HONOR Pad X8a Review: Too Expensive And Too Bad Sound

In our test, the HONOR Pad X8a presents itself as an affordable mid-range tablet with a 90 Hz display and nice software features. Everyday use showed that it cannot keep up with the competition and we therefore do not recommend it at a price of 150 pounds.

We tested it extensively and compared it with competitors such as the Lenovo Tab M11 or the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+. We also tested several different games on the tablet and checked the performance in several comparative benchmark tests.

Design and build quality

The HONOR Pad X8a is only available in the color Space Grey, which is reminiscent of Apple’s color of the same name. From the outside, the tablet looks well made with its unibody metal casing. The matte metal surface on the back makes a classy impression, but is also susceptible to fingerprints and dirt.

The buttons are all well made and sit firmly, which can be quite different in this price segment. Otherwise, the tablet is 7.25 mm thin and weighs 495 g.

At exactly 1 cm, the display edges are also slightly thicker than on the Lenovo Tab M11, for example, a similar tablet in this price range. The unusual-looking camera on the back, which protrudes slightly, is also striking.

Incidentally, a USB-C 2.0 port is installed as a connection. As a security option, HONOR also only offers unlocking via facial recognition, which unfortunately does not work very reliably and is not very secure.

Apart from the thick display edges, the tablet makes a pretty decent impression from the outside and feels good in the hand.

Hardware and performance

The tablet comes with only one storage option of 128 GB plus 4 GB RAM. However, the memory can be expanded to up to 1TB using a microSD card.

The Snapdragon 680 processor chip inside offers mediocre performance for everyday tasks such as browsing, reading, taking notes, YouTube streaming or office applications. The chip is clearly too weak for anything beyond simple tasks, be it image or video editing or similar graphics- and computing-intensive applications.

The benchmark tests show that the HONOR Pad X8a ranks behind the Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE and far below the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ in terms of performance. It also shows that it has a really low graphics performance (GPU). Although the Lenovo Tab M11 has almost the same multi-core performance according to the benchmark tests, it is further ahead in terms of GPU.

In the practical test, we also noticed that memory access is unfortunately very slow and that it sometimes takes a little longer to retrieve files or load them into an app. For example, the tablet took significantly longer than the Lenovo Tab M11 to play a large video file from the internal memory. 

However, after a few tests, we also noticed an interesting and quite good point. The HONOR Pad X8a offers its own multi-window mode, which you have to learn to use first.

However, it works very well with the hardware and the tablet easily managed to run two strategy games in parallel without one of them crashing.

Even if the memory is a little slow, it shows that the software is apparently so well optimized and slimmed down that the tablet runs cleanly and avoids background processes.

Gaming test

The tablet is also suitable for simple games and they are also fun to play. More demanding games, such as PubG Mobile, also run to some extent, but only with reduced graphics settings.

In the test, we were able to play PubG with standard HD graphics with only a few stutters, although the tablet was already reaching its limits. Graphically simpler strategy games, such as Mindustry, ran without any problems. 

According to the 3D Mark gaming benchmark test, the Pad X8a can be compared with tablets such as the Redmi Pad SE and ranks slightly below the Lenovo Tab M11. It is clearly left behind by the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+.

Display

The 11-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels offers a nice 90 Hz refresh rate, which is definitely a highlight of the device and makes fast scrolling on the display look pleasantly smooth.

Unfortunately, however, it is not so bright. The display of the HONOR Pad X8a achieves a maximum of 400 nits and is therefore not particularly suitable for use in sunlight. Direct light is also visibly reflected in the display.

The tablet is well equipped for media consumption, at least in terms of the display, as the HD display of the Pad X8a supports Full HD streaming on platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Video or Disney+, as it is classified with Widevine L1.

It also offers some eye-friendly functions, such as a “low blue light” filter or an e-book mode in which the display switches to black and white mode. This is very suitable for reading.

Overall, the display is comparable to that of competitor devices such as the Lenovo Tab M11 or the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+.

Speakers

The tablet’s built-in speakers are a clear letdown, as they offer a comparatively poor, tinny and sometimes muffled sound.

The speakers of the Lenovo Tab M11 or the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+, on the other hand, were significantly better in terms of overall performance and sound quality and come with Dolby Atmos support.

In addition, the Pad X8a does not have a 3.5 mm jack connection, which is quite unfavorable for a tablet that would be well suited for media, as headphones with a jack connection have not disappeared from the market for a long time.

This raises the question of what the tablet is designed for, as it is not recommended as a tablet for media consumption due to the inadequate speakers and headphone jack.

Software

The HONOR Pad X8a comes with Android 14 and HONOR’s MagicOS 8.0. In addition, HONOR promises two years of version updates and three years of security updates, which is quite solid in this price range.

The MagicOS offers the aforementioned multi-window functions, HONOR Share and many customization functions for the user interface.

Battery test

In our battery test, the HONOR Pad X8a lasted 8 hours when playing an HD YouTube video at maximum screen brightness. This is a good performance for this price and should also make the tablet suitable for use on the move. 

Unfortunately, the battery can only be charged with a maximum of 20 W, which means that charging can take a little longer with a capacity of 8300 mAh.

Cameras

A 5 megapixel main and front camera offer just enough quality to scan a document or take a snapshot. The camera should not be used for more than this.

The front camera is centered on the long side, making it well suited for video telephony. However, only in reasonably good lighting conditions, as the camera is very weak when it gets darker.

Conclusion

In summary, it can be said that the HONOR Pad X8a looks nice and, with a 90 Hz 11-inch display and normal performance, it can hold its own in the price range, but has some unsightly shortcomings in areas such as the speakers, a missing jack connection, a simple camera and poor GPU performance.

At a price of around £150, this is all acceptable, but we still wonder what kind of use the tablet is designed for and cannot recommend it at this price.

For example, if you are looking for a tablet in this price range with which you can stream well, then we recommend the Lenovo Tab M11 (RRP £160), which offers better speakers and a jack connection. If, on the other hand, you need more performance, you should take a look at the Honor Pad 9 or the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ for even longer updates.

On sales days such as Black Friday or Cyber Monday, it may be worth checking whether the tablet is on offer, but as long as it is priced higher than the Lenovo Tab M11, we advise against buying it.