Mobile Phones: Huawei's new MatePad Pro announced - but is it really an iPad Pro competitor?

But no Google apps

If you have been looking forward to the new iPad Pro 2020 there's actually another tablet arising which may interest you too: the Huawei MatePad Pro.

We'd already heard about the Huawei MatePad Pro from its Chinese announcement in November 2019, but this global launch (to replace the non-existent MWC 2020 event) shows the corporate plans to release the tablet worldwide – or a minimum of in certain non-Chinese countries.

The Huawei MatePad Pro runs on a top-end Kirin 990 chipset, which we have seen within the Huawei Mate 30 Pro and Honor View 30 Pro, and will deliver snappy processing speeds to rival the iPad Pro power.

There's also 6GB or 8GB RAM underneath to assist thereupon speed boost - and maybe a firm rival to the spec list offered by Apple.

The screen may be a 10.8-inch LCD screen, which is that the same tech Apple uses in its iPads (but is slightly smaller in size, and we're confirming it is the same high-end IPS LCD screen too).

This display is choppy by a punch-hole cut-out for the 8MP front-facing camera, which is matched on the rear by a 13MP snapper.

There's also the 'M Pencil', which wirelessly charges on the highest of the tablet, has 4,000 levels of pressure and sensitivity to permit for a spread of sketching and allows you to tap to wake the display of your MatePad Pro tablet.

There's a 7,250mAh battery which supports a quick 40W fast charge but also wireless charging (for if you would like to undertake and balance the massive device on a wireless power mat) and reverse wireless charging, so you'll power up other devices by using the tablet as a charging pad (presumably you cannot use the tablet while you are doing this).

If you are the proud owner of a Huawei phone, you'll use the 2 together and operate your smartphone on your tablet and drag and drop content across the 2 devices.

The Huawei MatePad Pro comes during a sort of options, starting at €549 (around $600 / £470 / AU$900) and up to €799 (around $865 / £670 / AU$1300 for the bottom level of the higher-spec Huawei MatePad Pro 5G.

So what is the problem?

If you think that this seems like a viable alternative to the iPad Pro or Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 (especially given the planning and bundled accessories), there's something you ought to know – there are not any Google apps on this tablet.

Thanks to the Huawei ban, smartphones, and tablets from Huawei don't accompany Google Mobile Services, and this is often the case for the MatePad Pro too.

At the instant, we do not know much about the Huawei Mobile Services (HMS), the company's replacement to Google apps, as no smartphones have begun with it.

Some are expected very soon, but it remains to be seen what percentage productivity apps HMS comes with.

When the Huawei MatePad Pro comes out, we'll test it to ascertain if it is a decent productivity tool despite not having access to the Google Play Store and every one its apps. Stay tuned for our full review within the near future to ascertain if this truly is an iPad competitor.

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