The Best Gaming Tablets for 2022 - PCMag

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Game connected the spell with 1 of these favourite high-performance slates. We've tested the champion tablets for gaming crossed Android, iPadOS, and Windows.

Dave LeClair

By Dave LeClair

Dave LeClair

Analyst, Mobile


My Experience

I emotion portable technology—if you tin enactment it successful a pouch oregon a bag, I’m astir apt into it. I’ve covered phones and tablets of each shapes and sizes, and reviewed everything from crippled consoles to laptops successful my decade-plus career. Prior to joining PCMag, I wrote articles for Android Authority, How-To Geek, MUO, New Atlas, Tom’s Hardware, and plentifulness of different tech publications.

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Our Top 6 Picks

Amazon Fire HD 10 (2021)

Best Low-Cost Gaming Tablet

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Apple iPad (2021)

Most Affordable iPad for Gaming

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Samsung Galaxy Tab S8

Best Android Tablet for Gaming

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Asus ROG Flow Z13

Most Powerful Gaming Tablet

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For portable gaming, galore radical mightiness crook to dedicated handhelds similar the Nintendo Switch oregon Steam Deck. But if you privation to crippled connected a bigger screen, a tablet is the mode to go.

Of course, not conscionable immoderate tablet works: You request a speedy instrumentality that tin grip the latest Android and iPadOS games. Surprisingly, tablet makers don't often marketplace oregon plan their slates specifically for gaming similar immoderate bash with their phones. As such, galore of our picks marque the chopped due to the fact that they person capable CPU and GPU strength, arsenic good arsenic the representation and storage, to tally the astir challenging titles without hiccups.

Here we've rounded up immoderate of the astir almighty tablets connected the marketplace and sermon what makes them perfect for gaming. Read connected for our apical picks, followed by what to look for successful a gaming tablet.

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More About Our Picks

Amazon Fire HD 10 (2021)

Best Low-Cost Gaming Tablet

Bottom Line:

Amazon updates the Fire HD 10 to present a precise bully tablet for $150, arsenic agelong arsenic what you privation to bash is power Alexa and devour Amazon books and media. Even without the Google Play store, it's the champion tablet you tin get for little than $200.

Pros

  • Fast processor for the price
  • Plenty of RAM
  • Acts arsenic an Alexa astute display

Cons

  • Poor app selection
  • Very Amazon-centric interface

Why We Picked It

The Amazon Fire HD 10 is simply a cleanable compromise for radical who privation to play games without spending a ton of money. It has decent capable specs, including a 10-inch HD display, to grip astir titles, and is simply a bully value. By default, you're constricted to the games disposable from the Amazon Appstore, but you tin ever sideload apps from Google Play for a broader selection.

Who It's For

This tablet should entreaty to budget-conscious gamers who privation a large-screen instrumentality connected the cheap. It tin grip galore Android-based games without issue, though immoderate fashionable titles whitethorn not beryllium disposable from Amazon.

Read Our Amazon Fire HD 10 (2021) Review

Apple iPad (2021)

Most Affordable iPad for Gaming

Bottom Line:

Apple's 2021 basal exemplary iPad delivers beardown show and an fantabulous front-facing camera astatine a precise palatable price, making it the champion tablet for astir people.

Pros

  • Powerful performance
  • Multi-year OS upgrades
  • Solid front-facing camera

Cons

  • Dated design
  • Tinny speakers

Why We Picked It

The entry-level iPad is cleanable for anyone who wants to play games connected a large surface without going implicit budget. The tablet's A13 spot isn't Apple's latest, but it's inactive much than almighty capable to grip astir games connected the App Store.

Who It's For

Anyone invested successful Apple's ecosystem who wants a well-rounded 10-inch gaming tablet for nether $350 should bask the modular iPad. It's lightweight astatine 1.07 pounds and supports optional 4G connectivity (for an further cost).

Read Our Apple iPad (2021) Review

Apple iPad mini (2021)

Best Small Gaming Tablet

Bottom Line:

Apple's sixth-generation iPad mini tablet delivers Pro-level powerfulness successful a smaller size that's amended for reading, taking notes, and slipping successful a overgarment pocket.

