Redmi India has released its first tablet in India, Redmi Pad featuring a 10.61-inch display with 2.5K+ resolution (1B colors), 90 Hz refresh rate, Dolby Atmos quad speakers, MediaTek Helio G99 CPU, a huge 8,000 mAh battery, and more. Here’s what we have to say about the tablet in our Redmi Pad review.
Redmi Pad Specifications
- Display & Design: 10.61-inch (24.94 cm) IPS LCD display, 10-bit (1B color depth), WUXGA+ resolution (2,000 x 1200 pixels), 220 ppi pixel density, 15:09 aspect ratio, 80.92% screen-to-body ratio, 90 Hz AdaptiveSync refresh rate, 400 nits brightness, 1,500:1 contrast ratio, 70% NTSC, TÜV Rheinland certified, SGS in-built eye protection, Widevine L1 certified, IP52 rating
- Software: MIUI 13.1.1 interface, Android S 12 operating system
- Software Support: upgradable to MIUI 14 (2023) & MIUI 15 (2024), up to 3 years of Android OS upgrades (2 versions), 3 years of Android security updates
- CPU: 6nm MediaTek Helio G99 octa-core SoC clocked up to 2.2 GHz (Cortex-A76 + Cortex-A55 processors)
- GPU: ARM Mali-G57 MC2 Graphics
- Memory: 3 GB OR 4 GB OR 6 GB RAM (LPDDR4x)
- Storage: 64 GB OR 128 GB UFS 2.2 internal storage, microSD card support up to 1 TB
- Main Camera: Single 8 MP Camera, 1080p @30fps Video Recording, no LED flash
- Selfie Camera: 8 MP
- Connectivity: USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3, Wi-Fi 5 (802.11a/b/g/n/ac)
- Audio: Quad speakers, Dolby Atmos support, Hi-Res Audio, Hi-Res Audio (Wireless), dual microphones
- Others: 3rd party pen support, face unlock, no fingerprint scanner
- Cellular: N/A (Wi-Fi only)
- Battery: 8,000 mAh battery
- Charging: 18W fast charging (22.5W in the box)
- Colors: Graphite Gray, Moonlight Silver, Mint Green
- Dimensions: 250 mm x 157 mm x 7.05 mm
- Weight: 465 grams
- Price: ₹12,999 (3 GB + 64 GB + Wi-Fi), ₹14,999 (4 GB + 64 GB + Wi-Fi), ₹19,999 (6 GB + 128 GB + Wi-Fi)
- Offers: 2 months of YouTube premium free
- Availability: 5th October 2022, mi.com, Mi Home stores, Flipkart, and other retail stores
Design, Display, & Build Quality
Just looking at the Redmi Pad, it’s among the slimmest tablets in its category (7.05 mm), it comes with a sleek and slim form factor backed with a metallic unibody. The Redmi Pad offers a solid build quality overall, the metallic build, finishing, and lightweight design (465 grams) are really impressive. You get the IP52 rating, meaning the tablet is protected from dust and water sprays/splashes. The front side has a selfie camera of 8 MP and the back side has an 8 MP single camera with no LED flash.
Then there’s the large stunning 10.61-inch (24.94 cm) IPS LCD display having a 10-bit (1B color depth), a WUXGA+ resolution (2,000 x 1200 pixels), and a 90 Hz refresh rate. Redmi India has utilized a 2.5K+ display, higher than the Full HD+ resolution. Furthermore, the screen has 220 ppi pixel density, a 15:09 aspect ratio with an 80.92% screen-to-body ratio, offers 400 nits brightness, and a contrast ratio of 1,500:1. The display also has an SGS in-built eye protection and is certified for Widevine L1. Redmi India says the tablet is TÜV Rheinland certified.
Tablets have never been popularized like smartphones even though some of them are better in design and features/functionalities, but there are still a handful of them that are really nice and quite better than smartphones. If we compare them, the Redmi Pad’s metallic design, 10-bit color depth, higher pixel resolution, 90 Hz refresh rate, quad speakers, and larger battery size are some of the things that exceed those of smartphones in the similar price segment.
But the downside of the tablet? You won’t find a SIM tray so as with the fingerprint scanner, the tablet is Wi-Fi only which means you can’t use a SIM card on it. There are currently no SIM or 4G variants of the tablet and it’s up to Redmi India if they are bringing in any cellular variants. If you are looking for a SIM option, then this tablet won’t be suitable for you.
Holding the tablet landscape, you get volume controls on the top, dual microphones, and a microSD card tray that supports up to 1 TB of cards. The left side offers a power key and dual loudspeakers while the right has two more loudspeakers making quad and a USB Type-C to charge the tablet. No 3.5 mm jack is found which is clear due to its slim form factor.
