OnePlus Pad 3 Review: Faster Than All Android Tablets?

The OnePlus Pad 3 is the first tablet outside of China to launch with the new Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, currently the fastest chip available for Android devices. Yet it only costs $700, making it significantly cheaper than flagship tablets from Samsung and Apple.

Something’s not adding up, right?

We’ve tested the 13-inch tablet for a month. We ran benchmarks, played lots of games, and even used it as a laptop replacement at university and work. The tablet is great, but it’s not perfect. 

But let’s start from the beginning – with the design.

Design & Build Quality

Despite its large 13.2-inch size, the OnePlus Pad 3 feels pleasant in the hand. It’s just 6mm thin and weighs 675g. The chassis is made entirely of aluminum, which not only looks premium but also feels solid and robust. It’s available in two colors: “Storm Blue” and Silver. The storm blue in particular looks elegant and modern. A silver OnePlus logo is engraved in the center of the back. You’ll also find three pogo pins on the back for connecting the keyboard cover, but other than that they kept it simple.

Compared to the OnePlus Pad 2, the new model feels noticeably sharper. Fortunately, despite the larger display and the relocated camera bump, the device doesn’t wobble when lying flat on a table, even when writing with the stylus.

At the top edge, there’s a magnetic strip where the stylus can attach and charge wirelessly. The magnet is a bit weak, so the stylus can easily fall off during transport in a bag.

Ports & Unlocking Methods

The Pad 3 features a USB-C 3.2 port with HDMI-out, allowing you to connect external monitors – something few Android tablets offer in this price range. However, it lacks a microSD slot.

You can unlock it using facial recognition, which is fast and reasonably reliable. Still, we’re disappointed that there’s no fingerprint scanner.

Display

The 13.2-inch LCD panel offers a resolution of 2400 x 3392 pixels, a 144Hz refresh rate, and reaches up to 900 nits brightness in High Brightness Mode. In our test, the screen remained very readable even in direct sunlight.

The display is not only sharp and vivid but also benefits from its 7:5 aspect ratio and an 89.3% screen-to-body ratio. While it lacks an OLED panel like the iPad Pro or Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra, its brightness actually surpasses the S10 Ultra – although Samsung’s anti-glare coating can make it more readable in certain lighting conditions.

The unusual aspect ratio is excellent for productivity, especially for Office apps and multitasking. When watching videos, however, you’ll see black bars at the top and bottom since most content is produced in 16:9.

Cameras

The main camera has a 12-megapixel sensor and can record 4K videos at 30 FPS. The front-facing camera is 8MP and records Full HD video, also at 30 FPS. It’s actually quite usable for document scanning or the occasional snapshot.

Unfortunately, the selfie camera is disappointing – photos often appear blurry and pixelated. Competitors offer better hardware here. We think that you’re not losing out on much, though. 

Speakers & Microphones

OnePlus has equipped the Pad 3 with a total of eight speakers: There are four tweeters and four woofers, as well as two microphones. The sound is balanced, loud, and noticeably better than that of the OnePlus Pad 2.

The iPad Pro’s speakers sound slightly more detailed but are quieter. The Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra is louder and has a bit more depth. Still, for the price, the Pad 3 offers an excellent audio experience. Combined with the sharp and more importantly large display, the Pad 3 is great for entertainment.

Performance & Benchmarks

As mentioned, the Pad 3 features the cutting-edge Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset. It’s accompanied by the Adreno 830 GPU, 12GB of RAM, and 256GB of UFS 4.0 storage. There’s also a 16GB RAM and 512GB version, but it’s not available in every region.

The Geekbench scores speak for themselves: The Pad 3 matches the iPad Air M3 in CPU performance. It’s by far the fastest Android tablet we’ve tested. Compared to the OnePlus Pad 2, it offers a 20% improvement in CPU multi-core and a whopping 60% in graphics performance. Samsung’s flagship Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra doesn’t even come close in CPU and GPU performance.

What’s especially impressive is that the tablet maintains its performance under sustained load. In the 3DMark Wildlife Extreme Stress Test, it achieved a stability rating of 83%. The Xiaomi 15 with the same chip kept crashing during the same test – some devices simply can’t cool the Elite chip properly. OnePlus does a great job here. Heat buildup is localized to the upper left corner, so it doesn’t distract during intense gaming sessions either. 

Gaming

Gaming performance is outstanding. Even Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile runs smoothly on max settings without any stuttering. This game is notoriously demanding and causes many devices to overheat, but not here. 

In Fortnite, you can select the highest graphics settings and full 3D resolution, and the game runs at a stable 90 FPS. That was already possible with the OnePlus Pad 2 and its Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. So the Pad 3 still has headroom and should handle future titles for years.

