Xiaomi Pad 6S Pro 12.4 Review: Stylish & Versatile

Xiaomi’s newest high-end Android pill is the Pad 6S Professional 12.4, and it’s one thing of a head turner –  smooth all-metal physique and a 12.4-inch 3K show on the skin, highly effective Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor with as much as 12GB reminiscence and 512GB of storage on the within. 

In addition to providing consumers a substitute for the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Extremely – one other highly effective Android pill – and the Apple iPad Professional (2022), Xiaomi has made a pill that seems to have the ability to do something. 

Highly effective audio system and an in depth show promise an amazing multimedia expertise. There’s additionally a Xiaomi Focus Pen stylus, which in addition to letting you doodle and take notes on the Pad 6S Professional, comes with an attention-grabbing cropping characteristic, and a rubberised cowl with a kickstand. 

There’s additionally the Touchpad Keyboard dock within the pipeline, which ought to allow you to crack on with some work once you’re carried out with streaming and sketching – this peripheral was not supplied with the evaluation pattern, sadly, and on the time of writing, neither was a launch date. 

With costs beginning at £599, the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional can also be competitively priced, and will do for high-end Android tablets what the Xiaomi Pad 6 did for mid-range tablets.

Check out our present picks for one of the best tablets cash can purchase.

Design & Construct 

• Wafer-thin all-metal jacket
• Digital camera module juts out from the physique
• You’ll in all probability desire a case

The Pad 6S Professional’s physique is produced from a metallic alloy that’s obtainable in only one color, a darkish silver which Xiaomi calls ‘graphite gray’. Presently, the official Xiaomi Professional Cowl folding case can also be solely obtainable in gray. Hopefully extra color choices will probably be made obtainable sooner. 

The metallic jacket and 7mm bezel give the Pad 6S Professional a sensible, tidy look. It’s arduous to consider that the skinny edges of the gadget home no fewer than six exterior audio system – two speaker grilles sit on both edge. 

On the left-hand fringe of the Pad 6S Professional (when holding it in portrait mode) you’ll discover the facility button. The amount rocker sits across the nook, on the highest fringe of the gadget, which makes for straightforward screenshot taking. 

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

The highest edge additionally encompasses a magnetic strip, for the Focus Pen stylus to be linked to for charging and storage. Over on the appropriate hand facet between the 2 speaker grilles is a Sort-C USB port. There are not any ports, connections, or grilles on the underside edge. 

The front-facing digicam sensor is tiny, barely noticeable within the bezel. Over on the rear is a digicam module which seems to be prefer it’s been transplanted from the Xiaomi 14 smartphone. It rises about 2mm up from the remainder of the pill’s physique, which implies that the Pad 6S Professional gained’t relaxation flush with a desktop. If I have been a cynic, I’d say that the intent right here is to drive you to purchase a protecting cowl together with your pill. 

The Professional Cowl, with its rubbery coating, makes the Pad 6S Professional simpler to grip and maintain, plus, the clasp helps the stylus in place when it’s charging. Whereas the pill is pretty weighty, you possibly can (nearly) maintain it in a single hand and swipe and sketch within the different.

Word that it doesn’t include an IP ranking for mud and water safety just like the IP68 Tab S9 vary.

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Display screen & Audio system

• 12.4-inch LCD panel
• Most refresh charge of 144Hz
• Six exterior audio system

The Pad 6S Professional’s 12.4in show is an LCD sort, that means that it gained’t provide the attractive ranges of distinction that you simply get from an OLED show – just like the one on the the Samsung Tab S9 Extremely – however with quoted peak brightness of 900 nits, distinction right here continues to be good.  

The excessive decision and 144Hz refresh charge implies that video games and video content material seems to be properly detailed as effectively. The three:2 side ratio implies that video content material is letterboxed, however the further top you get in contrast with 16:10 shows makes for roomier internet looking and workplace duties. 

The images I’ve taken may counsel in any other case, however the show was vibrant sufficient to punch by the noon solar, even when the reflective coating does decide up glare fairly badly. With the Excessive Brightness Mode engaged, I recorded peak brightness of 921 nits, barely larger than the listed most. The show is greater than vibrant sufficient for indoor use. 

