China Tablets to recommend

ghgan1

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Just thought to make sure, because will log into my own Google account, and some other websites. :o

Edit: DRM Info shows Widevine L1. But Play Store shows 'device not certified'
P11 Pro is listed on the certification page officially.

Edit2: Went into the bootloader, it is indeed locked. All good.

I think we bought from the same vendor from lazada, my netflix cannot work, need to use a modded netflix app for it to work.
 

Nuclear Boy

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Used my XXP Pro (2020) for quite a while yesterday while testing. I'm blown away by the sound from the speakers (+Dolby Atmos). Never heard anything like that within this price point. It's almost like a decent set of small stereo speakers.

Text does look jagged if I look at the screen any closer than ~15cm, but with how big the screen is, I seldom find myself doing that. The vibrant colours, contrast and deep black are more than enough to redeem it.

I think we bought from the same vendor from lazada, my netflix cannot work, need to use a modded netflix app for it to work.
I never try because not a NF user. Disabled it together with some other apps I don't use. :s13: But everything else works fine, despite being 'uncertified'.
 
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Sneaker87

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Hi all,
Has been reading back more than 15pages mainly about flashing, fake global ROM and is making simple brain like mine confused.

I thinking to get xiaoxin pad pro 2021 bcoz of SD870. I like my device to be snappy. My usage of the this tablet will be for work(excel,word,PowerPoint) and media consumption on Netflix, YouTube and of coz HWZ.

Now question- can I just use once I receive from shoppe seller either Mer** or Mon** or I need do all these flashing stuffs.

Apologise if I'm asking noobs qns.
Appreciate guidance
 

MrAwesomeX

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[/QUOTE]
Hi all,
Has been reading back more than 15pages mainly about flashing, fake global ROM and is making simple brain like mine confused.

I thinking to get xiaoxin pad pro 2021 bcoz of SD870. I like my device to be snappy. My usage of the this tablet will be for work(excel,word,PowerPoint) and media consumption on Netflix, YouTube and of coz HWZ.

Now question- can I just use once I receive from shoppe seller either Mer** or Mon** or I need do all these flashing stuffs.

Apologise if I'm asking noobs qns.
Appreciate guidance

Yay this fake global ROMs in Lenovo pad 11 turning me off since Google play services is such a vital core of android experience .

Some apps/functions might experience problems such as GPS etc as I used China ROM in Xiaomi phones before I flashed to official global ones .
A mod netflix APK is never a good alternative to official one since they crashes more often and offer security risks from unknown source .

You might wanna consider international version of mipad 5 with SD 860 .
SD 870 isn't really better except in gaming than SD 860 cause I own/use both chipsets there's no visible improvement daily task/performance.
 

Urbanchap

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My XX Pad Pro (2020) came with the virgin China rom (Zui 12.0.497). I'm having Amazon Prime free trial and videos play in FHD. But not planning to subscribe :grin: . Out of the box, I could download Google apps like Chrome, Gmail and Google Map directly from Lenovo App Center (but app name mainly in Mandarin) but not others like Google Drive, Sheet, Keep etc. Later ownself sideload Google Play store.

Still trying out Zui and so far so good. But then I put up with Miui all these years :s13:

Will assess later whether I want to flash global rom or just stay on Zui. It keeps prompting me to update to Zui 12.5.051 but not 12.6. In meantime, anyone wanna find out about Zui, can ask me :cool:

Also, as my box came unsealed, I did a factory reset to make sure there's no spyware/malware.

R953j3W.jpg
 
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Teo Ming Ern

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My XX Pad Pro (2020) came with the virgin China rom (Zui 12.0.497). I'm having Amazon Prime free trial and videos play in FHD. But not planning to subscribe :grin: . Out of the box, I could download Google apps like Chrome, Gmail and Google Map directly from Lenovo App Center (but app name mainly in Mandarin) but not others like Google Drive, Sheet, Keep etc. Later ownself sideload Google Play store.

Still trying out Zui and so far so good. But then I put up with Miui all these years :s13:

Will assess later whether I want to flash global rom or just stay on Zui. It keeps prompting me to update to Zui 12.5.051 but not 12.6. In meantime, anyone wanna find out about Zui, can ask me :cool:

Also, as my box came unsealed, I did a factory reset to make sure there's no spyware/malware.

