Introduction and design
Lenovo's new Yoga Tab 3 Pro is the premium tablet in the Yoga Tab 3 series, along with an 8-inch and a 10-inch non-Pro version. With a bright sleek design, bright screen, and solid build quality, Lenovo is highlighting the slate's entertainment quality with unique multimedia features, such as a pico projector and Dolby Atmos 3D audio tuning.
Priced at $499 (£326, AU$709), the Yoga Tab 3 Pro has some stiff competition. The Yoga Tab 3 Pro will go up against premium consumer tablets like Apple's iPad Air 2, Samsung's Galaxy Tab S2 and even Microsoft's Surface 3, all priced similarly. In the more affordable space, Amazon's Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 has a smaller screen size and a smaller $399 (£260, AU$567) price tag, making it more wallet-friendly. However, none of these offerings can match the multimedia features that Lenovo bundles on the Yoga Tab.
Design
The Yoga Tab 3 Pro uses the same design language that's found on the Yoga Tablet 2 and the regular, non-Pro version of the Yoga Tab 3. This includes a very slim frame, a barrel on the left edge that houses the speaker, a pop-out kickstand and a pico projector.
The barrel design means that the tablet doesn't quite lay flat when you're placing it on a table top. This isn't a big deal in landscape mode, which props the vibrant resolution screen up for a more ergonomic viewing angle, but in portrait the display awkwardly slopes down to the right.
In the hands, however, the cylindrical barrel makes it easy to hold the tablet, giving you a nice grip. We're still waiting for Lenovo to provide us with the full specs for weight and measurement for the tablet, but the tablet feels solid, well-constructed and light in my hands-on experience.
The pico projector is integrated into the barrel, as is the kickstand located on the back. Before, you had to use force to pry the kickstand open, but now the stand is activated with a simple push button on the rear. Press the button, and the kickstand begins engaging. You can open the kickstand to prop the tablet up on a table, giving it an elevated height, or you can stand the tablet up. Additionally, a small cutout in the kickstand allows users to mount, or hang, the Yoga Tab 3 Pro to wall.
I like the idea of hanging the tablet, which could be used to mount the tablet in the kitchen for watching videos, or to a wall next to by desk, so I can free up desktop space.
The screen is bright and delivers accurately colors. Unlike the cheaper non-Pro versions of the slate, the 10.1-inch screen has a higher QHD resolution, rather than simple HD. Images and videos look fantastic on the display, and I could not make out any pixels on the screen thanks to the high pixel density. Additionally, compared to the 10-inch non-Pro Yoga Tab 3, the Pro model has smaller bezels, giving the tablet a more compact footprint.
While the frame is aluminum, Lenovo opted to use a black, textured material on the back of the tablet. Lenovo describes the material as "leather-like," and I found it to be comfortable. It's a similar design to what Lenovo-owned Motorola Mobility is using on the Moto X smartphones--giving the device a glass front, metal frame and leather back.
Even though the Lenovo Tab 3 Pro doesn't have genuine leather, the material feels more premium than the slate-like textured finish on the 10-inch Lenovo Tab 3 edition.
Entertainment and productivity
Entertainment
The Yoga Tab 3 Pro is about entertainment, and Lenovo is highlighting this fact by pre-loading the Netflix app to get you started. It's not a bad idea considering the hardware is tuned for movie lovers. The crisp display showcases movies beautifully, and the 16:9 aspect ratio means there is no letterboxing for videos.
While rivals boast about having two stereo speakers on their entertainment-centric tablets, the Yoga Tab 3 Pro accommodates four speakers in the barrel, arranged in a sound bar layout. Combined with Dolby Atmos tuning, Lenovo claims that this delivers a virtual 3D sound experience. I was not able to gauge the audio fidelity or the Atmos experience in a big hotel conference room, but audio sounded loud, even at just 50% volume.
If the 10.1-inch screen isn't big enough for you to watch your movies, you can take your big-screen flicks to the big screen, literally. Just activate the pico projector, and you can beam your movies to a 70-inch picture size.
Under the ambient lighting of the conference room, a 20- to 30-inch projected image was still watchable, but details look faded and colors appear washed out. We're still waiting on Lenovo's ratings for how bright the projector is, but don't expect as bright an image as you could get on a dedicated home projector. Projected videos have a resolution of 720p, and using the projector has a big impact on battery life.
The projector is rotatable on the barrel hinge so you can make some adjustments to it. Additionally, it comes with auto-keystone correction. This means that even if you were to project your images and videos at an angle, your projection won't look skewed and will show up inside a perfectly aligned rectangular frame.
Business users can activate the projector to give presentations without having to carry a separate, bulkier external projector. If you're using the projector to give a presentation, be sure to bring a charger or battery pack.
Lenovo hasn't provided us with overall battery life for the tablet, but we were informed that watching videos with the projector reduced battery life to about two hours, which is in line with the Android-based ZTE S Pro projector that we had reviewed.
Additionally, even though Lenovo supports gesture controls on its 8- and 10-inch Yoga Tab 3 slates, it's unfortunate that gesture controls aren't supported on the projector. It'd be nice to forward to the next chapter in a movie, skip ahead when playing music or pause a video with gesture controls, rather than having to reach for the touchscreen when using the tablet for multimedia consumption.
A window for productivity
Even though the Yoga Tab 3 Pro may cater to multimedia users, you can still stay productive when mobile with the slate. The tablet comes with Lenovo's Smart Window 2.0 for multitasking, allowing you to run two apps inside windows on top of a background app.
This multitasking allows you to juggle tasks simultaneously without having to switch between apps, and it's a useful feature that's implemented on a few rival slates such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab series.
For business users who need to mark up documents, jot notes or sign contracts, Lenovo's AnyPen feature could be a useful tool. AnyPen is a screen technology that allows you to use any metal object as a pen.
The positive side to this approach is that it doesn't require a dedicated stylus, and you can use any instrument at your disposal, which means you don't have to remember to carry a stylus with you. The downside is that if you choose an extremely pointed sharp or pointed object, you could risk scratching your display.
In my demo, Lenovo showed that you can take a screenshot and write on the screenshot with a fork.
The approach seems more suited for people who may occasionally need the functionality of a pen. For those who are constantly drawing or writing handwritten notes, a dedicated active stylus may be be more precise and better to use.
Early verdict
Early verdict
Lenovo is justifying a $300 premium, compared to the 10-inch Yoga Tab 3 with the few unique features available on the Yoga Tab 3 Pro. These include an integrated pico projector, high resolution display and quad-speaker experience. Compared to rival tablets, the Yoga Tab 3 Pro also comes with AnyPen technology to make it stand out.
Unless you're constantly watching movies or require Lenovo's amplified speakers, there are plenty of Android and Windows options in the tablet space. We'll have to wait for our review unit to see how the Yoga Tab 3 Pro performs and how well these features work.
The tablet goes up against stiff competition. Even though Lenovo has good brand recognition in the PC space, in the consumer tablet market it is overshadowed by Apple and Samsung. But if you require all the entertainment features and the AnyPen screen technology, the Yoga Tab 3 Pro is unmatched in the tablet category.
from TechRadar: Technology reviews http://ift.tt/1iiT3ra
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