Verdict
The MatePad Pro 13.2 is an impressive tablet with a beautiful display and one of the speediest style that I ’ve ever had the pleasure of using . However , the combination of an out-of-date C.P.U. and a lack of Google service think this slate is improbable to appeal to the mass .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Huawei ’s latest tablet is heralded as the brand ’s “ ultimate creative tablet . ” It ’s the largest lozenge that the society has relinquish to appointment and has a dodgy pattern with slim symmetrical bezels on all side of the spacious 13.2 - column inch display .
Huawei has put a lot of study into its draught capabilities , and when combined with the third - generation of M - Pencil , creatives can expect an extremist - low rotational latency sketching experience with more air pressure - sensibility levels than ever before .
With an impressive showing , brilliant speakers and the aforementioned originative capabilities , it looks to be a substantial contender in the high - end tab space . However , there ’s an elephant in the elbow room , and regrettably , it ’s a rather large one .
This is a Huawei merchandise , and as such , it does n’t have access to the Google Play Store or any of Google ’s first - company apps . This mean that it ’s unlikely to appeal to most users , unless they ’re looking for something to apply exclusively as an esthetic dick .
The MatePad Pro 13.2 will be useable in Europe from 22nd January 2024 ( with pre - society opening move on the 8th January ) . It comes in two flavours , the base model has 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of memory board and will retail for € 999 , while the 512 GB variant will be you € 1199 . There ’s currently no word on UK - specific pricing .
The Smart Magnetic Keyboard and 3rd Gen M - Pencil are sold as optional accessories and will correct you back an extra € 199 and € 99 , respectively .
This pricing puts the MatePad Pro 13.2 up against some knotty competition , such as theSamsung Galaxy Tab S9+andUltra , and the ever - popularApple iPad Pro . The MatePad has some advantage of its own , but is it enough to make up for its lack of software documentation ? Read on to discover out .
Design
The Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 is a large tablet , and even with its slender bezels and fragile chassis , it feel great when you pick it up , specially if it ’s not what you ’re used to .
That said , Huawei has put a mass of work into keep this gimmick portable , and it ’s both lighter and slimmer than the 12.9 - in iPad Pro , despite featuring a larger display . The MatePad Pro weighs in at just 580 g and is 5.5 mm boneheaded , excluding the small photographic camera bulge .
It come in two color option , both with glass - fiber rear panels . I was transport the black variant for testing , which is mostly flatness black with a burnished Huawei logotype in the heart . The gullible choice is very pale , almost duck egg coloured , giving the tablet a friendlier and less professional look .
The machine feels solid and well - fabricate throughout , but the ice - fibre back does finger more like plastic than meth . On the plus side , it ’s grippier than a glossy - bet on tablet but also a trivial more prone to fingerprint spot than I ’d like .
Two master accessories are available to purchase severally : the M - Pencil and the Smart Magnetic Keyboard . The latter comes with a magnetised kickstand cover for the rear of the tablet , which attach firmly and allows you to prop up the display at a wide variety of angles .
This cover works as think , but I ca n’t help experience that if it extended to cover the English of the pill it would be even more impregnable , as well as offer additional protection . The black version is extremely fingerprint - prone , and it ’s quite ambitious to keep it looking decent , but I imagine the light - coloured discrepancy would fare better .
The keyboard attaches with a flexible charismatic tab , which is n’t quite as secure as the kickstand cover , but stay in place well enough . Cleverly , it send wirelessly via this slender little tab , and there are no pogo - pin link that you ’d ordinarily see on accessories like this .
It communicates with the pill over Bluetooth , and this means that it can be remove and used wirelessly . So you could have the pad shore up on a table , and the keyboard on your lap , for example . It ’s not a feature article that I get hold especially utile , but I can imagine some will like it , and it ’s quite rare for first - party keyboards to function in this way of life .
The keyboard and trackpad workplace well , the spacing feels natural and the deck of cards is firm and confidence - inspiring . There ’s 1.5 mm of key travel , and I found that I was able to touch type without difficulty . The only matter that bugged me was that some applications seemed to default to US layout , while others went to UK , so find the “ @ ” winder sometimes took a moment .
