Huawei MediaPad M5
A superb media device and a alternative to the iPad mini 4 if you can live with Android’s tablet shortcomings
SCORE PRICE £244 (£299 inc VAT) from pcpro.link/290hwm5
As soon as you remove this sleek tablet from its box, its iPad aspirations are obvious. At first glance, you might even mistake it for an iPad mini 4 – until you spot the Huawei logo at the top. Far East manufacturers still haven’t got the memo about being subtle with their branding. It’s forgivable, though, because the MediaPad M5 looks and feel fantastic. The smooth metal body gives it a premium feel that the Lenovo Tab 4 8 Plus distinctly lacks.
Held in portrait orientation, a fingerprint reader sits on the bottom bezel, which is more awkward to use than the Lenovo’s side-mounted reader, with power and volume buttons on the right edge. The SD card slot is accessed via a SIM-like drawer that helps to maintain the smooth, seamless design. Huawei places the USB-C port on the bottom edge, but search as you might you won’t find a 3.5mm headphone jack. At least Huawei provides an adapter in the box.
Turn on the MediaPad and the difference in screen quality compared to the Lenovo is apparent. The 8.4in IPS display has a superior 2K resolution of 2,560 x 1,600 and 359ppi pixel density – the highest on test. It’s the best Android screen here, bar the incredible Samsung Galaxy Tab S4. Those users with Netflix subscriptions will be pleased to see that the M5 makes the list of devices certified for streaming HD content, while sound quality from the Harman Kardon speakers is fantastic.
Huawei chose to go with a Kirin 960 processor, which is a rung down from the 970 but still delivers strong performance compared to its Android rivals. Its Geekbench 4 single-core score of 1,882 is double that of the Lenovo and the same as the Samsung Galaxy Tab S4, while a multicore result of 6,194 beats even the 2018 iPad.
It’s also a capable gaming device, reflected in its 27fps in the GFXBench Manhattan test, and there’s plenty of gaming to be had, too: battery life is strong, looping our test video for 12hrs 49mins.
The MediaPad M5 is easily the best 8in Android tablet on test and a viable alternative to the iPad mini 4. It’s £100 less than the iPad mini 4 too, and even with the added cost of an SD card to bulk up the 32GB storage, it’s better value. The question then boils down to this: are you happy to live with Android instead of iOS, which also has a better selection of tablet apps? If so, the M5 8.4in is a great choice.