Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 review

Introduction

Huawei's latest event brought us the international version of the MatePad Pro 13.2 tablet. It's a large and powerful slate with an OLED screen, the mysterious Kirin 9000S chip, powerful Harmony OS 4, and first-party accessories like the Smart Magnetic Keyboard with a touchpad and M-Pencil 3 stylus.

The centerpiece of the MatePad Pro 13.2 is a 13.2-inch OLED screen with 2,880 x 1,920 pixels, 1B colors and 144Hz refresh rate. It is a notched panel, so it can accommodate a front 16MP camera and a ToF 3D setup for secure facial unlock.

The MatePad Pro 13.2 is powered by Huawei's first Kirin chipset after the US ban - the Kirin 9000S. It features a proprietary 8-core processor with multi-threading, a 4-core custom GPU, LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 3.1 storage support. It should provide a mid-range performance but offers 5G for the first time since the US troubles. At the time of writing, Huawei had not announced a SIM version of the slate-like it did with previous MatePads, though.

Moving on, the MatePad Pro 13.2 will be available with 12GB RAM, while the storage options are 256GB and 512GB. There is a 16GB/1TB version, but it is exclusive to China.

There are two cameras at the back of the MatePad Pro 13.2 - a 13MP primary and an 8MP ultrawide.

One of the most notable features of this MatePad Pro is its six powerful speakers with Huawei Sound proprietary enhancement. We will make sure to put those to the test.

Finally, the MatePad Pro 13.2 features a massive 10,100mAh battery and the tablet supports up to 88W fast wired charging.

Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 specs at a glance:

• Body: 289.1x196.1x5.5mm, 580g; glass front, metal frame, plastic back; Stylus support.
• Display: 13.20" OLED, 1B colors, 144Hz, 1000 nits (peak), 2880x1920px resolution, 6:9 aspect ratio, 262ppi.
• Chipset: Kirin 9000S (7 nm): Octa-core (1x2.62 GHz Taishan Main & 3x2.15 GHz Taishan Mid & 4x1.53GHz Cortex-A510); Maleoon 910 MP4 GPU.
• Memory: 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 1TB 16GB RAM, UFS3.1.
• OS/Software: Harmony OS 4.0.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 13 MP, f/1.8, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2.
• Front camera: Wide (main): 16 MP, f/2.2; Depth: TOF 3D.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 10100mAh; 88W wired, 85% in 40 min (advertised).
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6; BT 5.2.
• Misc: Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass; stereo speakers (6 speakers), Face ID.

It is a Huawei tablet running on Harmony OS, which means no Google Mobile Services - no Play Store, no Google Location, no Google Account, etc. You can bypass this limitation with Gbox or similar solution, if you want, at least for now.

Huawei hasn't announced a SIM-enabled version of the MatePad 13.2 Pro yet and we think this is the only potential deal breaker we can think of right now. Other than the Google ordeal, that is.

Unboxing the Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2

The Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 arrives in a thick white box. It contains a unique 88W power adapter and a 6A-rated USB-A-to-C cable.

The SuperCharge adapter is compatible with all recent Huawei smartphones, tablets, and laptops. It has both a USB-C port and a USB-A port, which is neat!

Accessories

We also received the Smart Magnetic Keyboard for this MatePad Pro 13.2 and the M-Pencil 3rd Gen. They arrive in thin boxes of their own, accompanied by some paperwork.

The keyboard has an integrated touchpad, and it's a two-piece accessory. First, you attach the keyboard to the edge of the tablet, and then you must put the back cover, which doubles as a stand. That is convenient because the MatePad Pro 13.2 doesn't need to be with the keyboard all the time. You can detach it and use it from further away or merely use the stand to enjoy multimedia.