Best tablets from €500 to €750 in 2026

Apple's entry-level iPad is still the tablet we would recommend to most households. It is simple to use, has the widest choice of tablet apps and games, gets software support for many years, and works neatly with iPhones and Macs. At Apple Ireland it now starts at €519 with 128GB, which puts it in this price bracket.

The 10.86-inch Liquid Retina screen has the same 2360 x 1640 resolution and 500 nits brightness as the 11-inch iPad Air. It refreshes at 60Hz, so it is not as smooth as the 144Hz and 165Hz Android tablets here, and the display is not laminated, so the image sits slightly below the glass. For streaming, reading and homework that rarely matters.

The A16 chip is quick for everyday apps and games. Apple quotes up to 10 hours of web or video, Touch ID is built into the top button, and the front camera sits on the long edge, which makes video calls look natural in landscape. A Wi-Fi + Cellular model with 5G is available from €689.

The limits: it works only with the basic Apple Pencil (USB-C), and Apple's spec page does not list Apple Intelligence support. If you want those features, the iPad Air is the step up.

The Honor MagicPad 4 is the most impressive piece of hardware on this page. It packs a 12.3-inch OLED screen into a body just 4.8 mm thick and 450 g, which is lighter than the smaller 11-inch iPad. OLED means deep blacks and rich contrast for films, and the refresh rate of up to 165Hz is the highest on this page, so games and scrolling feel extremely fluid.

Honor quotes HDR peaks of 2,400 nits, and it uses high-frequency 5,280Hz PWM dimming, which some people who get eye strain from OLED screens find more comfortable. Eight speakers give it big, wide sound for a tablet.

Inside is Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 with 12GB or 16GB of RAM, so performance is flagship-class. The 10,100 mAh battery charges at 66W, and Honor also sells a Magic-Pencil 3 and a Smart Keyboard separately.

The compromises are the usual ones for Android tablets at this price: no microSD slot, no 5G version, no fingerprint sensor listed, and no published commitment on how many years of updates it will get. Honor's software is busier than Samsung's or stock Android too. As a pure screen for films, games and travel, though, it is hard to beat for the money.

The iPad mini is a tablet you can comfortably hold in one hand for an hour, and nothing else on this page comes close for that. At 293 g it weighs about the same as a large paperback, and the 8.3-inch screen is ideal for reading, maps, recipes, note-taking in meetings and gaming on the sofa.

The A17 Pro chip is the same family used in iPhone 15 Pro models, so it is fast and supports Apple Intelligence features such as writing tools and image clean-up. It works with the Apple Pencil Pro, with squeeze gestures and hover previews, which makes the mini a favourite digital notebook for students and professionals.

The 2266 x 1488 screen is sharp at 326 pixels per inch and reaches 500 nits, but it refreshes at 60Hz, so it is not as smooth as the OLED Android tablets here. Apple quotes up to 10 hours of web or video, and the USB-C port supports faster 10Gb/s data transfers. A 5G cellular version starts at €869.

The catch is value. At €699 you are paying a lot for a small screen, and there is no official keyboard. If you want the biggest screen for your money, the OnePlus Pad 3 or Honor MagicPad 4 offer far more screen for similar money.

The OnePlus Pad 3 gives you a 13.2-inch screen and flagship performance at a price close to the base iPad's. If you want a tablet for split-screen work, spreadsheets, reading full A4 pages or simply a big screen for films, it is a strong buy.

The LCD has a very high 3392 x 2400 resolution and refreshes at up to 144Hz, so text is razor sharp and scrolling is smooth. It is not OLED, so blacks are greyer in a dark room than on the Honor MagicPad 4, but colours are accurate and it is bright enough for daytime use. Eight speakers make it one of the best-sounding tablets you can buy.

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite with 12GB or 16GB of RAM is among the fastest Android chips around, so games and heavy multitasking are no problem. The 12,140 mAh battery is the biggest on this page and charges at a rapid 80W.

The downsides come from its size: at 675 g it is heavy to hold for long, so a case with a stand or the Smart Keyboard makes sense. There is no microSD slot, no 5G model and no fingerprint sensor listed, and OnePlus has not published an update commitment. It launched in mid-2025, so check the buttons for current offers.

The Xiaomi Pad 8 Pro takes everything good about the cheaper Pad 8 and upgrades the parts power users care about. The Snapdragon 8 Elite is a top-tier chip, so demanding games run at high settings and heavy multitasking is effortless. It also gains a side fingerprint sensor, faster 67W charging and much better cameras: a 50MP main camera and a 32MP ultra-wide front camera that makes video calls look notably sharper.

The 11.2-inch LCD is the same excellent panel as the Pad 8, with a 3200 x 2136 resolution and up to 144Hz refresh. Its 3:2 shape is great for documents and web pages. Four speakers with Dolby Atmos sound full and clear, and the 9,200 mAh battery is generous for an 11-inch tablet.

Xiaomi also sells a Matte Glass Edition (12GB/512GB) with an anti-glare finish that feels a little like paper when you write, which is popular with note-takers and artists.

The drawbacks: no microSD slot, no 5G version, and Xiaomi has not published how long it will receive updates. If you do not need the extra speed or cameras, the standard Pad 8 is nearly as good and costs noticeably less.