Starting with flagship devices, Huawei began to equip its own operating system Harmony OS and more budget models. A vivid example of this is the new Huawei MatePad with a screen diagonal of 10.4 inches and a recommended price of 20 thousand rubles. We tested the tablet and figured out what its strengths and weaknesses are.
In Russia, Huawei MatePad is offered in a shade of gray matte. Until March 3, you can pre-order it at a price of 20 thousand rubles for the version with 64 GB of storage and up to 29 thousand for the version with 128 GB and a stylus included. In the case of a pre-order, the buyer will receive a keyboard cover as a gift, the usual price of which is 8,000 rubles.
Specifications
| Huawei MatePad (2022) | Huawei MatePad 11 (2021) | iPad 9th Generation (2021) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | IPS, 10.4″, 2000×1200 (224 ppi) | IPS, 10.95″, 2560×1600 (275 ppi) | IPS, 10.2″, 2160×1620 (264 ppi) |
| SoC (processor) | Huawei Kirin 710A (8 cores, 4+4, maximum frequency 2 GHz) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 (8 cores, 1+3+4, max frequency 2.84GHz) | Apple A13 Bionic (2 cores @2.65 GHz + 4 power efficient cores) |
| RAM | 4 GB | 6 GB / 8 GB (not available in Russia) | 3 GB |
| Flash memory | 64 / 128 GB | 64 / 128 / 256 GB | 64 / 256 GB |
| Memory card support | yes (microSD standard, up to 512 GB) | yes (microSD standard, up to 1 TB) | No |
| Connectors | USB-C with support for external drives | USB-C with support for external drives | Lightning, 3.5mm headphone jack, Smart Connector |
| cameras | front (8 MP, 1080p video) and rear (13 MP, Full HD 60 fps video shooting) | front (8 MP, 1080p video) and rear (13 MP, 4K video shooting) | front (12 MP, 1080p video via FaceTime) and rear (8 MP, video shooting 1080p 60 fps) |
| Internet | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac MIMO (2.4 + 5GHz), optional 3G/4G | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax MIMO (2,4 + 5 ГГц) | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac MIMO (2.4 + 5GHz), optional 3G/4G |
| Scanners | face recognition | face recognition | Touch ID fingerprint reader |
| Cover-keyboard/stylus support | have / have | have / have | Yes (Apple Smart Keyboard) / Yes (First generation Apple Pencil) |
| Operating system | Huawei HarmonyOS 2 | Huawei HarmonyOS 2 | iPadOS 15 |
| Battery | 7250 mAh | 7250 mAh | 8557 mAh (unofficial information) |
| Dimensions | 245×155×7.3mm | 254×165×7.3mm | 251×174×7,5 |
| Weight of non-LTE version | 450 years | 485 | 487 |
Well, we see that the characteristics of the novelty are very attractive and quite comparable even with much more expensive devices. We note face unlock, a USB-C port, a battery that is not inferior in capacity to the battery of the older model, and a very decent amount of RAM. But how will this configuration perform in tests? Let’s check, but first, let’s evaluate the appearance, the package, etc.
Packaging, equipment and accessories
The packaging of the MatePad looks pretty much the same as the older models. A white box with the name of the device in the center – and no photos.
Package contents – standard: charging block 5 V 2 A, with support for fast charging (9 V 2 A or 10 V 2.25 A), USB-A to USB-C cable, key to remove the memory card tray and SIM card.
In addition, we received a Smart Keyboard cover made specifically for this model, a Huawei M-Pencil stylus and a Bluetooth mouse.
It’s easy to guess that all this goodness is compatible with MatePad, but is purchased separately (with the exception, as mentioned, of the keyboard, which can be received as a gift with pre-order).
To connect a keyboard and mouse to the tablet, just slide the levers on them and click on the corresponding line in the Bluetooth settings, although it is possible that this will happen automatically.
