realme Pad X First Impressions: The X to Keep?

realme-Pad-First-Impressions-98

Contents (maximize to view)

realme has just launched its newest mid-range tablet for the Philippine market, the realme Pad X. Designed to deliver a well-rounded digital experience, the latest addition to the realme Pad lineup is equipped with a larger and brighter display, a more powerful processing package, bumped up optics, and a higher capacity battery.

What’s in the Box

realme Pad X Unboxing

Specifications

Display10.95-inch WUXGA+ LCD
ProcessorQualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G
RAM6GB
Storage128GB
Rear Camera13MP
Front Camera8MP
Battery8340mAh
33W Dart Charge
ColorsGlowing Grey
Glacier Blue

Design and Build Quality

realme Pad First Impressions

The singular line that runs across the left side of the back panel is now gone for a cleaner look. The surface is covered with a sparkling sand finish which responds well to light. The camera module is also larger, with additional text to highlight that it’s AI-powered. Not really needed, but okay.

realme Pad First Impressions

At 499 grams, it’s a slightly heavier tablet compared to the realme Pad, and at 7.1mm, it’s a also just a tiny bit thicker. Regardless, it still feels comfortable to hold, and it should still easily fit in most bags.

realme Pad First Impressions

At the bottom is a USB-C port, along with half of its quad-speaker system. They’ve decided to remove the headphone jack, which is a letdown for me, as I still prefer to have a wired option for audio.

realme Pad First Impressions

realme Pad X has a 10.95-inch LCD, which is about half an inch larger than the realme Pad. Resolution is still 1200 x 2000 pixels, but peak brightness has been increased to 450 nits. It has Widevine L1 certification, which mean you’ll be able to watch videos at high resolution on certain streaming platforms like Netflix.

Yes, the display doesn’t have the punchiness of an AMOLED panel and there’s no option for a higher refresh rate, which I think should be standard in any device now.

Performance

At the helm is a Snapdragon 695 5G processor, along with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. It’s not the best chip we’ve seen at this price point, but it’s still a good choice. There’s a microSD card slot as well, for those who want even more storage.

realme Pad First Impressions

But that’s also the issue. You see, this doesn’t have a SIM Slot, which mean you can’t take advantage of its 5G capabilities. It’s a big question mark actually. Like, if you’re not gonna let me use 5G anyway, well, you get the point.

We’ll save the benchmarks for the full review, but what I can tell you is that this can run Genshin Impact with 60 FPS enabled and low to medium setting with only minor stutters. That’s something uncommon especially for mid-range chips, unless you get into the higher 7-series processors.

The quad-speakers on this tablet also offer good clarity, a decent bit of low end, and no distortion at high volume. There’s also support for Dolby Atmos.

Camera

realme Pad First Impressions 58

The 8MP rear camera from the realme Pad has been upgraded to a 13MP unit on the realme Pad X, as for the quality, it’s decent with good lighting, but struggles in room lighting.

realme Pad X features Limelight, which uses machine learning algorithms to intelligently track one or more persons with the front camera, allowing you to always be in center of the frame in video calls.

While it is responsive and accurate, the only downside is it only currently supports Zoom and Google Duo. Video recording with the rear camera is still limited to 1080p 30 fps, and there’s no Flash module.

Battery

realme Pad First Impressions 76

The battery has also been upgraded to 8,340mAh, along with 33W fast-charging. I’ve been using the realme Pad X for the past 2 days, purely for video and music, and it still has around 40% charge left. That says a lot about its endurance. We’ll do a full battery test for the full review.

Accessories

image 24

For added productivity, realme Pad X works with the realme Smart Keyboard and Smart Pencil. The brand is yet to announce as to when these accessories will arrive.

realme Pad X: Initial Verdict

So far, I quite like my experience with the realme Pad X. There is nothing I asked it to do that it was not able to do. The new design looks great, and battery life has been superb.

On the other hand, it doesn’t have the best processor that you could get at this price range, and the lack of a SIM slot is really baffling. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a decent tablet, but I just with you’ll actually be able to take advantage of all its capabilities. You’re paying for that, remember.

realme Pad X 6GB+128GB is priced at PhP15,999.

7.5Expert Score
Initial Score

So far, I want to keep this X.

Positive
  • New design looks great
  • Great battery life so far
  • Decent performance
  • Good-sounding speakers
Negative
  • No headphone jack
  • Rear camera performance is underwhelming
  • No option for higher refresh rate
  • Not the best processing package for this price point
  • No SIM slot for 5G connectivity

We’ll find out more in our full review. So stay tuned to Gadget Pilipinas.

f926e6d0d904fe0136e191ccce71a963?s=150&d=mp&r=g

Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.

Leave a Reply

Gadget Pilipinas | Tech News, Reviews, Benchmarks and Build Guides
Logo
Compare items
  • Total (0)
Compare
0