Tablets have become an indispensable tool for both work and entertainment. HONOR has recently unveiled its latest offering – the HONOR Pad 9. This sleek and powerful tablet promises to deliver an exceptional user experience, combining cutting-edge features with a striking design. In this comprehensive review, we’ll delve into every aspect of the HONOR Pad 9, from its design and build quality to its performance, battery life, and multimedia capabilities.
Design and Build Quality
The HONOR Pad 9 immediately catches the eye with its sleek and modern design. At 278.27mm in width, 180.11mm in height, 555g in weight, and at just 6.96mm in thickness, this tablet strikes a perfect balance between portability and a large, immersive display.
With an approximate weight of 555g, the device feels substantial yet comfortable to hold, making it an ideal companion for extended usage sessions.
The HONOR Pad 9 is crafted with meticulous attention to detail, exuding a premium feel with its robust construction and seamless finish. The metallic chassis not only adds a touch of sophistication but also ensures durability, capable of withstanding the rigors of daily use.
Camera
While tablets are not primarily known for their camera capabilities, the HONOR Pad 9 boasts a respectable 13MP rear camera with an f/2.0 aperture and autofocus. It delivers sharp and vibrant images that are more than enough for your social media updates.
The 8MP front-facing camera, with its f/2.2 aperture, isn’t exactly the best out there, but is still well-suited for video calls and selfies.
Performance
The HONOR Pad 9 packs a Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 chipset, which also powers the very popular HONOR X9b. It also has 8GB of RAM for a bit of multitasking, as well as 256GB of storage which should be enough for most users. It handles HD streaming, document editing and even a bit of gaming well, though you’ll have to dial the settings down for more resource intensive titles.
Gaming-wise, you can expect similar performance as the HONOR X9b 5G – Mobile Legends will run smooth at Super + Ultra, and Honkai: Star Rail also runs smooth at Medium + 60fps enabled.
Battery Life and Charging
The HONOR Pad 9 is equipped with a massive 8,300mAh (typical value) lithium-polymer battery, this tablet can easily handle extended usage sessions without the need for frequent recharges. For my use case, the device lasts around a day or two with light to moderate usage. To be specific, I mainly do Spotify, YouTube, Netflix, Disney+, and play a few rounds of Mobile Legends.
The device supports 35W HONOR SuperCharge, which isn’t exactly the fastest out there, but it’s definitely not slow.
Audio and Multimedia
The HONOR Pad 9 is designed to provide an immersive multimedia experience. Equipped with a 12.1-inch TFT LCD (IPS) display boasting a crisp 2560 x 1600 resolution and support for 1.07 billion colors, visuals are rendered with good clarity and vibrancy. It won’t match an AMOLED display, but it’s more than enough.
HONOR Histen audio technology, coupled with eight speakers, delivers an impressive and immersive sound experience, whether you’re watching movies, playing games, or enjoying your favorite music. The low end has good presence, vocals come across with good clarity, and treble exhibits crispness and airiness without being sibilant. The volume is also enough for a small room.
Sofware
Running on the latest MagicOS 7.2 based on Android 13, the HONOR Pad 9 offers a smooth and intuitive user experience. The interface offers a decent amount of room for users to tailor the tablet to their specific needs and preferences. Additionally, it supports a wide range of productivity apps and tools, including a detachable keyboard, making it a versatile companion for both work and play.
Just like with other HONOR devices, I feel like MagicOS needs a revamp in quality-of-life things, such as not having to go through the menus just to change the resolution/frame rate for the camera. Then there’s this problem with the Facebook app, wherein it always stays in portrait when you’re in the timeline, but when you’re on your personal page or settings page, it follows the proper orientation.
Sure, this can be remedied easily with an app, but those who aren’t in the know or aren’t tech savvy won’t be able to figure that out. I just wished that HONOR focused on their software as well.
Accessories
The HONOR Pad 9 can be purchased with the HONOR Smart Keyboard, which also serves as stand/dock for the tablet. The typing experience isn’t exactly comparable to a full-pledged mechanical keyboard, but for a quick search on the web, for sending a few emails, or even for a short article, it’s responsive enough and the travel time is decent. I just wish it was backlit.
HONOR Pad 9: Verdict
The HONOR Pad 9 is a remarkable tablet that strikes the perfect balance between performance, design, and functionality. Its sleek and modern aesthetics, coupled with robust build quality, make it a pleasure to use and hold.
The device packs a capable processor and ample storage for multitasking and smooth performance, while the large display and 120Hz refresh rate make it a great companion for media consumption and gaming.
Whether you’re a student seeking a reliable companion for studying and research, a professional in need of a portable productivity device, or if you’re simply seeking for an immersive entertainment hub, the HONOR Pad 9 delivers what is expected of a mid-range tablet on its price range.
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.
