Xiaomi MiPad is the first tablet in the history of the Chinese manufacturer of mobile devices. For fans of the brand and the MIUI OS is a huge step forward – towards the creation of an ecosystem, acting under a common flag. The company has already at this point, in addition to smartphones and tablet, their market also has a smart TV or routers. With ever greater efforts, developed a synchronization between each of the devices.
MiPad, like all the equipment from the Xiaomi has a very good build quality, and at the extremely low price. Currently, the device can be purchased for just over $300 (prices after import to us, in China it cost about $240). Available in 5 colors, and capacitive two versions – 16 and 64 GB. Memory of the tablet can be extended by an additional 128 GB via microSD card.
The MiPad we review was received from ibuygou.com shop, that supplies Xiaomi devices to all over the world.
The package
MiPad is supplied in standard for Xiaomi boxes. Inside, in addition to the device itself, we find only a set of manuals, USB cable, and the key to the SD card slot. Distributors of Xiaomi products to Europe, usually in addition provide an adapter to our standard wall sockets.
Specification
Xiaomi MiPad sports with 7.9 inches screen with a PPI equal to 324 at a resolution of 2048 by 1536 pixels and two cameras 8MP/5MP. The heart of the device is the latest Nvidia Tegra K1 4×2.2 GHz + 1 core A15 graphics (codename Kepler with 192 cores) aided by 2GB of RAM.
The device also comes with a powerful battery with a capacity of 6700 mAh.
- Screen 7.9 „IPS 2048 x 1536 pixels Corning Gorilla Glass III
- 4-core processor Nvidia Tegra 2.2 GHz K1
- NVIDIA Kepler GPU 192
- 2 GB of RAM
- Internal Memory – 16/64 GB + microSD slot up to 128 GB
- Main Camera 8 Mpix
- Front Camera: 5 Mpix
- Other: Wi-Fi 802.11ac dual band, Bluetooth, microUSB OTG
- 6700 mAh Battery
- Android 4.4 KitKat with MIUI version for tablets
- Dimensions: 202.1 x 135.4 x 8.5 mm
- Weight: 360 g
- No GPS and NFC
Hardware
The device is made extremely robust – anyone who communed with the products of this brand should not be disappointed. The side frame, as well as the entire back are made from a single piece of reinforced, shiny, plastic. There are no clearances, the whole chassis is very solid.
We are pleased that Xiaomi has decided not to go in the stylistic from MI3, in which the device corners are not rounded. First of all, such a solution reduces a bit of usage comfort, but also increases the chances to damage the edges. Stylistically MiPad is very much like Apple’s iPad tablets.
The buttons used for volume control and launching devices were mounted on the right side. On the left side positioned memory card slot, which opens just as SIM slot in MI3. At this point, it is worth noting that the device is not equipped with a 3G modem – access to the Internet, is done primarily through WiFi.
MiPad has a fairly standard thickness. The weight of the device is heavier than iPad Mini. However comparing the two tablets in our opinion the build quality is noticeable – in this case, for the benefit of MiPad.
Screen
Device screen does not leave much to be desired. The colors are crisp and clear, and the backlight is so strong that the usage of the device at higher light does not cause trouble. MiPad is equipped with 7.9″ IPS screen with a resolution of 2048×1536. The pixel density is 324 PPI, so the device can compete with the iPad Mini equipped with a Retina screen, in which case the PPI is 326.
Battery
Here is another very strong point of the device. The battery capacity of 6700 mAh, allows a free use for a few days, assuming that we will not be playing for hours. Using the Wi-Fi network, applications in everyday use and also by playing music, you can go ahead and use the MiPada for about 4 days.
MiPad with Tegra K1 processor is supposed to withstand approximately one month of battery life (in standby mode). Theoretically it is possible, but unfortunately we will not experience this in our devices. Xiaomi adapts the device to work with their applications that do not use Google Sync Services, so using MiPad in Poland with MIUIPolska roms that come with Google Apps we have to take into account that performance on the battery will be shorter than declared by the manufacturer.
MIUI
MiPad is running the latest version of MIUI OS. It was in this case adapted for tablets. The whole was laid out in a manner very reminiscent of distribution options like iOS or Samsung tablets. The left side of the settings screen is a column menu and the right side is already introducing specific settings. The whole design is extremely intuitive, even for the person that had never used MIUI.
At the moment, this version of MIUI does not allow you to change themes – you can only edit wallpapers. On the desktop can only be placed gadgets that are already supplied with the system. In addition, we can put them on the screen, on which the applications are located.
More MIUI Tablet version screens here.
These are the first steps of Xiaomi for tablets MIUI version therefore most likely additional options will be introduced over time – so that all could interact with MIUI version for smartphones.
Benchmarks
Interesting fact is that MiPad we can run the Tegra Zone games such as Half Life 2, which is graphically superior to all the games on Android. After plugging in the keyboard and mouse or controller from the PS3 we can play on the tablet as on a PC.
Summary
MiPad certainly can be a very strong rival of top brand products such as Apple and Samsung. The device has a great specification, and at the same time as always, a very competitive price. When considering the purchase of the tablet we should ask ourselves a fundamental question – do we need a modem or GPS function for everyday usage – for those hard to find currently in MiPad. However, if these are not for your basic elements in MiPad it can certainly be a very solid choice – especially if you are using other Xiaomi devices.
MiPad vs. iPad
