Lenovo Tab Plus Review: A Sound Choice for Entertainment?
In the competitive tablet market, where giants like Samsung and Apple dominate the premium segment, Lenovo is carving its niche in the affordable, mid-range category. Their latest offering, the Lenovo Tab Plus, aims to capture the hearts of entertainment enthusiasts with an impressive design, powerful audio, and a user-friendly interface. But with a price tag of Rs 22,999, does this tablet truly stand out from the crowd? Let’s dive into this in-depth review to find out.
Lenovo Tab Plus Design: Built-in Kickstand is a Win
Right off the bat, the Lenovo Tab Plus distinguishes itself with a unique design that sets it apart from its competitors in this price range. While the front, adorned with dual-tone finish, presents a familiar look with sizeable bezels around the display, the back reveals its distinctive charm. The lower half of the tablet is significantly thicker than the top half, accommodating a built-in kickstand and eight JBL-powered speakers.
This design decision offers a delightful advantage. The kickstand eliminates the need for separate accessories, allowing you to comfortably set the screen on a desk and enjoy your content like a mini monitor. I found this aspect particularly appealing, as it encouraged a more versatile usage experience compared to traditional tablets that demand constant holding.
Adding to the flexibility, the kickstand can be adjusted to almost 180 degrees, perfect for note-taking or sketching with the compatible Pen Plus stylus (which I was unfortunately unable to test). With a weight of 650g, it’s not the lightest tablet in its class, but it remains manageable overall.
Lenovo Tab Plus Display and Audio: Decent
As a tablet primarily designed for entertainment, the Lenovo Tab Plus boasts a massive 11.5-inch 2K LCD display, ideal for immersing yourself in your favorite shows and movies. While the display utilizes an LCD panel, the colors are vibrant and well-reproduced, although deep blacks fall slightly short of being truly impressive. However, it does feature Widevine L1 support, ensuring you can stream your content in high-definition quality.
The display’s slight reflectivity can be addressed by adjusting the angle using the handy kickstand to achieve a glare-free experience. Furthermore, the 90Hz refresh rate ensures a smooth and responsive scrolling experience while the 2000 x 1200 resolution enhances the crispness of icons and text. A dedicated Reading Mode also dials down the backlight and color saturation for a comfortable reading session, ideal for late-night browsing.
However, the real star of the show is undoubtedly the JBL-powered sound system. The placement of four woofers and four tweeters on the lower rear panel delivers exceptional audio quality, easily surpassing the performance of many affordable Bluetooth speakers. The inclusion of Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res audio support complements the audio experience, making the Lenovo Tab Plus a truly immersive entertainment companion.
The audio output is powerful enough to fill a small room with rich sound without compromising detail. You can even turn the tablet into a Bluetooth speaker by pairing it with your smartphone. The low-end bass performance was surprisingly impressive, while mids and highs delivered a well-rounded experience for both movies and music. However, at full volume, some muffling of the highs and mids can be observed. Sticking to lower volumes below 80 percent allows you to enjoy the audio capabilities to the fullest.
Lenovo Tab Plus Software: Clean UI
The Lenovo Tab Plus runs on ZUI 16 based on Android 14, offering a near-stock Android experience with subtle tweaks to the icons and design. A left swipe brings you to an entertainment page instead of Google Discover, providing curated recommendations from various installed OTT apps, which I found quite convenient.
While some bloatware is present, it’s not overwhelming. Notably, the company has added some innovative features to enhance the user interface. One notable addition is PC Mode, which transforms the tablet’s UI into a desktop-style interface, allowing you to connect a keyboard and handle basic tasks with greater ease.
The tablet also includes a Standby Mode that displays slideshows or the current time while charging. Additionally, the Reading Mode transforms the display into black and white for comfortable late-night reading sessions. Rounding out the features are the usual split-screen and floating windows, providing a versatile and customizable experience.
Lenovo has pledged to provide two years of Android OS updates and four years of security patches by January 2028, ensuring a significant lifespan for the tablet. Overall, the user interface is clean, intuitive, and delivers a smooth user experience.
Lenovo Tab Plus Performance: Not a Powerhouse
The performance of the Lenovo Tab Plus is where it takes a step back. It’s powered by the MediaTek Helio G99 SoC, which is a somewhat aging chipset that pales in comparison to some of Lenovo’s stronger offerings. This performance limitation is noticeable in real-world usage.
While the tablet handles basic tasks like web browsing and music playback with ease, thanks in part to the 90Hz refresh rate, stutters and skips can still occur. Heavy multitasking tasks can push the chipset to its limit, resulting in noticeable performance drops.
However, casual gaming remains a viable option. I managed to play games like Temple Run 2 and Minion Rush smoothly. However, the experience in landscape mode isn’t as enjoyable. For more demanding games like Call of Duty Mobile, lag and stutters are present, forcing gameplay to be limited to Medium Graphic Quality and High frame rate at best. To achieve a playable experience, medium settings are necessary.
Lenovo Tab Plus Cameras: Usable
The cameras on the Lenovo Tab Plus are best described as "usable" at best. The 8-megapixel rear camera delivers decent daytime shots with natural color reproduction, although details lack sharpness. Likewise, low-light performance is merely passable. The 8-megapixel front camera delivers an average selfie experience. It’s fair to say that the cameras are not a major selling point of this tablet.
Lenovo Tab Plus Battery: Massive Backup
The Lenovo Tab Plus packs a massive 8,600mAh battery, ensuring extended usage between charges. In real-world testing, the tablet easily delivered several days of battery life with moderate usage scenarios. I was able to watch several episodes of Demon Slayer and browse YouTube for extended periods while still enjoying almost two days of battery life. Even under heavy usage, including gaming, writing, and music playback, the tablet consistently lasted for a full day.
Our HD battery loop test showcased the impressive endurance, with the tablet running for a remarkable 22 hours and 10 minutes. Thankfully, 45W fast charging support makes recharging a quick affair. Using the included charger, the tablet reached 50 percent charge in 30 minutes and completed a full charge within an hour and 15 minutes.
Lenovo Tab Plus Verdict
In conclusion, the Lenovo Tab Plus presents a solid option for content consumption both at home and on the go. The distinctive design with its built-in kickstand significantly enhances convenience for media viewing. The display delivers good visuals, but the exceptional audio output truly shines, outperforming many budget Bluetooth speakers.
However, the tablet’s performance limitations due to the older Helio G99 SoC prevent it from hitting its full potential. A more powerful chipset would have rounded out the package and made it a truly competitive contender in its price range.
Despite these shortcomings, the Lenovo Tab Plus remains a compelling choice for entertainment-focused users who prioritize a large screen, excellent audio, and user-friendliness. However, it faces stiff competition from tablets like the OnePlus Pad 2, Xiaomi Pad 6, and Realme Pad 2, which offer comparable performance and sleeker designs at a similar price point.
Ultimately, if you’re seeking a tablet specifically for enjoying videos on a large screen, experiencing rich sound, and prioritizing ease of use, then the Lenovo Tab Plus can be a worthwhile option.
