The Best
3 Best Xiaomi Tablets Reviewed | 2024 Edition
Which is the best Xiaomi tablet? We’ve tested all the current models with Android and Windows. Here are our recommendations.
Xiaomi took a break from tablets for a few years, but they’re back with a vengeance. In a flash, they’ve released juggernauts that compete with Samsung and Apple. Not only that, they have also entered the Windows tablet and the budget device.
In our 15 years testing tablets, we’ve definitely tested many Xiaomi tablets. Here’s what we recommend.
Best Xiaomi Tablets: An Overview
Here, we provide a quick overview of the best devices. After that, we’ll go into more detail on each tablet and link to our reviews.
- Fast 11-inch tablet with a special display: Xiaomi Pad 6 (at Amazon*). For Android lovers who prefer Android and don’t want to spend as much money for the Samsung S9, we recommend the Xiaomi Pad 6. It offers a top-class display with an impressive 144 Hz, a solid processor, a good stylus, and a high-quality metal casing. Compared to the Galaxy Tab S9, however, you’ll have to do without a fingerprint sensor and a MicroSD card slot. Also, expect fewer software updates than with Samsung.
- Good Windows tablet with ARM processor: Xiaomi Book S 12.4 (at Amazon*). If you’re looking for a Windows tablet with an ARM processor, the Xiaomi Book S 12.4 might be the right choice for you. It has a good 12.35-inch display, a high-quality design, and solid performance. However, you should note that due to the ARM processor, many Windows programs will not run on the device. Also, the battery life did not impress us in our test.
- Good entry-level tablet: Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE (at Amazon*). The Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE is a great entry-level tablet. Although it’s somewhat weaker in all aspects than the previously mentioned devices, considering its low price, it offers a great overall package with plenty of storage, a solid metal casing, decent-sounding speakers, and even an 11-inch 90 Hz display.
The Best Xiaomi Tablets: All Details
Next, we present the current best tablets from the Chinese tech giant.
Xiaomi Pad 6: Fast 11-inch Tablet with 144 Hz
The Xiaomi Pad 6 offers an excellent price/performance ratio and is a clear recommendation for all fans of 11-inch tablets.
The Xiaomi Pad 6 is the first tablet to offer a 144Hz display. Even premium devices from Apple and Samsung, as well as the Pad 5 predecessor, only offer 120Hz.
Having 144Hz is supposed to make animations look even smoother – but honestly, we find it hard to recognize a difference between 144Hz and 120Hz. In the settings, it’s possible to lower the refresh rate to save battery. Here, we find 90Hz to be a good compromise.
The Xiaomi Pad 6 offers a fantastic value. Even though it's quite affordable, it offers tons of flagship features like a metal body, a pretty 144Hz display, powerful hardware, and up-to-date software. You can get it with a keyboard and pen - however, some features like a fingerprint scanner are missing.
Aside from the high refresh rate, the 11-inch IPS display is very good and offers a crisp resolution of 2880 x 1800 pixels. It is also fully laminated, and the viewing angle stability and brightness are very good.
The good speakers, the solid cameras, and the fast performance are also commendable. Additionally, the tablet scores with the optionally available accessories: The optional stylus and the keyboard cover are great.
The Xiaomi Pad 6 runs Android 13 with a customized UI, but we’re not certain how many Android updates it’ll receive.
The Xiaomi Pad 6 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 processor, which is accompanied by 8GB to 12GB of RAM depending on the version, and 128GB to 512GB of internal storage. An LTE option is not available, and GPS is also missing.
Also Read: Best Android Tablets Reviewed and Compared
The Snapdragon 870 is a somewhat older flagship processor, and so the performance in benchmarks like Geekbench 5 is a good bit better than its predecessor, but it is weaker than, for example, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8.
Thanks to the great display, it’s great to watch videos and play games on the tablet. The tablet is available with 128 GB and 256 GB.