R953j3W.jpg
Don't update ZUI to 12.5... 12.0 more stable... and you can still flash to Global ROM... you need to install the Google Services Framework so that you can use Google's apps. ZUI doesn't allow certain apps (for I think reasons imposed by China).

Can download here: https://www.apkmirror.com/apk/google-inc/google-services-framework/

https://google-services-framework.en.softonic.com/android
 
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MrAwesomeX

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Best decision. I think among the 4 xiaoxin pad models, pad pro 2020 is still the best.
For the following reasons:

1) Have official global ROM to avoid zui (zui glitches are quite annoying at times)
2) Decently powered CPU (I run genshin impact at the highest settings with no issue and not much heating)
3) Uncapped media/YouTube playback up to 4k
4) 8k+ battery with decent charging speed at 20w
5) OLED screen (Come-on. Which other brand offer a OLED screen at this price point? Well, with the exception of alldocube with their no longer updated x neo)

The pentile pixel effect is totally exaggerated and it's by people who really need to critic a low cost OLED. At most just go to display and set font size to large for better readability. Which I did, since at 11.5 inch screen size, I can afford a larger font size)

I might drop the hammer to buy another set of pad pro on 12/12. Hopefully I can get one again for less than $300 and I will sell off my iplay40.
Iplay and most China brand tablets quality are usually bad in long run , I bought and regretted . They can't last compared to international brands.
Mi pad 5 global seems better value ard 400 SGD tbh.
Faster gaming processor 860 , faster memory access speeds UFS 3 , good 120hz IPS screen , software support should be up to android 12-13 at least too .

Only problem is global stocks hard to find in Lazada now.
The China version prices also inflated for some reason , though you can reflash to global ROM (need unlock bootloader).
 

Urbanchap

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Don't update ZUI to 12.5... 12.0 more stable... and you can still flash to Global ROM... you need to install the Google Services Framework so that you can use Google's apps. ZUI doesn't allow certain apps (for I think reasons imposed by China).

Oic. Will install, tks!
 

waterballoon

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Somebody on the Androidtablet subreddit EXPOSED the cheap arse China brands, namely the Bandoss N20 that I see constantly on flash sale at Lazada and was previously tempted to buy.

Anyway, the user did some intense checks after 3 apps report different specs.
  1. Marketed Mediatek deca-core X30 SoC (which is 3 years old btw) is actually a Mediatek Helio G35
  2. Marketed 10GB RAM is in reality 4GB of usable/physical RAM. There is some ZRAM but definitely doesn't add up to 10.
  3. Marketed 512GB storage is indeed 512GB but don't even need to bet it's emmc and probably at the cheapest type of HDD that will spoil in a year (already rolling my eyes at Amazon and Samsung for still using emmc).
  4. Marketed Android 11 is actually Android 8 but comes with certain scripts that forces Android 11 animation and for the tablet to display its OS as 11 and "behave" like 11 (animations, quick settings, etc.). This also means it will never receive updates.

So although the $199 or so price is tempting and the color looks quite nice, there is no need for such over-exaggeration of specs because it's really as good as false advertising and lying to customers that your product is something that it doesn't. Be like Lenovo and own your garbage tier tablets at least they're honest about weird specs like 2GB RAM in 2021.

* FYI, appears the post got taken down cos I can't find it anymore otherwise would be more than happy to share the link. Anyone who doesn't believe may get a set themselves and run some CPU-Z and deviceinfo apps to prove me wrong

---

My takeaway from this exposE is that my lowest bar are Allido/Chuwi type of brands (at least be something that's been heard of and reviewed by Chris that ang moh from techtablets cos he's thorough and would've called out lies) but be prepared that $100 = not a single software update ever.

There are sadly not much fun competition for tablets and iPads are in a league of their own. I'd have loved to support a Huawei matepad but the lack of GMS is annoying.

Amazon is "okay" if you can get it for cheap but the fact that FireOS is somehow still on Android 9 annoys me. Not to mention that aging SoC they're on.

