Redmi Pad 2 Pro

The first thing that comes to mind when I hear Xiaomi (apart from the inevitable Chinese connection) is budget. Fortunately, in 2026, that word does not have particularly negative connotations, but can instead be associated with better value for money than one might initially expect. Of course, it's clear that corners have been cut somewhere, but when I unpack the Redmi Pad Pro 2 at home, I find it difficult to fault anything. The build quality is excellent, with a seemingly luxurious aluminium chassis, and the IPS LCD screen is 12.1 inches in size, has a resolution of 2560 x 1600, and a refresh rate of 120Hz, offering beautiful and vibrant colours.

But it's when you turn it on and notice how fast and responsive it is that it's hard to understand how the price tag can be as affordable as it actually is. So, my first impressions are very good. But then, when I start downloading and setting up programmes, backgrounds, and other things, I discover that the tablet is crammed with programmes I don't want. There's a lot of bloatware, quite simply, so I have to uninstall a lot of it, while noticing some of the programmes that "belong" to the tablet can't even be uninstalled... Thankfully I can at least remove them from the home screen. A lot of notifications from these programmes also pop up on the first day, which is a bit frustrating. There's quite a bit to do before everything is the way I want it. But once it's done, it's done.

From a technical perspective, there is a lot that impresses. The processor, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7s Gen 4, offers brisk performance and everything runs smoothly. The 12,000 mAh battery is even more impressive, even if this aspect is let down by a rather slow charging speed, which stops at 33 W. Perhaps this is an area where corners have been cut in order to reduce the price. The speakers are fine for watching Netflix but not really suitable for music, for those who listen to music on their tablet, that is. It's also nice to see a 3.5 mm audio output next to the charging port (USB-C), and there's also space for an SD card to expand the memory. The tablet is available in two versions in terms of RAM and storage. One with 6GB/128GB and one with 8GB/256GB, with a recommended retail price of £269 and £299 respectively for the latter model. It's available in three colours: graphite grey, silver, and purple.

As for the cameras, I don't really have anything in particular to complain about. It seems unlikely that anyone would buy a tablet for this purpose, however, I would like to add that the front camera performs well and is perhaps the most interesting for video calls, for example. Despite fairly dark conditions, it manages to keep the face well lit and in focus, while the surroundings behind become a little darker and grainier. On the back, we find an 8-megapixel camera, and it's probably for video use that it may receive some criticism here, as you have to settle for 720p/1080p at 30 frames per second. But again, I can't imagine that a tablet is something you buy for its cameras, so I don't really have any direct criticism to offer on this either. Although it would of course have been nice to be able to record in 4K, as that would obviously have been an extra plus.

So, what distinguishes the Pro model from the previous version? Better performance, a slightly larger screen, a 3000mAh larger battery, a 120Hz screen... there's simply a lot of extra features packed in. Sure, the price is a good bit higher for the Pro model, but honestly, it feels worth it to get something that performs so much better.

So, what's the verdict? Well, there are a few weak points that prevent it from getting top marks. Among other things, there is no fingerprint reader, charging is slightly slow, and it was a hassle to deal with all the bloatware on the first day. But once all that is sorted out and you use it for everyday use and try out a few games, you realise that it can handle everything superbly. For my part, I use it as an extra screen at my workplace to run Spotify, Discord, keep track of our work chat and a few other things, and it has worked perfectly on a small swivel arm. For personal use, it has simply replaced a secondary monitor that would have been bulkier in every way.

Is it absolutely perfect? No, but considering the price, it really is the classic "bang for your buck" and it gets a very warm recommendation for anyone thinking of getting a tablet in the future.