Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10 hands on review

During IFA 2015 in Berlin, Lenovo unveiled what it described as the “ultimate video tablet”, a tablet aimed at multimedia users and those on the go. The tablet was the Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10, but what makes it the ultimate video tablet? The company has decided to include a built-in projector that can be blown up to around 70in, a dream for anyone with a small home TV. Does it live up to the expectations, or is it just a gimmick? We went hands on at Lenovo’s booth at IFA to find out. Also see: Best new tablets coming in 2016.

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Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10: Projector and speakers

The Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10 is a sleek little number, and is incredibly thin at 4.68mm, which is impressive when you consider the features that it boasts. Not only is it lightweight and portable, but the Yoga Tab 3 boasts a built-in projector that can be blown up to 70in without loosing an ounce of detail.

It’s really easy to set up too, as the 180-degree adjustable kickstand means that you can angle it at a wall or even the ceiling to enjoy movies laying in bed. The kickstand also allows you to hang the Tab 3 Pro 10 from ledges securely, though we’re not too sure that we trust ourselves enough to do this at home. There’s no need to re-position the tab if its blurry either, as the focus can be adjusted directly from the tablet itself.

Even though the Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10 features a 70in projector built in, Lenovo didn’t skimp on the display. In fact, it has a 10.1in QHD display with Smart Display Technology which, frankly, looks gorgeous. It’s vivid, crisp and we had no issues watching short clips with spotlights directly fixed on it – it may perform differently in direct sunlight, but we won’t know until we put it through its paces back at PC Advisor towers. 

Watching a movie on a 70in projector is a great idea, but it wouldn’t be complete without room-filling audio. Well, it seems Lenovo also thought of this as the Tab 3 Pro 10 boasts a four-speaker soundbar directly beneath the display, complete with Dolby Atmos which is used to create 3D aural experiences in the cinema. It also comes with a fully customisable, system wide equaliser that you can tweak to get the perfect audio for any environment. During our limited hands on time, we were impressed by the volume and clarity of the speakers, but being at a very busy and very loud trade show, we couldn’t quite hear as much as we’d like. 

Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10: Specs

So, what powers this tablet with its Dolby Atmos soundbar and 70in projector? Instead of following the route of other tablet manufacturers and opting for a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, Lenovo has decided to include the quad-core 2.24GHz Intel Atom X5-Z8500 processor. Alongside this is 2GB of RAM, which combined should be able to handle anything you throw at it. Software wise, the Lenovo Tab 3 Pro 10 is running Android 5.1 Lollipop. 

With such a powerful processor, a QHD display, a 70in projector and a four-speaker sound bar, you’d expect the battery life not to be great, right? Wrong. Lenovo claim that the Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10 has a whopping 18 hours of battery life on a single charge, which is more than enough for most tablet users. We can’t confirm if this 18 hour battery life still applies when using the projector, but we imagine it’ll affect the overall battery life somewhat. 

It also boasts a rear-facing 13Mp camera, but we didn’t get a chance to test this out during our hands on time.

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Imagine being in a country where you don’t speak the native tongue – TV isn’t going to be much use. But with the built-in projector of the Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10, you’re able to watch all your favourite movies and TV shows in what can be described as a pop-up home cinema. Alternatively, if you’re at a friends house and want to show them a funny video, you could quickly display it on their front room wall. It’s an exciting concept, and one we’re really impressed with.

Lenovo Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10 pricing and availability

So, when can you get your hands on this impressive piece of kit? Lenovo announced at IFA 2015 that the Yoga Tab 3 Pro 10 would be available to buy in stores from September, with a price tag of $499. Unfortunately, no UK pricing has yet been announced but we imagine it’ll be around the £350-400 mark to compete with the likes of the iPad Air 2 and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab S2. 

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