Via MyDrivers
(UPDATE, April 28: Mi fans, mark your calendars. Xiaomi Philippines just confirmed the first sale date of the Mi Pad on the company’s Facebook page. The tablet will be available starting May 4, 2015.)
It turns out the Redmi 2 isn’t the only Android KitKat device Xiaomi is planning to release in the Philippines soon. Last year’s Mi Pad, the company’s iPad mini challenger — which, coincidentally, also looks like a candy-coated Apple tablet — is on the cards for the local market, as hinted at by its official Philippine website.
The Mi Pad features a slab of Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for scratch resistance on top of a 7.9-inch, 2,048 x 1,536 IPS display, which translates to a screen density of 326ppi, making it as pixel-dense as the iPad mini with Retina display and sharper than most smartphones these days. Unsurprisingly, it has also adopted the 4:3 aspect ratio of the iPad.
Under the hood, you’re looking at Nvidia’s built-for-gaming Tegra K1 processor, alongside 2GB of RAM and 16GB of expandable storage. All that for a reasonable sum of P10,999. Not bad at all, wouldn’t you say? There’s no word on a release date just yet, but we should hear something official soon.
Specs of the Xiaomi Mi Pad (Price in the Philippines: P10,999):
* 2.2GHz quad-core Nvidia Tegra K1 processor
* 2GB RAM
* 16GB internal storage
* microSD card slot (up to 128GB)
* 7.9-inch IPS display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 (2,048 x 1,536 resolution)
* 8-megapixel rear camera
* 5-megapixel front camera
* 6,700mAh battery
* Android KitKat
RAMON LOPEZ’S TAKE: Like the Redmi 2, Xiaomi’s Mi Pad tablet looks great on paper. (In pictures? Not so much.) And like many Xiaomi devices before it, it seems capable of making good on its promise of uncompromising performance without burning a hole in your pocket.
What it may end up failing to deliver is the best Android experience, as Xiaomi has a reputation of lagging behind the competition in terms of integrating the latest Android build to its custom user interface. And it shows, even in Xiaomi’s current releases.
What the Mi Pad may end up failing to deliver is the best Android experience, as Xiaomi has a reputation of lagging behind the competition in terms of integrating the latest Android OS to its custom interface.
Both the Redmi 2 and Mi Pad are still running Android KitKat, in an age where Android Lollipop-based releases are becoming the rule rather than the exception. I’m hoping an upgrade to Lollipop will come sooner than expected, but I doubt that will be the case given Xiaomi’s track record with previous versions of the Android OS.
Learn About This Author
