Whether you’re taking your tablet with you on the train to stave off boredom on a commute or are reading an eBook while propped up with it in bed, there’s nothing worse than having to stop what you’re doing to charge it. It’s no fun to play Threes or watch Netflix while connected to the wall. In our testing, we’ve determined which tablets last longest on a charge. The Laptop Mag Battery Test continuously browses the web over Wi-Fi to see just how long you can use a tablet before you have to find the charging cable. Here are the tablets with the most endurance:
Apple’s latest tablet, the 10.5-inch iPad Pro, is the longest lasting tablet we’ve tested recently. 13 hours and 55 minutes is a lot of endurance for a device that has amazingly fast performance thanks to its A10X Fusion CPU (even rivaling some laptops). That’s all in a body just 0.2 inches thin.
Apple’s 9.7-inch laptop lasts just under 13 hours on a charge. We also love the 9.7-inch iPad for its affordable $329 price, bright display and great speakers. It doesn’t support the Apple Pencil or Smart Keyboard, but it’s a wonderful media consumption device.
You’ll get over 11 hours of battery life on the Amazon Fire HD 8, but we hope you like Amazon’s app store. You can even get Google Play on Fire HD 8.Not to mention thatit’s $80 and Prime members get access to a ton of books, movies and television shows.
The Lenovo Yoga Book, which runs for nine and a half hours on a charge, is among the most innovative products we’ve ever seen. It unfolds to reveal a laptop that has a touch surface with zero-travel, touch sensitive keys that doubles as a Wacom tablet. Lenovo’s Android customizations are helpful, but use in laptop mode is a pain. I hope you like taking notes.
If you’re the type that like a keyboard with their tablet, you’ll value the Galaxy Tab S3’s 8 hours and 45 minutes of battery life. It comes with an S Pen for drawing and a sleek premium design. The 9.7-inch screen supports HDR, so you’ll see really vibrant colors.
The Huawei MediaPad M3, which lasts 8:40 on a charge, is a bit pricey for an Android tablet at $299. What you get for that price is refined design with a bright display and great audio quality, and solid performance as well as Huawei’s EMUI screen for Android 6.0.
Not only does the Asus ZenPad 8 last 8 hours and 22 minutes, but it has a bright and accurate display, great sound and a lightweight design that makes you forget you’re carrying it. Unfortunately, it has a tendency to pause when you’re switching between apps.
While many Windows tablets and 2-in-1s sacrifice endurance for power, the iPad Pro offers a better balance of battery life and speed. This 12.9-inch slate lasted for more than 10 hours on the Laptop Mag Battery Test. The iPad Pro isn't cheap, and it won't replace your laptop, like a Surface can. But the iPad Pro's A9X processor; crisp, 5-million-pixel display; and optional Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard make it a versatile device that can go the distance.
- iPad Pro 10.5-inch – 13:55
- iPad 9.7-inch – 12:59
- Amazon Fire HD 8 – 11:19
- Lenovo Yoga Book – 9:31
- Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 – 8:45
- Huawei MediaPad M3 – 8:42
- Asus ZenPad 8 – 8:22
- Asus ZenPad 3S 10 – 8:09
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