The keyboard is generally similar to the one we tested with the MatePad 11. At least the materials are the same, and the layout is similar. However, the purpose of the two buttons to the left of the space has changed here. Judging by the icons on them, one should switch the layout, while the other should call the search or window thumbnails. But we never managed to get them to work (in particular, the layout here is changed by Ctrl+Space).
Separately, it should be said about the mouse. It has an unusual dark green color and a coating called vegan leather – most likely, it does not mean vegan leather, but artificial leather. The scroll wheel is metal, with a ribbed surface.
The mouse cursor is displayed as a circle on the screen, and you can use it to launch applications, open files, and perform other actions typical of mobile operating systems. But there are two important nuances: firstly, the right button also functions on the mouse (in those applications where this is implemented), and secondly, in text editors – for example, the preinstalled “Notes” – the cursor turns into a vertical stick, as we used to, and with it you can select fragments of text and individual letters, working in much the same way as on a computer.
Well, we talked about the stylus in detail earlier, and there is nothing new here. He hasn’t changed.
Design
The design of the tablet itself does not cause any special emotions – neither positive nor negative. There is no such a memorable surface as the MatePad 11, there are no unusual solutions that make it stand out.
The front surface without buttons, with relatively small frames around the screen of the same width. The back side is plastic, matte, dark gray. Above it is a small block with a camera and a flash.
Stereo speakers are located on the rounded side faces (this is a plus for a budget tablet). In addition, on the right side in the center there is a USB-C connector, and on the left side there is a small oblong power button.
By the way, an interesting fact: the connector is shifted to the rear surface. This is clearly visible in the photo above. Such a solution is not only not very aesthetically pleasing, but also not so convenient when blindly connecting the cable, although, of course, you cannot call it a serious drawback.
On top, right above the block with cameras, there is a narrow, elongated volume rocker, and then along the entire length of the face, there are four microphones. Well, on the bottom edge there is only a slot for a memory card (and in the version with an LTE module, it is also for a SIM card).
There is no 3.5 mm jack for connecting a wired headset, and this, in our opinion, is not the best solution. Not everything needs to imitate the flagships. As for the sound quality through the speakers, it is not bad and is quite suitable for watching YouTube shows and listening to podcasts, but for music and large-scale movies, we would recommend using headphones (in this case, wireless).
In general, the design can be called neutral. It has both pluses and minuses, and we cannot classify it as either a weakness or a strength of the device.
Screen
The display of the tablet has a diagonal of 10.4 inches, resolution – 2000 × 1200. This gives not the highest dot density – 224 ppi. However, as we know, screen quality is determined not only by this parameter.
The front surface of the screen is made in the form of a glass plate with a mirror-smooth surface, resistant to scratches. Judging by the reflection of objects, the anti-glare properties of the screen are slightly better than the screen of the Google Nexus 7 (2013) (hereinafter simply Nexus 7). For clarity, here is a photo in which a white surface is reflected in the off screens (on the left is Huawei MatePad 10.4, on the right is Nexus 7, then they can be distinguished by size):
The screen on the Huawei MatePad 10.4 is a little darker (brightness in photos is 99 versus 104 on the Nexus 7). The ghosting of reflected objects on the screen of Huawei MatePad 10.4 is very weak, which indicates that there is no air gap between the layers of the screen (more specifically, between the outer glass and the surface of the LCD matrix) (OGS type screen – One Glass Solution). Due to the smaller number of borders (glass/air type) with very different refractive indices, such screens look better in conditions of intense external illumination, but their repair in case of cracked external glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed. There is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating on the outer surface of the screen, which is better than the Nexus 7 in terms of efficiency, so fingerprints are removed much easier and appear at a slower rate,
