Reading graphic novels on a decent-sized screen or streaming films without compromising quality is something we all look forward to while travelling, but there are a few tablets on the market that allow us to do this without making us pay through the nose. Further, there are only a handful of inexpensive tablets that come with a cellular option, that is, you can slip in a SIM card and not have the tablet tethered to a phone’s Internet connection. Redmi Pad 2 Wi-Fi+Cellular offers all of this, and it’s one of the friendliest Android tablets around.
We started using the tablet only a few days ago, so what we have here are our first impressions.
The tablet from Xiaomi has enough processing power to run any app or play most of the latest games, and the screen is bright enough to use outside. You can also use it with a stylus or add a folio cover. It can easily become one of the best all-around Android tablets for most people.
You can work on two windows side by side, plus a floating window.
Travel companion
The tablet feels like it has been built for travellers. More compact than most Android tablets, it’s reasonably light for you to hold on to for several hours in case a folio cover-stand is not in your arsenal.
There are symmetrical bezels surrounding the screen, thick enough to allow you to hold the machine comfortably.
The design department has looked at a practical aspect that some rival Android brands miss out on — the rear camera bump is almost flush with the body, ensuring the device doesn’t wobble.
It’s a tablet strong enough to be given to children or thrown into your backpack while travelling. There is no fingerprint sensor on the power button but there is face unlock, so you can bypass the irritating pin-punching process.
The highlight of the tablet is the 11-inch 2.5K LCD display. It offers good contrast and gorgeous colour reproduction, pleasing enough for most people. You get dark blacks and not something murky. The screen size makes it a good choice for watching films or going through a carousel of photographs. The brightness maxes out at 600 nits, which is good enough for most use cases.
Xiaomi is offering a quad-speaker setup, which is impressively loud for a small tablet. It makes the machine a companion for streaming content on the move. Even a 3.5mm headphone jack has been retained.
Powerful and power efficient
There is HyperOS 2.0 slapped on top of Android 15 and the experience is pleasantly good. We have been able to work on two windows side by side, while a third window floats on top. There is also a decent amount of customisation in the wallpaper department and so on. Xiaomi hasn’t added too much bloatware, something the company has lately been keeping an eye on. Yes, there is Spotify and Netflix preinstalled, but none of that Booking.com or Facebook.
Since the review unit comes with 256GB storage, we are not worrying about the files we are packing in. Powering the machine is Helio G100-Ultra with 8GB RAM. It does a pretty good job at running everyday tasks. We can work on multiple windows simultaneously without the apps crashing. Most games work with stable frame rates.
In the accessory department, you can buy a smart cover, which protects the display and hibernates the tablet. You can also fold up a part of it and turn it into a stand. There is support for the Redmi Smart Pen, which can be used to scroll or take notes. I am not much of an artist, yet, the stylus is turning out effective enough to make quick sketches to go with notes.
The tablet is powered by MediaTek Helio G100-Ultra processor.
There is no external keyboard-cover accessory, which proves that the tablet has been designed primarily for consuming content or for browsing.
Early impressions
The front 5MP camera is basic (on the rear it’s 8MP), but it’s fine for video conferencing. You can capture photos and videos in HDR, or use the cameras as a document scanner. There is also a telepromter feature that can help when you create your own content. The audio pickup is decent. Despite being a compact tablet, Xiaomi has managed to pack a 9,000mAh battery. The battery needs charging every second-odd day, so you get excellent output of well over 10 hours. The glory days of the tablet category are far from over, proves Redmi Pad 2 Wi-Fi+Cellular.
At a glance
Redmi Pad 2 Cover: Protect Redmi Pad 2 with the official cover (needs to be purchased separately). Close it, and the tablet goes back to sleep, saving battery effortlessly.
AI features: Unlock smarter productivity with AI-powered features. With Circle to Search (the feature is available out of the box), find what you need instantly, while Gemini AI delivers personalised assistance that adapts to how you work and play — making every interaction faster, easier and more intuitive.
Pricing: Redmi Pad 2 will be available in grey and blue. Pad 2 Wi-Fi variant starts at ₹13,999 (4 GB/128 GB). The Wi-Fi + Cellular model begins at ₹15,999 (6 GB/128 GB) and ₹17,999 (8 GB/256 GB). It will go on sale from June 24 across Amazon, Flipkart, Mi and Xiaomi retail.