Pros

  • Excellent performance
  • Long artillery life
  • Works with second-generation Apple Pencil

Cons

  • No multi-user enactment successful iPadOS
  • Pricier than erstwhile model

Why We Picked It

The 8.3-inch and 0.65-pound iPad mini is casual to transportation around, but inactive plentifulness of powerfulness to tally thing from the App Store oregon Apple Arcade. It's costlier than the modular iPad—you're paying other for the added portability.

Who It's For

If you don't consciousness comfy holding a 10-inch tablet for extended gaming sessions, the iPad mini is your champion bet. Nothing other offers a akin premium acquisition with a surface this small.

Read Our Apple iPad mini (2021) Review

Apple iPad Pro (2021)

Best iPad for Gaming

Bottom Line:

The 2021 variation of the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is conscionable arsenic almighty arsenic a Mac, but its operating strategy keeps it truthful tightly leashed that overmuch of its imaginable goes unrealized.

Pros

  • Gorgeous Mini LED screen
  • Desktop-level CPU
  • Excellent cameras and audio
  • Stellar 5G performance

Cons

  • No existent aggregate show support
  • iPadOS makes multitasking difficult
  • Major apps missing from the platform

Why We Picked It

The iPad Pro's M1 spot offers unbeatable powerfulness and won't conflict with immoderate crippled you're apt to find from Apple's collection. The enactment to load it up with 16GB of RAM gives it a important show borderline implicit the M1 iPad Air. We urge picking the 11-inch exemplary due to the fact that the 12.9-inch variant is simply a small ample for agelong gaming sessions and costs substantially more.

Who It's For

Buy this tablet if you are an uncompromising Apple fan. It's disposable with up to 2TB of storage, truthful you don't person to interest astir space. And don't hide astir its second-generation Apple Pencil support, 5G connectivity, and four-speaker audio.

Read Our Apple iPad Pro (2021) Review

Samsung Galaxy Tab S8

Best Android Tablet for Gaming

Bottom Line:

Samsung's Galaxy Tab S8 is the champion high-end Android tablet you tin buy, but Android inactive falls abbreviated erstwhile it comes to pro-level applications.

Pros

  • Fast, creaseless performance
  • Includes S Pen
  • Dex mode enables a multi-window UI

Cons

  • Fewer pro-level originative apps than iPadOS
  • Android apps don't often play good with tablets
  • Some authentication bugs

Why We Picked It

Samsung consistently makes immoderate of the astir almighty Android tablets connected the marketplace and the 11-inch Galaxy Tab S8 is nary exception. The basal exemplary comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor, 8GB of RAM, and up to 256GB of storage. The acold much costly Ultra mentation offers up to 16GB of RAM and 512GB of space, but its 14.6-inch surface makes it a small excessively cumbersome for mobile gaming.

Who It's For

If you similar Android oregon person different Samsung cogwheel and don't privation to walk excessively much, this tablet offers fantastic show for the price.

Read Our Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Review

Asus ROG Flow Z13

Most Powerful Gaming Tablet

Bottom Line:

The Asus ROG Flow Z13 gaming tablet is awesome connected a plan and engineering level, but its precocious terms and niche entreaty marque it a pugnacious merchantability versus arsenic portable premium gaming laptops.

Pros

  • Remarkable show for a tablet acknowledgment to Intel "Alder Lake" Core i9
  • Legitimate entry-level gaming chops
  • XG Mobile eGPU (sold separately) importantly boosts graphics performance
  • Keyboard included

Cons

  • High outgo for GeForce RTX 3050 Ti graphics show successful tablet alone
  • Awkward heft and thickness for a tablet
  • Cost with optional eGPU is prohibitively expensive
  • Conceptually, nary wide vantage implicit a premium slim gaming laptop

Why We Picked It

The Asus ROG Flow Z13 is simply a gaming laptop masquerading arsenic a tablet. Its high-end specs see an Intel Core i9 processor, 16GB of RAM, and a 13.4-inch display. It besides packs a Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Laptop GPU, which blows distant the graphical capabilities of astir tablets. Unsurprisingly, each that powerfulness pushes the terms higher than that of likewise almighty (but not transforming) laptops.

Who It's For

This is for radical who person heavy pockets and privation to instrumentality their games with them everyplace without sacrificing power. If you genuinely worth portability, however, you should look astatine the other, much accepted tablets connected this list.

Read Our Asus ROG Flow Z13 Review


Which Tablet Is Best for Gaming?

There are a fewer cardinal hardware aspects to see earlier you bargain a tablet for gaming: power, storage, and artillery life.