When displaying a white field in full screenand with manual brightness control, its maximum value was 470 cd / m². The maximum brightness is high, therefore, given the excellent anti-glare properties, the readability of the screen even on a sunny day outdoors should be at an acceptable level. The minimum brightness value is 3 cd/m². In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable value. In the presence of automatic brightness control by light sensor (it is located in the center on the top field of the front panel in portrait orientation). In automatic mode, when the ambient light conditions change, the screen brightness both increases and decreases. The operation of this function depends on the position of the brightness slider: with it the user can try to set the desired brightness level in the current conditions. If you leave everything as default, then in complete darkness, the auto-brightness function reduces the brightness to 5 cd / m² (very dark), in an office lit by artificial light (approximately 550 lux) it sets it to 180 cd / m² (normal), in a very bright environment (conditionally corresponds to being in direct sunlight light) increases to 470 cd / m² (to the maximum, as it should be). The result did not quite suit us, so we slightly increased the brightness in total darkness, resulting in the following values for the three conditions indicated above: 18, 190, 470 cd / m² (excellent). It turns out that the auto-brightness function works adequately and allows you to customize your work to individual requirements. in a very bright environment (conditionally corresponds to being in direct sunlight) increases to 470 cd / m² (to the maximum, as it should be). The result did not quite suit us, so we slightly increased the brightness in complete darkness, resulting in the following values for the three conditions indicated above: 18, 190, 470 cd / m² (excellent). It turns out that the auto-brightness function works adequately and allows you to customize your work to individual requirements. in a very bright environment (conditionally corresponds to being in direct sunlight) increases to 470 cd / m² (to the maximum, as it should be). The result did not quite suit us, so we slightly increased the brightness in total darkness, resulting in the following values for the three conditions indicated above: 18, 190, 470 cd / m² (excellent). It turns out that the auto-brightness function works adequately and allows you to customize your work to individual requirements.
This tablet uses an IPS type matrix. Micrographs show a typical IPS subpixel structure:
For comparison, you can see the gallery of microphotographs of screens used in mobile technology.
The screen has good viewing angles without significant color shift even at large deviations of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen and without inverting shades. For comparison, here are photos in which the same images are displayed on the screens of Huawei MatePad 10.4 and Nexus 7, while the brightness of the screens was initially set to about 200 cd / m², and the color balance on the camera was forcibly switched to 6500 K.
White field perpendicular to the screens:
Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone of the white field.
And a test picture:
The colors on the screen of Huawei MatePad 10.4 have a saturation close to natural, and the color balance of the screens is clearly different.
Now at an angle of about 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen:
It can be seen that the colors have not changed much on both screens, but on the Huawei MatePad 10.4, the contrast has decreased to a greater extent due to more black highlighting.
And the white box:
The brightness at an angle at the screens decreased (at least 4 times, based on the difference in shutter speed), but in the case of Huawei MatePad 10.4, the brightness decreased less. The black field, when deviated diagonally, is strongly highlighted, but remains conventionally neutral gray (this is how the eyes perceive it). The photos below demonstrate this (the brightness of the white areas in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the screens is the same!):
And from another angle:
With a perpendicular view, the uniformity of the black field is average:
Contrast (approximately in the center of the screen) is high – about 1300:1. The response time for the black-white-black transition is 18ms (9ms on + 9ms off). The transition between grayscale 25% and 75% (according to the numerical value of the color) and back in total takes 31 ms. The gamma curve constructed from 32 points with an equal interval according to the numerical value of the shade of gray did not reveal a blockage either in the highlights or in the shadows. The fit exponent is 2.15, slightly below the standard value of 2.2. In this case, the real gamma curve noticeably deviates from the power dependence:
We did not find the presence of dynamic adjustment of the backlight brightness in accordance with the nature of the displayed image, which is very good.
Color gamut close to sRGB:
The spectra show that the matrix filters moderately mix the components to each other:
By default, the balance of shades on the gray scale is average, since the color temperature is significantly higher than the standard 6500 K, and the deviation from the blackbody spectrum (ΔE) is more than 10, which is considered a bad indicator even for a consumer device. (The darkest areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance does not matter much there, and the measurement error of color characteristics at low brightness is large.)
This device has the ability to correct the color balance by adjusting the hue on the color wheel or simply by choosing one of three preset profiles.
However, the adjustment range is not enough to simultaneously reduce the color temperature and ΔE, so if you need a tablet with good color reproduction, then this tablet is better not to buy.
