This is my favorite Android tablet under $400

Searching for an reasonably priced Android tablet in 2025 is… lower than superb. We’re at a degree the place Samsung and Amazon are largely conserving the funds pill market afloat, coupled with limitless choices from no-name manufacturers, none of that are price your time or consideration. It could make your decisions really feel fairly restricted, however you do have extra to select from.

The Lenovo Thought Tab Professional is one such selection. It was introduced at CES this January and hit retailer cabinets this April, all of it finished with little or no fanfare. The $390 value is on the excessive finish of the funds Android pill area, however it’s extra interesting than the $500+ flagships. The {hardware} appears good, too, however the quiet, inconspicuous launch makes it really feel like Lenovo lacks confidence within the pill.

Curious to search out out for myself, I spent the previous couple of weeks testing the Lenovo Thought Tab Professional, and it’s by no means what I anticipated. Lenovo’s tepid launch technique may lead you to consider there’s nothing particular right here, however having used and lived with the Thought Tab Professional, I believe this is likely one of the greatest funds Android tablets you should purchase proper now.

There’s quite a bit that may go flawed with lower-cost tablets. Whether or not it’s the {hardware}, show, efficiency, battery life, cost speeds, or software program, one in all these items often takes a backseat to accommodate a low value. However, amazingly, that’s not the case with the Thought Tab Professional.

The construct high quality is what struck me first. The Thought Tab Professional’s complete physique is constructed out of aluminum, and it appears and feels distinctive. It’s cool to the contact, the 6.9mm profile means it’s simple to grip, and the body has proven no indicators of bending or creaking — one thing that’s not all the time a given with cheaper tablets like this.

I used to be additionally actually glad to discover a fingerprint sensor constructed into the facility button. It is a function quite a lot of funds Android tablets usually forgo (even the $700 OnePlus Pad 3), however Lenovo managed to incorporate one within the Thought Tab Professional. And it’s nice! It’s quick, dependable, and makes unlocking the pill or accessing a password supervisor/banking app a lot simpler. Coming into a PIN for these items isn’t the top of the world, however I’d a lot moderately have a fingerprint sensor for them, and I’m glad to have one right here.

Much more spectacular than the fingerprint sensor is the display screen. Whereas I don’t love the 12.7-inch dimension (extra on that later), all the pieces else in regards to the display screen is great. The 2944 x 1840 decision is sharp, the LCD panel produces pleasing colours, and the 400 nits of max brightness is loads for regular use.

You most likely received’t need to use the Thought Tab Professional in direct daylight, however sitting in a brightly lit espresso store proper by a window, I had no visibility points by any means. The off-axis viewing angles aren’t the perfect, however as long as you aren’t watching a film at an off-angle, they shouldn’t be a critical problem.

Additionally seeming to know {that a} good show is just nearly as good because the audio system that accompany it, Lenovo has crammed in an incredibly good audio expertise into the Thought Tab Professional. You get a quad speaker setup (two on the left body, two on the appropriate), and it’s legitimately unbelievable for a sub-$400 pill. The audio system get actually loud, so loud that if I’ve the pill at simply 50% quantity, I can simply hear it on the reverse finish of my 1,000-square-foot condominium. At max quantity, the Thought Tab Professional seems like a conveyable Bluetooth speaker — and with surprisingly little audio distortion, too. It’s truthfully fairly superb.

I wasn’t positive what to anticipate from the MediaTek Dimensity 8300 chip and 8GB of RAM, however the Thought Tab Professional has been surprisingly performant. Its CPU benchmarks under the Legion Tab Gen 3 and OnePlus Pad 3, which is to be anticipated contemplating each are costlier. The Thought Tab Professional additionally scores the bottom within the Wild Life GPU Stress Check, however apparently, it ran considerably cooler all through, too.

These low numbers could appear regarding, however except you’re actively making an attempt to push the Thought Tab Professional to the restrict, I don’t suppose you’ll have any critical efficiency complaints. Apps open and run with no downside, multitasking isn’t a problem, and 2160p YouTube movies play with no hitch. Even taking part in a number of rounds of Name of Obligation: Cell at Very Excessive graphics and Excessive body price settings, the Thought Tab Professional handles it like a champ.

What in regards to the battery? Pill use can range wildly from individual to individual. As somebody who grabs the Thought Tab Professional a handful of occasions every day to look at a video, scroll via Reddit, or play a few rounds of CoD: Cell, I can often get via 5 days earlier than needing to cost.

