The Huawei Mediapad M3 Lite 10, an Android tablet with a generous 10.1-inch screen, offers four speakers, and the ability to send text messages and phone calls. This tablet has most of the features you’ll find in popular tablets, like Kindle Fire, at a reasonable price.
What is the Product?
The display screen has excellent viewing angles, although most Smartphones offers a higher density of pixels. You won’t have any problems with clear pictures or videos on this tablet indoors or in dim or normal light, despite the lower density of pixels. The colors are clear and saturated, but the screen isn’t one of the brightest out there.
The screen may be hard to see in direct sunlight unless you’re using a bright background like Microsoft Word.
The MediaPad’s internal hardware consists of a Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 SoC, which is an octa-core chip. The storage varies by country, with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage being a standard number.
The Snapdragon chip is a medium-quality chip, and you’ll need to adjust the graphics settings on some video games or experience frame drops. For example, you can install GTA Vice City, but the game may crash when you start to use it.
We don’t recommend the Lite 10 for intense video game use. Try the MediaPad M3 from Huawei instead if you are a gamer.
The MediaPad works fine for browsing and document preparation. The split screen option lets you use two apps simultaneously. The tablet has four speakers, so it’s an excellent choice for listening to music, streaming movies, or watching YouTube videos.
Many video formats work with the M3 Lite 10, including 3gp, * m4v, .mp4, *.webm, *.mkv, .ts, flv., and .3g2
The Company
Huawei is a consumer electronics company and telecommunications located in Shenzhen, China. The company’s products are sold in over 170 countries. Many sources believe the company is the biggest 5G telecommunications provider in the world.
The company, founded in 1987, sells consumers electronics, including tablets in the UK, U.S., Canada, and other countries. Huawei makes over 20 laptops and tablets, several wearables, and six cell phones for the American market.
Product Specification
The Huawei Mediapad M3 Lite 10 is similar in design to other Huawei tablets. This tablet comes in gold, white and space gray, and has a sleek, classy look. This state of the art tablet is powered by the EMUI 5.1, an Android 7.0 compatible operating system.
The metal frame has a gap between the back and frame, but this is standard for moderately-priced tablets.
The M3 Lite offers a relatively sizeable 10.1-inch display screen, IPS panel, and a maximum screen resolution of 1920 by 1200. The tablet uses one Lithium Polymer battery, which is included in the package.
This Huawei tablet has a flash memory solid state hard drive and an integrated card. The Micro SD is expandable up to 256GB.
The Mediapad M3 Lite 10 weighs 10.9 ounces and measures 10.1 inches long by 1.69 inches wide by 5.31 inches high.
The tablet has a rear webcam resolution of 8 MP, a processor count of eight, and 16GB of flash memory size. The Mediapad M3 Lite 10 offers a 1.6 GHz processor and 3GB of RAM.
Some users have issues with the HD streaming on this device. One online reviewer wrote that Netflix only appears on SD on his tablet, despite having a higher screen resolution. However, YouTube will display in 1080p.
This tablet is for use with the network LTE CAT4 and Wi-Fi 11ac 2.4 GHz & 5 GHz.
The battery lasts about 11 hours with Wi-Fi and HD video running, so the Mediapad is passable, but not one of the longest-lasting tablets, power-wise.
There’s a black bezel around the screen. The front-facing, eight-inch megapixel camera is positioned above the display screen. Unlock the tablet with the fingerprint reader placed under the front-facing camera.
You can replace the back, recent and home button with gestures after you activate the fingerprint reader.
This MediaPad still uses the USB 2.0 connector instead of the USB C port. Use the USB 2.0 to charge the tablet or connect accessories to the device with an adapter. There’s a microSD slot above the part. The 4G MediaPad provides a slot for a SIM card, too.
The opposite side has volume controls and a power bottom. There’s an audio jack measuring 3.5 millimeters at the top of the tablet.
The tablet also works well with a Bluetooth keyboard.
AUDIO
There are two speakers on the top of the tablet, and two more on the bottom. The speakers offer good sound quality and are louder than the speakers on the comparable Lenovo Tab 4 10 Plus.
The Harmon/Kardon speakers offer great sound quality, although the bass is practically non-existent. The sound remains clear and crisp for most movies, video, and music.
Android 7.0 Nougat
The MediaPad M3 has Android 7.0 Nougat and Huawei ‘s interface, Emotion UI 5.1. The interface is customized, but you can change it to your liking. Apps are installed on the home screen when you first use the device. Bring the apps to the app drawer by specifying the change in the settings.
You can’t remove the preinstalled Huawei apps. Other preinstalled apps include Facebook, Instagram, and apps from Microsoft and Google. The MediaPad also supports GPS.
The screen can show up to 24 icons displayed in rows of six. The icons appear to be double-spaced on the screen, leaving a lot of room. The user interface definitely seems ill-used considering the screen size.
The glass cover is a little slippery, but, overall, the tablet is easy to use. The Chrome browser slows down occasionally, but other than that, there are no significant problems.
You’ll be able to make phone calls if you have the LTE/MediaPad tablet. The tablet will work just like a phone, but you’ll need to use a headset. The LTE version also supports texting.
The phone and call features are included via a preinstalled app on the LTE model. The LTE phone app looks like the standard Android phone app. You make phone calls through the microphone and integrated phone app, or connect a headset to the audio jack.
