We previously wrote about the new devices that Huawei launched in the Philippines recently. The lot includes the Huawei MatePad Pro Android tablet, which was announced alongside the Mate Xs foldable phone and the flagship MateBook X Pro laptop.

(Update, May 18: Our review is up! Read Huawei MatePad Pro review: Productivity and creativity in one premium tablet.)

SEE ALSO: Huawei MatePad Pro, MateBook X Pro, Watch GT 2e launched in PH. Price and preorder freebies here

In the Philippines, the MatePad Pro is priced at P32,990 or around $649, with up to P15,880 ($313) worth of preorder freebies depending on where you purchase it. Local pre-purchase offers will end April 24, so that should give you enough time to decide whether or not Huawei’s latest slate is for you.

If you’re on the fence, then you should read ahead and check out our unboxing and first impressions of the Huawei MatePad Pro.

Unboxing

The MatePad Pro comes ships in a plain-looking white box with a couple of essential accessories, which include the power brick and SIM-eject tool. You don’t get a set of earphones as part of the retail package, but that’s understandable considering the tablet doesn’t have a 3.5mm jack for wired audio accessories to begin with.

The card tray can house one SIM card and a proprietary Huawei NM SD card for extra storage. Our review unit supports 4G LTE data, but not 5G. For what it’s worth, though, the MatePad Pro has a 5G variant sold in other markets where the latest and fastest mobile standard is readily accessible. Oh, and in case you’re wondering… no, you can’t use the SIM card for SMS messages.

What’s in the box:

• Huawei MatePad Pro
• Wall charger
• Type-C cable
• Type-C to 3.5mm audio adapter
• SIM-eject tool
• User guide
• Warranty card

Unboxed

The included USB-C charger allows for fast charging up to 20 watts using Huawei’s QuickCharge standard, which is slower than SuperCharge on flagship phones like the Huawei P40 and Huawei P40 Pro.

The MatePad Pro supports 15-watt wireless fast charging when paired with a compatible charger (sold separately, of course). Reverse wireless charging up to 7.5 watts is also on board, which makes this tablet one of the first, if not the first, of its kind that can charge other devices on its own without the need for a charging mat.

For the review, Huawei Philippines sent us an M-Pencil stylus plus an Intelligent Keyboard case that can prop the tablet up at two different angles. These accessories are sold separately, but, again, they’re included in the preorder bundle for those who buy the MatePad Pro until the 24th.

We’ll have more to say about them in our full review. Our initial impression is that they’re of good quality, and essential to getting the most out of the tablet.

Smaller than your average 10-incher

The Huawei MatePad Pro has a 10.8-inch display; however, the size of the panel doesn’t make it bulky or awkward to use in tablet mode. At just 4.9mm, the bezels are small, too, and there’s no notch — just a small punch-hole cutout for the selfie camera. The bezel thickness of the Apple iPad Pro is 8.3mm, while the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6’s bezels are thicker, topping at 8.5mm.

The latest MatePad is one of the most portable 10-inch devices we’ve ever laid eyes on, and the size is almost perfect for one-handed use. It’s only 7.2mm at its thickest point — which is impressive — while the weight is roughly 460 grams, or the equivalent of two smartphones with a screen size of around 6.5 inches. It fees substantial in the hand, but it’s not heavy by any means; there’s enough weight that it doesn’t feel flimsy and fragile.

Even with a keyboard case on and the pen magnetically attached to its side, the MatePad Pro still feels like something you can easily carry around and prop up on a table whenever there’s work to be done.

Great for entertainment

The 10.8-inch touchscreen is LCD with a QHD resolution of 2,560 x 1,600, making it one of the sharpest displays on a tablet today. Huawei says the screen-to-body ratio is 90%, while the brightness is equally impressive and goes up to 540 nits. By comparison, the screen-to-body ratios of the Apple iPad Pro and Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 are 84.6% and 83%, respectively.

READ ALSO: Huawei P40 Pro review: Return of the king and Huawei P40 Pro earns best DxOMark scores for rear, front cameras

Additionally, the Huawei MatePad Pro supports ultra-high-resolution playback on YouTube using the preloaded web browser. Other apps also look great on the WQXGA panel, although streaming services like Netflix can’t display HD content because of the missing Widevine L1 certification.

Outside of certain apps, Android 10-based EMUI 10 on the new MatePad brings a pleasingly vivid aesthetic, and Huawei’s system-wide Dark mode provides a soothing reading experience when enabled. Plus, the viewing angles are wide enough to comfortably share your screen with the person next to you, while sunlight legibility is sufficient for outdoor use.

As for the selfie shooter in the punch hole, it’s a fixed-focus camera carrying an 8-megapixel sensor and f/2.0 aperture lens. It’s decent for video chat and taking pictures in bright light. It works for unlocking the tablet (provided the lighting is right), too, and you can enroll up to five face data for multiple-user households.

Another major selling point is the MatePad Pro’s quad-channel, quad-speaker sound system with Huawei’s Histen 6.0 3D stereo and Harman Kardon’s audio tuning for improved sound quality out of the box. With all the technology behind it, it’s no surprise that this tablet delivers a solid listening experience. The speakers are loud and clear; they’re particularly great for watching movies and gaming.

While it’s still early to give our verdict, the overall entertainment package on offer here seems to be well worth the price.

Flagship-grade performance courtesy of Kirin 990

The Huawei MatePad Pro packs a HiSilicon Kirin 990 chipset, which is the same silicon as the one inside the 4G models of the Mate 30 and P40 lineups. For the variant sold in the Philippines, the Kirin 990 inside is mated to 6GB RAM and 128GB storage.

Huawei’s flagship chip needs no introduction at this point. It’s incredibly fast and smooth regardless of the task; it will easily zip through all your favorite apps; and it’s efficient enough that you don’t need to worry about battery life when playing intensive games with high-end graphics. For those interested in benchmarks, our unit scored 479,688 in Antutu and 780 and 3,062 in Geekbench 5’s single- and multi-core tests, respectively.

Keeping the lights on is a 7,250mAh battery to last all day with juice to spare. As a caveat, though, the high-capacity battery will take a while to charge despite the inclusion of wired and wireless fast-charging options.

That’s it for now. We’ll have our full review ready soon, so check back for our verdict. In the meantime, feel free to share your thoughts on the Huawei MatePad Pro in the comments below.

Huawei MatePad Pro specs

• 10.8-inch LCD display, 2,560 x 1,600 resolution
• Octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 990 processor
• 6GB/8GB RAM
• 128GB/256GB/512GB storage
• 13-megapixel, f/1.8 rear camera
• 8-megapixel, f/2.0 front camera
• 7,250mAh battery with USB-C fast charging
• EMUI 10.1 based on Android 10 with Huawei Mobile Services
• Color available in the Philippines: Midnight Gray

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