Huawei’s new MatePad 11 and MatePad Pro feature a very familiar software interface
There’s no denying that Apple’s iPad lineup are the best tablets overall, even if you’re firmly planted in the Windows and/or Android side of things. So it would appear that after just a quick look at the new HarmonyOS 2.0 powering Huawei’s latest MatePad lineup of tablets, that Huawei thought the same thing. If you can’t beat them, then copy them.
In addition to unveiling the new Huawei Watch 3 series, the company also revealed a trio of MatePad tablets, using HarmonyOS 2.0 for the software and sporting some premium hardware. The Huawei MatePad Pro is the flagship of the group, powered by Huawei’s Kirin 9000E processor, along with featuring a massive 10,050mAh battery. You’ll be able to get back to 100% juice in no time, as there’s 40W wired fast charging, and even 27W fast wireless charging.
There’s a side-mounted fingerprint scanner for security, along with a USB-C port on the bottom for your connectivity. Strangely, despite using a larger 12.6-inch OLED display, the refresh rate for this tablet only comes in at 60Hz, while the MatePad 11 sports an LCD panel with a 120Hz refresh rate. The smaller 11-inch MatePad 11 is also powered by the Snapdragon 865 chipset, leaving Huawei’s flagship chipset for its “flagship” tablet. Meanwhile, the MatePad Pro 10.8 is equipped with a slightly improved Snapdragon 870 SoC compared to the MatePad 11.
The usual suspects are on board when it comes to connectivity for both the MatePad 11 and MatePad Pro thanks to Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 support. Both of these tablets feature Huawei’s M-Pencil support, although the MatePad 11 is compatible with Huawei’s Smart Magnetic Keyboard to go along with traditional mouse support, and sports a total of four speakers. The MatePad Pro ups the ante just a bit with a total of eight speakers paired with four microphones, while supporting both mouse and trackpad support.
Huawei also packed a few other useful features, especially for those who already use one of Huawei’s laptops, as you’ll be able to use the MatePad in several different ways. The first of which will be as a standalone drawing device, similar to something you might find with a Wacom tablet, being able to use the M-Pencil and an app like Photoshop to draw or edit images on the tablet. You’ll also be able to use the MatePad Pro as a secondary display for your laptop or computer, akin to Apple’s SideCar feature with the iPad and macOS.
Pricing for the MatePad Pro 12.6 starts at €799 in Europe, while the MatePad 11 will retail for €399. Availability for these tablets will be announced at a later time.