Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro Review

Performance and Benchmarks

Apart from a gorgeous 2K display and a compact projector, the tablet also packs in a good chipset — the Atom x5-Z8500. Running up to 2.24GHz, the Cherry Trail chipset from Intel, paired with 2GB of RAM, has a decent performance throughout.

General performance is a mixed bag — sometimes it’s smooth, and there are times that it’s unbearable. In short, it’s not as great as the iPads and other powerhouse Android devices in the market. For a flagship tablet, I’ve expected more especially with multi-tasking. There are obvious hiccups here and there, and the camera seems to take its time to load after opening multiple apps. On the bright side, in-app performance is smooth but I’m still rooting for tablet-optimized apps from Android devs.

Here are the benchmark numbers for reference:

* AnTuTu 5.7 – 47,942
* Quadrant Standard – 230,029
* PCMark – 4,963
* Vellamo – 3,808 (Chrome), 1,494 (Metal), 2,256 (Multicore)
* 3DMark – 1,260

Interestingly, Quadrant Standard score is way above the charts, but that’s what it says on the app.

Connectivity

The tablet I have for this review has dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/c which takes advantage of the 5GHz band of out home network. For something that’s released in 2015, a dual-band Wi-Fi is a must in order to give way to our older devices through the 2.4GHz band of conventional Wi-Fi. Aside from that, the slate is pretty well-connected with the addition of Bluetooth 4.1, GPS and GLONASS.

Battery Life

With its massive 10200mAh battery, we’ve expected it to last for long, and it does. Using the PCMark battery test, it’s able to score 11 hours and 31 minutes of work battery life.

Putting it through our traditional video test under Airplane mode with a 1080p video, 50% brightness, and no volume, it was able to last for 11 hours and 11 minutes. It’s still pretty impressive and the 2K display is definitely sipping more power compared to other panels.

Conclusion

With all the bragging rights the Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro have, it’s disappointing to see it slack off in general performance. It’s a good tablet overall but not as good as Galaxy Tab S2 or iPad Air 2. Still, the addition of the pico projector is a milestone and could poise itself to be useful for some. For Php29,999, it’s a bit tough to consider over other slates; but if you’re in for the projector, it’s not a bad choice.

Lenovo YOGA Tab 3 Pro specifications:
10.1-inch QHD IPS display, 299ppi
2.24GHz Intel Atom X5-Z8500 quad-core processor
2GB LPDDR3 RAM
32GB internal storage
up to 128GB via microSD
13-megapixel AF rear camera
5-megapixel fixed-focus front camera
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, MIMO
Bluetooth 4.1
GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS
180° rotatable built-in projector up to 70″
4 front-facing JBL Speakers, enhanced by Dolby Atmos
Android 5.1 Lollipop w/ Vibe UI
10200mAh battery w/ fast charging
247 x 179 x 4.68mm (thinnest point)
655g

What we liked about:

• Superb 2K display
• Built-in projector
• Quality speakers
• Solid build

What we didn’t:

• Performance hiccups
• Lack of tablet apps