High-end iPads and Windows tablets dominate the top of the field with impressive tools for productivity, but Google’s Android operating system is very popular at lower price points. Plenty of RAM Acts as an Alexa smart display Cons Poor app selection
Unimpressive cameras No promise for OS updates after Android 12 Read Our Full Review $209.99 at Lenovo See It (Opens in a new window)
App compatibility can be hit or miss Not waterproof Read Our Full Review $479.99 at Amazon See It (Opens in a new window)
Alcatel Joy Tab 2 4.0 Excellent Best for Affordable 4G Connectivity Bottom Line: The Alcatel Joy Tab 2 is an excellent alternative to Amazon’s Fire lineup, with a clean Android experience, strong LTE connectivity, and impressive audio quality. Strong LTE connectivity Excellent audio for the price Cons Cameras perform poorly in low light Read Our Full Review $199.99 at Metro by T-Mobile See It (Opens in a new window) Poor cameras Base models include ads on the lock screen Read Our Full Review $59.99 at Amazon See It (Opens in a new window) Amazon Fire HD 8 (2020) 3.5 Good Best for Video Playback and Zoom Calls Bottom Line: Amazon’s inexpensive Fire HD 8 tablet continues to be an excellent value for the price, but its poor app store is really starting to feel limiting.
Limited app compatibility Sluggish performance Read Our Full Review $89.99 at Amazon See It (Opens in a new window)
Very expensive No monitor mode Read Our Full Review $879.99 at Amazon Check Stock (Opens in a new window) You can find an endless array of no-name, plasticky sub-$100 slates sold at your local CVS or through mysterious “fulfilled by Amazon” drop-shippers. Acer, Asus, Lenovo, and Samsung used to deliver solid iPad competitors, but they’ve all slowed down their cadence to once every two years or so.
Speaking of Amazon, it and other large manufacturers like Samsung like to customize Google’s OS by adding a bevy of features, new app stores, and completely revamped user interfaces. These are not for everyone, but those who are familiar with Amazon’s Fire OS or Samsung’s One UI should give the latest devices from each company a try. Even if you don’t have the most recent OS iteration, Android continues to be the most configurable tablet operating system you’ll find. T-Mobile sells unlocked tablets, but some have very limited band support if you decide to switch carriers.
If you’re thinking of switching to a different carrier, be sure to check out LTE and 5G band support to ensure your tablet will work without any hiccups. Most carriers allow you to use your phone as a hotspot for those times when you’re not close to Wi-Fi, and many newer cars have built-in LTE connectivity for road trips or keeping your child occupied while you sit in traffic.
Many of these off-label tabs are perfectly serviceable, but we recommend choosing a brand you can count on for software support and hardware quality control.
Best Android tablets 2022: which should you buy?
That size sees it dwarfing even the largest iPad Pro, but with its included S Pen stylus this also makes it a superb device for creating artwork, editing documents, taking notes, and other productivity tasks. The display is crisp at 1848 x 2960 and smooth at 120Hz, there’s tons of power from the Tab S8 Ultra’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset, and it has a great 12MP ultra-wide camera on the front, making this an ideal device for video calls. While the slate works brilliantly as a conventional tablet, it also has a built-in stand, so you can prop it up without a case, and there’s a micro HDMI port, so you can easily use it as a second screen for a laptop or other device – two features which we found very useful,. What you don’t get – in another unusual move – is a rear camera, but then tablets are never ideal for taking photos anyway, and we also found the design made it hard to use with a case.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 Plus The best older Samsung tablet Specifications Weight: 575g Dimensions: 285 x 185 x 5.7mm OS: Android 10 Screen size: 12.4-inch Resolution: 1752 x 2800 pixels CPU: Snapdragon 865 Plus Storage: 128GB/256GB microSD slot: Yes Battery: 10,090mAh Rear camera: 13MP (wide) + 5MP (ultrawide) Front camera: 8MP specifications Storage Size 256GB Colour Silver Condition New Today’s Best Deals View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) View at Walmart (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Gorgeous OLED screen + Premium design Reasons to avoid – Android lacks quality tablet apps – High price – but it justifies it You also of course get a whole lot of power from the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 Plus’s Snapdragon 865 Plus chipset, enough that we found it the smoothest Android tablet experience we’d come across at launch.