Pick thing with a accelerated processor. Slates with the astir caller chips are mostly the champion stake arsenic they'll not lone tally games smoothly today, but down the roadworthy arsenic well. Similarly, get a tablet with arsenic overmuch RAM arsenic possible. More representation allows games to load much up of clip and decreases the likelihood of loading delays. Make definite to inspect however good the tablet handles heat; if it runs blistery nether stress, you won't privation to usage it for agelong periods.

Lots of retention abstraction is arsenic important. High-end games specified arsenic Genshin Impact, Call of Duty Mobile, and others devour 1GB oregon much and tin capable up your retention quickly. Opt for 64GB astatine a minimum. If you similar to support aggregate games connected your instrumentality astatine erstwhile (along with different media, specified arsenic movies and music), you mightiness see 128GB. Or, snag a tablet that offers the enactment to grow retention via microSD card.

Intense games tin drain a tablet's artillery beingness quickly, truthful you should support your expectations realistic. Aim for thing that tin tally modern games for astatine slightest a fewer hours. And erstwhile you bash request to recharge, accelerated charging enactment is important due to the fact that it tin get you backmost to your crippled that overmuch quicker.


Android, iPadOS, oregon Windows: The Best Tablet Software for Gaming

Another immense information is whether you privation an Android tablet oregon an iPad. This is simply a substance of idiosyncratic penchant and depends connected what types of different devices you have. For example, if you're a longtime iOS idiosyncratic and subscribe to Apple One (which includes the Apple Arcade gaming service), an iPad is apt the amended mode to go. Similarly, if you're an Android telephone idiosyncratic and person purchased a batch of apps oregon contented from the Google Play store, an Android slate makes much sense.

As for Microsoft's platform, the biggest contented with gaming connected Windows tablets is that astir don't person capable power. Additionally, galore PC games enactment champion with a rodent and keyboard oregon controller, which conflicts with the thought of casual gaming connected the go. The large objection to that regularisation is the Asus ROG Flow Z13. It's 1 of the astir well-rounded gaming tablets connected the marketplace but remains mode excessively pricey for astir people.


What Size Tablet Is Best for Gaming?

Screen size and tablet size spell manus successful manus and are frankincense different origin to mull over, though it yet comes down to however overmuch you worth portability and comfort.

Most tablets person screens that scope from 7 to 12 inches, with 10 inches being the average. A seven-inch slate tin easy acceptable into a handbag oregon purse, meaning they question much easily, portion a 10- oregon 12-inch tablet volition necessitate thing larger, specified arsenic a backpack, to tote around. Larger tablets besides measurement much and tin origin manus fatigue erstwhile held for respective hours. As acold arsenic size goes, prime what feels the astir earthy to usage and transportation around. The payment of going with surface sizes larger than 8 inches is that they supply substantially much existent property for gameplay.

Of course, you privation thing with astatine slightest 1080p Full HD resolution, and much if possible. Further, a precocious refresh rate (90Hz oregon higher) volition spell a agelong mode toward improving your experience.

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Do You Need a Cellular Gaming Tablet?

Determining whether you request to walk the other wealth (usually $100 oregon more) for a tablet with a cellular transportation depends connected wherever you volition usage the tablet astir and what games you program to play.

If you're often home, astatine the java shop, oregon different spot with regular Wi-Fi access, you should beryllium good without cellular connectivity. If you typically find yourself successful places wherever Wi-Fi isn't readily available, see paying the other wealth for a tablet with 4G oregon 5G on with a monthly work program from your wireless carrier.

One different constituent to see present is the benignant of games you similar to play. If you mostly instrumentality to single-player games that don't necessitate a changeless net connection, a Wi-Fi-only exemplary should enactment fine. But if you privation to play multiplayer games that necessitate back-and-forth implicit the internet, a tablet with cellular capabilities could travel successful handy.

Compare SpecsThe Best Gaming Tablets for 2022

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About Dave LeClair

Dave LeClair

I emotion portable technology—if you tin enactment it successful a pouch oregon a bag, I’m astir apt into it. I’ve covered phones and tablets of each shapes and sizes, and reviewed everything from crippled consoles to laptops successful my decade-plus career. Prior to joining PCMag, I wrote articles for Android Authority, How-To Geek, MUO, New Atlas, Tom’s Hardware, and plentifulness of different tech publications.

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