There are some tablets on the market with almost prohibitive prices for many families or students who have no income. But that should not separate and exclude them from the use of new technologies, since they can always count on a model of Chinese tablets that have really low prices and very promising features. A fantastic opportunity to have a more than decent mobile device and save on the purchase.
In addition, when you think of a Chinese tablet it is related to low quality, but it is not like that. Brands like Huawei, Xiaomi or Lenovo They are at the forefront and offer a lot of quality in their products, but without increasing their prices. There are also many other lesser known Chinese brands that are also worth mentioning. Here you can learn which ones are the best and how to choose your perfect tablet ...
Best Chinese tablet brands
In addition to the most popular ones that do not need an introduction, such as Xiaomi, Huawei and Lenovo, there are also others that offer very good value for money and features that you sometimes only find in high-end tablets and with quite expensive prices. To know which one to choose, here you go some recommendations:
Lenovo
This Chinese technology firm is a benchmark in the sector. It is one of the most important companies in the world, with products that have a fantastic value for money, such as its tablets. These devices offer very innovative models, with quality finishes, performance, an updated system, and truly innovative solutions, such as their Smart Tab so that you can have a smart speaker for the home and a tablet in a single device ...
Huawei
It is another of the giants of technology in China, and always at the forefront. Its tablets are also among the best valued, despite the fact that their prices are intermediate between the cheapest and the most expensive. Therefore, you can buy a tablet with high-end features at a mid-range price. And with some details in terms of sound quality, screen and others, which are really remarkable.
Redmi (Xiaomi)
Xiaomi is another of China's big technology firms, along with Lenovo and Huawei. This firm has also entered the world of tablets, although it has done so under its Redmi sub-brand, with good products for all types of users, offering great technology, attractive design, and reasonable price.
Honor
Honor is another of the technology brands of the Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology Co., Ltd. group, being another of the sub-brands used by the giant Huawei. These tablets offer a good balance between quality, performance and price.
Oppo
OPPO is another great brand of tablets and mobile devices in general. This Chinese firm belongs to BBK Electronics Corp, which has brands such as OnePlus, as well as Vivo, and Realme. This firm has a lot to offer for a reasonable price, with great appeal in terms of features, quality and design.
CHUWI
It is one of the best-selling brands on Amazon, as it offers very low prices. In addition, the quality of these tablets is quite good, especially their screen panels. It is true that the hardware may not be the most current, but it is enough for most users and in general all those who have tried it have been satisfied, especially considering what it costs.
It should be noted that the design is also quite attractive, and in a way it can be reminiscent of Apple's, which is a point in its favor. You can even find greater flexibility when choosing an operating system, being able to choose between Android tablets and Windows 10 tablets, making them the cheapest alternative to Microsoft's Surface. There are also very well-equipped models, including accessories such as an external tablet + touchpad to transform the tablet into a laptop.
TECLAST
It is another of those little-known brands that come from the Chinese market. However, like CHUWI and others, they are breaking into the top sellers on sites like Aliexpress or Amazon. This brand stands out for its low prices and excellent value for money. Its design is also very careful, and its hardware does not have too much to envy compared to expensive brands. You can also find models with Android and others with Windows 10, having almost a convertible laptop in your hands.
YESTEL
These tablets also have good quality, run smoothly, and the screen, speakers, microphone, and battery life are quite acceptable. However, their prices are striking, since few tablets in that range can provide you with far from modest benefits like YESTEL's.
LNMBBS
Hardly anyone is likely to know about this cheap Chinese brand, but if you look at the number of sales in stores like Amazon, you'll see that they sell like bagels. The reason is the same as the previous brands, that is, they offer quality and great performance for very little. The hardware tends to satisfy the majority of users, with Mediatek SoCs and current Android versions.
In addition, they have features that are worthy of very expensive and premium-range tablets, such as USB-C OTG, 4G and 5G LTE connectivity in some models, DualSIM, etc.
goodtel
The goodtel tablets are quite well equipped, but with very cheap prices. They have powerful hardware, their battery has a good autonomy, they have a good screen panel, current versions of Android, and they stand out for the number of accessories included in the same pack, such as headphones, digital pen, screen protector, USB OTG cables , external keyboard, etc. That is, almost a convertible or 2-in-1 for very little.
TCL
The next Chinese brand of tablets is TCL, which are devices for those looking for something simple and cheap. However, these devices should not be underestimated, as they offer good quality and all the functions you can expect in a tablet.
DOOGEE
Within the mobile phones you will also know the DOOGEE brand, which are highly valued for their durability, resistance and cheap price, since they are protected against shocks, water and dust, ideal for those who work in more dangerous environments or carry out outdoor activities. Well, all this now also reaches the tablets section...