There is a function Natural tone , which, if enabled, adjusts the color balance to the environmental conditions. We enabled this feature and tested how it works:
| Conditions | Color temperature on a white field, K | ΔE on a white field |
|---|---|---|
| Natural tone off | 8400 | 12 |
| Natural tone enabled, LED downlights with cool white light (6800K) | 7400 | 12 |
| Natural tone on, incandescent halogen lamp (warm light – 2850 K) | 6400 | 12 |
With a strong change in lighting conditions, the adjustment of the color balance is weak, so from our point of view, this function does not work as it should. Note that the current standard is to calibrate display devices to a white point of 6500 K, but in principle, correction for the color temperature of external light can be useful if you want to achieve a better match between the image on the screen and what is seen on paper (or on any media on which colors are formed by reflecting incident light) under current conditions.
There is a mod setting that allows you to reduce the intensity of the blue component.
Marketers tried to intimidate the user to show the degree of care of the manufacturer. Of course, there is no UV radiation (see spectrum above), and there is no eye fatigue caused specifically by blue light. In principle, bright light can lead to a violation of the daily (circadian) rhythm (see a separate article), but everything is solved by adjusting the brightness to a low, but still comfortable level, and there is absolutely no point in distorting the color balance by reducing the contribution of blue.
To summarize: the screen has a high maximum brightness (470 cd/m²) and has excellent anti-glare properties, so the device can be used outdoors without any problems even on a sunny summer day. In complete darkness, the brightness can be reduced to a comfortable level (up to 3 cd / m²). Also, the advantages of the screen include an effective oleophobic coating, the absence of an air gap in the layers of the screen and flicker, high contrast (1300: 1) and sRGB color gamut. The disadvantages are the low stability of black to the deviation of the gaze from the perpendicular to the plane of the screen and the far from the best color balance. However, taking into account the importance of the characteristics for this particular class of devices, the screen quality can be considered good.
Performance
The MatePad is powered by Huawei’s own SoC, the Kirin 710A. It is made on a 14-nanometer process technology and includes 8 CPU cores, 4 of which are high-performance (Cortex-A73 with a maximum frequency of 2 GHz), and 4 more are energy efficient (Cortex-A53 with a frequency of 1.7 GHz). Mali-G51 is used as the GPU. The amount of RAM is 4 GB. We also recall in advance that both the MatePad 11 ″ and the iPad 2021, for which we present the results in the tables, are one and a half times more expensive than the novelty.
Well, let’s test the new model. Let’s start with browser tests: Octane Benchmark, Kraken Benchmark and JetStream 2.
| Huawei MatePad (2022) (Buy 710A) |
Huawei MatePad 11 (2021) (Qualcomm Snapdragon 865) |
Apple iPad 2021 (Apple A13 Bionic) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Octane 2.0 (points, more is better) |
9074 | 24839 | 45576 |
| Kraken Benchmark 1.1 (ms, less is better) |
4526 | 1900 | 561 |
| JetStream 2.0 (points, more is better) |
29 | 67 | 137 |
Next come the comprehensive Geekbench and AnTuTu benchmarks.
| Huawei MatePad (2022) (Buy 710A) |
Huawei MatePad 11 (2021) (Qualcomm Snapdragon 865) |
Apple iPad 2021 (Apple A13 Bionic) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Geekbench 5 Single-Core Score (points, more is better) |
300 | 913 | 1304 |
| Geekbench 5 Multi-Core Score (scores, more is better) |
1336 | 3368 | 2123 |
| Geekbench 5 Compute (points, more is better) |
992 | 3144 | 7545 |
| AnTuTu Benchmark (points, more is better) |
184256 | 640117 | 587671 |
Finally – 3DMark GPU tests, confirming the obvious lag of the new product.
| Huawei MatePad (2022) (Buy 710A) |
Huawei MatePad 11 (2021) (Qualcomm Snapdragon 865) |
Apple iPad 2021 (Apple A13 Bionic) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 3DMark (режим Sling Shot Extreme) | 1082 | Max | Max |
| 3DMark (WildLife Mode) | 565 | — | 7203 |
The throttling of the tablet is average, slightly more than that of the MatePad 11.
