The Poco Pad X1 is an excellent budget tablet but there's a problem

Date:
Thu, 18 Dec 2025 11:24:45 +0000

Description:
In the Poco Pad X1, Xiaomi has released a familiar but capable tablet at an appealing price if you can find one.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Poco
Pad X1: Two-minute review

Xiaomi is quite possibly the most prolific smart device manufacturer on the market, churning out a ridiculous number of models under various sub brands. This inevitably leads to repurposing, the latest example of which is the Poco Pad X1.

Yes, this full-sized tablet is practically identical to the Xiaomi Pad 7, and shares a lot of its components with the Xiaomi Pad 7 Pro we reviewed earlier in the year. But when you're getting a brilliantly priced, premium-feeling, solid-performing tablet with a full roster of accessories to choose from, its difficult to care.

The design has barely changed, and that's fine. This is another premium, if heavily iPad-influenced, tablet with a solid all-metal body and a 3:2 aspect ratio. Poco's signature pop of yellow around the 'squircular' camera module sets it apart, at least on this grey model, but even the blue model packs the kind of rich tone we're not accustomed to seeing in the staid tablet world.

Quad speakers with Dolby Atmos support make for a nice sound profile, even if we're still not talking iPad levels of sound quality. One notable design omission is any kind of fingerprint sensor, which means you need to rely on a facial unlock system. (Image credit: Future)

It's far from the most powerful tablet on the market, even within the mid-priced Android tablet space. You could spend a little more on a OnePlus Pad 3 and get a much more capable device. But Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 is more than capable of running all the usual light tablet tasks without missing a beat.

It's aided by a good 11.2-inch display. This might be a humble LCD, and so lacking in the vibrant colours of the more premium OLED crowd, but it packs a sharp 3.2K resolution, natural colours, decent brightness and a possibly-excessive 144Hz refresh rate.

The Poco Pad X1 supports 45W charging, which is pretty decent for a more affordable tablet like this. That charging juices an 8,850mAh battery, which is good for a full working day of light productivity tasks, though mixing in any kind of extensive media consumption may just see you falling short before the end of your shift.

There's just the one 13MP rear camera, which is precisely as good as it needs to be on a full-sized tablet - that is, not very good at all.

If you're in the market for an iPad like tablet experience, but don't have money to burn, the Poco Pad X1 as you covered. Or the Xiaomi Pad 7, depending on which region of the world youre in. Poco Pad X1 review: price and availability Not available in the UK, Europe, or US Priced from $399

The Poco Pad X1 is available in certain markets for the equivalent of $399 (around 300 / AU$610). Without wishing to get too 'inside baseball' here, Xiaomis launch plans arent quite what we had initially been led to believe.

We thought the tablet would be shipping in at least some Western markets, but Poco has since confirmed to TechRadar that's not the case. This would seem to explain why Xiaomi was willing to launch a product that's functionally identical to the pre-existing Xiaomi Pad 7.

It seems the brands have avoided potential duplication and cannibalisation through a selective launch. These opaque launch plans are annoying, but understandable.

As such, comparisons with other tablets are a bit superfluous here. Wed suggest that this review might be able to aid your decision if you're
thinking of importing the device from overseas, but that seems fanciful.

Realistically, if you like the sound of the Poco Pad X1, just buy the Xiaomi Pad 7 instead. Its exactly the same, and youll probably be able to secure a discount on one. Value score: 4 / 5 Poco Pad X1 review: specs Poco Pad X1 specs

Dimensions:

251.2 x 173.4 x 6.2mm

Weight:

500g

Display:

11.2-inch 2136 x 3200 up to 120Hz LCD

Chipset:

Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3

RAM:

8GB

Storage:

512GB

OS:

Android 16 with HyperOS 3.0

Primary camera:

13MP

Front Camera:

8MP

Battery:

8,850mAh

Charging:

45W wired

Colors:

Grey, Blue Poco Pad X1 review: design Image 1 of 2 (Image credit: Future) Image 2 of 2 (Image credit: Future) iPad-like looks Premium all-metal build
No fingerprint sensor

If the Poco Pad X1 looks familiar, there are two possible explanations for that. The most likely is that it looks a lot like an iPad. It's got the same flat edges, 3:2 aspect ratio, and rounded square camera module as the iPad Pro.

