Honor recently debuted the Pad X8a in India as a new budget tablet. It arrives for the same price as the Redmi Pad SE, which was launched in the region back in April. So how does it stack up against Xiaomi’s budget tablet? Which one should you buy? Let’s find out.
1. Honor Pad X8a vs Redmi Pad SE 11: Design & Display
Honor’s new Pad X8a sports a tall 11-inch LCD display that offers an FHD+ resolution, a 90H refresh rate, and a 16:10 aspect ratio. The Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE has a nearly identical screen since it also boasts an 11-inch LCD panel with FHD+ resolution, a 90Hz refresh rate, and a 16:10 aspect ratio. So in terms of the display, both of these are evenly matched.
But even when talking about their design, both the Honor Pad X8a and Redmi Pad SE 11 are quite competitive. The two tablets feature an aluminum back and aluminum frame for a premium feel. Although, the budget Honor tablet only arrives with a single Space Gray color option, while the Redmi Pad SE comes in three color options, namely Lavender Purple, Graphite Gray, and Mint Green.
2. Hardware
The duo are very similar under the hood as well. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 680 SoC powers both models. But the Honor Pad X8a only comes in a 4GB + 128GB option, while the Redmi Pad SE maxes out at 8GB + 128GB. Honor’s new budget tablet is powered by a large 8,300mAh battery pack, which is slightly larger than the 8,000mAh cell on the Pad SE. Unfortunately, there is no fast charging on either tablet, so you get a standard 10W charging speeds.
For optics, the Honor Pad X8a features a 5-megapixel camera on the front and back. The Redmi Pad SE has an 8-megapixel rear facing camera and a 5-megapixel selfie shooter on the front. Once again, the two tablets are neck in neck with most features including a quad stereo speaker setup. One area where Honor edges ahead is with software, the Pad X8a runs on the Android 14 OS based MagicOS 8 custom skin, while the Redmi offering runs on the Android 13 OS based MIUI for Pad.
3. Pricing and Verdict
As of right now, the Redmi Pad SE and Honor Pad X8a are listed on Amazon India for 12,999 INR. So choosing the newer tablet with the more updated software is the smarter choice. However, Redmi features higher RAM capacity, which helps in certain intensive tasks like gaming. So depending on your use, both tablets are viable.