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Audio from movies and music performed by the stereo audio system sounds incredible, all issues thought-about. Dialogue at all times sounded clear as a bell above background noise, even in motion sequences, such because the battle scene of Episode 9 of Shogun. 

Tracks with stereo and 5.1 mixes sounded much more spacious than they might on most tablets, and whereas the bodily limitations of a tool of this measurement imply that bass response is at all times going to be restricted, I used to be impressed with how weighty songs sounded.

It’s no substitute for a standalone speaker or soundbar, naturally, however as pill audio system go, they’re excellent certainly. 

Focus Pen stylus 

• 240Hz contact sampling charge
• 8192 ranges of stress sensitivity
• Nice for sketching and writing
• Highlighter device and palm detection wants work

A key promoting level of the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional is the Focus Pen, an energetic stylus which pairs with the Pad 6S Professional by way of Bluetooth. 

It makes use of proprietary Xiaomi know-how, and in keeping with spokespeople isn’t primarily based on AES know-how. In different phrases, should you attempt to use one other stylus with this, chances are high if it does work in any respect, its performance will probably be restricted.

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

In addition to functioning as a stylus as you’d anticipate, the Focus Pen has some attention-grabbing tips up its sleeve. There are three controls on the facet of the Focus Pen, which allow you to motion various things.

The Writing button (the one closest to the tip) quick-launches the Mi Canvas note-taking and sketching app. The Screenshot button (the center button) launches a cropping device, which which you’ll be able to seize and save particular parts of what’s in your show, or take a whole screenshot, as a substitute of getting to succeed in for the facility key and quantity rocker. 

Lastly, there’s the standalone Highlight button, which may do a variety of issues. Urgent and holding this button sees a purple dot cursor seem on the display screen which you’ll be able to the transfer round with the stylus, successfully utilizing the Focus Pen like a digital laser pointer. It’s straightforward to make use of, enjoyable, and efficient sat shut up and stood distant.

Whereas I used to be ready to make use of this comfortably when stood two meters away, at such a distance, it’s additionally difficult to see what’s on the show, so maybe not greatest employed in giant conferences.  

Urgent the Highlight button as soon as brings up a highlighter device which does the same factor, though in observe, that is tougher to make use of, because of the cursor all of a sudden veering off in a single route, or the highlighter not at all times highlighting, despite the fact that you’ve received the button pressed down. Making an attempt to make useful annotations to pictures felt like performing keyhole surgical procedure with a Nintendo Wii controller. 

One other factor you are able to do with the Highlight button is use it as a distant digicam shutter. 

You is likely to be pondering, ‘Sure, that is all very good, however how does it fare as a stylus?’ Fairly good, because it occurs. 

The Focus Pen boasts 8192 ranges of stress sensitivity (double that of the Apple Pencil 2nd gen), a 240Hz contact sampling charge (the variety of instances the Pad 6S Professional’s show can sense the stylus per second), and 3ms of latency (the delay between you writing one thing and it showing on the show).

In easy phrases, it’s a really delicate stylus that’ll allow you to rapidly scrawl away with little or no activation drive. 

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

The Mi Canvas app demonstrates this effectively – I had loads of enjoyable producing sketches of pine cones and marvelled on the very refined modifications you can also make to drawings. For instance, the pencil device will yield stronger, darker marks the tougher you press, as you may anticipate. With the pencil opacity set to 60%, this impact turned uncannily lifelike, as with tiny flicks of the stylus, I may simply add slight particulars, or heavy shading just by urgent a mite tougher. 

That is nice not simply due to the pleasing impact of the know-how, however as a result of it saved me from having to cease drawing, dive into the settings, improve opacity, and leap again. I may have simply missed the deadline for this evaluation on account of how a lot enjoyable sketching is. 

The ink pen device was a bit slower to reply, with some noticeable delay between pen strokes and the ‘ink’ showing on the display screen. Apart from that particular device in Mi Canvas, there was no discernible delay. 

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Mi Canvas additionally as an intriguing AI Pen device, however this feature is at the moment solely obtainable to beta testers, so I can’t say if it’s an enchancment on what we noticed at this yr’s Cellular World Congress. It will probably flip a easy, garbage even, sketch into usable art work.