Lenovo Tab P11 Pro The best Android tablet for media Specifications Weight: 485g Dimensions: 264.3 x 171.4 x 6.9mm OS: Android 10 Screen size: 11.5-inch Resolution: 1600 x 2560 pixels CPU: Snapdragon 730G Storage: 128GB microSD slot: Yes Battery: 8,600mAh Rear camera: 13MP (wide) + 5MP (ultrawide) Front camera: 8MP + 8MP specifications RAM 4GB RAM Storage Size 128GB – 256GB Screen Type OLED Read more ▼ Today’s Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Walmart (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Lovely OLED display + Loud quad-speakers Reasons to avoid – Weak camera – Middling power Samsung has long been ruling the high-end Android tablet world, but it now faces an unlikely challenger in the form of the Lenovo Tab P11 Pro.
Coupled with loud quad-speakers, the Lenovo Tab P11 Pro makes for an accomplished media machine, and with its long-lasting 8,600mAh battery it’s a great travel companion. The Lenovo Tab P11 Pro packs an attractive metal build too, and it supports both a keyboard and a stylus, transforming it into a capable productivity device – though one that’s still no match for a typical laptop. Amazon Fire HD 10 Plus (2021) The best big screen, budget Android tablet Specifications Weight: 468g Dimensions: 247 x 166 x 9.2mm OS: Fire OS Screen size: 8-inch Resolution: 880 x 1280 CPU: quad-core Storage: 32GB/64GB Battery: up to 12 hours Rear camera: 5MP (wide) Front camera: 2MP specifications Storage Size 32GB – 64GB Condition New Today’s Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Well priced + Good quality screen Reasons to avoid – Looks dated – Could be faster That means it’s ideal for watching your favorite movies or shows, especially as we also found that it manages around 12 hours of battery life, so you won’t run out of juice at a pivotal moment.
Storage is limited at either 32GB or 64GB and we’d like speedier performance in an ideal world, as the chipset was a little bit dated even at launch, but at this price, it’s not bad at all. Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 The best Android tablet for flagship buyers on a budget Specifications Weight: 420g Dimensions: 244.5 x 154.3 x 7mm OS: Android 9 (upgrade to Android 10) Screen size: 10.5-inch Resolution: 1600 x 2560 pixels CPU: Snapdragon 855 Storage: 128GB/256GB microSD slot: Yes Battery: 7,040mAh Rear camera: 13MP (wide) + 5MP (ultrawide) Front camera: 8MP specifications Storage Size 128GB – 256GB Colour Blue Condition New Today’s Best Deals View at Walmart (opens in new tab) View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at BHPhoto (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Beautiful AMOLED display + S Pen as standard Reasons to avoid – Samsung’s One UI not perfect – No headphone jack It’s not the perfect device – there isn’t a 3.5mm headphone jack and we found that the user interface had its own quirks – but it’s still a top Android slate. It’s an upgrade on its predecessor thanks to 30% more power, improved battery life, double the storage, and the presence of a USB-C (rather than micro USB) port, but that aside this is familiar territory if you’ve used an Amazon slate before. Huawei MatePad Pro The best Android tablet for productivity Specifications Weight: 460g Dimensions: 246 x 159 x 7.2mm OS: Android 10 Screen size: 10.8-inch Resolution: 1600 x 2560 CPU: Kirin 990 RAM: 6GB/8GB Storage: 128GB/256GB/512GB Battery: 7,250mAh Rear camera: 13MP (wide) Front camera: 8MP specifications Condition New Today’s Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Powerful hardware + Robust lightweight design Reasons to avoid – Limited software functionality – No headphone jack The Huawei MatePad Pro also has a stylish, slim, and lightweight design, plus an optional stylus and keyboard, so it’s premium and built for productivity.
That’s going to be a major issue for a lot of people, but if you can live without that then this comes closer than most Android slates to matching the iPad Pro experience. Amazon Fire HD 10 (2021) The best super-cheap Android tablet with a large display Specifications Weight: 465g Dimensions: 247 x 166 x 9.2 mm OS: Fire OS Screen size: 10.1-inch Resolution: 1920 x 1200 CPU: Octa-core Storage: 32GB/64GB Battery: up to 12 hours Rear camera: 5MP (wide) Front camera: 2MP specifications Storage Size 32GB Colour Black Condition New Today’s Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Crisp display + Good battery life Reasons to avoid – Bit slow – Limited software For the price, you get a good quality and large screen with a 1920 x 1200 resolution, which we found was ideal for watching films or your favorite YouTube videos. If you plan to use your tablet for work or creative endeavors then it’s also worth seeing whether it supports a keyboard or stylus, and whether any such things are included. Every tablet included in this guide has been reviewed in full, so we’ve spent a lot of time with each of them working out what’s good, what’s bad, and how they compare. We’ve made sure to fully test out their performance with apps and games, how good content looks on their screens, whether their interface is intuitive, how long the battery lasts, and how the cameras hold up, as well as assessing their design and build quality.