Lenovo has very bad specs for affordable ones and constantly gimps the SKU locally (why are we getting a 4/64 Pro Plus).

Samsung is "okay" for their mid-range too but they know they can get away with cheapening out on things like the disgusting screen and aging chip on A7 Lite and the obvious lag and audacious 3GB RAM on the A7.

Even the Xiaomi Pad 5 reeks of cost and the previous Pad 4 only got 1 (or is it none) Android updates.

Sadly Android tablets are where the fun productivity is at with full Chromecast support, emulators, etc. People say technology has advanced yet we are being limited or gimped. Sigh.
 

MrAwesomeX

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Somebody on the Androidtablet subreddit EXPOSED the cheap arse China brands, namely the Bandoss N20 that I see constantly on flash sale at Lazada and was previously tempted to buy.

Anyway, the user did some intense checks after 3 apps report different specs.
  1. Marketed Mediatek deca-core X30 SoC (which is 3 years old btw) is actually a Mediatek Helio G35
  2. Marketed 10GB RAM is in reality 4GB of usable/physical RAM. There is some ZRAM but definitely doesn't add up to 10.
  3. Marketed 512GB storage is indeed 512GB but don't even need to bet it's emmc and probably at the cheapest type of HDD that will spoil in a year (already rolling my eyes at Amazon and Samsung for still using emmc).
  4. Marketed Android 11 is actually Android 8 but comes with certain scripts that forces Android 11 animation and for the tablet to display its OS as 11 and "behave" like 11 (animations, quick settings, etc.). This also means it will never receive updates.

So although the $199 or so price is tempting and the color looks quite nice, there is no need for such over-exaggeration of specs because it's really as good as false advertising and lying to customers that your product is something that it doesn't. Be like Lenovo and own your garbage tier tablets at least they're honest about weird specs like 2GB RAM in 2021.

* FYI, appears the post got taken down cos I can't find it anymore otherwise would be more than happy to share the link. Anyone who doesn't believe may get a set themselves and run some CPU-Z and deviceinfo apps to prove me wrong

---

My takeaway from this exposE is that my lowest bar are Allido/Chuwi type of brands (at least be something that's been heard of and reviewed by Chris that ang moh from techtablets cos he's thorough and would've called out lies) but be prepared that $100 = not a single software update ever.

There are sadly not much fun competition for tablets and iPads are in a league of their own. I'd have loved to support a Huawei matepad but the lack of GMS is annoying.

Amazon is "okay" if you can get it for cheap but the fact that FireOS is somehow still on Android 9 annoys me. Not to mention that aging SoC they're on.

Lenovo has very bad specs for affordable ones and constantly gimps the SKU locally (why are we getting a 4/64 Pro Plus).

Samsung is "okay" for their mid-range too but they know they can get away with cheapening out on things like the disgusting screen and aging chip on A7 Lite and the obvious lag and audacious 3GB RAM on the A7.

Even the Xiaomi Pad 5 reeks of cost and the previous Pad 4 only got 1 (or is it none) Android updates.

Sadly Android tablets are where the fun productivity is at with full Chromecast support, emulators, etc. People say technology has advanced yet we are being limited or gimped. Sigh.

Impossible to profit if selling at such specs for small unknown brands .
Even Amazon fire HD 10 selling at loss with their specs .
Their strategy is usually to fake specs sheets to cheat unsuspecting customers especially those not technology savvy ones.

See those reviews give 5 stars even if they are cheated to misled more ppl into the trap . Sad .
 

Teo Ming Ern

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Impossible to profit if selling at such specs for small unknown brands .
Even Amazon fire HD 10 selling at loss with their specs .
Their strategy is usually to fake specs sheets to cheat unsuspecting customers especially those not technology savvy ones.

See those reviews give 5 stars even if they are cheated to misled more ppl into the trap . Sad .
Amazon's strategy is to take a loss with the hardware and earn through the content that the Fire Tablet will use... theirs is a very narrow strategy albeit like e-readers which tie users to a particular e-book store or format... a bit antiquated but works in the US... and Europe... unfortunately doesn't work anywhere else I must say... it's not like they bother about our sales...
 