The pill’s palm rejection measures often labored – the Pad 6S Professional may often inform every time I used to be resting my hand on the show, and wouldn’t decide that up after I was sketching, however, I discovered that every time jotting down issues within the Notes app in panorama mode, my palm would, most of the time, unintentionally launch the keyboard, which was irritating.

Fortunately, I by no means encountered this when holding the pill portrait-wise, which might be how most individuals will probably be holding it whereas taking notes, so arguably, not as huge a difficulty as it’d seem however it’s nonetheless annoying. 

This apart, the handwriting recognition side of the Notes app is superb. I actually needed to strive arduous, by writing badly on function, to idiot the software program into changing my handwriting into the unsuitable phrase, however the majority of the time, the Pad 6S Professional had me beat.

Specs & Efficiency 

• Wonderful total efficiency
• Not fairly as highly effective because the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Extremely
• However Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional’s battery lasts longer

The Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional’s efficiency is superb certainly. In addition to the aforementioned Mi Canvas app working very easily, high-end sport Asphalt 9 ran like greased lightning with added grease.

Basic on a regular basis operations like internet looking and even simply swishing by menus feels incredible as effectively, a sensation helped by that 144MHz show.

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

There are two variations of the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional obtainable, one with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, one with 12/512GB, neither of which may be expanded with microSD playing cards. The mannequin supplied for testing is the entry stage one. 

Each are powered by the octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, which boosts as much as 3.19GHz – slower than the overclocked Samsung variant, which boosts as much as 3.36GHz.

It’s maybe not a shock then to see that the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Extremely leaps forward of the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional in nearly each benchmark, particularly the Geekbench CPU stress take a look at. It’s a bit behind the Apple iPad Professional 12.9 as effectively – a pill from 2021.

However, to paraphrase Blade Runner, the pill that burns brighter eats by battery energy extra rapidly – the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional might not be as highly effective as these, however it’ll outlast them in a long-distance run (extra on battery life later). 

Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional 12.4 benchmarks

Connectivity-wise you get Wi-Fi 7 right here, promising speeds far above 1Gbps, offered you’re linked to an up-to-date router, and Bluetooth 5.3. There’s no 5G help both. 

Cameras

• 50Mp foremost digicam with 2Mp depth lens and LED flash
• 32Mp entrance digicam

Cameras on tablets are hardly ever a lot to put in writing house about, and the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional isn’t any exception. 

Pictures are comparable with what you’d see from a mid-range cellphone so stills are inclined to look positive in daylight, or areas with loads of synthetic gentle. 

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

The principle 50Mp sensor is fast to concentrate on topics and takes images rapidly, so most of the time, your snaps are inclined to look very crisp and detailed. This typically holds up when zoomed in at x2 magnification, however pushed past that and issues quickly deteriorate. 

Colors are a bit washed out and fewer vibrant than they’re in actuality, however total, outcomes are good. In darkish areas, or at evening time, it’s a special story. 

One of the best factor about the primary digicam for me is the doc scanner device, which does a great job of rapidly zeroing in on what you need. 

The front-facing 32Mp digicam is ok for video calls. The angle that the Pad 6S Professional sits at with the Professional Cowl kickstand out implies that folks on the opposite finish get a great have a look at your face as a substitute of trying up your nostrils or immediately at your chin.

Stills aren’t so good, because the outcomes are sometimes fairly grainy and noisy. 

Battery Life & Charging 

• 10,000mAh battery is sufficient energy for a working day
• Lasted over 9 hours in benchmark take a look at
• Fees again up from flat in simply over 40 minutes

The battery lifetime of tablets usually isn’t nice, particularly if they’ve vibrant, detailed shows, however the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional fared a bit higher than most. 

Working the PCMark Work 3.0 benchmarking device with brightness locked at 200 nits noticed the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional lasting 9 hours and 10 minutes, barely forward of equally ‘specced tablets. The battery will sit at round 80-85 after an hour of streaming music on YouTube or watching TV. 

Better of all although is how rapidly you possibly can refill the tank with the whopping 120W mains adapter. From empty, after quarter-hour, I used to be at 48%, and after half an hour, 81%, lastly hitting 100% after 43 minutes.