The call quality is clear on both sides; full sentences can be understood without distortion. Speech remains clear even at maximum volume.
User Review Round-Up
One user commented that the MediaPad M3 Lite 10 is an Apple product with an Android layout. The camera is functional, the reviewer continues, but it doesn’t have a flash. The lack of a USB C is also a detriment.
Another user commented that the tablet is sturdy and that it works despite being dropped several times over a few months.
A few users like the superior sound and comment that it’s worth dealing with a less than ideal screen resolution to get the four speakers from Harmon/Kardon.
Pricing
The Mediapad M3 Lite 10 costs around $$ from most sellers, including Amazon.com and Newegg.com, but it may cost as much as $$ from some sources. The cost may vary, depending on the Octo-core included in a particular model.
You can buy this tablet from Amazon, Amazon Marketplace, eBay or Frye’s Discount Electronics.
How it Compares
This version of the MediaPad falls short when compared with better-known tablet brands in most areas.
The MediaPad allows you to run apps in the background without crashing or exceeding the RAM limit, but the UI layer makes switching between apps uneasy and results in stuttering you won’t experience on the competition.
Opt for a Samsung or Lenovo tablet if you play lots of graphics-heavy games. Many games won’t work properly on the MediaPad die to control latency issues.
The Lenovo Tab 4 10 Plus has a 20-hour battery life, much longer than the MediaPad.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 SM-T585 has speakers with no bass but higher highs.
The Mediapad M3 Lite 10 is smaller than the Amazon FireHD 10 and slightly larger than the Lenovo Tab 4 10 Plus. The lightweight design relieves strain on your arms when you watch streaming content for hours.
The eight megapixel back camera is suitable for snapshots, and the front-facing camera offers the same resolution. The front camera is fine for video chats, but not outstanding. Look to Samsung for better camera quality if you need to shoot lots of high-quality videos.
The M3 Lite 10 takes around five hours to charge. This tablet, like the Apple iPad, doesn’t offer a quick charging option, so you’ll need to be careful about letting the device lose power.
The Snapdragon 435 is good for light use, but not for gaming or constant heavy use. Look for a tablet with a more heavy-duty chip for gaming, like the Intel Core i7-8700K or AMD Ryzen 7 2700X.
The M3 Lite 10 gets hot easier (probably due to the Snapdragon chip). The Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 SM-T585 remains cooler even after heavy use.
The Amazon Fire HD 10 costs $100 less than the MediaPad and has many of the same features, plus a brighter screen.
Here’s a side-by-side comparison of the MediaPad M3 Lite 10 and two other tablets in the same price range.
[amazon box=”B07Q5VM8ZD”]
Name |
Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 SM-T585 |
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Price |
[amazon fields=”B07Q5VM8ZD” value=”button”] |
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Warranty |
Contact manufacturer for information |
[amazon box=”B07DPV4RNK”]
Name |
The Lenovo Tab 4 10 Plus |
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Price |
[amazon fields=”B07Q5VM8ZD” value=”button”] |
Ease of Use |
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Assembly Time |
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Build Quality |
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Warranty |
Contact manufacturer for information |
[amazon box=”B0746P5881″]
Name |
Huawei Mediapad M3 Lite 10 |
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Price |
[amazon fields=”B0746P5881″ value=”button”] |
Ease of Use |
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Assembly Time |
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Build Quality |
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Warranty |
12 months warranty |
The MediaPad M3 series is the best tablet series Huawei has to offer. The Lite 10 is a mid-range tablet without a few features you might find in more popular brands. You can buy an LTE or Wi-Fi version of this tablet. The Huawei MediaPad M3 8.4, is the best tablet in the series, due to its superior camera and display resolution. The Lite 10 offers excellent features for everyday use, and superior sound.
Pros and Cons
Here are a few of the pros and cons of the Mediapad M3 Lite 10
Pros
- Excellent WiFi speeds for transfers
- High-quality camera
- Louder than average speakers
- Fingerprint sensor
- Box includes Charger, USB Cable, quick start guide, warranty card, and eject tool.
Cons
- Not suitable for gaming
- Warranty lasts for one year
- Too much-preloaded software
- USB 2.0 connector instead of C port
Conclusion
Image via Pexels
We give the Mediapad M3 Lite 10 from Huawei 2.7 stars out of 5 stars. This moderately-priced tablet works fine if you need it for web browsing and Word, but it is near the bottom of the pack for gaming.
This tablet is responsive even after many straight hours of use. The front-facing camera offers a high megapixel count, and the speakers give you clear, crisp sound. The screen provides easy viewing for internet browsing and Word documents, although heavy graphics may not show up as well.
The MediaPad M3 Lite may not receive future security updates. An internet search provided many comments from current users who were unsure about updates. The increasing number of hackers and other unsavory types taking advantage of internet-connected devices make an unprotected tablet a prime target for identity theft.
There are several brand names in the same price range with better features, like the Apple iPad and Amazon Kindle. However, if you’ve used Huawei products before and like them, or just want a moderately-priced tablet for web browsing, Skypeing, streaming and music, the MediaPad M3 Lite is a good value.
The MediaPad M3 Lite’s low weight, crystal-clear speakers and decent image quality make it a good everyday device for work, school, and streaming. Gamers, however, will want to look elsewhere.
Featured Image via Pixabay