Ulefone
Like the previous one, Ulefone is another Chinese brand that also focuses on the durability and resistance of its products, meeting high standards against shocks, dust, water, etc. Thanks to their success on mobile phones, they have also entered the field of tablets, and they are quite cheap...
Oukitel
Tablets from the Chinese brand Oukitel are known for their durability and high-capacity batteries, offering the best for those who use them away from home. Plus, they have some pretty interesting hardware, as well as an affordable price, making it a fantastic alternative to Ulefone or Doogee.
ALLDOCUBE
These other Chinese tablets are also among the cheapest. They have a classic design, without too many extras or details, but with what really matters. These models include decent quality, LTE connectivity for Internet access wherever you are, integrated FM radio, OTG compatibility for its USB connector to connect external devices, quality speakers and mic, DualSIM, etc. Perhaps the brightness of the screen and the autonomy are its weakest points.
Are there powerful Chinese tablets?
Of course yes, Chinese tablets are not synonymous with low quality and low performance. There are brands and models with impressive hardware, with the most advanced and powerful chips on the market, such as Qualcomm Snapdragon or the most advanced models from Mediateck, HiSilicon, etc. An example of this is the Lenovo Tab P11 Pro, with an 11.5 ″ screen at the height of very expensive models, with WQXGA resolution for high quality image, Android 10 upgradeable by OTA, storage of up to 128 GB and a fantastic autonomy.
In the case of the Lenovo, it is equipped with a Kryo 730-core Snapdragon 8G SoC based on ARM Cortex-A up to 2.2Ghz, Adreno GPUs that are among the most powerful on the market, and with up to 6 GB of low-power LPDDR4X RAM.
How to know if a tablet is Chinese
It is possible to know if it is among the brands mentioned above. But also can you identify it for other details. However, the question would be what tablet is not Chinese ?. And is that even the most popular brands like Apple are manufactured there. The difference is the quality controls (QA) that each brand passes, being some less reliable and prone to failures because less is invested in it and others more expensive and durable because they invest in it.
Of course, be suspicious when you see a tablet that apparently is from a well-known brand, but is priced too low to be true. Especially in ads that come to you by mail, through social networks, or in stores like Aliexpress where there is not much control over the sellers, since it may be a low-cost brand and they are selling it to you as one. forgery. To detect this type of fraud, you can follow these steps:
- Enter the Android Settings app.
- Then click on Information or About the device.
- Then go to Status or Certification.
- Finally, if it is a fake, you will not have this information or it does not correspond to the brand it claims to be.
Are Chinese tablets reliable?
As I have commented before, everything depends on the make and model, but there are many that are. Obviously, the very cheap ones do not have a duration and quality as high as other more expensive ones. But China should never be associated with poor quality, as many popular and expensive brands also manufacture there to cut costs and expand their profit margin.
There are few ODMs or manufacturers who are responsible for producing these devices, so it is likely that an unknown Chinese brand is manufactured in the same factory as another well-known and more expensive brand. That tends to happen very frequently, so they can also be reliable devices. However, as I already said, not everyone cares about the QA, that is why a cheap brand can consider valid devices that would not be suitable for sale for another brand, so they could present problems in the short or medium term.
Do Chinese tablets come in Spanish?
Here you have to differentiate between companies that have headquarters and service in many countries, such as Lenovo or Huawei, and other brands that distribute directly from China or focus on the Asian market, such as CHUWI, Teclast, Yotopt, etc. In those cases, they usually come pre-configured in English and you will have to make adjustments to configure them in Spanish, which is not too inconvenient. Instead, Lenovo and Huawei will come fully configured for the Spanish market, so they will not have that drawback.
In any case, if you have acquired a brand that is not in Spanish, to configure it in your language you just have to follow these steps:
- Go to Android Settings.
- Then to Languages and Input.
- There you must press Languages.
- Then add the Spanish language in the list that appears.
Advantages of a Chinese tablet with a Snapdragon processor
There are cheap Chinese brands that tend to ride chips with lower performance like Rockchip RK-Series, and others less known. Instead, many choose to include the HiSilicon Kirin, the Mediatek Helio or Dimensity, and the Qualcomm Snapdragon. In any of these cases, they are high-performance chips, especially the latest ones, that not only modify their Kryo CPU cores to obtain better performance, but also include one of the most powerful GPUs on the market such as the Adreno (ATI / AMD in Your day).