The best Android tablets in 2022
Samsung is the current market leader, with devices that run pure Android and aren’t lacking in apps. However, if you’re a dedicated Amazon user looking for a portable device to enjoy your favorite Prime content on the go, Fire tablets are a great choice.
In our path to help you find the right Android tablet for you, we test them all in the lab, measuring battery life and performance, as well as screen quality.
Without further ado, here are the best Android tablets, based on our hands-on testing and review of dozens from Amazon, Samsung, Nokia and more.
If price isn’t an issue, its massive older sibling the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra is a powerful Android tablet that can double as a laptop. I’d personally recommend people spend almost twice as much, though, as the Fire HD 8 has amazing endurance, the likes of which beats practically every tablet up and down the list.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 The best Android tablet overall Specifications CPU: Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Display: 11-inch (2560 x 1600) 120Hz LCD display Storage: 128GB/256GB Memory: 8GB RAM Ports: USB-C, microSD Dimensions: 9.99 x 6.51 x 0.25 inches Weight: 1.1 pounds Today’s Best Deals View at Walmart (opens in new tab) View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) View at Samsung (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Bright, beautiful display + Excellent battery life + Great sound quality + Surprisingly good cameras + Decent laptop replacement Reasons to avoid – Underwhelming performance vs. iPads – Camera quality degrades at extremes – Book Cover keyboard feels small, cramped On the couch its great for gaming or reading comics, and at work it’s nice to have as a note-keeping device or secondary display, especially if you go to the trouble of investing in the Galaxy ecosystem and making your workspace DeX-friendly.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A7 The best budget Android tablet Specifications CPU: Qualcomm SM6115 Display: 10.4-inch, 2000×1200-pixel Storage: 32GB Memory: 3GB Ports: USB-C, microSD Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.2 x 0.3 inches Weight: 1.1 pounds Today’s Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Excellent battery life + Facial recognition + USB-C charging Reasons to avoid – Screen is a little dim – Underwhelming performance On top of that, it’s got thinner bezels than the 10.2-inch iPad and crazy 13+ hour battery life — so you can enjoy more of what you’re watching and reading for a lot longer time. Lenovo Yoga Tab 13 The best Android tablet when you want a big screen Specifications CPU: Snapdragon 870 Camera Resolution: 8MP (front) Display: 13-inch (2160 x 1350 pixels) capacitive touchscreen Storage: 128GB Ports: USB-C, micro-HDMI Dimensions: 11.55 x 8.03 x 0.24-0.98 inches Weight: 1.83 pounds Wi-Fi: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Today’s Best Deals View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) Check Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Built-in kickstand + Vibrant 13-inch touchscreen + Impressive speakers + Long battery life Reasons to avoid – Lacks 5G support – No rear camera – Hard to find suitable cases for it The slate can even act as a secondary monitor for your laptop or tablet, giving its 2K screen a bit of extra versatility.
Amazon Fire 10 HD 2021 Best cheap Android tablet with amazing battery life Specifications CPU: 2.0GHz octa-core CPU Camera Resolution: 5 MP (rear) 2 MP (front) Display: 10.1-inch, 1920 x 1200-pixel Storage: 32GB, 64GB Ports: 1x USB-C, headphone jack, microSD Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.5 x 0.4 inches Weight: 17.8 ounces/1.1 pounds Wi-Fi: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Today’s Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Stellar battery life + Sharp and bright screen + USB-C charging Reasons to avoid – Speakers aren’t that strong – Still lacks Google apps The Amazon Fire HD 10 (2021) takes an already-good tablet and applies incremental upgrades, such as a slightly brighter screen, 1GB more RAM and a smaller, lighter design. That said, the Fire HD 10 (2021) is still going to be great for the folks who are looking for a device to casually peruse the internet, read e-books, and watch videos.
