Today we’re taking a look at Lenovo’s second outing with their 11.2″ P11 Pro tablet device. With a souped up MediaTek Kompanio processor, the 4GB edition is available starting at $399, with 6GB RAM available for $429 at Lenovo. While we had the Precision Pen 3 to play with, it doesn’t come bundled with the tablet, and will set you back another $69. This is their flagship 11″ though, with specs that easily outdo the 11″ Yoga tabs and the M10 HD. Only outdone by their P12 Pro, here’s the specs we had to work with:
- OS: Android 12 (will receive updates through 14)
- Processor: MediaTek Kompanio 1300T octa-core processor 4 x A78, 2.6 GHz, 4 x A55, 2.0 GHz, ARM G77, MC9 836 MHz
- Display: 11.2″ (2560 x 1536) 2.5K OLED, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, DCI-P3 color range, 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, TÜV-certified full care display
- Memory: 6GB LPDDR4X
- Storage: 128 GB UFS 3.1
- Connectivity: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS + GLONASS
- Ports: USB-C 3.2 Gen 1
- Expansion: MicroSD slot
- Camera: 13 MP auto-focus (rear), 8 MP fixed-focus (front)
- Accessories: Optional Precision Pen 3
Specs and Design
Picking up the 1.05 lb 11.2″ tablet, naturally the first thing we noticed was the display. the 2.5K OLED runs at a 120Hz, and even from just seeing the home screen we had vivid colors popping all over the place. That screen rests in a very sleek aluminum casing with two-tone coloring on the back that makes the P11 Pro stand out as a flagship product. It feels sturdy but is just as light as a 10th-gen iPad, measuring in at 0.26″ x 10.38″ x 6.56″, so it’s not really bulky considering the screen is 11.2″. On the right side (if you use it portrait) is a 8MP front facing camera tucked under the bezel. It’s not wrong, but my personal experiences is cameras at the top since I operate mostly in portrait, and it was just a minor learning curve to tilt the unit to take a selfie or set up for a Zoom call. The rear camera is on the corner near the power and volume button, but isn’t so huge that the tablet doesn’t lay flat with a big camera bump.
However that does put the P11 Pro at a disadvantage against other tablets with multi-lens arrays, and won’t provide the quality your smartphone probably can.
On the top is the power along with the card slot, with volume buttons on the upper right of the case (if you’re holding it in portrait). The back and side are magnetic to keep the optional Precision Pen 3 connected and charged, and is packing an 8,000 mAh battery we were looking forward to challenging.
For power the P11 Pro is using MediaTek’s Kompanio 1300T, which is about in line with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 860 on performance – our most direct comparison to test against was our Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 FE that is on the SDM778g platform (retailing at a comparable $599), and we had just as good of an experience if not better in certain situations.
The OS is pretty left alone and is almost a stock Android system, so if you’re used to your Pixel devices it will be a breeze to pick this up and use it with no issue.
Performance and Use
Like we do on our laptops, we set the brightness down to 60% and tried to burn down the battery with what we consider standard use. Given the power and processing the Kompanio 1300T was pushing, we were pretty excited to see what we could do with it while trying to hit Lenovo’s advertised 14 hours of battery life.
Starting off we opened up Netflix for a couple episodes of Peaky Blinders, and in addition to the super crisp picture and smooth motion flow from the 120Hz refresh rate, the sound was actually pretty phenomenal. It wasn’t just loud but balanced, and we’re ready to say that these are probably the best speakers we’ve experienced on a tablet device. Next came a little bit of work (I mean we have to try right?) and the 11.2″ screen made it easy to read a full size document in Adobe or Microsoft Word, and going landscape mode let us easily see and scroll through a couple of our large spreadsheets.
Reading – both books and comics – was also very comfortable. I usually read in dark mode, but the native eye protection and reading mode definitely took some of the eye strain out of the picture during that nighttime reading session we’re all guilty of indulging in (or those late night have-to-get-it-done Excel work). Flipping from reading to writing with the Precision Pen 3 was a breeze – the combo provides great pressure sensitivity, and making quick notes is easy.
Next up was some gaming. For a downloaded and installed game we used the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster to at least take on Garland in the Temple of Chaos. There were no issues with graphics, the motion was super smooth, and again we were treated to some great sound from the excellent speakers. We tried our XBOX Game Pass Ultimate subscription too, which allows game streaming to Android, giving us access to some high-power games.
We were actually able to play Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey – a PS4 / XBOX One level title – with almost no hassle whatsoever. If you have a strong wifi connection then you won’t get any lag, but naturally the image isn’t going to be quite as sharp as it is on the 4K display in your living room or attached to your gaming rig.
At the end of the day, it wasn’t the end of the P11 Pro’s day. We set it down and picked it up again the next morning, and after some web browsing and shopping for some time more, we were able to squeeze out about 10 hours before it needed some more juice. It’s not the advertised 14, but that’s still pretty good, and with battery life being one of my top preferred specs, this kills the iPad 10, which taps out in about 6 hours.
Overall
Starting at $399 for the 4GB version and $499 for the 6GB edition, even by adding a Precision Pen 3 for $69 you’re maxing out at $569, which is less than the $600 for the 256GB iPad 10, and WAY less than something like Samsung’s $800 Galaxy Tab S8. This is a strong price point that gets you something that’s pro grade and well above the level of a budget tablet. The specs and long battery life make this something you can use for both work as well as play – and with its great screen, loud speakers and sleek design it’s definitely up there in the top echelon of our tablet list. Even for non-professional use, the P11 Pro Gen 2 also provides great value to use as a home/media tablet.