It’s nice to see that share counter go up so rapidly. 

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Software program & Options 

• Xiaomi HyperOS on prime of Android 14 
• Some (however not all) bloatware may be eliminated
• Two years of OS updates
• Three years of safety updates

The Pad 6S Professional’s person interface within reason straightforward to become familiar with, and will probably be immediately acquainted to anybody who has used an Android pill earlier than. 

Particularly, it comes with Xiaomi’s new HyperOS customized person interface working on prime of Android 14. It doesn’t massively differ from the inventory Android expertise and is a reasonably inoffensive customized UI. 

Many of the belongings you’ll wish to begin enjoying with are put proper in entrance of you after you’ve completed setting the factor up – though, bizarrely, Xiaomi determined to cover the superb Mi Canvas app away on the menu display screen instantly to your proper.

Dragging down from the highest proper nook opens the short settings panel the place you possibly can toggle Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, brightness and the like. 

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Whereas on the floor, HyperOS doesn’t look a lot totally different to Xiaomi’s previous MIUI interface, it’s much less resource-intensive. 

HyperOS comes with a handful of Xiaomi apps and companies pre-installed, like Xiaomi House, a hub by which you’ll be able to handle and management Xiaomi sensible house gadgets – and is due to this fact solely actually helpful should you even have any Xiaomi sensible house gadgets. In case you don’t, a minimum of you possibly can uninstall it – which is greater than you possibly can say for the Mi Browser, which you’ll be able to’t uninstall. 

As I didn’t have a Xiaomi cellphone at hand whereas testing out the Pad 6S Professional, I can’t say how effectively the brand new House Display screen+ characteristic works – this allows you to solid your cellphone’s display screen to your pill and work together with it remotely. 

By way of help, Xiaomi confirmed that the Pad 6S Professional will get two years of OS updates and three years of safety cowl. It’s a primary stage of help and we might hope for extra contemplating Xiaomi provides 4 years OS and 5 years of safety for its flagship telephones.

When you could possibly be spending some huge cash between the pill and its elective equipment, it solely lasting three years on the software program facet isn’t nice worth for cash. The likes of Samsung and Google provide longer help.

Value & Availability

The Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional is on sale now, though be aware that on the time of writing, availability is restricted. 

Within the UK, you should purchase immediately from Xiaomi, the place the 8/256GB and 12/512GB fashions can be found for £599 and £699 respectively. 

You may as well decide up the Focus Pen stylus from Xiaomi for £79, and the Pro Cover for £29. 

The Touchpad Keyboard just isn’t but on sale, and no launch date has been introduced, however Xiaomi has confirmed to me that it is going to be priced at £169.

Word that the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional 12.4 is not going to be occurring sale in the US, Canada, or Australia.

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Thomas Newton / Foundry

Do you have to purchase the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional 12.4?

In case you’re out there for a high-end pill and also you’re focused on branching out into digital artwork, or simply typically like the concept of getting some sketching carried out in between work and Netflix binges, then the Xiaomi Pad 6S Professional must be in your purchasing checklist. 

It may not be as highly effective because the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 Extremely – nonetheless probably the most succesful Android pill on the market – however it’s smaller and due to this fact simpler to hold round, the battery lasts longer, and it’s significantly cheaper as effectively. 

If sketching or utilizing a stylus to take notes is of much less significance to you, then the mid-range Xiaomi Pad 6 is likely to be a greater choice, or the Lenovo Tab P12 Professional – it is likely to be a mannequin from 2021, however it’s nonetheless a great value-for-money purchase. 

What the Pad 6S Professional doesn’t have on its facet in comparison with rivals is longevity because of quick software program help.

Specs

• Show: 12.4in 144MHz 3:2 LCD show
• Decision: 3K (3,048×2,032), 3:2 side ratio
• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, Octa-core as much as 3.19GHz
• Storage: 256/512GB
• RAM: 8/12GB
• Digital camera: 50Mp+2Mp entrance, 32Mp rear
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.3
• Sound: Six Dolby Atmos-branded stereo audio system, microphone
• Battery Life: As much as 9 hours
• Charging: USB-C (USB 2.0)
• Weight: 278.7 x 191.6 x 6.26mm 
• Dimensions: 590g