Android 10" gaming tablet ideas

[porina]

Short version: are there any decent gaming performance Android tablets in the 10" size class?

 

Long version: I think my eyes are getting worse. I find gaming on phones difficult to impossible to read the tiny text, and I've been mainly using an iPad mini 2019 fo a bigger screen. It has multiple flaws which take away from its core hardware performance. Most notably, its screen is a horrible aspect ratio, so most games that are 16:9 are letterboxed so the useful screen size is nearer 7" not its nominal 8". There are multiple other problems preventing the iPad from being good for gaming. Even my old Huawei something is better with a near 16:9 screen and stereo speakers built in. Is there anything Android that is competitive or better in performance to that iPad? Apple A12 was released 2018 so they had over a couple years to catch up. Assume that means decent enough CPU/GPU, fast storage (model I have has 64GB, similar or more desired). Enough ram (iPad has 3GB, more wouldn't hurt today). Prefer close to 16:9 screen. Stereo speakers that are not blocked when holding it on both sides (iPad fires on one end, and easily blocked by holding). Don't care about camera. Prefer stock Android but not a hard requirement.

[porina]

4 hours ago, huilun02 said:

Tab S7?

Researching it now. Wondering how to compare gaming performance. 3DMark Wild Life is a recent test I guess. I found one youtube video showing the S7 scores 4217. The run I did on my iPad mini 2019 was 5803. Don't know how representative that benchmark is for gaming, but not looking promising to start with.

[Darkseth]

Try Antutu Benchmark maybe.

But there can always be some different optimizations going on depending on Games.

 

But there is nothing better and faster than the Tab S7 series right now. Qualcom Chips are a bit behind Apple's chips.

I believe, it should be slightly better than the A12 with Gaming.

But the last Gen's Tab S6 should already be slightly below A12.

 

iPad Pro 2018/2020 with also the 2 year old A12X (stronger version of A12) beats the living hell out of the Tab S7 in terms of Graphic performance.

The iPad Pro 11" is also not 4:3, but rathger 4,3 : 3~. It's SLIGHTLY wider than iPads usually are. But it's not 16:10.

 

However, Mobile Games aren't usually made in a way, where even the fastest High End Chips struggle with. These Games should also run on midrange Hardware well, so you shouldn't have issues with a high end Android Tablet with ANY Game.

[porina]

8 hours ago, Darkseth said:

However, Mobile Games aren't usually made in a way, where even the fastest High End Chips struggle with. These Games should also run on midrange Hardware well, so you shouldn't have issues with a high end Android Tablet with ANY Game.

It's not that it doesn't work, but I want a better performing experience. I'll even go to a specific title: Azur Lane, and can contrast the iPad Mini 2019, my best Android tablet which is a Huawei MediaPad M5 8" from several years ago. I've also started testing Android emulator on PC (8086k, 2070). 

 

Level load times: iPad/PC really beats the Huawei, which gives plenty of opportunity to admire the artwork on the loading screens. 

Combat responsiveness: iPad wins here, it remains smooth throughout. The Huawei and PC both occasionally suffers from random stutters.

Ship selection filtering: both tablets fall down here, takes a while to apply a filter. PC is almost instantaneous.

General UI responsiveness: iPad/PC again both lead over the Huawei.

 

Some of these might seem minor, but as I'm spending a lot of time in this game, many small delays add up. 

 

 

Having written that, I wonder if there's another option I could consider: touch screen tablet PC? I have no idea what's available so will have to research there. Also I have no idea how the emulator scales with hardware, or if there are further optimisations I can apply.

[Darkseth]

The Huawei M5 has midrange hardware.
So even the Tab S7 series will give you a much better performance in Games.

 

If it will beat the A12 from the iPad, good question. Benchmarks like Antutu say yes. But Game optimizations from 2 different OSs might reduce the difference

Also iPadOS is just better optimized than Android is.

 

Only way is, to just try out a Tab S7 series model. If that's not faster than your iPad, literaly NOTHING will be - except a bigger, faster iPad (iPad Pro for example).

