Lenovo Tab M11 review: ideal for content consumption

Published On: March 27, 2024

Ever since the launch of the original iPad, tablets have emerged as great content consumption devices. While the high end of the spectrum is trying to be a laptop replacement, the budget and mid-range offerings are still adept at being entertainment devices on the go with a bit of productivity thrown into the mix. They offer a larger screen than smartphones giving you a more immersive experience and are much more comfortable for binge-watching content on the go. Today we have with us the Lenovo Tab M11. It has an 11-inch WUXGA (1,920 x 1,200 pixel resolution) display with 90Hz refresh rate and a metal build. Under the hood, the slate is powered by the MediaTek Helio G88 octa-core SoC. Is it a worthy companion for content consumption on the go?

Table of Contents

Build and design

The build of the Lenovo Tab M11 is as simple as it gets, and this isn’t a bad thing as it makes the device quite functional. The front of the tablet has slightly thick bezels when you compare them to modern smartphones and that’s good as it gives you some room to grip the device without blocking or accidentally touching the display. When held in landscape, the front has an 8MP camera at the top in the centre. Continuing with the landscape orientation, the device has a volume rocker on the top, along with a nano-SIM and microSD card slot. The power button is on the left, and the USB-C charging port is on the right. The tablet has two sets of speaker grills on either side and this isn’t just for show. There are 4 speakers (1W each), and while that might sound low on paper, the speakers do get pretty loud. The tablet also has a headphone jack.

The back of the device has a gunmetal grey finish and is dual-toned – a strip at the top which houses the 13MP camera has a different finish when compared to the rest of the back which makes it look unique. Overall, considering the price of the tablet, it feels quite premium in the hand and is convenient for long hours of use. However, I do wish it came with a kickstand case in the box, which would’ve made it easier to use on the go and also protected the devices from scratches. While it doesn’t come with a case, it comes with a stylus in the box. There is no way to house the stylus on the device either.

Display and performance

As I said above, the Lenovo Pad M11 sports an 11-inch display with a resolution of 1,920 x 1,200 pixels. It is an IPS panel with 400 nits of brightness. The panel boasts 72 percent NTSC colour space and has 90Hz refresh rate. The display is fantastic for content consumption. I saw the entire season of The Gentlemen on Netflix and the colours just popped. In some well-lit scenes, I had to turn the brightness down as the tablet can get quite bright. Sunlight visibility will vary based on how directly sunlight falls on the display, but for my consumption, it worked fine. Whether I was in bed catching an episode or in a cab, the display worked well.

When it comes to the 90Hz refresh rate, its benefits are more pronounced when gaming or consuming social media content. In games like Call of Duty Mobile, the large display ensured I had my enemies in my sights and the fast refresh rate complimented my trigger finger. In social networking, the smooth scrolling just made the experience all the more fluid.

The only downside to the display is the viewing angle. Keeping the device right in front of me gave me a good experience, but if two people are to consume content on the tablet, then the angle of viewing can lead to some colour shift. The audio output from the speakers is surprisingly loud and clear. So whether I was watching content on streaming services or simply listening to a podcast, the speakers did an admirable job. For the duration of the review, I did not go beyond 70 percent volume and at this level, the audio did not crackle.

When it comes to the performance of the tablet it is quite good for day-to-day tasks. Games ran smoothly and using it for basic productivity like Gmail, writing a few small documents, checking my team’s work, etc was fine. I also ran a bunch of apps like Calculator, calendar, Gmail, Google Sheets, Google Docs, YouTube Music, etc. in split screen or floating window based on the use case and the tablet didn’t stutter much.

The utility of the bundled stylus will vary depending on your use case. I am no artist, but I have a 2.5-year-old at home who is coming to grips with a pen and I found the tablet to be a great alternative to wasting paper to let her scribble to her heart’s content. Also, helping her write A, B C on the tablet was something I spent a lot of time doing. But if you are an artist looking for a pad, the bundled pen is comfortable to grip and there are enough settings in here to let the artist in you thrive.

Battery life

The Lenovo Tab M11 has a 7,040mAh battery. It took around 3 hours to hit 100 percent charge which isn’t fast, but I charge some of my devices overnight and this could be on that list. The battery life though is quite impressive. I binged 8 hours of content on Netflix over a weekend and there was about about 20 percent battery still left. This was content streamed on Netflix over Wi-Fi with the display set to 100 percent brightness and the speakers set to about 60 percent volume. An hour of Call of Duty Mobile led to about 18 percent drop in battery, but here I used wired headphones and dropped the brightness to about 65 percent. Needless to say, the device has good battery life if you are someone who will consume content on the go.

Verdict

For the price of Rs 20,000 approx., the Lenovo Tab M11 is an interesting proposition. It is a well-built tablet with a good display for content consumption along with a high refresh rate screen, good sound output and a decent battery life. It also comes with a pen in the box which runs on an AAAA battery and is great if you have kids who want to draw or are an artist yourself or simply like to take notes by hand. On the downslide, the viewing angles of the display could have been better and the tablet does not support fast charging. The cameras aren’t anything to write home about either. If you are looking for a tablet to be your content consumption partner on the go or simply want something larger than your phone while others hog the TV, then you can consider the M11. It works well for some basic productivity too. For me personally, it doubled up as a great Kindle alternative.