Lenovo Tab P11 Plus evaluate

This evaluate was initially printed on April 6, 2022, and was up to date on Might 8, 2023.

In terms of high-end Android tablets, Samsung is the undisputed king. However whereas the competitors stays scarce within the higher echelon, there may be loads of room within the low- and mid-range marketplace for different producers, like Lenovo, to reign supreme.

I have been testing out the Lenovo Tab P11 Plus, the corporate’s reasonably priced Android pill and I’ve to confess, it is fairly the enigma. For one, the pill carries a spec sheet that just about rivals that of extra premium choices. On the similar time, Lenovo costs the Tab P11 Plus at a beginning price of $209, a lot lower than competing tablets. Is that this a “too good to be true” state of affairs? Let’s examine.

Specs

What do you utilize your pill for? Relying on the reply, chances are you’ll discover extra worth in sure specs and options than others. With the Tab P11 Plus, Lenovo covers the bases of what most customers ought to bear in mind: a show massive sufficient for productiveness and leisure, a battery capability that will not maintain you hanging by an outlet, and a processor that will get the job carried out. I would like to see a 3.5mm headphone jack on the pill, however for now, wi-fi audio will do.

Design

The spectrum of pill designs has by no means been probably the most adventurous, and the Lenovo Tab P11 Plus is not any completely different. (I imply, how a lot can you alter from the traditional, rectangular slab.) It is made with a duo of aluminum and rubber materials which, collectively, create a unibody design that is industrial and durable sufficient to carry an IP52 ranking. Meaning the gadget is protected against most mud particles and sprinkles of water. I am going to take it.

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Throughout the sub-$300 value vary, I’ve discovered that tablets usually skimp on the exterior {hardware}, selecting glossier plastic finishes that evoke a extra hole and low cost really feel. That is not the case with the Tab P11 Plus. It feels nice to carry and carry round and has a well-balanced weight distribution.

My evaluate unit, which got here in a Slate Gray colorway, is minimal and modern in design. For an enterprise or at-home leisure pill, I would suggest the darker tones of the Slate Gray over the choice Platinum Gray, and Modernist Teal finishes. It additionally successfully retains the minor branding on the again of the gadget — a Lenovo and Dolby Atmos brand — delicate and toned down.

On the again, additionally, you will discover a single 13MP digicam lens, able to autofocusing and recording 1080p video at 30 frames per second. To say that the digicam does a superb job at pictures and movies can be an overstatement. A lot of the footage that I took have been bland in colour and oversharpened through software program. The Tab P11 Plus is in no way a substitute to your smartphone or DSLR digicam. However then once more, I would not suggest shopping for any pill for its digicam efficiency.

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Switching to the entrance aspect of the pill, there’s an 11-inch, 2K (2,000 x 1,200) IPS panel, with simply sufficient bezel surrounding the 4 sides. Holding the Tab P11 Plus in panorama orientation, the bezel gives my arms with sufficient grip whereas stopping them from inflicting any mistouches and unintentional presses on the display. It is also useful that the front-facing 8MP digicam is centered on the high when the pill is held this manner. You would be shocked what number of tablets put the digicam on the shorter aspect of the physique, making for a disorientating webcam expertise.

I am additionally a giant fan of how sharp and correct the colours are on the Tab P11 Plus, particularly for a pill that prices $209. For an IPS panel, viewing angles have been constant to have a look at, and there wasn’t the color-shifting concern that I would usually discover on cheaper shows. I ought to level out that the check unit that Lenovo despatched me is the upgraded $259 variant with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, however the show high quality is identical throughout the board.

At 11 inches, the Tab P11 Plus is, in my view, the candy spot for pill sizes. It is not as colossal because the 12.9-inch Apple iPad Professional or 14.6-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Extremely, however is simply massive sufficient to supply a larger viewing expertise than a standard smartphone. It additionally will get a lot brilliant with a most of 400 nits. I had no hassle watching content material indoors and outdoor.

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Surrounding the Tab P11 Plus is the facility button — which does not double as a fingerprint sensor, plus quantity rocker, USB-C port, microSD card slot, 4 stereo audio system which might be optimized for Dolby Atmos, four-point Pogo pins, and a keyboard connector. Whereas I did not get an opportunity to check the elective equipment, Lenovo does provide a folio case and keyboard pack to spruce up the Tab P11 Plus.

Given the construct high quality and design of the Lenovo pill, I might’ve cherished to see some type of fingerprint sensor — bodily or in-display — due to the instability of Android’s facial recognition. As a rule, the pill would battle to scan my face and immediate a PIN unlock as an alternative. Is that this a dealbreaker? Possible not. After the primary few days of utilizing the pill, I simply grew to become accustomed to unlocking the previous manner.