 

Tablet PC: Forget it. Windows is even less optimized, and not even made for beeing used with Touch, even if it is possible. But it will feel not as good as a native touch interface.
Also, there will be "different" Games, made for Windows,but not those mobile-Games you know from the App Stores.

Popular stuff should exist tho.

Also, pure Performance you get will be less. E ven if you buy a  Surface Pro 7 with Intel i5 or i7, it will still not be faster than a 2 year old iPad Pro (since that isn't just better optimized, but comes with 120 Hz).

 

So yea, there's that. I would highly suggest to try out an iPad Pro 11" (A12x), and a Galaxy Tab S7 series.

Keep in Mind, an iPad Pro with an A14x would come out this year probably, with mini-LED.

It will probably take 3-4 more years for Android chips to come close to where the A14x will be. Since even the Snapdragon 865+ can't even hope to match a 2 year old A12x.

 

Edit: If you go for S7 series over iPad Pro 11": You will get the advantage of 16:10 aspect ratio.

You will NOT get more performance in Gaming, or better UI or anything.
If you want the best performance you can get: iPad Pro 11" it is.

[porina]

@Darkseth thanks for your input. In short, if there isn't anything Android faster than the iPad mini I already have, there isn't much point throwing big money at it. You're not correct in the PC route. As I said, I'm already using it under emulation so I have an idea how it performs. It is workable, with some differences either way going between PC or iPad in performance terms. I just don't know how much a reasonable touchscreen device will cost.

 

I can't see myself buying another iPad. There's too many things wrong with both the hardware and software design, and parent company. It is only barely tolerable on my current one since all I use it for is gaming.

[Darkseth]

Well, you use your Gaming PC for emulation. That has a MUCH stronger CPU than what you would find in any Windows Tablet.

Also, you have an RTX 2070, which is a complete Monster compared to any IGP there.

 

Have you tried Android emulation without your RTX? Take it out, and use your Intel Graphics, that's built into your CPU, and see how well Games runs then.

[porina]

36 minutes ago, Darkseth said:

Well, you use your Gaming PC for emulation. That has a MUCH stronger CPU than what you would find in any Windows Tablet.

Also, you have an RTX 2070, which is a complete Monster compared to any IGP there.

 

Have you tried Android emulation without your RTX? Take it out, and use your Intel Graphics, that's built into your CPU, and see how well Games runs then.

I did say I need to test scaling earlier to understand what hardware really matters. Only then I can see how it compares to tablet PC offerings. I doubt I'll look at the cheap atom offerings, and if I'm spending above that, it might double as an opportunity to upgrade from my existing gaming laptop which is low spec for today.

[porina]

1 minute ago, huilun02 said:

• Why are you looking to play games on a tablet? You gonna bring it out with you along with your phone? What about the control scheme?

Because there are mobile games I like. The biggest one of the moment is Azur Lane (not to be confused with Azur Lane Crosswave). Usage is primarily at home. In game touch controls are sufficient. On PC emulator, I use combo of mouse (general play) and PS4 controller (combat only).

 

Now that I say that, I wonder if I can "cast" the PC emulator play to an existing tablet. That'll be crazy. Playing a mobile game on a mobile device by streaming it from a PC.

 

1 minute ago, huilun02 said:

• Please describe to us what you want and how you would like the identified issues to be addressed. So that we can find the most suitable solution for you.

The short version is I want a great gaming experience. It would be much simpler if I can run a native Android device with high performance. I'd consider the Apple A12 to be the baseline to compare against, and would only look to thrown big money if the Android device is at least as good, if not better.

[porina]

15 minutes ago, huilun02 said:

Do you think mobile game Devs want to make something that can only be enjoyed by people who have the most powerful mobile devices? Do you think limiting the playerbase is a good idea in an mtx riddled environment?

This is not about being able to play at all. This is about being able to play at a great experience level. Many mobile games are grindy. Shaving some seconds off here or there will really add up.

 

In a similar way, we have high end PC hardware, yet for most games you can get away with play on a console.