Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 review

Two dual-camera setups, sort of

The Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 has two cameras on its back, and there are another two front cameras, inside a notch!

The rear cameras familiar - a 13MP primary one with a 27mm f/1.8 lens and autofocus and an 8MP ultrawide shooter with a 13mm f/2.2 lens and fixed focus at infinity.

The front setup contains a 16MP camera (Quad-Bayer sensor, fixed focus) with a 27mm f/2.2 lens. There is also a ToF 3D system for secure face unlock.

The camera app is the standard Huawei implementation, with adjustments made for the form factor and the relatively limited capabilities. You're all but guaranteed to be using both hands for taking photos, and the UI works well in either orientation. Oddly enough, the zoom selector has three presets - 1x, 'W' for the ultrawide, and a hard-to-explain '10x' setting.

Camera app

The main camera saves solid 13MP photos - there is a lot of fine detail, no noise, good contrast, and the dynamic range is alright. The colors are okay, too, though there is this magenta tint if you look closely. There is some corner softness across the photos, and more complex details are often smeared.

Main camera

The ultrawide camera also saves good photos with enough resolved detail, low noise, and wide enough dynamic range. The photos have the same issues as the ones from the main camera - corner softness, inability to resolve foliage properly because of the small sensor, and a color tint across the photos - this time, green.

Ultrawide camera

The main camera saves good photos at night - they are bright, detailed, and colorful. The dynamic range is good. We can see the smeared noise across the images. Same goes for the ultrawide photos, which have more smeared noise, but are usable.

Night Mode is available only for the main camera, and it boosts the color saturation and the global sharpness a bit. It can also expand the dynamic range.

Normal • Night Mode • Ultrawide camera

Electronic video stabilization (EIS) is supported only on the 1080p@30fps modes on the main and ultrawide cameras. Audio is captured stereo at 192Kbps for all videos.

The 4K videos from the main camera are good, but nothing special - the resolved detail is average, the picture is a bit over-sharpened, the dynamic range is wide enough, and the colors are good, though somewhat over-saturated.

The footage from the ultrawide camera is average, too - it is soft because of mediocre detail, the dynamic range seems wide, and the colors - are a bit punchier than reality.

Main camera 4: • Ultrawide camera 1080p

The front camera uses a 16MP Quad-Bayer sensor, and that is why the samples are quite poor, with low detail and an overall soft look. Their colors are nice, though; the contrast is good, and the dynamic range is okay.

Front camera

The video quality from the front camera is okay for 1080p, and it will do the job for teleconferencing. You can see a screengrab below.

Front camera video snapshot

Our verdict

The Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 is another powerful tablet from the Chinese maker, one that won't become popular, but it will serve great to those who are ready to give it a chance.

The tablet will be launching in January 2024 for an expected retail price of €999 for the base variant and €1199 for the 512/12GB trim with the keyboard included.

Huawei has been one of the few companies to continue pushing new products in the segment of high-end tablets. The Matepad Pro 13.2 continues the lineage with one of the best tablet OLED screens, speaker systems, powerful OS, super fast charging and incredibly well-made original accessories.

The potential deal-breaker is the lack of Google Mobile Services. And while Gbox does deliver working Play Store apps that require GMS, including Google's own Maps, Gmail, YouTube, it may still be not enough for everyone.

HarmonyOS is clean and mature for laptop-like usage. The multi-tasking is great, the system apps, too, and overall - the whole system is fast and intuitive, and works as expected. There is no desktop mode like Samsung's DeX, though, and not having a proper desktop to keep files on is a rather big impediment to carrying out actual work on the device.

And if you are getting the original Huawei accessories, such as the Smart Magnetic Keyboard (€199) and the M-Pencil (€99), you should also know that despite the improvements, this keyboard does not come with a Pencil holder like the one for the MatePad Pro 11. The magnetic stylus clicks on the top side of the tablet, but it falls all the time when opening/closing the Smart Magnetic Keyboard.

Overall, the Huawei MatePad Pro 13.2 is an excellent tablet, even if flawed. We found it perfect for most use cases, but it is not a universally likable device. We recommend exploring it as an option because Huawei makes these slates very well, but you should also get familiar with all peculiarities before deciding on purchasing it. And maybe wait for a rebate on that advertised launch price.

Pros

• Thin and lightweight tablet, even if large.
• Outstanding OLED screen, bright, sharp, HDR10.
• Adequate performance from the Kirin chip, great stability.
• Super fast charging.
• Class-leading speakers and superb loudness.
• Excellent accessories - keyboard and pencil.
• HarmonyOS gets better with every iteration, Gbox works fine.

Cons

• Launch price not very competitive.
• No official Google Mobile Services.
• The battery life is not great.