CES 2024: Lenovo's Tab M11 refresh looks like a killer sub-$200 value
Our favorite affordable tablet is back and better than ever
The Lenovo Tab M11 is a sneaky good tablet for those looking for a device to watch videos, scroll endlessly through TikTok, look up a recipe, read a book, or serve up educational content for a child.
Its slightly pricier sibling the Yoga Tab 11 (2022) earned 4.5 stars and an Editor's Choice award from us. The Tab M11 mirrors a lot of its excellent qualities and comes in at only $179, roughly half the cost of the base model iPad. I got some brief hands-on time with the new Tab M11 at CES 2024, so stay tuned for our full review, but if you are in the market for a new tablet this year, here's a quick look at what Lenovo's cooked up for you.
Price | $179 |
Display | 11-inch, 1920x1200, 90Hz refresh rate |
CPU | MediaTek Helio G88 Octa-core |
RAM | 4/8 GB |
Storage | 64/128GB |
Battery | 7,040mAh (Claimed 10 hours of battery life) |
Size | 8.9 x 6.6 x 0.28 inches |
Weight | 1 lb. |
Ports/Slots | USB-C, 3.5mm audio, microSD |
The basic look and feel of the Tab M11 isn't going to shock you, it features Lenovo's familiar two-tone finish on the back and its thin and light at just 0.28-inches thick and 1 pound. The 11-inch display looks bright and vivid, but of course, we'll get the full breakdown on it once we have it in our lab for testing. When you are in the mood for reading or just winding down for the night, the Reading Mode flips the display to a desaturated color or fully greyscale to protect your eyes and avoid that sleep-stealing blue light exposure.
The tablet runs Android 13 with some added software catering to some of the use cases I mentioned above. That also includes support for the Lenovo Tab Pen, with an app to convert your handwriting into text and another app called MyScript Calculator 2 that will solve equations and functions in real-time, a nice little add-on for students. While the Tab M11 isn't a tablet you would want to try to replace a laptop with fully, you can easily view and edit documents on it with the bundled WPS Office.
You can also take advantage of that 11-inch display in a split-screen mode for either note-taking while you are watching a presentation on the other side or browsing the web while watching Netflix. Speaking of Netflix and the entertainment side, the quad Dolby Atmos speakers deliver solid audio to pair with that FHD display.
Powering the Tab M11 is a MediaTek Helio G88 Octa-core processor, which matches well with the intended usage for this tablet, just don't plan your mobile e-sports career around the Tab M11. Intensive games like Genshin Impact are going to be a stretch for it, but casual games and most anything else in the Google Play Store will run perfectly well.
Battery life will be another one that we need to wait for our lab to give the final ruling, but Lenovo claims the 7,040mAh battery will last for 10 hours on a charge.it'saren't
Stay in the know with Laptop Mag
Get our in-depth reviews, helpful tips, great deals, and the biggest news stories delivered to your inbox.
Bottom line
The Lenovo Tab M11 is a perennial favorite in the affordable tablet market and this latest revision looks perfectly poised to carry on that tradition. At just $179, the Lenovo Tab M11 delivers precisely the functionality that a large portion of tablet users are looking for at roughly half the cost of an iPad. Unless you want to be in the Amazon ecosystem with a Fire Tablet, it's hard to beat the value of the Lenovo Tab M11.
Sean Riley has been covering tech professionally for over a decade now. Most of that time was as a freelancer covering varied topics including phones, wearables, tablets, smart home devices, laptops, AR, VR, mobile payments, fintech, and more. Sean is the resident mobile expert at Laptop Mag, specializing in phones and wearables, you'll find plenty of news, reviews, how-to, and opinion pieces on these subjects from him here. But Laptop Mag has also proven a perfect fit for that broad range of interests with reviews and news on the latest laptops, VR games, and computer accessories along with coverage on everything from NFTs to cybersecurity and more.