Amazon Fire HD 8 The best Android tablet under $100 Specifications CPU: 2.0 GHz quad-core processor Camera Resolution: 2MP (rear), 2MP (front) Display: 8-inch 1280 x 800-pixel Storage: 32GB, 64GB Memory: 2GB Ports: headphone jack.
Its impressive 13+ hours of battery life stands out in a sea of tablets we already complement for endurance, and, yes, you can get the reversible USB-C port at this wallet-friendly price. Amazon Fire 7 The best Android tablet if you’re on a tighter budget Specifications CPU: Quad-Core 1.3 GHz processor Camera Resolution: 2MP (rear), 2MP (front) Display: 7 inches, 1024 x 600 pixels Storage: 16GB, 32GB Memory: 1GB Ports: headphone jack.
And while it’s not perfect, Amazon’s cheapest slate got a recent update that put a lot more kick under the hood with a snappy quad-core 1.3 GHz processor. The latest Fire 7 also fixes a mistake of previous updates, allowing you to summon the Alexa digital assistant with your own voice.
Its sub-HD screen is good enough for younger children streaming kids’ shows on Prime, but their older siblings (who’ve seen a few tablets in their time) might ask for something a little sharper. Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 The best Android tablet when price is no concern Specifications CPU: Snapdragon Qualcomm 865+ Display: 11-inch 2560 x 1600-pixel TFT panel Storage: 128GB/256GB Memory: 6GB/8GB Ports: USB-C, microSD Dimensions: 10 x 6.5 x 0.2 inches Weight: 1.1 pounds Wi-Fi: Wi-Fi 6 Today’s Best Deals View at Amazon (opens in new tab) View at Walmart (opens in new tab) View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Fantastic battery life + Beautiful 120Hz display + Thin and light design Reasons to avoid – Book Cover Keyboard has cramped layout – DeX mode still has room to grow This beautiful slate is thin, light and packs slim bezels for an all-screen aesthetic that Apple’s given users for years with the iPad Pro. Its number keys will be too small for some and assembling its two-piece design is a little annoying if you transition from laptop to tablet mode often.
Also, we wish the Snapdragon 865+ had a bit more pep in its step, as benchmarks show Intel Core i5 and Apple A12Z chips running circles around it. Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra A powerful Android tablet that could replace a laptop Specifications CPU: Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 octa-core CPU Camera Resolution: 12MP + 12MP UW (front), 13MP AF + 6MP UW (back) Display: 14.6-inch, 2960 x 1848-pixel Storage: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB Ports: 1x USB-C, microSD Dimensions: 12.85 x 8.21 x 0.22 inches Weight: 1.4 pounds Wi-Fi: WiFi 6E (2.4/5/6GHz) Today’s Best Deals View at Samsung (opens in new tab) View at Best Buy (opens in new tab) Check Amazon (opens in new tab) Reasons to buy + Big, beautiful OLED display + Svelte design + Snappy Android interface Reasons to avoid – May be too large for some – More expensive than better laptops And with the optional keyboard attachment and improved multi-window mode, the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra could potentially replace a laptop.
Our web-surfing-based battery test times how long a tablet can browse the internet for, with its display set to 150 nits of brightness.
Best Android Tablet for 2022
And since Android tablets have fewer makes, models and even manufacturers these days, it’s easier to skip the category altogether and head straight to Apple. Just like its smaller 8-inch sibling, the Fire HD 8, the tablet is packed with benefits for Prime subscribers making it easy for members to stream and download movies, TV shows and games. Updates to Samsung’s DeX software even makes the Tab S8 a possible laptop substitute, letting you connect to a mouse and even an external display. A keyboard cover isn’t included but one of Samsung’s fantastic S Pens is, so you can use the big screen for note-taking and content creation right out of the box.
Samsung carefully trimmed the features of the Plus, such as going from four stereo speakers to two and switching from an AMOLED display to an LCD screen.
The best Android tablets you can buy in 2022
This is a tablet that business professionals will be proud to pull out of their briefcase, thanks to a design that exudes premium quality. Why we picked the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Plus: The tablet is a home run, with superlative design and build quality. That display has sharp contrast and color reproduction, is covered in Gorilla Glass 5 for protection, and offers great viewing angles to boot.
The combination of high power and the S Pen means this tablet lets you write, videoconference, and move through tasks with ease.