Efficiency

The Lenovo Tab P11 Plus is powered by a MediaTek Helio G90T processor and can run most apps that you just throw at it. For my each day use, which included watching movies curated by Android’s Leisure House, wanting up recipes, internet looking, and fixing the day’s Wordle, the Tab P11 Plus dealt with all of it like a champ. It was solely once I started enjoying graphics-intensive video games similar to Asphalt 9 and Iron Blade that the pill began to point out indicators of weak spot.

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Here is a Geekbench 5 comparability between the Tab P11 Plus and equally priced Android tablets to offer you a larger sense of how they carry out on a fair enjoying discipline. With a Single-Core rating of 491 and a Multi-Core rating of 1,581, the Lenovo pill is a step above its Samsung and TCL rivals.

To place these numbers to the check, I made a decision to make use of the pill as my devoted work machine over the previous week. Because of Productiveness Mode and a cloud-based content material administration system, I paired a wi-fi keyboard to the Tab P11 Plus and was in a position to go about my each day work routine. Productiveness Mode, like Samsung’s DeX, transforms the pill interface of Android right into a desktop-like expertise. 

Meaning apps open in miniature home windows as an alternative of full display, and a static taskbar on the underside shows your energetic packages within the type of icons. Usually, Slack messaging, sending and responding to emails, and drafting articles felt seconds slower than how it might on my MacBook Air, however the pill was highly effective sufficient to finish most days between 40% to 45% of battery.

Talking of which, the 7,700mAh capability within the Tab P11 Plus ought to fare nicely for many customers, together with touring professionals and college students. On common, I obtained a screen-on time of 9 hours earlier than needing to cost the pill. Even then, the 20W quick charging absolutely topped up the Tab P11 Plus inside three hours, a welcome improve from the 5W to 15W charging of opponents just like the TCL Tab 10S.

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There’s not loads to complain about with regards to the Tab P11 Plus’ side-firing audio system. With Dolby Atmos help, audio playback is immersive, with an emphasis on the mids and highs. Nevertheless, there may be one Kryptonite to the pill’s audio system: arms. When holding the Tab P11 Plus with two arms, which you doubtless might be, the side-firing audio system are simply muffled and suppressed. That’s except you watch and work together with the pill whereas it is set on a stand or desk.

Lastly, for fogeys, the pill can dial into Android’s Children House. When turned on, the Tab P11 Plus switches to a child-friendly interface full of teacher-approved video games, academic movies, and digital content material to maintain any child engaged. By means of the Household Hyperlink app, you’ll be able to monitor, set screen-time limits, and even lock the pill out of your telephone.

Software program and updates

On the time of penning this evaluate, my Tab P11 Plus is operating Android 11 with the January safety patch. As dated as which may appear, it is a tier above the various different mid-range tablets nonetheless operating on Android 10.

In keeping with Lenovo’s Replace Matrix web page, the Tab P11 Plus now operates on Android 12 and can obtain safety patches till Might 2024. The cadence and high quality of these safety updates are nonetheless up within the air.

Backside line

At a beginning value of $209, the Lenovo Tab P11 Plus is a really competent Android pill and one which’s straightforward to suggest. It has a really perfect display dimension (for most individuals) at 11 inches, is nice to have a look at, and delivers on the software program aspect of issues. There are just a few minor hurdles alongside the best way, similar to the shortage of a 3.5mm headphone jack, subpar cameras, and a modest processor. However even with the shortcomings, it is arduous to argue towards how a lot worth you are getting with this pill.

Ought to I purchase one?

I would suggest the Lenovo Tab P11 Plus to each customers on a price range and customers who merely desire a large-screen pill for leisure and looking. You may even use it as a transportable sensible dwelling monitor. However should you want extra energy out of your units — say you are an expert who dabbles in video enhancing or different graphics-intensive duties — then you definitely’ll wish to have a look at extra performant choices on our pill shopping for information.

Options to think about

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Apple iPad (Ninth Gen, 2021)

For an Apple various, the Ninth-gen iPad continues to be a viable pick-up. Its show measures carefully at 10.2 inches, too.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab A8

This Samsung pill is arguably the closest competitor to the Lenovo Tab P11 Plus, with its 10.5-inch show, 128GB of storage, and help for expandable reminiscence.

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Amazon Hearth HD 8 Plus

For youths, try Amazon’s Hearth HD 8 Plus. It has a similarly-sized show, runs on Android, and may take a beating due to its rugged plastic construct.