Best Premium Tablets 2026: iPad Pro M5 vs iPad Air M4 vs Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra vs Tab S12+ vs OnePlus Pad 3 vs Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro vs Honor MagicPad 4

Price and Value: iPad Air and OnePlus Pad 3 Undercut the Field

Of the tablets with listed prices, the iPad Air (M4) is the cheapest at $599, and the OnePlus Pad 3 follows at $699.99. That's about half the cost of the Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra ($1,399.99) and the Galaxy Tab S12+ (€1,330). The Air's low price has catches, though. It has a stingy 128GB base storage, a 60Hz LCD and no Face ID. For roughly $100 more, the OnePlus doubles base storage to 256GB, adds a 144Hz screen and runs a Snapdragon 8 Elite. That makes the OnePlus the stronger value for anyone not tied to iPadOS.

The Samsungs are the most expensive tablets with listed prices, and both reviews flag the cost as a weakness. The Ultra at least includes an S Pen in the box. Its review also says the upgrades over the Tab S11 Ultra are modest despite a roughly $200 price increase. The iPad Pro (M5) has no supplied price, but its review calls it expensive, and its peripherals and upgrades too. Its top CPU and 16GB of RAM are reserved for the 1TB and 2TB models. Prices weren't supplied for the Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro or the Honor MagicPad 4.

Display: OLED vs LCD, and Who Wins on Size, Speed and Brightness

Four tablets here use OLED: the iPad Pro, both Samsungs and the Honor. The other three use LCD panels: the iPad Air, the OnePlus and the Xiaomi. The iPad Pro's Tandem OLED is the most highly praised screen in the group, rated among the best on any tablet. It is the pick for image quality.

For sheer size, the Tab S12 Ultra wins with its 14.6-inch panel, ahead of the OnePlus's 13.2 inches and the 13-inch iPad options. Both Samsungs share the highest peak brightness listed here, 1,600 nits. That is well ahead of the OnePlus (900 nits) and the Xiaomi (800 nits). The Tab S12+ also adds HDR10+.

On motion smoothness, the Honor MagicPad 4 leads with 165Hz. The OnePlus and Xiaomi follow at 144Hz and the Samsungs at 120Hz. The iPad Air trails the whole field at 60Hz. The Xiaomi has the sharpest pixel density at 344ppi, ahead of the OnePlus's 315ppi, but its IPS LCD gives up contrast to the OLED rivals. The Honor's 3:2 aspect ratio also sets it apart for documents and browsing.

Performance: Apple Silicon vs Snapdragon vs MediaTek

Among the Apple tablets, the iPad Pro's M5 outranks the Air's M4. It offers up to a 10-core CPU, a 10-core GPU with Neural Accelerators in each core, and up to 16GB of RAM. The Air has an 8-core CPU, a 9-core GPU and 12GB of RAM. The Air's review still credits the M4 with a notable gain, and 12GB of RAM comes standard on every Air. The Pro's review, meanwhile, calls the M5 only a minor upgrade over the M4 Pro.

On Android, the OnePlus Pad 3 and Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro share the Snapdragon 8 Elite, and both offer up to 16GB of RAM. The Honor MagicPad 4 uses the newer-generation Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X. The Tab S12+ uses MediaTek's Dimensity 9500 with 12GB of RAM and posts strong benchmark scores, though it tops out at less memory than the Snapdragon rivals. The Tab S12 Ultra's chip wasn't included in its summary, so it can't be ranked here.

Design and Portability: Honor Is the Thinnest and Lightest

Every tablet here is slim, but the Honor MagicPad 4 is the thinnest and lightest with listed figures, at 4.8mm and 450g. The Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro is next lightest at 485g, though at 5.8mm it is thicker than both Samsungs. The Tab S12 Ultra manages 5.1mm despite its 14.6-inch screen, but at 692g it is the heaviest tablet with a listed weight. The Tab S12+ balances things at 5.3mm and about 553g.

At 6.0mm and 675g, the OnePlus Pad 3 is the thickest tablet with a listed figure, even though it is OnePlus's thinnest yet. The iPad Pro is described as exceptionally thin and light, but no measurements were supplied, and none were given for the Air.

Battery, Storage and Cameras

The OnePlus Pad 3 has the biggest battery listed, at 12,140mAh. Even so, its tested runtime of just under 9 hours is only middling. The Tab S12+ (10,600mAh, 45W wired) and the Honor (10,100mAh silicon-carbon) follow. The Tab S12+ has no verified real-world battery data yet, and the Honor ships without a charger.

For storage, the iPad Pro reaches the highest capacity at 2TB. The Tab S12+ is the only tablet here with microSDXC expansion. The iPad Air and Xiaomi both start at 128GB, and the Xiaomi's base model also uses slower UFS 3.1 storage. For cameras, the Xiaomi's 50MP rear sensor has the highest resolution listed. The iPad Pro is the only one with a LiDAR Scanner. The Tab S12+ makes do with a basic single rear lens.

Software and Connectivity Caveats

The iPad Air has the most modern connectivity listed, with Wi-Fi 7 and Apple's new N1/C1X chips. By contrast, the OnePlus Pad 3 lacks cellular and GPS and has no IP rating. The Honor MagicPad 4 is Wi-Fi only with no eSIM, and its review criticizes a cluttered interface with heavy bloatware, the only software complaint in this group. For pen and keyboard users, the Tab S12 Ultra stands out by bundling the S Pen, though its keyboard costs extra.

Verdict: Which Tablet Should You Buy?

• Best overall Android tablet: Samsung Galaxy Tab S12+. It has the highest rating here (4.3), a bright 1,600-nit AMOLED, a slim 553g design and microSD expansion, provided you can stomach the €1,330 price.
• Best for creative pros and display quality: Apple iPad Pro (M5). It offers the most acclaimed screen, the M5 chip, LiDAR and up to 2TB of storage. Buy the 1TB or 2TB model if you want the top CPU and 16GB of RAM.
• Best budget iPad: Apple iPad Air (M4). At $599 it is the cheapest listed option, with 12GB of RAM and Wi-Fi 7. Skip it if a smooth or OLED display matters to you.
• Best Android value: OnePlus Pad 3. At $699.99 it pairs a Snapdragon 8 Elite with a 13.2-inch 144Hz screen and the largest battery here. It's a fit if you don't need cellular or water resistance.
• Best big-screen and stylus tablet: Samsung Galaxy Tab S12 Ultra. It has the largest 14.6-inch AMOLED and the S Pen in the box, though it is the priciest and heaviest.
• Best for portability and smoothness: Honor MagicPad 4. It's the thinnest and lightest, with a 165Hz OLED and a Snapdragon 8 Gen 5. Expect bloatware, though.
• Best compact pick: Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro. It packs flagship Snapdragon power, the sharpest 344ppi screen and a 50MP camera into a light 485g body. Choose 256GB or more to avoid the slower base storage.