LG G Pad 10.1 review: Inching along

Retail package

What you get in the retail box of the LG G Pad 10.1 is a microUSB cable and a standalone 1.8A A/C adapter that should be able to charge the 8,000mAh battery back to 100% in reasonable time.

LG G Pad 10.1 retail package

Design and handling

LG has settled on a simple design for its 2014 G Pad lineup. All of them feature a button-less front and a plain plastic back. The plastic is matte and soft to the touch, which we like and the edges are curved with rounded corners for a more comfortable grip.

The LG G Pad 10.1 (our unit is Red) looks much like a Nexus 10 tablet, albeit with slimmer bezels top and bottom. It weighs less than the Nexus but more than most of its 10-inch competition at 523g. It's nice and thin though at just 8.9 mm.

The rear cover wraps around the sides too reaching all the way to the front glass, resulting in our unit in a subtle red trim - in nice contrast with the black front.

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LG G Pad 10.1

While mostly flat the back panel is slightly sloping towards the soft edges. It feels nice and grippy and we like how smooth it feels to the touch. The back feels vulnerable to scratches so do be careful with it.

Around back

Unlike its smaller siblings, the LG G Pad 10.1 isn't as comfortable to hold. It's not that it doesn't fit nicely - it's just a little large and heavy to be constantly hanging on your arms. Reaching to the center or the top corners of the screen isn't an easy task either.

Handling the LG G Pad 10.1

Single-handed operation is a no-go with the LG G Pad 10.1, even in portrait mode. Anything above a couple of minutes will leave your hands a little sore - it would make sense to get yourself a dock or a flip cover that can hold the slate in position.

Controls

The top of the LG G Pad 10.1 (landscape) is where most of the physical controls are. There you'll find the power button and the volume rocker. If you use the slate in portrait mode those will be impossible to access but in landscape mode both are just below your left-hand fingers.

LG allows you to skip the power button altogether by enabling the double tap to unlock feature, which is also coupled with Knock Code, which can set a knock pattern. The double tap looks both ways - it will lock the screen too.

Next to the power button and volume rocker is the IR blaster, to remotely control a TV or set top box.

LG G Pad top

The bottom features no controls whatsoever.

The bottom

The left side of the LG G Pad 10.1 has the microUSB port for charging and PC connection. It also features the 3.5mm headphone jack, the microSD card slot, which has its own plastic flap and the microphone. There's nothing on the right side.

Left and right

The back is where the 5MP camera lens but no flash whatsoever. There's a speaker in each bottom corner - each speaker has its own amplifier but they don't produce stereo sound. The thing is they're not perfectly spaced and easily covered by your palm when holding the G Pad 10.1 in landscape.

We would have preferred the speakers to be facing front.

The back of the G Pad 10.1

LG is asking half of what a top class 10-inch slate would command which has resulted in some cutbacks. For starters, the finish is neat and simple - no premium materials. The speakers aren't stereo and the screen is far from the best in business.

The good thing is the G Pad 10.1 doesn't presume to be anything more than it is. We like the build quality and the feel.