Well, here we have found what the manufacturer saved on in the first place: this is performance. It is very low by today’s standards. Of course, this is enough for smooth operation of the interface, some undemanding applications and viewing Full HD video, but you should forget about 3D games.
Video playback
This unit does not appear to support DisplayPort Alt Mode for USB Type-C, which outputs picture and sound to an external device when connected to a USB port. (Report from the usbview.exe program.) Therefore, we had to limit ourselves to testing the output of video files on the screen of the device itself. To do this, we used a set of test files with an arrow and a rectangle moving one division per frame (see “Methodology for testing video signal playback and display devices. Version 1 (for mobile devices)”). Screenshots with a shutter speed of 1 s helped determine the nature of the output frames of video files with different parameters: the resolution varied (1280 by 720 (720p), 1920 by 1080 (1080p) and 3840 by 2160 (4K) pixels) and frame rate (24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps). In tests, we used the MX Player video player in Hardware mode. The test results are summarized in the table:
| File | Uniformity | Omissions |
|---|---|---|
| 4К/60p (H.265) | Good | a lot |
| 4К/50p (H.265) | Good | a lot |
| 4К/30p (H.265) | Great | No |
| 4К/25p (H.265) | Great | No |
| 4К/24p (H.265) | Great | No |
| 4К/30p | Great | No |
| 4K/25p | Great | No |
| 4К/24p | Great | No |
| 1080/60p | Great | No |
| 1080/50p | Great | No |
| 1080/30p | Great | No |
| 1080/25p | Great | No |
| 1080/24p | Great | No |
| 720/60p | Great | No |
| 720/50p | Great | No |
| 720/30p | Great | No |
| 720/25p | Great | No |
| 720/24p | Great | No |
Note: If both columns Uniformity and Gaps have green ratings, this means that, most likely, when watching movies, artifacts caused by uneven alternation and dropping frames will either not be visible at all, or their number and visibility will not affect comfort viewing. Red marks indicate possible problems with the playback of the respective files.
According to the criteria for displaying frames, the quality of playing video files on the screen of the tablet itself is good, since in most cases frames (or groups of frames) can (but are not required) to be displayed with even intervals and without frame drops. When playing video files with a resolution of 1920 by 1080, the image of the video file itself is displayed exactly in the width of the screen, black bars are displayed at the top and bottom. The clarity of the picture is high, but not ideal, since there is no escape from interpolation to screen resolution. However, for the sake of experiment, you can switch to the one-to-one mode by pixels, there will be no interpolation. The brightness range displayed on the screen corresponds to the standard range of 16-235: all gradations of shades are displayed in the shadows and in the highlights. Note that this device does not support hardware decoding of H.
Operating system and software
Like the MatePad Pro, the new MatePad runs on Huawei’s own operating system, Harmony OS 2.0. We talked about it in detail in the review of the older model, so we will not repeat ourselves. We only add that we did not have any failures when installing applications from the APKPure repository, and even all benchmarks were installed smoothly. In our review of the MatePad 11, we assumed that this was possible thanks to the Qualcomm chip, but here, you see, everything is going well on the Kirin too.
In general, Harmony OS can be recommended to the average user as a replacement for Android, if there is no urgent need for Google services. If there is such a need, then you can try to live with the GSpace application, which creates an environment in which applications think that Google services are present. True, GSpace is not very stable. And from the progress in AppGallery and Petal Search, it can be noted that the store has learned to offer updates from APKPure, there is no need to manually monitor the release of new versions.
Note that the manufacturer positions MatePad as a device for various “office” and educational applications. And for this, there are a number of applications in the AppGallery, designed specifically for HarmonyOS. Let’s mention two of them. Jnotes is a note-taking tool with more functionality than a standard application. In particular, here you can add audio to a note, export to PDF, etc.
