It's very confusing because they all mostly seem to do the same thing, so is there a reason to choose the Huawei MediaPad T3 over any other?...
As usual, with this kind of device, my first real test is can I write this review with it? This is actually slightly more complicated than it sounds. Not only does the T3's virtual keyboard have to perform, but I need to be able to browse multiple tabs, download and upload images, all the while monitoring my email and social feeds. (That last bit is a total lie obviously. I barely have a social feed)
So straight off, I can tell you the MediaPad T3 passes all those tests with flying colours... Text boxes appear in places where you can actually read what you're typing and with a simple two-finger swipe from the bottom of the display, you can split-screen apps like Chrome and Outlook.
Obviously, by pairing a physical bluetooth keyboard, functionality improves even more but I was pretty impressed by how smoothly these fundamental actions worked.
In fact, the T3 impressed me right out of the box. Its metal body is sleek and modern, the brushed finish and rounded corners make it easy to hold and the thing seems extremely light compared to other similar devices.
Anyone who has used a Huawei phone will find the user experience absolutely familiar as in many ways, the T3 really is just a giant phone with a 9.6inch display. That screen is perhaps slightly underwhelming in terms of definition and brightness. There's no light sensor so the display won't adjust automatically like the screens on most smart phones do. What's more, even when you manually ramp the brightness up to full, you'll still struggle to use it in sunny outdoor situations. Perhaps this compromised screen configuration is a battery saving measure. If so, it's effective, as all-day use is easily achieved.
Weirdly, there's no fast charging option and the T3 will take several hours to get back to 100%. I guess that'll have to be an overnight thing. Another slight oddity is the microUSB slot, instead of the reversible Type-C version the majority of new devices use.
There are a few other design flaws which are to be expected from a tablet in this price range. Camera quality is questionable, with surprisingly low resolution lenses both front and back. While I found I could still take reasonably sharp shots with both cameras, the colours weren't very vibrant and the digital zoom was terrible. Like I say, it's not unusual for tablets to sport under-performing cameras - it's just a bit strange given Huawei phones take such incredible pics.
Given the T3 is a MediaPad, I thought I'd better play some media with it. The results were great. Streaming TV is smooth and high quality. Again, lack of brightness was a daytime issue, but other than that I experienced no stuttering or crashes. Sound quality was also excellent, especially given there is only one speaker on the bottom edge of the device... No stereo or even 4-channel array as you might find on some other tablets. The single speaker is not particularly loud but things sound amazeballs through a half-decent set of headphones.
Sadly, while Huawei manufactures an LTE variant of the T3 that supports a nanoSIM for 3G/4G connectivity, that version isn't currently available in New Zealand, so we're stuck with WiFi-only for the time being.
There's still a microSD slot though, so at least you can expand the T3's somewhat stingy 16GB of built-in storage.
All in all, at $299 and $399 for the 8inch and 10inch models respectively, I feel this device is probably fairly priced. There have definitely been compromises made to keep the cost down, especially in terms of graphics and display quality, although this is ultimately balanced out by excellent battery life, good usability and plenty of processing power.
Click here for more information and pricing on the Huawei MediaPad T3
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