Teo Ming Ern

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Somebody on the Androidtablet subreddit EXPOSED the cheap arse China brands, namely the Bandoss N20 that I see constantly on flash sale at Lazada and was previously tempted to buy.

Anyway, the user did some intense checks after 3 apps report different specs.
  1. Marketed Mediatek deca-core X30 SoC (which is 3 years old btw) is actually a Mediatek Helio G35
  2. Marketed 10GB RAM is in reality 4GB of usable/physical RAM. There is some ZRAM but definitely doesn't add up to 10.
  3. Marketed 512GB storage is indeed 512GB but don't even need to bet it's emmc and probably at the cheapest type of HDD that will spoil in a year (already rolling my eyes at Amazon and Samsung for still using emmc).
  4. Marketed Android 11 is actually Android 8 but comes with certain scripts that forces Android 11 animation and for the tablet to display its OS as 11 and "behave" like 11 (animations, quick settings, etc.). This also means it will never receive updates.

So although the $199 or so price is tempting and the color looks quite nice, there is no need for such over-exaggeration of specs because it's really as good as false advertising and lying to customers that your product is something that it doesn't. Be like Lenovo and own your garbage tier tablets at least they're honest about weird specs like 2GB RAM in 2021.

* FYI, appears the post got taken down cos I can't find it anymore otherwise would be more than happy to share the link. Anyone who doesn't believe may get a set themselves and run some CPU-Z and deviceinfo apps to prove me wrong

---

My takeaway from this exposE is that my lowest bar are Allido/Chuwi type of brands (at least be something that's been heard of and reviewed by Chris that ang moh from techtablets cos he's thorough and would've called out lies) but be prepared that $100 = not a single software update ever.

There are sadly not much fun competition for tablets and iPads are in a league of their own. I'd have loved to support a Huawei matepad but the lack of GMS is annoying.

Amazon is "okay" if you can get it for cheap but the fact that FireOS is somehow still on Android 9 annoys me. Not to mention that aging SoC they're on.

Lenovo has very bad specs for affordable ones and constantly gimps the SKU locally (why are we getting a 4/64 Pro Plus).

Samsung is "okay" for their mid-range too but they know they can get away with cheapening out on things like the disgusting screen and aging chip on A7 Lite and the obvious lag and audacious 3GB RAM on the A7.

Even the Xiaomi Pad 5 reeks of cost and the previous Pad 4 only got 1 (or is it none) Android updates.

Sadly Android tablets are where the fun productivity is at with full Chromecast support, emulators, etc. People say technology has advanced yet we are being limited or gimped. Sigh.
Tablets have been neglected cos Google didn't know what to do with them... hence the OS development for Android tablets has stalled forever... until now... the pandemic showed the world that there is a space for productivity using tablets and not just a laptop... and not just content consumption like the Apple mode... especially for third world countries - the tablet represents a larger screen device which can serve as a laptop - which is very important for HBL for students and teachers alike...

Hence the sudden surge this year in tablets with 2-in-1 capabilities even with the low end brands like Alldocube or Teclast or Chuwi... having something that works is better than none... these 3 brands aren't just popular in China... they have huge followings in India, and SEA countries and possibly South America too... if you check YouTube you'll find lots of reviews of these cheap and cheerful China brands... everything from phones to tablets to True Wireless headphones or earphones to Bluetooth speakers, etc... really quite amazing functionality given the price point... so there's a space for these brands... and much room for Google to improve the Android productivity experience...
 

Teo Ming Ern

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Iplay and most China brand tablets quality are usually bad in long run , I bought and regretted . They can't last compared to international brands.
Mi pad 5 global seems better value ard 400 SGD tbh.
Faster gaming processor 860 , faster memory access speeds UFS 3 , good 120hz IPS screen , software support should be up to android 12-13 at least too .

Only problem is global stocks hard to find in Lazada now.
The China version prices also inflated for some reason , though you can reflash to global ROM (need unlock bootloader).
Depends on what you buy and your expectations I guess... I won't expect to pay $140 for my Alldocube iPlay 20 and have it last more than 2 years... it's one year old now and it's still good... my mother uses it to surf the internet, watch drama videos streamed from web browser and watch YouTube Vanced videos... so far all good... oh and she also takes notes on it using Microsoft Office Word... she uses the on-screen keyboard... all good so far... not flawless, but definitely not irritating to use or impossible to control the interface...
 

