Xiaomi Pad 6 review

Design and build quality

The Xiaomi Pad 6 is a thin and lightweight tablet with a Gorilla Glass 3 screen cover and aluminum unibody. The matte aluminum across all sides is really nice on touch and grippy enough. The 6.5mm thin edges are flat, making for a secure grip and great handling experience.

The Pad 6 is your typical tablet with a large 11-inch display free of any interruptions. The IPS LCD panel has 309ppi density and supports 144Hz dynamic refresh rate, HDR10 and Dolby Vision streaming. Additionally, there is Smart Pen support, should you decide to opt for the magnetic and Bluetooth-compatible Xiaomi stylus.

The screen bezels are thin enough and even across all sides. If you are holding the tablet in landscape orientation with the USB-C port facing left, then the front 8MP ultrawide-angle camera will be centered on top of the screen. This camera supports FocusFrame, a fancy name for subject tracking via cropping thanks to the extra wide field of view.

The Tab 6 has four equally powerful speakers with Dolby Atmos support, all symmetrically placed on the left and right sides, considering we are still talking in landscape terms.

The left side also has the power/lock key next to one of the speakers. The tablet does not have any biometric security - there is no fingerprint or 3D face unlock. You will have to rely on PIN/password, or if you want to make the unlocking more convenient, you can setup 2D face recognition and/or unlock by Bluetooth accessory like a smartwatch.

The right side has the USB-C port and one of the microphones between the two speakers.

There is nothing on the bottom.

The top has the volume control key, two microphones, and the magnetic pin for the optional Smart Pen stylus.

Xiaomi Pad 6's rear side is mostly clean. There is a black square housing, which accommodates the 13MP rear camera, the LED flash, and yet another microphone. This housing is jutting out a bit and if you are using the tablet on a table case free, it will wobble a little bit.

The three magnetic pins for the optional Keyboard case are also here. The magnets are indeed as strong as advertised and we never detached the case by accident.

Overall, we had some great experience with Xiaomi Pad 6 - it offers a solid build with premium materials and a secure grip for comfortable handling.

Accessories

Xiaomi's Smart Pen, now in its 2nd Generation, is probably the one accessory any Pad 6 user must have as it's quite minimalistic yet useful. The stylus has a 4096-level of pressure sensitivity and a 150-hour battery life. The Smart Pen supports magnetic charging and draws power from the Pad 6's cell when attached to it. Xiaomi says a minute of charging provides up to seven hours of battery life.

The Smart Pen (2nd Gen) can be used for taking quick notes, paint, or even draw. It has two buttons - the one closer to the tip is the primary button, and the other - secondary.

Using the Smart Pen

The primary immediately launches the Notes app so you can take a quick note and while doing it, you can switch between different nibs and colors with the secondary. Outside the Notes app the second key can be used to mark an area and take a quick screenshot of it.

You can use both keys for scrolling a document or a webpage.

Xiaomi Pad 6 Keyboard Case has a 1.3mm key travel and 64 keys. It supports custom shortcuts, and the keys are coated with a "special luminous ingredient" to make them glow a bit more in dim conditions when light is reflected from the tablet's display. That's Xiaomi's alternative to backlit keys, which "can play havoc with the battery."

The case snaps very well onto the tablet and it's comfortable for both working/typing or just watching movies. Naturally, opening/closing the case will unlock/lock the tablet if there is no PIN/password.

Finally, the Xiaomi Pad 6 Cover case allows for more versatility if you don't need a keyboard.

It has two folds and this way you can have two different angles when it is acting as a tablet stand. The Smart Wake Up and Sleep upon open and close are available, too.