Apart from the new iPhones, Apple has also renewed its iPad lineup, including the affordable ones.
Despite retaining the older form factor, the Apple iPad 10.2 9th gen brings in a lot of optimization allowing for a better UI. But for lesser money, and now you can find another high-end tablet with an Android operating system and similar specs, the Xiaomi Mi Pad 5.
Is it equally as good or maybe better than the new iPad or does Apple prevail over it? Let’s find out.
Design:
With an aluminium back and aluminium frame, the Apple iPad 9th Gen provides a better build quality than Xiaomi Mi Pad 5, it is sturdier and also comes with scratch-resistant and oleophobic glass.
But if you are looking for a better design, then you will have to go for the Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 without any hesitation. It has narrower bezels around the display and a higher screen to body ratio. That is the reason why, even though it has a wider panel, the dimensions are similar to the Apple iPad 9th Gen.
Further, the Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 is thinner as it is just 6.9mm thick instead of 7.5mm, both the tabs support the stylus and the magnetic physical keyboard. If you want to use the Apple Pencil with the iPad 9th Gen, you music choose the old-generation one.
Display:
Despite the image quality provided by the iPad 9th gen being on point, the Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 has a more intriguing display. It is an IPS panel but can show up to 1 billion colours.
It supports the Dolby Vision standard and it has the HDR10 certification. Last but not the least, it comes with a 120Hz refresh rate and a quad-HD+ resolution.
With a diagonal of 11″, it is even wider than the display of the iPad 9th gen. Thanks to an active digitizer, both displays can be used with a pen. Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 does not provide any advanced authentication method, while the iPad 9th gen has the Touch ID with a fingerprint scanner below the display.
Specs and Software:
Both Apple iPad 9th gen and Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 are equipped with a high-end hardware department. The Apple iPad 9th gen is fueled by the Apple A13 Bionic chipset that is also the processor for the iPhone 11 Series.
It is paired with 3GB RAM+256GB storage. The Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 is powered by the Snapdragon 860 SoC and is paired with 6GB RAM+256GB of UFS 3.1 internal storage.
On the software side, the iPad 9th gen is more advanced as a tablet due to the iPadOS supporting more productivity-oriented features.
Further, the better optimization of iPadOS allows the iPad 9th gen to provide better performance. However, both tablets can be used to run the most demanding games.
Camera:
The Apple iPad 9th gen comes with a good 8MP rear camera and a 12MP front sensor. The photo quality is very good if we consider other tablets, but not that good if you also bring smartphones into the comparison.
The camera of the Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 is a sensor with a 13MP resolution which is not able to reach the quality of the iPad 9th gen, but it records videos with a higher 4K resolution which is paired with a dual-LED flash.
Battery:
The Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 has a slightly larger battery than the Apple iPad 9th gen, but the iPad lasts longer on a single charge. On the other hand, the Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 has a faster charging tech with a power of 33W.
Price:
The iPad 9th gen has a starting price of $451 or 33,439 INR in Europe, while you can find the Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 for $347 or 25,728 INR. Overall, the iPad is more advanced due to its operating system supporting more productivity features, and it wins this comparison, but Xiaomi Mi Pad 5 can let you save money.
Apple iPad 10.2 9th gen:
PROs:
- iPadOS 15
- Good camera setup
- Better battery life and longevity
- eSIM
- Optional LTE
CONS:
- Bezels
Xiaomi Mi Pad 5:
PROs:
- Faster charging
- Narrow Bezels
- Wider display
- 4K video recording
- Priced better
- 120Hz refresh rate
CONS:
- Nothing specific
What are your thoughts, which tablet is better in your opinion?
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