The front-facing camera is a 12-megapixel, 120-degree ultrawide lens that looks good during video meetings, with a wide field of view that captures plenty of the background. It runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 439 Processor, while the dual JBL Hi-Fi speakers get a boost from the tablet’s Dolby Atmos smart power amplifier, which is optimized by for a superlative audio experience.
It weighs 1.28 pounds (581 grams) and the 10.1-inch Full HD IPS display provides a crisp, vibrant visual view from any angle. In addition to its viewing and listening qualities, you can employ this tablet to turn up the thermostat or make a hotel reservation thanks to Google Assistant functionality.
With Google Assistant’s Ambient Mode, the tablet doubles as a screen-enabled smart home hub. It’s flanked by stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos support, making it optimal for watching movies. The updated Fire HD 10 version features 3GB of RAM on a quad-core processor and offers a split-screen feature for Fire OS that shows two compatible apps open side by side for multitasking. Other specs include a 2MP front-facing and 5MP rear camera with 720p HD video recording.
You can buy the Amazon Fire HD 10 with 32GB or 64GB of storage, but it also supports microSD cards (sold separately). Alexa is built-in for hands-free voice commands, but as it isn’t a traditional Android tablet, there’s no Google Play Store. Anyone who wants a decent tablet for web browsing and social media without having to spend a ton of cash. It’s light and slim, offers excellent battery life, and has a beautiful, high-resolution screen. The Unisoc Tiger T618 can handle most demanding tasks in the mid range — no problem. The 10.5-inch TFT display is clear and crisp, and it’s lightweight and slim, so it won’t weigh you down.
While 32GB of storage is a little limited the 64GB model is just right — though there is room for a microSD card as well, in case you need the extra space. Why we picked the Amazon Fire HD 8: The Amazon Fire HD 8 (2020) features a USB-C port and a faster processor, but its real advantage is it’s inexpensive while offering a small and portable design.
The Fire HD 8 is also available in a range of different colors, and you’ll get Dolby Atmos speakers around it that deliver decent audio quality. But folks immersed in the Amazon ecosystem will appreciate the For You interface, a recommendation engine that puts videos, apps, games, and movies from the retailer’s library on your home screen. You won’t find a perfect tablet for less than $100, but the Fire HD 8 is a solid package. Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro has built-in parental controls and comes with a ton of great kid-friendly content.
It’s great for videos and apps as well as games, making this a strong choice if you’re looking for a big-screen device. Kids can even make video and voice calls over Wi-Fi to pre-approved contacts and install apps like Zoom or Minecraft.
Which Android Tablet Should You Choose?
Scan our ratings (available to CR members) and you’ll find solid options from Lenovo, Samsung, and Walmart’s in-house brand Onn, including one model priced as low as $90.
Best Android Tablets (July – 2022)
The Android tablet market is flooded with a huge list of models, devices, and brands, but not all of them are worth your money. Some of the more prominent features we looked for when choosing devices include an HD-quality display, adequate memory or RAM, and one of the later versions of the Android OS, at least 8 and above. The 8” HD display is perfect for visual media like movies, TV shows, cartoons, YouTube, books, and much more. It offers plenty of power for most games and apps (including Township, Candy Crush Saga, Mobile Strike, and much more), thanks to a 1.3GHz quad-core processor and 1.5GB of RAM. Additional features include dual-band WiFi — for 2.4 and 5G networks — 2MP front and rear-facing cameras, a microSD slot for expandable storage, and direct access to all of Amazon’s services like Instant Video, Audible, Kindle books, and more. The OS is built on Android, but it’s a custom skinned version designed by Amazon and it prioritizes the company’s services, including its mobile app store.
Plus, it has 32GB of internal storage, a micro HDMI port, a metal body, and supports dual-band WiFi. The 1.3GHz processor supports 64-bit applications, coupled with the 2GB of RAM, you’ll run into few performance issues even with many games. Additional features include dual-band WiFi, 32GB of storage built-in with support for microSD cards up to 128GB, micro HDMI out to TVs and monitors, a 2MP front-cam, and an 8MP rear camera.
Most importantly, it’s running a vanilla version of Android 9.0 Pie with access to the Google Play store. This tablet is one of the best for watching media, and for interfacing with smart home devices through Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant — which is built-in. The screen is a 10” HD IPS panel with a resolution of 1280×800, paired with two dual-front speakers with Dolby Atmos.