The efficiency of these chips is also usually quite good, playing with big.LITTLE architectures to save battery and offer maximum performance when the user demands it. Of course, they also feature the latest in Bluetooth, 4G / 5G drivers and technologies with modems of the best, and manufactured in the most advanced nodes of TSMC ...
Can you use the 4G of a Chinese tablet in Spain?
It is another of the most widespread doubts. The answer is yes. As you know, each country makes a series of bands available to telecommunications operators for LTE connectivity, so it may vary in Europe, Asia or America. Many of the bands used in Asia are not compatible with Spain, although most Chinese tablets allow using 4G with bands 20 (800Mhz), 3 (1.8 Ghz), and 7 (2.6 Ghz).
Band 20 is not available on these cheap tablets, it is on Lenovo and Huawei. But in the rest they can have 3 or 7, so they could be connected without problems. But you should analyze well to ensure they are compatible, or you can only connect it to the Internet by WiFi. To make sure they are compatible, look in the product description for things like: "GSM 850/900/1800 / 1900Mhz 3G, WCDMA 850/900/1900 / 2100Mhz 4G networks, FDD LTE 1800/2100 / 2600Mhz"
Do Chinese tablets have a guarantee?
By law, to be sold on the European market, they must have minimum 2 years warranty. But be careful when you buy in Chinese stores like Aliexpress, etc., because there may be some brands destined for other extra-European markets that do not have that guarantee.
On the other hand, it is also important to know which Chinese brand tablets have a technical service in Spain and assistance in Spanish. Something that many cheap ones do not have, but some such as Huawei, Lenovo, Xiaomi, etc. However, they are so cheap, that in many cases it is not worth repairing, so it is not a point against its users.
Finally, I also recommend you buy the tablets at Spanish stores or on Amazon, since you will have guarantees of return in case something is not correct, and also assurance that it is not a fake. Something that is not so controlled on platforms that sell directly from China ...
What you should know about a Chinese tablet
Chinese tablets usually offer a competitive price and good quality, performance and functionality. But if you want avoid disappointment when buying and take a tablet that does not provide what you expected, you can take into account the following points.
How to update
Think that the tablet you buy has the latest version of android, or the most recent possible, in addition, check that it has OTA updates, something that rare brands do not give, and that you will be stuck in the version offered by the serial manufacturer without the possibility of security patches, error correction, or the latest available features.
You can always try to install one new ROMAlthough it is not straightforward for the non-technical and may involve hardware support issues.
If it supports updates, the steps to follow to update by OTA are:
- Make sure the battery is charged. If it is low, connect the power cord to prevent it from turning off during the process and being damaged.
- Connect via WiFi to the network, although you can also use LTE.
- Go to the Settings app on your Android tablet.
- Click on the menu About tablet, About tablet, or About device (may vary by brand).
- You will then have the option to Update, although it may vary slightly if you have a pure OEM Android version or if it has a custom UI layer.
- Check for available updates if any.
- Download and install the update that you found.
- Wait for the process to finish and the device to restart.
- Finally it will show a message that the update was successful.
In case of being a tablet with Windows 10, you can use Windows Update to update to the latest version.
How to reset a Chinese tablet
Chinese tablets, as can happen with others, can have errors or crashes, especially in stranger brands that do not have good support. To get out of trouble in those cases and Reiniciar, you can follow the following steps in case they do not let you do it by the usual procedure:
- Press the on / off button holding for about 5-10 seconds.
- Then turn on normally.
In case you want restore factory settings To clear everything and eliminate persistent errors, you can follow these other steps:
- If the tablet is off, press the Volume + button and the On / Off button at the same time for 7-10 seconds.
- You will notice that the tablet vibrates and at that moment you must release the On / Off button and keep the Volume + button. You will see that the Android logo appears with some gears and you can also release the other button.
- You are now in the Android recovery menu. You can scroll with the Volume +/- to scroll through the inputs and use the power button to select.
- Choose Wipe data / factory reset or Wipe data / factory reset to erase everything and leave the tablet as it was. Remember that this will delete apps, settings and your files.
- Accept and wait for it to restart.
Is it worth buying a Chinese tablet?
All the Lenovo and Huawei brands they can be good purchase options even for the most demanding users, and they fall short of the best and most expensive in many cases. However, lesser-known brands do not offer the same, although they can be great for those looking for a device to work for basic use, to get started in the use of computers, or for children who are not usually too careful and leave a face in his hands would be reckless.
You will save a lot of money in the purchase, and you will have a tablet with which you can do almost the same thing that you can do with any other more expensive tablet. In addition, they will teach you that the Chinese brand is not always associated with low quality and poor performance ...