The trackpad is larger than I ’ve typically seen on lozenge keyboards and it ’s very reactive . Huawei has included a number of three - digit motion to make pilot the group O easier , and these are helpfully explained onscreen when you first set up the Smart Keyboard .
My only beef with the trackpad is that it requires you to physically tick to pick out something ; you ca n’t just rap as you would on a laptop . It might not be an issue if that ’s how you typically utilise a trackpad , but it took some adaptation time for me .
The M - Pencil is my favourite accessory , and it ’s one that really lets this tablet beam . It uses Huawei ’s proprietary NearLink technology to attain an unbelievably low - latent period connection with the tablet , and it also supports 10,000 levels of pressure sensitivity .
The result is an super natural impression drawing experience , and if you ’re a keen sketcher , or even just a fan of handwrite your notes , it ’s an almost of the essence leverage .
Screen
The display is nothing little of telling , as I mentioned , it ’s the largest on Huawei pill to particular date , but beyond that , it has symmetrical 3.4 millimeter slim bezels on all sides , only disturb by a low mountain pass on the top housing the selfie camera and facial acknowledgement sensors .
Similar to theNothing phones , this intent utilises a flexible OLED gore to attain these perfectly proportionate bezels . While it does n’t impact functioning in any direction , it ’s a nice good example of the tending to detail that goes into building a machine like this , and it calculate extremely modern .
The panel has an plentiful 2880×1920 resolution and a quick 144Hz refresh rate . This means that everything look sharp and unruffled , particularly text . It ’s bright enough to compete with the sunshine , not that I ’ve view any this time of year , and Huawei has rated it for 1000 nits at peak brightness level .
It might not sound like that much , with the a la mode iPhones hitting 2000 nit at peak , but it ’s still enough to verge on uncomfortable if you max out the brightness in a palely lit way .
The sieve is also very colour - accurate , which is precisely what you need in a tablet that ’s aimed at creatives , and it covers 100 % of the DCI - P3 gamut . It ’s equally good when watching HDR content on platforms like Prime Video , which just looks brilliant on this display . The brilliant speaker system help here , too , but more on those later .
Cameras
On a big tablet like this , it ’s definitely the 16MP front - facing selfie camera that will get the most manipulation . And thankfully , that ’s the sensing element with the in force specifications , too .
It ’s a solid camera with a nice all-encompassing field of view , and it ’s great for video calls , peculiarly if you ’re prove to compose a duo of people in the shot . It cover backlighting well and does n’t execute too poorly in dim light , either .
It ’s not quite on the spirit level of a smartphone selfie camera , and image occur out somewhat over - taper , but then , it ’s likely to spend most of its time on webcam duty , and it ’s great for that .
On the backside , you get a 13MP main and an 8MP wide - angle . They ’re both decent , but nothing to pen base about . They could issue forth in handy for document scanning and the alike , but if you project to utilise this goodly 13.2 - inch tab as a photographic machine , you ’ll need to rethink your priorities .
Performance
The processor is a washy point of this tablet . In fact , it ’s so unimpressive that Huawei neglect to cite it at all on the prescribed production page . It ’s powered by the Kirin 9000S , a 7 nm chip that offer carrying into action some tantamount to theQualcomm Snapdragon 888 , launched in late 2020 .
This means that the MatePad Pro 13.2 meantime behind the competition in benchmarks , and it ’s not likely to be the pill of selection for avid gamers . Despite that , it feels enough responsive and snappy in economic consumption . The only giveaway that this was n’t a flagship - grade chip was a slight stammer when using more demanding brush in HiPaint , and occasionally when charge a level on a diagrammatically intensive game like CarX Drift Racing 2 .
There ’s mess of Aries on offer here , and that means it can multitask well . It certainly had no difficulty with my usual combination of YouTube streaming and browsing Twitter / X at the same prison term . The tablet stays coolheaded under load , too ; I barely remark it heating up , even after running back - to - back benchmark .
An area where this tablet has more of an edge is in its audio public presentation . The verbalizer can get amazingly loud and have plenty of bass voice , clarity and stereo separation . They might be some of the unspoiled speakers usable on anAndroid tablettoday , which is backed up by a 5 - star certification from SGS Switzerland .
