We review the Xiaomi Mi Pad 2 Windows edition!

Xiaomi announced the successor device to their highly popular Mi Pad tablet last year, and we gave you our take on the Android-powered tablet as soon as it was available overseas. Unfortunately, it’s only now that Xiaomi has released the Windows 10 powered variant of the device. Fortunately, we managed to get our mitts on it rather quickly.

Today we’ll be taking a look at how Windows 10 changes the paradigm of the tablet. Here’s a refresher of the specs in case you’ve missed it:

Xiaomi Mi Pad 2 specs

• Intel Atom X5-Z8500, 2.24GHz quad-core processor
• 2GB of RAM
• 7.9-inch QXGA display, 1536 x 2048 resolution
• 64GB of storage
• 8-megapixel rear camera
• 5-megapixel front
• WiFi, Bluetooth, USB Type-C
• Windows 10
• 6190mAh battery

Metal bodied looker

The Windows 10 edition of the Mi Pad 2 is identical to its Android sibling in terms of design. You can go and check out our earlier review of the Mi Pad 2 Android Edition to see what we thought of the design, but the short version is that the new metal body feels extremely good and premium, compared to the previous generation tablet.

Windows 10 makes the Mi Pad 2 a productivity machine

One of the nicer things about Windows 10 version of the Mi Pad 2 is that it’s now a perfect productivity machine for many people. Now Android, by itself is a great OS for tablets, but it’s currently lacking productivity apps and has no way to run legacy x86 programs that many companies favor.

That’s not a problem with Windows 10 obviously, and since there’s no more partition between Windows versions (good riddance, RT) you’re getting the same experience on the Mi Pad 2 as what you get on your Windows 10-powered desktop or notebook. The tablet had Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint pre-loaded into it when we got it.

Unfortunately the Windows 10 version of the Mi Pad 2 doesn’t come with a keyboard, though the good news is that there’s a lot of third-party Bluetooth keyboards available in the market today.

Same hardware as the Android version but you get more storage

Like we said earlier this particular tablet is essentially the same as the Android-powered version when it comes to the hardware. It runs Intel’s Atom X5-Z8500 quad-core processor running at 2.24GHz, paired with 2GB of RAM. There’s a large storage bump over the Android version – 64GB as opposed to just 16GB though the tradeoff is that you lose the microSD expansion slot on the device. There’s also no 3G connectivity on the device, leaving you with just WiFi for connectivity.

We’ve already established that Intel’s newest quad-core processor is a monster, scoring high marks in AnTuTu on the Android version. That’s still true with the Windows 10 version, though obviously things are a little different with the x86 architecture. It’s good enough for most Windows tasks and light to moderate gaming (DoTA would probably run on it), but expect the tablet to struggle with more complex, full-fledged games.

Does it get hot under full load? Not exactly – the tablet managed to heat up to a comfortable 32 degrees on standby and 36 degrees on full load.

Camera does a decent job, but who takes photos using a tablet?

Like many tablets nowadays, the Mi Pad 2 has a rear camera – an 8-megapixel snapper, in fact. Is it any good? Well, yes – it’s perfectly adequate for a tablet’s camera, though many people would prefer to use their phone’s primary camera to take snaps. It’ll cause you less embarrassments too.

Decent battery life for a Windows tablet

We’ve already established the potential battery endurance of the Mi Pad 2 since we’ve extensively run the PCMark Benchmark on the Android version of the tablet. Unfortunately, we did not have the same access to that tool for the Windows 7 version, though we did record a screen time of around 7 hours for the Windows 10 powered version.

Verdict: a productivity-focused version of Xiaomi’s latest metal tablet

Shoving Windows 10 into the gorgeous Mi Pad 2 is a step in the right direction for Xiaomi. It’s a powerful tablet that can run most daily productivity tasks, though we’re a little bummed out that they didn’t include a keyboard with the package, which could have improved the overall user experience. Nonetheless, the Windows 10 version of the Mi Pad 2 is an excellent mix of portability and usability, though if you want a piece of it you’ll have to find a way to import one yourself into the PH, to the tune of around Php 9620 or RMB 1299.