The other reason this might look familiar is that we've seen this exact
design before from Xiaomi, under its own name. The Xiaomi Pad 7 Pro launched earlier this year with the very same body, down to the millimetre (251.22 x 173.42 x 6.18mm) and gram (500g).

Theres a pop of signature Poco yellow around the camera module of my grey model, while the blue model comes in a much richer shade than were used to seeing from a tablet. (Image credit: Future)

Like the Pad 7 Pro, there's no 3.5mm headphones jack. Unlike the Pad 7 Pro, and more problematically, there's no fingerprint sensor either. To gain entry to the tablet, you'll need to use either a relatively insecure facial recognition system or an old fashioned pin entry; neither is ideal.

Xiaomi has furnished the Poco Pad X1 with a couple of excellent optional accessories that can transform into a genuinely powerful productivity tool. The Floating Keyboard, in particular, turns the tablet into an ultra portable laptop that's great for light typing tasks. I was able to draft much of this review using the combination, with only a handful of annoying mis-types.

The Poco Focus Pen, meanwhile, is a credible stylus. What it lacks in terms
of the writing feel, it makes up for in responsiveness and Xiaomi's well-integrated notes taking tools. It affixes to the side of the tablet with magnets, where it also charges. Design score: 4 / 5 Poco Pad X1 review: display (Image credit: Future) 11.2-inch LCD 2136 x 3200 resolution 144Hz refresh rate

Xiaomi has used the exact same display in the Poco Pad X1 as in the Xiaomi
Pad 7 Pro a significantly more expensive tablet, dont forget.

Its the same 11.2-inch LCD, which means it lacks the pop of OLED. However, this remains and excellent example of the format, with natural colours and a clear look. An 800-nit maximum brightness is solid, though I did find the screen somewhat overly reflective when exposed to direct light.

Text and images are rendered sharply thanks to an impressively pixel-dense 2136 x 3200 resolution, while a 3:2 aspect ratio gives that iPad perspective that seems so popular. Itll give you huge black borders where watching TV and movie content, but its far more practical for everything else.

One spec that feels little unnecessary is the provision of an enhanced 144Hz refresh rate. You wont notice the difference in responsiveness to a 120Hz panel, and with the limited power on offer, this isnt really the machine to
be blasting through high-end games with elevated frame rates either. Still, there's no denying that general navigation is fluid. Display score: 4.5 / 5 Poco Pad X1 review: Performance & camera (Image credit: Future) Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 8GB RAM and 256GB storage 13MP rear camera and 8MP front-facing

The Poco Pad X1 runs on Qualcomms Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 processor a chip that weve seen before powering capable mid-range smartphones like the OnePlus Nord 4.

Its paired with 8GB of RAM, which isnt quite as much as I'd like to see in such a productivity-focused device; 12GB would have been much better.

With that said, I cant fault the day-to-day experience of using the Poco Pad X1. General navigation and hopping between multiple open apps is suitably snappy, and the setup is typically able to keep pace with that unusually smooth display, barring a few tell-tale slowdowns.

You can even do a spot of gaming on this tablet, though anything intensive (like Destiny: Rising ) will require low to medium graphical settings.

Camera quality is so-so, but were talking about a mid-tier tablet here. Expectations are low, and the Poco lives down to them with its solitary 13MP real camera and 8MP front camera. Fine for scanning documents and conducting Full HD video calls respectively, and thats about it. Performance & camera score: 3.5 / 5 Poco Pad X1 review: software (Image credit: Future) Android 16 with HyperOS 3 UI on top Familiar bloatware issue Fairly standard AI features

Xiaomis latest HyperOS 3 UI runs the show on the Poco Pad X1. Its not my favourite take on Android, to say the least.

While Googles Android 16 forms the underpinnings, Xiaomi seems far more enamoured with Apples iOS. The influence is quite clear, from the look and positioning of the Control Center-like drop down shortcut menu, to the
general appearance of the icons and menus.