Teo Ming Ern

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Oh dear, my Tab P11 Pro died on me when I was flashing to global rom using the lmsa tool. Now I can't even power up the tablet.

On the lmsa tool, its stuck at the dialog "Find QDLoader COM Port". But windows can't even recognise the usb device and say it malfunctioned.

What do I do next? :frown:
You need to update your USB driver... it's always the USB driver that messes up this step... look for your motherboard's or laptop's updated drivers...
 

waterballoon

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Tablets have been neglected cos Google didn't know what to do with them... hence the OS development for Android tablets has stalled forever... until now... the pandemic showed the world that there is a space for productivity using tablets and not just a laptop... and not just content consumption like the Apple mode... especially for third world countries - the tablet represents a larger screen device which can serve as a laptop - which is very important for HBL for students and teachers alike...

Hence the sudden surge this year in tablets with 2-in-1 capabilities even with the low end brands like Alldocube or Teclast or Chuwi... having something that works is better than none... these 3 brands aren't just popular in China... they have huge followings in India, and SEA countries and possibly South America too... if you check YouTube you'll find lots of reviews of these cheap and cheerful China brands... everything from phones to tablets to True Wireless headphones or earphones to Bluetooth speakers, etc... really quite amazing functionality given the price point... so there's a space for these brands... and much room for Google to improve the Android productivity experience...

it's true. But personally, I hate to watch tech reviews from India because I really cannot understand most of their videos (when it's being done in their native language, no fault of theirs) and think they talk too much and bit over-critical lol

Guess I put the lowest bar for a tablet to brand to go for to the Telcast/Alldocube range because they at least are honest about their specs. My problem with the Banoss and the other literal unknown brands is that they tell one lie about their SoC, who knows what else they lie about - just not a good experience I want to have as a consumer lor.

Hopefully with Android 12L tablets become more useful but knowing Android fragmentation, could be years before any tablet gets it. But again if using a cheap one like Alldocube can just buy their latest one when the time comes :p
 

MrAwesomeX

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Depends on what you buy and your expectations I guess... I won't expect to pay $140 for my Alldocube iPlay 20 and have it last more than 2 years... it's one year old now and it's still good... my mother uses it to surf the internet, watch drama videos streamed from web browser and watch YouTube Vanced videos... so far all good... oh and she also takes notes on it using Microsoft Office Word... she uses the on-screen keyboard... all good so far... not flawless, but definitely not irritating to use or impossible to control the interface...

I still Think kindle fire HD 10 2021 version superior @ ard 150 sgd. It used p60 mtk chip.
Fire tablet also has better battery life and there's a fire toolbox for easy DIY Google services etc.

Quality wise I think not bad also look at all the reviews.

Definitely has more value that most China tablets at this price range.
 

Sneaker87

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Ok then I guess best is ask seller not to break seal to install fake global ROM and stick to Zui. I have been using Xiaomi for 6years and don't have much issue so I should be fine.

Based on review, xiaoxin productivity UI/UE are better than Xiaomi pad hence I'm more incline to xiaoxin.

Hopefully 1212 got some good deal.
 

MrAwesomeX

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Ok then I guess best is ask seller not to break seal to install fake global ROM and stick to Zui. I have been using Xiaomi for 6years and don't have much issue so I should be fine.

Based on review, xiaoxin productivity UI/UE are better than Xiaomi pad hence I'm more incline to xiaoxin.

Hopefully 1212 got some good deal.

Mipad5 all prices marked up so far so I probably not going get it anytime soon.
Price performance wise it's the highest for that price range cause it uses 860 SD chipset flagship class and 2K 120hz screen and has a legit global version.

Lenovo I looking at pad plus (2021) or p11 pro (2020) cause as sd662 in p11 isn't ideal even for basic work .

I hear rumors global lenovo p11 models releasing soon (with same hardware I hope) .
Maybe those global ROM can be flashed to China counterparts .
 
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