Unfortunately , there ’s no headphone socket , but with speakers this good , you ’re unconvincing to involve them around the base . Of course , for wireless listening , the lozenge has Bluetooth 5.2 and link up seamlessly with Huawei ’s audio products .
Almost creepily , it recognised my Huawei SoundJoy Bluetooth speaker and suggested pairing even though it was switched off and in a drawer . I ’m not certain how that worked , but it ’s undeniably ready to hand if you have other Huawei kit to relate to .
Software
The atomic number 8 is where thing part to get frustrating , and if you ’ve used an Android - ground Huawei production in late year , this wo n’t be tidings to you . Out of the box , you ’re recognise with a significant amount of bloat , mostly in the form of Huawei ’s first - party alternative to Google apps , but also folders full of suggested apps and games along with the ever - present Booking.com .
It ’s not the kind of thing you want to see when you boot up a tablet in this damage range , and when you go to add your own preferred apps , you ’re in for more frustration , still .
Apps can be found using Huawei ’s AppGallery , and while it might appear to be a Google Play - like Robert William Service , many of the apps I attempt to install would just link out to popular APK sites like APKPure and AppParks . It ’s fine , it work , but it just feels a scrap janky and weird . Security - minded folk music certainly wo n’t be pleased with this workaround .
Of naturally , if you need Google services , there are way of life to get them lead . GBox is my preferred option , but it ’s a hassle that you wo n’t have to deal with on tab from other brands . It ’s sluttish to suppose less technical school - savvy users finding themselves in a maculation of difficulty .
Elsewhere , HarmonyOS 4 has some useful features , like the aforementioned power to well connect and partake in with other Huawei devices . liquid animations and smooth performance make it squeamish to navigate , and it ’s very easy to block that this slating is n’t running on a top - level chipset .
There are plenty of multi - tasking option , allowing you to create float windows or break the CRT screen and make use of the large showing , but I did n’t incur them very intuitive , and certain apps refuse to roleplay nicely with unusual look ratios . For the most part , I either separate the covert in two , or did n’t bother at all .
Battery life
With a exponent - thirsty 13.2 - inch organic light-emitting diode screen door and a 7 nm processor that ’s far from the most efficient chip on the market , the MatePad Pro has an uphill battle when it comes to electric battery life . Thankfully , Huawei has outfit it with a sizable double - cell 10,100 mAh pack to combat the power draw .
Huawei allege it ’s safe for up to 12 hours of television playback on a charge , and in my testing , with mixed - use mostly consisting of sketching , video streaming and web browsing , I was achieve around 8 - 10 hours . That is hefty with a expectant video display such as this .
Standby clock time is unspoiled too , and I determine that it would only lose around 3 - 5 % of barrage when entrust dead for a day or two . It ’s much good than myOnePlus Padin that regard , which seems to have drain itself every time I go to pick it up .
A comparatively speedy 88W wall charger is admit in the corner , and it ’ll get you up to 50 % in just 25 minutes . So , while the battery life is n’t the good that I ’ve come across , the quick charging signify you could be up and running again in no clip .
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Should you buy it?
The MatePad Pro 13.2 , in combination with the 3rd Gen M - Pencil , offers the lowest reaction time and most natural - feeling lottery experience that I have had with anAndroid pad of paper .
The lack of Google services means that you ’ll involve to use some workarounds to get the most from this lozenge .
Final Thoughts
The MatePad Pro 13.2 has a lot going for it : the display is absolutely gorgeous , the Speaker are unbelievable and it might just be thebest Android tabletfor drawing and sketch so far .
unluckily , these stellar features are overshadow by some middling self-aggrandising downside . The main thing is the lack of Google overhaul , which is going to be a dealbreaker for the huge majority of people , and the mediocre processing tycoon wait on to blunt the mind-set , too .
If you only care about illustration , the MatePad Pro 13.2 might be deserving a look , but most people will have a more pleasant experience with something like theSamsung Galaxy Tab S9+or theiPad Pro .
Trusted Score
How we test
FAQs
No , but Huawei provides way to source most Android apps from elsewhere .
Test Data
Full Specs