Theres a fair amount of bloatware here too. Most are popular apps, but Id rather have the choice to download Netflix , Spotify , and TikTok myself. Who wants LinkedIn preinstalled on their tablet? Its here regardless.

Xiaomi supplies a fair number of its own apps too, not all of which are useful. Its not the only manufacturer to supply its own web browser and image review apps alongside Googles superior versions, but it remains an annoying habit.

You get a by-now-expected suite of AI tools here, too, but theyre somewhat buried and all too easy to miss.

Head into Mi Canvas, for example, and you can turn your doodles into AI-generated art. It works well, though weve seen this trick pulled off
plenty of times before by this point.

Elsewhere you have the usual batch of AI transcriptions and translations, and a handy AI-supported system search that lets you find settings and the like using natural language.

Googles Gemini is also included, which will be the primary source of AI assistant for most people. Software score: 3 / 5 Poco Pad X1 review: battery (Image credit: Future) 8,850mAh battery 45W charging

The Poco Pad X1 ships with an 8,850mAh battery, much like the Xiaomi Pad 7 range with which it shares so much DNA.

It should see you through a day of light work tasks, though sprinkling any kind of media consumption into that might just see you running out of juice before 5pm.

I tried using the Poco Pad X1, together with the Floating Keyboard, across a light working day. During that time I wrote some of this review using the the built-in Notes app (for about an hour and a half), browsed the web (35 minutes), watched a fair amount of YouTube (two hours), and played some Destiny: Rising (55 minutes).

All in all, my screen on time totalled about 5 hours 15 minutes. This brought the battery dangerously low to about 4%. Its the media that seemed to really hit it hard.

Theres no charger supplied, but if you can provide your own compatible 45W wired charger, you can expect a full charger in about an hour and 15 minutes. Battery score: 3 / 5 Should I buy the Poco Pad X1? Poco Pad X1 score card

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Design

This is a well-built tablet for the money.

4 / 5

Display

A nice level of sharpness, a responsive refresh rate, and surprisingly
natural colours despite being an LCD.

5 / 5

Performance

Its fast enough for the kind of light tasks youll be carrying out here.

3.5 / 5

Battery

You might struggle to make it through a working day if you consume media, though it charges quite quickly.

3 / 5

Software

HyperOS apes iOS more than Android, and its still a little cluttered, if responsive and customisable.

3 / 5

Value

Pricing seems very keen, though its hard to tell with the limited rollout.

4 / 5 Buy it if...

You want a nice sharp screen
The Poco Pad X1 really packs in the pixels, with a 2136 x 3200 rendering text and images really sharply.

You want a cheap(ish) productivity tool
Add a Floating Keyboard and a Focus Pen to the package, and you have yourself a very portable typing and sketching tool.

You want an iPad(ish) experience for less
The Poco Pad X1 broadly approximates the iPad experience, but for significantly less money. Don't buy it if...

You like a clean Android UI
HyperOS is quite cluttered and closer to iOS than Googles Android.

You want to get a full working day out of a charge
If you use the Poco Pad X1 for the mixed productivity and media tasks its seemingly designed for, you wont get through a full working day on a single charge.

Youre a committed gamer
While the Poco Pad X1 isnt slow by any means, its not the tablet to buy if
you want to run the latest games on high graphical settings. Poco Pad X1 review: also consider

Want a cheap, capable tablet? Check out these alternatives

Xiaomi Pad 7
Its the exact same tablet, but with Xiaomis own branding. If you see a deal for this older tablet, buy it instead.

OnePlus Pad 3
OnePluss tablet costs a little more money, but for that you get better performance and software, and a bigger 13.2-inch display.

Read our full OnePlus Pad 3 review How I tested the Poco Pad X1 Review test period = 2 weeks Testing included = Everyday usage, including web browsing, word processing, note taking, gaming, streaming video Tools used = Geekbench 6, 3DMark, native Android stats, Xiaomi 120W power adapter (not included)

First reviewed: November 2025



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Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/tablets/poco-pad-x1-review


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