Wuthering Waves stays at 55–60 FPS even on max settings. The tablet does get warm, but performance remains consistent. We’re convinced it could do even more, but the developers have capped the FPS. 

One thing we noticed is that due to its massive size, the Pad 3 is less comfortable for handheld gaming compared to smaller models. Something like the 8-inch Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 3 is better suited for that. But in return, you get a larger and nicer display here.

By the way: we’ve tested the OnePlus Pad 3 with a wide range of accessories, including official covers and pens as well as third-party options. You’ll find a link to our recommendations in the description.

Battery Life

The battery has a capacity of 12,140 mAh and supports fast charging up to 80 watts. In our standard HD YouTube battery test at max brightness, the Pad 3 lasted a solid 9.65 hours. For comparison: the Galaxy Tab S10+ hits 11 hours, the S10 Ultra 13 hours, and the S10 FE+ around 9 hours.

It’s particularly impressive that the Pad 3, despite having an LCD panel, almost matches Samsung’s OLED models in battery life. The Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra and S10+ both have OLED displays – typically known for their efficiency – yet the Pad 3 keeps up remarkably well.

Software

The Pad 3 runs the Android 15 based OxygenOS 15. OnePlus promises three major Android updates and six years of security updates. The system is free of bloatware and only comes with Google apps. The interface is modern, smooth, and offers plenty of customization options from color themes to icon designs.

AI features like live translation work reliably. However, some AI tools are underwhelming. OnePlus advertises “AI Sharpening” that’s supposed to enhance blurry images system-wide, but we couldn’t spot any real difference with it enabled.

The AI upscaler in the photo app is also disappointing: it smooths out images and doesn’t actually add any detail. Overall, these AI tools feel more like marketing gimmicks. At least the AI object remover works well enough.

The OnePlus Canvas is an excellent multitasking feature that supports up to three apps simultaneously. Two apps are shown side-by-side in split-screen mode, while a third floats on the side and can be brought to the foreground with a tap. Floating windows run smoothly as well.

Unfortunately, there’s no true desktop mode like Samsung’s DeX. Rumor has it this may be added with Android 16.

Accessories: Keyboard & Trackpad

The OnePlus Pad 3 keyboard cover attaches via pogo pins on the back of the tablet. The keys have good feedback and a pleasant travel distance. Compared to the Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra’s keyboard, we actually prefer typing on this one. 

The trackpad is a bit too sensitive and can’t be adjusted in the settings. Particularly annoying: you can’t scroll in Google Docs using the touchpad. Probably a software bug – hopefully it’ll be fixed.

There’s a handy function row at the top with keys for volume, brightness, media controls, and screenshots.

The built-in kickstand allows for multiple viewing angles, but it’s less stable than Samsung’s. Also, the magnetic connection to the tablet is far too weak. The back cover comes off with little force when trying to adjust the kickstand angle, which gets really frustrating. 

Read: Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE Review: Almost Perfect – But THIS Ruins Everything

OnePlus Stylo 2: The Stylus

The OnePlus Stylo 2 stylus costs €99. It’s similar in size to the Apple Pencil Pro, making it more comfortable to hold than a smaller S Pen. It has a grippy texture and, despite being plastic, feels high quality. Like Apple’s stylus, it has a hard tip, supports 16,000 pressure levels, and detects tilt.

It works excellently in the OnePlus Notes app: barely any lag, accurate lines, and a pleasant writing experience. The stylus even provides subtle vibration to mimic writing on paper. There’s also a touch-sensitive area on the side of the stylus to switch tools.

In Microsoft OneNote, however, the pressure sensitivity is too sensitive. In Notewise and Nebo, it works just fine, but don’t count on the Stylus working perfectly everywhere. The touch gestures and vibrations also only work on the preinstalled Notes app.

Software wise, there are a couple useful features. Swiping the stylus from the upper-right corner of the screen opens tools like an AI writer that can also check grammar and spelling. Quick actions like screenshots or new notes are also available.

Overall, we think the OnePlus stylus is nearly as good as those from Samsung and Apple, though it struggles in some third-party apps like OneNote. We’d love to see OnePlus develop a better native note-taking app though. The current one is not just buggy, but also lacks basic features. 

OnePlus Pad 3 Review: Final Verdict

The OnePlus Pad 3 is potentially the most exciting Android tablet of the year. For $700, you get flagship performance, a large and bright display, great speakers, long update support, and premium build quality. 

Sure, it lacks an OLED screen and the stylus isn’t perfect. But overall, the whole package is compelling, especially considering the powerful processor you get for the price.

The price-to-performance ratio is excellent, especially compared to the 13-inch iPad Air and Pro, or even the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra. All three are significantly more expensive.

If you don’t want to miss out on OLED, we recommend checking out our review of the S10 Ultra. It also has better stylus software, and the display is even bigger.