Overall, the Xiaomi Pad 6 is a highly recommendable tablet, especially with an outstanding price-performance ratio.
Also Read: Xiaomi Pad 6 review
Xiaomi Book S 12.4: Good Windows Tablet with ARM Processor
The Xiaomi Book S 12.4 is a very interesting tablet. It runs Windows and is equipped with an ARM chip.
The tablet is made of an aluminum-magnesium alloy and features a 12.35-inch display. It looks stylish, but the back is prone to fingerprints. The Xiaomi Book S 12.4 is 8.95mm thin and weighs 720g.
The 12.35-inch screen offers a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels, 244 ppi, 60Hz, can reach up to 500 nits brightness, and is fully laminated. Overall, the display provides very good quality. On the Xiaomi Book S 12.4, it’s also possible to stream services like Netflix in HD. However, the tablet’s speakers are only okay and cannot compete with the sound quality of an iPad Pro.
The device also supports the Xiaomi Smart Pen. Additionally, a solid keyboard cover is available as an option.
Inside the Xiaomi Book S sits a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 processor with 8GB RAM and 256GB internal storage. The SSD is not replaceable. There is no version available with 5G or LTE.
The performance of the Xiaomi Book S 12.4 is good, but it cannot keep up with the iPad Pro M1 or the Microsoft Surface Pro 8. However, the performance is more than sufficient for office applications. Simple multitasking is also easily feasible.
Working with Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop mostly runs well, but not always smoothly. Many conventional programs like Adobe Premiere Pro and most games cannot be installed due to the ARM processor. Keep this in mind when purchasing. Most Windows applications were developed for the x86 architecture. Thus, the Xiaomi Book S is not suitable as a gaming tablet. However, some games like Asphalt 9 or World of Tanks Blitz run without any issues on the device.
In our battery test, the device lasted only six hours. For the test, we ran an HD YouTube video in a continuous loop.
Like all current Windows tablets, the Xiaomi Book S runs Windows 11. However, it comes with Windows 11 in S Mode. This means that by default, you can only install software from the Microsoft Store, which is supposed to contribute to increased system security. However, you can also disable S Mode with a few clicks. After that, you can install software like Google Chrome and Adobe Photoshop normally. Due to the ARM processor, however, there are some limitations, as already mentioned.
With the Xiaomi Book S 12.4, you get a good Windows tablet with an ARM processor. It offers a stylish 12.35-inch display, a high-quality design, and good performance. It’s important to note that due to the ARM processor, many Windows programs won’t run. It’s also a pity that the battery life is not very good.
Also Read: Xiaomi Book S 12.4 review
Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE: Very Good Entry-Level Tablet
The Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE is the cheapest 10 to 11-inch entry-level tablet that we can currently recommend with a good conscience. This tablet is really affordable, and yet we get a good overall package.
While we cannot recommend the device as a gaming tablet, it is quite suitable for browsing the internet, YouTube and Netflix, as well as for simple games.
The Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE is an affordable tablet with an 11-inch 90Hz display and a Snapdragon 680 processor. While the hardware is sufficient for everyday tasks, it lacks the graphical power for demanding games. It's less suitable as a gaming tablet or for work, but due to its good display and solid speakers, it's a great and inexpensive entertainment tablet for Netflix and YouTube.
Despite the low price, we get an 11-inch display with a FullHD resolution and 90 Hz. In this price range, the direct competition from Samsung and Lenovo only offers 60Hz. Moreover, the speakers are good enough for YouTube, Netflix, and the like.
Also Read: Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE review
As mentioned, the computing power is not groundbreaking. However, for other applications, the performance of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 with 4GB, 6GB, or 8GB of RAM is good enough. We find it commendable that a very large storage of 128GB is standard. The competition only offers 32GB of storage in this price range.
You will have to do without premium features like a fingerprint scanner or pen support, and Xiaomi does not offer an optional keyboard cover. However, the casing of the Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE is made of aluminum and does not feel cheap.
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