The tablet shell is made of hard plastic, not metal, and the dock, although integral, is sold separately. The price to performance ratio is worth it, as it’s equipped with a 2.0GHz Snapdragon 429 quad-core processor with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage.
The S6 Lite can expand storage up to 1TB, it has a 10.4-inch screen size, and comes with the S Pen Stylus for taking notes, drawing, and much more.
Additional features include dual-band WiFi, Bluetooth, integrated Adreno 504 graphics, and a 2MP front cam.
It does have a micro-USB charging port, which is unfortunate to see in a 2019 model tablet — USB Type-C would be the preferred option. WHY WE LIKE IT: The 7” compact size is perfect for on-the-go use whether you want to read a book in the open air, or take a peek at some online resources — like cooking recipes. The sharp 146 PPI display offers crisp, colorful visuals, ideal for media streaming and casual gaming. It has a Mediatek MT8163 1.3GHz quad-core processor with 3GB of RAM, which combined offer decent performance for a low-cost device. As one of the cheap tablets, this 10” model may not be the cream of the crop, but the price is unbeatable especially when considering the performance specs. It’s rocking a MediaTek MT8163 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 3GB of RAM, and 32GB of internal storage, with microSD support up to 128GB. The 10” HD IPS display supports a resolution of 1280 x 800 which means video content should look pretty good. The body of the tablet is a unique blend, with the mid-frame around the screen composed of metal, while the backing is hard plastic.
This budget-friendly tablet running vanilla Android 9.0 Pie — with Google Play access — has a competitive price and a lot of the same features found in comparable models. The 10” IPS HD display operates at a resolution of 1280 x 800 with excellent brightness settings and true-to-life colors. Dual speakers round out the media support, offering a better overall experience when streaming via Netflix, Disney , and other services. Additional features include 32GB of internal storage with support for microSD cards up to 128GB, Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity, a 2MP front-cam, an 8MP rear camera, and a 4500mAh battery offering up to 6 hours of use.
One of the first things we considered when choosing tablets for this list was the price to performance ratio, or rather how much bang-for-buck each model offers. At the opposite end of the spectrum is the Samsung, which is a little more expensive but includes both power and beauty — the display is unmatched. Usually, the larger screen size offers an HD quality display which is excellent for watching media on Netflix, Hulu, Disney , and other services. Finally, everything on this list offers plenty of power to handle modern apps, games, and content without experiencing a major slowdown.
These days, you want to stick with 2GB of RAM at a minimum as most newer apps will suffer performance issues with less. Some tablets also include support for external media or storage, usually via a microSD card slot, but occasionally they’ll offer full-USB. Most newer devices have either hard plastic or metal alloy shells with a slightly reinforced display. They’re plenty durable as-is, but even more so if you install a sturdy case and tempered glass screen protector—neither of which are particularly expensive.
The Best Android Tablets
It isn’t the cheapest or most powerful Android tablet, but it does offer the best combination of speed, display quality, software updates, and affordability. The 10.4-inch screen on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite looks crisp and has very narrow bezels, and the included S Pen is handy for marking up documents or basic sketching or note taking.
Samsung’s One UI version of Android is a bit cluttered but has customizations for the S Pen and apps designed for the large screen. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 is the best Android tablet you can buy, provided you don’t mind spending a lot more.
Best Android tablet: Our 4 biggest recommendations
Here to help, our team of product experts has created this list detailing the top-scoring Android tablets we’ve tested in the most common categories of user. This includes the price as well as areas such as screen quality, audio performance, a tablet’s ability to run games and handle creative workloads, plus battery life. The latter covers the average hourly discharge rate when playing games and video, as well as how long the tablet will last running basic office tasks such as web browsing and word processing.
This will see the reviewer use the tablet as their primary device, enacting common tasks such as movie streaming, gaming, web browsing and video calling.
Xiaomi Pad 5 The best Android tablet for most people Trusted Score Pros Excellent screen that’s ideal for Neflix and gaming Demanding tasks heavily impact battery The Xiaomi Pad 5 is the Chinese tech giant’s attempt to create an Android-powered version of the iPad Air.
Out of the box the device immediately impressed, sporting a slim but sturdy metal chassis that felt suitably scratch-resistant to comfortably slot into most regular-sized bags and backpacks without concern. The Xiaomi Pad 5’s 11-inch LCD screen doesn’t offer as deep blacks as the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra, which features an AMOLED panel.