Software & User Interface
The Redmi Pad is powered by its MIUI for Pad interface version 13.1.1, the software is actually based on the Android 12 operating system. The Redmi Pad comes with Android S 12 out-of-the-box with the security patch dated 1st August 2022. It’s good to see that the tablet runs on the Android 12 OS.
The interface is quite similar to what you see on MIUI-based smartphones although the Android for tablets is slightly different from what you see on smartphones, for instance, the desktop or homescreen which you see in portrait view can actually be changed to landscape view. The interface on the Redmi Pad has been customized for the tablet experience and offers a chunk of Android features and customizations. The Settings page as you can see is divided into two sections, the left side which holds all the Settings whereas the right has the appropriate menu settings.
The performance of the UI is smooth, thanks to its 90 Hz display, the app, playing games, and watching videos, especially at 60 fps, feel smooth and provide a great experience on the tablet. No bloatware is found on the tablet, you have a clean user interface which means the tablet is free from the extra apps which may hog the onboard storage and slow down the system.
Hardware, Performance, & Gaming
Moving to its hardware and performance, the Redmi Pad packs a new processor from MediaTek, this is the Helio G99 which is the latest processor from MediaTek. The processor is the successor to the MediaTek Helio G96 which we saw in many smartphones. The 6nm MediaTek Helio G99 is clocked at 2.2 GHz and is paired along with ARM Mali-G57 MC2 GPU for gaming and graphics tasks.
For its performance, you can expect a performance better than the Helio G96 and similar to Snapdragon 695, check out the Geekbench 5 benchmarks of the CPU we shared below. About the CPU, the MediaTek Helio G99 is a midrange manufactured in a 6nm process consisting of a 4+4 cores configuration (Cortex-A76 + Cortex-A55), four performance Cortex-A76 cores clocked at 2.2 GHz, and four power-efficient Cortex-A55 cores clocked at 2.0 GHz.
The tablet offers LPDDR4X RAM type and UFS 2.2 storage type. You get a total of three variants, all three with Wi-Fi, and no cellular; 3 GB RAM + 64 GB storage, 4 GB RAM + 64 GB storage, 6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage, the storage can be expanded via a microSD card up to 1 TB on all three variants. The price for the 3 GB and 64 GB (Wi-Fi model) is ₹12,999, the price for the 4 GB and 64 GB (Wi-Fi model) is ₹14,999, and the top model with 6 GB + 128 GB with Wi-Fi is priced at ₹19,999.
The Redmi Pad offers an amazing audio experience, there are a total of four speakers and you are likely to get the best sound quality out of it compared to dual speakers. The quad speakers also support Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res Audio which enhances the audio quality. The tablet also offers Bluetooth 5.3 which offers seamless connectivity with all external Bluetooth-enabled devices including headphones, keyboards, and mice.
Gaming on this tablet is good, it has Mali-G57 MC2 graphics which is sufficient to play games on medium to high settings and smoothly. The good part is that you get a larger display and quad speakers which makes the gaming experience better. We didn’t experience any heating issues on this tablet.
Cameras
The tablet carries a single 8 MP rear camera with support for 1080p at 30 fps video recording and no LED flash while the front side has an 8 MP selfie camera for video calling and selfie needs. You can take pictures and selfies just as you do on smartphones, however, you get fewer features comparatively. Cameras on the tablet are just mainstream, so you can’t compare them to a smartphone camera.
About the camera interface, it’s just basic, you can do a few things like record 1080p videos, scan documents, take night shots, and click in Movie Frame, you also get Short Video mode, Tilt Shift, and that’s all. The selfie camera is decent, it can be useful for video calls, meetings, as well as some selfies in well-lit conditions.
Battery Runtime & Charging
The Redmi Pad offers a huge battery of 8,720 mAh capacity and it’s more than enough for you to watch movies, play games, and use the tablet for long hours. The tablet can easily survive a day and a half without any hazzle, and up to 2-3 days, but it depends on your usage, you can expect it to run up to 2-3 days on average use. The Redmi Pad supports 18W fast charging while you get a 22.5W fast charger in the box.
Verdict – Redmi Pad
The Redmi Pad has most features that a tablet user demands, it has a large 10.61-inch display, higher 2K+ resolution with 10-bit color depth (1B colors), 90 Hz display, quad speakers with support for Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res Audio, as well as a fast processor from MediaTek. The Redmi Pad packs a 6nm MediaTek Helio G99 SoC with up to 6 GB RAM and 128 GB storage which means it’s backed up with good hardware, delivers a decent performance, and offers a great battery life (8,000 mAh). If you are looking for a tablet in the ₹15k budget, you won’t go wrong with the Redmi Pad, it has everything you need in a tablet, the Redmi Pad is recommended buy, the price starts at ₹12,999 (3 GB RAM and 64 GB storage).
