The P11 Pro 2nd Gen is the latest Android tab offering from Lenovo. Priced at Rs 39,990, the tablet is in the premium segment and can be considered a competitive alternative to iPads and Galaxy Tabs.
The P11 includes stylus support, and comes with 8GB+256GB internal storage powered by MediaTek Kompanio 1300T is eight-core chipset
Firstly, the tab is the successor of last year’s version, Tab P11 Pro, with some minor upgrades here and there, the most noticeable being a new processor. Last year’s tab offered a Snapdragon 730SoC.
After using the Lenovo tab P11 pro as my daily driver for over two weeks, I have come up with the good, the bad and… the-ignore-it part.
So, without any further adieu let’s jump into it…
Design: It is packed in a polished unibody alloy metal frame with Storm Grey colour scheme. The back of the tab is made of dual tone metal which looks great, but it is still a fingerprint magnet as it renders a matt-glass back texture. However, it does give a premium appeal due to the flat edges and metal frame.
But the good thing about the tab is, keeping its massive dimensions in mind, it still feels lightweight (480 grams), thanks to the equal weight distribution. Volume rockers are perfectly placed and work just fine. The same goes for the power lock key.
Kudos to the JBL backed speakers-grill placement, whether holding it vertically or horizontally, there will be enough room left for the loud speakers to do their job without diminishing the output.
Display: Tab P11 Pro (2nd Gen) massive screen size comes with Oleophobic Display coating that protects it from harmful blue light and also offers an eye protection filter, which I found myself using quite a lot at night time.
The tab offers an immersive 11.2 inches, 2.5k OLED display, The display is vibrant and has a broad spectrum of distinct colours. with an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate which can be switched between 60HZ.
It’s up to the user to set the refresh rate based on the need and battery lifespan. But the 120HZ is flawless, making scrolling and navigating between apps a great experience.
I found that the display worked properly. To get the most out of it, you might need to adjust the colour temperature to your liking. For gaming, the touch sensitivity was also good.
Its HDR10+ display is certified with 420-nits of brightness, capable of peaking up to 600-nits based on app demands. However, the panel glares a lot depending upon the external lighting and reflections.
Processor: This tab is powered by MediaTek Kompanio 1300T SoC that offers faster CPU and GPU speeds with improved efficiency, and supports 5g on WiFi and high-end gaming. It is loaded with stock Android 12 OS, with guaranteed two major Android updates to come in future.
It is a fairly good processor in many ways for a premium mid-range tablet.
During the time I used it, it performed daily activities without hassle. The 120Hz display and Vanilla Android experience made the tab feel responsive.
It worked nicely, with no apparent frame dips, when playing graphically demanding games like Asphalt 9, COD and PES. Although a slight increase in temperature could be felt near the front camera module, it wasn’t high enough to make using the phone problematic.
Cameras: Tab P11 pro 2nd Gen comes with a single 13 MP rear camera with HDR and A.I support. The 8 MP front camera offers portrait mode, HDR, and 1.4x zoom.
Despite lagging behind in terms of the number of sensors and camera optics is not a strong point of this device, it does click decent daytime pictures with a rear sensor, but don’t expect flagship-level detail. But in low light, it captures images with noticeable noise.
Turning on the HDR mode may help.
That’s it folks, the only positive aspect is the rear camera. The front camera is not as good as it sounds on paper. The 8 MP front camera offers portrait mode, HDR, and 1.4x zoom, but still does not give a satisfactory image, it makes pictures softer and in low light, captures a lot of distortion.
Battery: It houses an 8,000 mAh battery with 20W fast charging support. Another advantage is that the 20W power brick comes along with the tab.
The power brick can charge up the tab in less than two hours, which is quite decent taking into consideration the massive size of the battery.
On a full charge, it offers almost one and a half days of battery backup with extensive usage. But you can surely increase the battery span up to 3 days with moderate usage.
What I felt is that the Tab did well with battery management. Gaming and video streaming does guzzle a few battery percentage points but the standby performance as well as during day-to-day tasks is good.
But while charging the device, it does get warm, and a protective case on it makes the tab feel more warmer.
Pen: Lenovo’s Precision Pen 3 is also bundled in the box. It perfectly depicts the dimension of a normal pen, and with the added weight it feels firm and premium while using it.
Now, talking about the response time, most of the time it will do its job as expected ‘flawlessly’, but you will observe some instances where it might get sluggish just for a few seconds.
Using the Pression pen 3 on this massive screen size feels like using it on a slippery glass slab, a mixed experience itself.
Conclusion: This time, Lenovo has played its card right by offering a feature packed mid-premium range tab which is directly competing with iPads and Galaxy Tabs.
Premium Design, massive OLED screen, and Precision Pen 3 support, makes it a worthy opponent for tabs in similar price range. Not just on paper but also in daily usage, users will find it productive with all the additional accessories it supports.
However, it still needs some software refinement. You might observe battery percentage glitch, pen lagging issues, apps needing optimization in productive mode, and troublesome multitasking, which are very much fixable with regular updates.