But to the naked eye it’s still capable of presenting decent contrast and a high enough level of maximum brightness to make HDR content on Netflix pop. Scrolling, therefore, felt like a far smoother experience on this tablet compared to the iPad Air and rival Android models such as the Lenovo Yoga Tab 13 (2021) with 60Hz screens. Add the reliable battery life and the Xiaomi Pad 5 easily earns its place as our current best overall Android tablet offering for most people. The DeX desktop view is a welcome bonus when you need to do basic office work Cons The big screen means demanding tasks like gaming put a serious drain on its battery
During testing, the S8 Ultra proved to be a fantastic option for Android fans after a big-screen tablet for watching movies and playing games. The AMOLED screen also delivers wonderfully deep blacks, which, coupled with solid levels of max brightness, made HDR content in particular pop. Streaming games over GeForce Now, with a Razer Raiju Bluetooth controller paired to the device, the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra delivered one of the best experiences we’ve had on a tablet.
During testing, we struggled to find a reliable video-editing app; outside of Krita, there are woefully few digital painting services that come with full-fat keyboard shortcuts. The majority deliver at best mediocre performance, terrible battery life and feature washed-out screens that make viewing Netflix a horribly compromised experience. Out of the box, the screen surround appears slightly chunky, with retro-looking bezels; but the aluminum chassis feels solid and suffers no flex when pressed, leaving our reviewer reassured that the Realme Pad is a device that could happily survive the odd accidental bump and scrape. Limited app library The Realme Pad may well be cheap and well built, but we still wouldn’t recommend it to any buyer looking for a tablet for a child aged 8 or below. Designed specifically for younger kids, it comes with a rugged but cute-looking “Bumper” case that envelopes the chassis in foam, and a plastic outer shell. Having pitted the tablet against a toddler, we can personally attest to its robustness, with our review unit surviving more than a few tantrum throws and a game of tug of war between the child and the family dog. As an added assurance, Amazon also offers a two-year “no questions asked” replacement policy, where the company will send out a new device free of charge if your progeny does somehow manage to break it. Nevertheless, in our tests images proved plenty sharp and vibrant enough to happily keep kids entertained watching video, reading books or playing games. Advanced parental controls make it quick and easy to filter the content your kids can access, restrict or block in-app purchases, and set limits on how much screen time they’re allowed each day.
But for general consumers the contracts are very expensive and considering the fact you’ll likely have a phone you can tether the tablet to, we’d recommend most people save their money and opt for a WiFi only option. As you can see in the tablet below the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra is the most powerful product in this list featuring a giant OLED screen and cutting edge Qualcomm CPU. ‹ UK RRP USA RRP EU RRP CA RRP AUD RRP Manufacturer Screen Size Storage Capacity Rear Camera Front Camera Video Recording IP rating Battery Fast Charging Size (Dimensions) Weight ASIN Operating System Model Number Resolution HDR Refresh Rate Ports Chipset RAM Colours Xiaomi Pad 5 £319 $329 €349 – – Xiaomi 11 inches 128GB, 256GB 13MP 8MP – No 8720 mAh – 166.2 x 6.85 x 254.7 MM 511 G – Android 11 – 1600 x 2560 Yes 120 Hz USB C Snapdragon 860 6GB – Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra £999 – €1219 – – Samsung 14.6 inches 128GB 13-megapixels 12-megapixels Yes Not Disclosed 11200 mAh Yes 208.6 x 5.5 x 326.4 MM 726 G B09LYZ4P9B Android 12 – 2960 x 1848 – 120 Hz USB-C 4nm 64-bit octa-core processor 8GB Graphite Realme Pad £225 Unavailable €230 Unavailable Unavailable Realme 10.4 inches 32GB 8-megapixels 8-megapixels Yes Not Disclosed 7100 mAh – 155.9 x 6.9 x 246.1 MM 440 G B09JWFB273 Android 11 – 1200 x 2000 – 60 Hz USB-C MediaTek Helio G80 3GB Grey, Gold Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids £199.99 $199.99 Unavailable Unavailable Unavailable Amazon 10.1 mm 32GB 5MP 2MP Yes No 6500 mAh – 269 x 27 x 209 MM 716 G B08F5MYM9T Fire OS Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids 1920 x 1200 – 60 Hz USB-C MediaTek MT8183 3GB Blue, Pink, Aquamarine ›
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