Watching a 2160p YouTube video solely drains 10% after an hour, whereas the Thought Tab Professional barely loses 1% battery whereas sitting idle in a single day. And when it’s time for a top-up, the 45W wired cost speeds imply you get again as much as a full battery in about two hours with a suitable USB-C Power Delivery charger — not too shabby in any respect.

I’ve barely extra combined emotions in regards to the Lenovo Thought Tab Professional’s software program, though most of it’s a optimistic expertise. Lenovo’s ZUI pores and skin has some visible tweaks in comparison with “inventory” Android, however for probably the most half, it’s a clear, acquainted interface. Google’s Leisure House lives to the left of your primary house display screen, there’s split-screen and floating window multitasking, and you may swipe as much as see your app dock at any time.

I’ve additionally been shocked by the quantity of additional (and helpful) goodies Lenovo throws on prime of the inventory Android expertise. My private favourite is PC Mode, which transforms the standard Android UI right into a desktop format in the identical fashion as Samsung DeX. It’s laid out properly, permits for extra superior multitasking, and is a good choice to have for those who plan on utilizing the Thought Tab Professional with a keyboard accent.

That “one catch” talked about above is Lenovo’s update policy. The Thought Tab Professional ships with Android 14 out of the field, is now upgradeable to Android 15, and can finally be up to date to Android 16. However as soon as Android 16 arrives, that’s the final OS improve the Thought Tab Professional will ever see. You’ll get safety patches for longer (4 years whole), however that doesn’t excuse the restricted variety of Android OS updates.

On the naked minimal, the Thought Tab Professional needs to be supported via Android 17, and, if we’re being trustworthy, even Android 18. Calling it quits after updating the Tab Professional to this yr’s Android model just isn’t satisfactory help and is objectively the worst factor about Lenovo’s in any other case glorious pill.

Though that replace coverage is the most important goal problem with the Lenovo Thought Tab Professional, I do have a extra private problem I need to point out earlier than we wrap issues up. The Lenovo Thought Tab Professional has a 12.7-inch show and weighs 620 grams. For those who ask me, that’s too huge and too heavy for the perfect pill kind issue.

Whereas the massive display screen is nice for watching motion pictures, it will probably make some on-screen recreation controls a bit awkward, and it makes unoptimized Android apps all of the extra apparent and aggravating to work together with. And for some weight context, the 620-gram physique is considerably heavier than tablets just like the Galaxy Tab S10 FE and Google Pixel Tablet (497 grams and 493 grams, respectively) — and you’re feeling it after holding the Thought Tab Professional for too lengthy.

I don’t suppose it is a dealbreaker for the pill, however it’s one thing to bear in mind. A barely smaller display screen and lighter construct would go a good distance in making the Thought Tab Professional a extra comfy and welcoming pill, and I hope that’s one thing Lenovo addresses if/when it releases a second-gen mannequin.

Even with the cumbersome design and missing replace coverage, I’ve nonetheless been actually proud of the Lenovo Thought Tab Professional. It is a well-made Android pill with a terrific show, excellent audio system, stable efficiency, dependable battery life, quick charging, and software program expertise. It even comes with a free, pressure-sensitive stylus that attaches to the again of the pill.

The Thought Tab Professional will set you again $390 for those who purchase straight from Lenovo, however for those who choose it up at Amazon, it’s accessible for $380 and comes with a free folio case. Contemplating all the pieces the Thought Tab Professional will get proper, it’s a reasonably distinctive value.

What are your options? The Samsung Galaxy Tab A9 Plus ($219.99 at Amazon) is sort of a bit cheaper, however it additionally has a lower-quality show, a weaker chipset, much less inner storage, and far slower charging. It’s a stable choice for the value, however you additionally get what you pay for.

Lenovo’s personal Legion Tab Gen 3 ($549.99 at Lenovo) can be price contemplating. It’s pricier, however it additionally has a a lot smaller show, a extra manageable design, and considerably extra horsepower. In order for you a compact and highly effective Android pill, it’s top-of-the-line choices on the market, however it’s additionally not almost as well-suited for watching TV/motion pictures, and it’s a weaker general worth proposition.

In order for you a giant Android pill underneath $400 with a terrific show, loud audio system, and good efficiency and battery life, I can’t consider another pill that’s a greater deal than the Lenovo Thought Tab Professional. It is probably not good, however at this value, it’s fairly darn shut.