Another program recommended by the manufacturer and also available in AppGallery – Flexcil – allows, on the contrary, to import the necessary elements from PDF into notes, simply by dragging pictures and text fragments with a stylus. Alas, most of the options are available only in the paid version. As in Jnotes.
Well, what you can use for free and even without installing third-party software is to take notes on any content with the latest generation stylus and save them as images. To do this, double-tap the stylus body or draw a diagonal line across the screen from the upper right corner.
Autonomy and heating
| Huawei MatePad (2022) (Buy 710A) |
Huawei MatePad 11 (2021) (Qualcomm Snapdragon 865) |
Apple iPad Pro 12,9″ (2021) (Apple M1) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 3D gaming, GFXBenchmark Manhattan battery benchmark (brightness 100 cd/m²) | 6 hours 22 minutes | 4 hours 32 minutes | — |
| Watching online videos from YouTube (brightness 100 cd/m²) | 13 hours 10 minutes | 14 hours 10 minutes | about 15 hours |
| Reading mode, white background (brightness 100 cd/m²) | 17 hours 25 minutes | 17 hours 40 minutes | 21 hours 30 minutes |
The tablet is equipped with a non-removable battery with a capacity of 7250 mAh. This is quite good by the standards of this segment. The MatePad 11 had the same number. Therefore, it was interesting to compare them and understand which chip is more economical (the screen size is very close). Very interesting results have been obtained. In 3D games, the novelty definitely showed itself better. But we must understand that the test scene on it braked shamelessly. But in other modes, we can talk about a small loss – apparently, Qualcomm is still a little more energy efficient at low load.
Below is a thermal image of the rear surface taken after 15 minutes of fighting a gorilla in Injustice 2:
The high heat area seems to correspond to the location of the SoC chip. According to the heat chamber, the maximum heating in this area was 38 degrees (at an ambient temperature of 24 degrees), which is not very much.
Camera
MatePad has only one rear camera, and its parameters are very modest: 13 megapixels when shooting photos and Full HD 60 fps when shooting video.
Alas, we can not say anything good about the quality of shooting. Too much mud (meaning not only slush underfoot :)). Detailing is low – pay attention to the picture with the cars in the parking lot: you can hardly make out the numbers even from nearby cars. It’s even worse indoors (see the shot with the signs on the wall of the iXBT.com office). However, for undemanding documentary filming, it will do.
What’s really bad is the video quality. There is an obvious software defect here: autofocus walks back and forth, because of this it is impossible to use the camcorder. Changing the shooting mode from 60 fps to 30 fps did not help. Here is an example of a Full HD 60 fps video (55 MB file). Theoretically, this can be fixed in new firmware. But low definition and blurry images are unlikely to disappear.
In general, we state that the camera here is completely “for show”.
findings
Any budget device is always a compromise. The flagship, by the way, is often the same, but not because of savings, but because of the laws of physics (too powerful SoC quickly spends the battery, too large a screen makes the case bulky, too thin size interferes with convenience, and so on). But in the case of MatePad, we are talking, of course, about compromises associated with cheaper prices. And here you can immediately name two weak points: performance and camera. The second, however, in 10-inch tablets is a completely secondary thing (if you don’t take some specific professional usage scenarios), but the ability to comfortably play is just what we expect from such devices (even if they are positioned as educational and working) . And it’s tough here.
But otherwise it is a very attractive option for the money. Moreover, together with peripherals, some of which can be obtained for free, and the rest can be bought relatively inexpensively, if, for example, compared with the prices of Apple peripherals. A decent screen with a small frame, stereo sound, USB-C, good autonomy… And we won’t even call the Harmony OS operating system a minus – there are practically no problems with Android applications, and what is not installed from stores can be installed without problems from APK.
So if you are ready to put up with low performance (however, sufficient for everyday use) and camera problems, pay close attention to the new model.
In conclusion, we suggest watching our video review of the Huawei MatePad (2022) tablet: