Lenovo Idea Tab Pro Unboxing: big tablet, small price [VIDEO]

Fresh off spending some quality time with the impressive (and compact) Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 3, Lenovo sent over another interesting tablet for us to check out: the new Lenovo Idea Tab Pro. This one takes a different approach – it’s a larger tablet with a high-resolution screen, not quite geared towards gaming like its Legion cousin, but carrying a price tag that immediately caught my attention.

First things first, the pricing on this device is what makes it really compelling. It seems to have been on sale pretty much since it launched. While it might retail around $400 normally, the 8GB RAM/128GB storage model (which Lenovo sells directly) is currently hovering just under $300 – I’ve even seen it dip to around $260-$270. Best Buy has an 8GB/256GB version that’s also frequently discounted, often sitting around $340. For a large tablet with some of these specs, those are definitely more entry-level numbers.

Now, you’ll see “Pro” on this tablet, and that initially made me think high-end specs across the board. But then I saw the price, and it didn’t quite add up in the traditional “Pro” sense. It feels like “Pro” here is more of a branding choice. Under the hood, it’s powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 8300, which is a capable, last-gen high-end chip – so it shouldn’t be sluggish by any means – but it’s not the absolute cutting edge. For what you’re paying, however, it seems like a solid processor choice.

Impressive hardware

Pulling the Idea Tab Pro out of the box, it immediately feels great – something Lenovo has been consistently nailing with their tablets. It’s a metal and glass construction, and it’s remarkably thin, even more so than my phone.

The display is a big highlight. Lenovo calls it a “3K” screen, and while the 2944×1840 resolution is a bit unusual, it’s sharp and approaches 4K in vertical pixels. What really struck me in my initial setup and navigation is that it’s also a high-refresh (144Hz) display, and it is super smooth. Combined with 400 nits of brightness, just bouncing around the UI on this large, buttery-smooth screen is a really nice experience.

It also packs quad speakers, and after giving them a quick listen with one of our YouTube videos, I can confirm they are really, really good – surprisingly impressive for such a thin device, much like the excellent speakers on the smaller Legion Tab.

A pen is included in the box as well, which is a nice touch. It attaches magnetically to the back (though it doesn’t actually charge there, so it’s more for convenient storage). In a quick scribble test, the latency was fantastic, with no noticeable lag. If you’re looking for a tablet for note-taking, this seems very capable.

The tablet charges via USB-C with an included 45W adapter – plenty fast, though again, the “Pro” name had me half-expecting something more like the 68W charger that came with the Legion Tab. There are Pogo pins on the bottom for an optional keyboard case, but that’s a separate purchase (around $150) and wasn’t available at the time of this unboxing. That’s one of my minor gripes; if you’re positioning a larger tablet with productivity potential, having key accessories like a keyboard dock ready at launch is always preferable.

Quick performance test: Call of Duty Mobile

I loaded up Call of Duty Mobile to get a quick sense of performance. I was able to crank the graphics to “Very High” with a “Very High” frame rate, and gameplay was very, very smooth. No jumping, no bouncing, just good-looking, fluid graphics. The Dimensity 8300 isn’t going to be a chart-topper, but it clearly handles demanding titles like this quite well. Of course, for even higher-end gaming, GeForce NOW with a controller would also be a great option on a screen this large.

Tablet cameras are rarely the main event. The selfie cam looked decent enough under studio lights for video calls (Google Meet will be great on this, especially once the keyboard is out). The rear camera shot I took was a bit soft, but the lighting was tricky. They’ll be fine for scanning documents or a quick snap if needed, but no one should be buying a tablet of this size and thinking about cameras first.

Initial Thoughts

Just from this initial unboxing and a few minutes of use, the Lenovo Idea Tab Pro feels like it could be a really fun device, primarily as a fantastic content consumption tablet. That big, high-resolution, super-smooth screen and those impressive speakers make it seem ideal for movies and videos.

Reading in bed might be a two-handed affair due to its size and slim bezels, and some fast-paced touch-based games might feel a bit unwieldy on such a large display. However, for games that benefit from a large screen and don’t require constant, rapid screen interaction (like turn-based games or even something like Golden Tee), it should be great.

Ultimately, the main story here is the price. You’re getting a large, beautiful, high-refresh-rate screen, excellent speakers, and solid performance for what can often be a sub-$300 price point (for the 128GB version on sale). If you’re in the market for a larger Android tablet primarily for media consumption, and you appreciate a quality display and audio experience without emptying your wallet, the Lenovo Idea Tab Pro is definitely a worthwhile device to keep on your radar.