selection of mobile games, Facebook, Netflix, an application for children, etc.

In the “Tools” folder you can find a dozen service applications: weather, calculator, voice recorder, clock, phone and contacts, messages, music, video, HI Care, compass, backup, Phone Clone and Quik.

Any other programs on the tablet can be installed from the Google Play store.

A tablet with a stylus for every occasion

Hello, dear readers!

I had an e-reader similar to a tablet + color screen, reading books in different formats. It was convenient to use it until it broke and stopped charging again. I was thinking about buying a new e-book, but most of the books I need are in PDF format and in color, while regular e-readers are black and white. And in the end I switched my attention to tablets.

I had never wanted a tablet before and didn’t really understand why it was needed at all. I saw an advertisement for the Huawei MediaPad M5 Pro tablet, which also has a stylus for drawing. I’m just learning to draw and have long wanted a graphics tablet with a screen, but they only work with a laptop or PC and are not mobile at all.

Price and place of purchase

I bought Huawei MediaPad M5 Pro tablet with a stylus from the official Huawei online store for RUB 36,990. with discount. Without a discount, it costs 42,990 rubles. and are given a choice of several gifts. My option is without gifts, and I don’t need them. The online store often runs promotions ahead of the holidays.

Characteristics

I will not describe all the characteristics of the Huawei MediaPad M5 Pro ; they can be viewed on any website where it is sold. I will write only those that were important to me when choosing in the first place.

Huawei MediaPad M5 Pro tablet:

1. Metal body - I don’t like plastic, and metal is much nicer to the touch
2. IPS screen type - since I’m going to draw on it, I want to see a high-quality picture in the end
3. Diagonal 10.8
4. The main camera is 13 MP, the front camera is 8 MP - not particularly good quality, but this is a tablet, not a camera.
5. Built-in memory 64 GB - there is never too much memory.
6. Operating system Android 8.0 (Oreo) - synchronizes perfectly with the smartphone.
7. Support SIM card and memory card up to 256 GB
8. Awesome speaker sound
9. Screen resolution 2560×1600
10. Eye protection mode
11. Fingerprint recognition
12. It holds a full charge for 2 days if you use it constantly and play games periodically.

HUAWEI M-Pen stylus

1. 4096 degrees of pressure
2. Tilt and shade functions depending on the application used
3. Multifunctional buttons on the stylus body (with their help you can take screenshots, delete images, launch applications; in some applications, when the button is pressed, the stylus starts erasing rather than drawing)
4. Charges via USB cable. The charge lasts for a very long time (I have only charged it once for the first time so far).

Additional features

The tablet can be used in two modes: standard multi-screen mode and PC mode. This is a mode in which the Desktop appears like on a PC, the Start menu appears with a list of installed applications, and applications open in separate windows, like on a PC. They can be dragged and collapsed.

If you also connect a keyboard (purchased separately as an additional accessory), then the tablet can partially replace a laptop. At least typing text and using tables becomes much more convenient.

Drawing with a stylus

I was very pleased with the stylus. It really responds to pressure, making the line thicker/thinner/transparent/not transparent. I installed several drawing applications (they are publicly available on the Play Store), and the stylus works equally well in all of them. When drawing with a stylus, you can hold your hand on the screen, the sensor stops responding to it. The stylus does not scratch the screen, leaves no marks, and the movements are smooth.

Equipment:

• Tablet
• Charger
• USB cable
• USB-C adapter - 3.5 mm headphone jack (regular headphones cannot be connected without this adapter)
• Huawei M-Pen stylus
• User guide
• SIM Card Removal Tool
• Warranty card

Games and movies

I don’t really play games, but I installed two HomeScapes and Gardenscapes on my tablet. Nothing slows down, games launch quickly, pictures are clear, colors are bright.

When purchasing a tablet, you received a promotional code for three months of free use of the Ivi application with movies and TV series online. Movies on the tablet do not slow down, load quickly, the sound is excellent, the picture and viewing angles are pleasing to the eyes.

Bottom line

I definitely recommend
Huawei MediaPad M5 Pro tablet Read, watch movies, surf social media. networks and much more - it’s a pleasure. I have never regretted the purchase, even though the price is not small. Additionally, I bought a stand case with a protective film. If you have any doubts, take it, you won’t regret it if you have similar preferences for the tablet as I do.

Display

IPS screen format 2560 x 1600; on large tablets the pixel density is 280 ppi. The screen is clear, bright and has good contrast. A feature called ClariVu should improve image quality by 20%, according to the developers, but it doesn’t say at what cost. In Huawei's demo, it appeared to be a variation of HDR. You need to research this issue in more detail, watch different videos to understand the principle of operation and effectiveness.

There is 2.5 D glass on top of the screen and a monolithic aluminum body. This is the first time Huawei has used such a design from its smartphones on a tablet; it is also rare among other manufacturers. This approach significantly increases the comfort of working with the tablet. There are no sharp edges at the junctions of the screen and the body, making the device comfortable to hold in your hands, which is important when watching long movies or playing games. This is usually done in landscape orientation, which Huawei thought about in advance.

The speakers are located on the top and bottom edges of the tablet in landscape orientation; you can't cover them with your hands. The volume rocker is on the right next to the power button on the right edge of the case. The finger finds them easily, and there is no risk of pressing the buttons accidentally.

The Huawei logo is placed on the bottom edge in landscape orientation to make it easy to see how to hold the tablet correctly.

Sound is one of the MediaPad M5's strengths. There were a few short demos shown and they were good enough to make you want to see more. Four speakers were tuned by Harman Kardon specialists, and Huawei System surround sound technology is used. If you love watching videos on tablets, you'll love the MediaPad M5.