Ranking: Best tablets for under 300 dollars/euros

Its high display brightness of over 800 cd/m² as well as the 144 Hz refresh rate really help the Pad 7 stand out. Despite the great display, its real-world battery life leaves little to desire at around 18 to 20 hours. The SoC (Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7+ Gen3) is super fast for the price range.

Its build quality and speakers are very decent and for those who need it, stylus input is supported. A Xiaomi keyboard case is available for this tablet, too. Please note that 4G LTE or GPS are not on board, there is no fingerprint sensor and the base warranty is quite short [in Germany]. We don't expect this product to get many years of software updates, either.

The Xiaomi Pad 7 is an overall good offering thanks to its fast SoC, very good display with stylus support and long battery life.

In Germany, the tablet can currently be had for 279 euros from Kaufland, among other options.

The Alldocube iPlay 70 mini Ultra is finally an affordable 8.8-inch tablet with decent performance and a 144 Hz QHD+ display with high contrast and a brightness of over 500 cd/m², but the calibration leaves something to be desired. The performance of the built-in Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 is also more than double that of the Helios G99 of many cheaper tablets. You also get a microSD card reader and 5 years of security updates. The battery life of 16 hours is also impressive

Less ideal are the heat development under continuous load, the mediocre speakers and camera and the lack of biometric security options.

With the iPlay 70 mini Pro, Alldocube finally offers an affordable 8-inch tablet with decent features.

Despite an RRP of 400 euros, you can get the iPlay 70 mini Ultra from Alldocube for less than 300 euros on Amazon. With the voucher code "JMPLNUZZ" it is currently only 269 euros.

The most affordable Samsung tablet with S Pen support is the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (2024). Unlike the cheaper Tab A9+ (ranked 4th), its refresh rate is limited to 60 Hz, and it comes with just 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of eMMC storage.

The mid-range Samsung Exynos 1280 SoC is somewhat outdated and falls well behind the Snapdragon 870 5G in the Xiaomi Pad 6 (ranked 1st). However, battery life is impressive at 12.5 to nearly 16 hours, and the tablet features solid speakers and a sturdy metal case.

For those seeking an affordable tablet with S Pen support, the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is a solid option.

However, other budget tablets outperform it in most other areas. The 128 GB variant is currently available on Amazon DE for 222 euros.

The Honor Pad 10 and a 12.1-inch QHD IPS display with 120 Hz, a brightness of up to 500 cd/m² and supports pen input. A Bluetooth Smart Keyboard is also available for 60 euros. The Snapdragon 7 G3 offers decent mid-range performance, while the battery life is quite long at over 14.5 hours.

The Honor Pad 10 has a robust metal casing, but lacks IP certification as well as a cellular option, GPS and a fingerprint sensor.

The Honor Pad 10 is currently available on Amazon for 269 euros. If you want to save almost 100 euros, go for the very similar predecessor model, the Honor Pad 9.

In 3rd place was the Lenovo Idea Tab Pro as it is now available for less than 300 euros for the first time - not to be confused with the IdeaPad Pro Laptop series.

The 12.7-inch tablet offers a great deal: high-quality casing, stylus, fast Dimensity 8300, powerful sound, fast WLAN, expandable, fast memory and long runtimes. The 3K IPS display also offers 144 Hz, but is not very bright at just under 400 cd/m². The cameras are usable at best and the SoC throttles under load.

The Idea Tab Pro from Lenovo offers many advantages, but the low display brightness in particular limits mobile use.

The price of the Lenovo Idea Tab Pro has risen to 319 euros on Amazon.de.

The Huawei MatePad 11.5 S features an 11.5-inch 2.8K 144Hz matte display with a 3:2 aspect ratio, pen support, and a fast Kirin 9000WL SoC.

Its premium metal case is just 6 mm thin and weighs only 510 grams, complemented by quality speakers and nearly 14-hour battery life. However, it lacks LTE, GPS, and its 450 cd/m² brightness is lower than some competitors.

The MatePad 11.5 S impresses with its work-friendly matte display but could improve in contrast and brightness. Saturn is currently offering it for 269 euros, with the next best price at 299 euros on Amazon DE.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ offers a 90Hz refresh rate on its 11-inch FHD IPS display, optional 5G, Samsung DeX, and four years of updates, with the Snapdragon 695 replacing its predecessor’s Unisoc T618.

It includes 64 GB of storage, 4 GB of RAM, expandable up to 1 TB via microSD (without setting it as internal storage), and a sturdy aluminum case. The four speakers deliver solid audio, and battery life reaches nearly 15.5 hours.

While the Tab A9+ provides a bright 90Hz display, DeX, and good performance at a budget price, drawbacks include slow 15W charging, no power adapter, and no fingerprint sensor. The base version is available for 165 euros on Amazon DE.

The 8.7-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab A9, unlike the larger Tab A9+, features a 60-Hz display with a lower resolution of 1,340 x 800 pixels and optional 4G LTE.

For those seeking a compact tablet, the Galaxy Tab A9 is an affordable option, though it lacks a fingerprint sensor and does not include a power adapter.

It is powered by the MediaTek Helios G99 SoC paired with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. Battery life reaches up to 19 hours, and Samsung guarantees updates for four years. Galaxus currently offers the base model for 122 euros with free shipping.

The Xiaomi Redmi Pad SE succeeds the Redmi Pad, maintaining a durable aluminum housing and an impressive 17-hour battery life, while increasing the screen size from 10.6 to 11 inches, though pixel density drops from 220 to 206 ppi. A headphone jack is now included.
The Snapdragon 680 4G is up to 30% slower than the Helio G99, particularly in single-core tasks.

Xiaomi delivers an affordable mid-range tablet with excellent quad speakers, but it lacks satellite positioning and a fingerprint sensor.

The 90Hz FHD+ IPS display is now 50 cd/m² brighter at 450 cd/m² and covers around 93% of sRGB. The 8GB RAM/256GB model is priced at 177 euros, while the 4GB/128GB version is available for 145 euros on Amazon DE.

The affordable 12.1-inch Lenovo Idea Tab Plus tablet comes with a QHD+ 90Hz IPS display with 600 nits, 8 GB RAM and 256 GB ROM. Inside the stylish and high-quality metal casing is the unfortunately not quite nimble mid-range SoC Mediatek Dimensity 6400. The memory can at least be expanded via microSD and a stylus is included in the scope of delivery. However, there is no fingerprint reader.

The cameras are also not very convincing. The speakers, on the other hand, deliver a decent sound and it charges with a full 45 watts. The battery life of just under 15 hours is also impressive.

The lightweight 12-inch Lenovo Idea Tab Plus tablet offers precise GPS, but no mobile phone version - protection against dust and water is only rudimentary and there is no hope of long updates.

The Lenovo Idea Pad Plus is currently available from Galaxus for 289 euros with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB memory.