Lenovo Tab M9 (TB310FU) Review – A Budget-Friendly Tablet with Surprising Strengths

The entry-level tablets are an important niche because some have an 8-core SoC which is enough for Web browsing or playing light games like Candy Crush. The Lenovo Tab M9 (TB310FU) is an inexpensive machine that comes with a pair of Cortex-A75 cores clocked at 2.00 GHz and six Cortex-A55 cores with a 1.80 GHz frequency. That’s more than enough power for an inexpensive machine but the limitation factor here is the small amount of LPDDR4x memory (up to 4GB) and the slow eMMC storage.

The display is a 9-inch screen with a 1340×800 resolution. Its viewing angles are good but the sub-180 PPI leads to not-so-sharp image quality when you are looking at the screen from a close distance. Still, the 800p panel is definitely battery-friendly.

You can pick a Wi-Fi-only version to save money. On the other hand, 4G LTE connectivity is an option. You can choose between 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB storage which could be expanded thanks to the microSD card slot. The dual speaker setup is optimized with Dolby Atmos and it sounds pretty good for a budget device. Speaking of which, a 3.5mm Audio combo jack is onboard.

You can check the current price of Lenovo Tab M9 (TB310FU) here: Buy from Amazon.com.au (#CommissionsEarned)

Contents

Specs Sheet, What’s in the box

What’s in the box?

The glossy box is sturdy. Inside, you’ll find the tablet itself, many manuals, and a SIM-eject tool (for the LTE versions). Our device is also bundled with optional accessories such as a Folio case, a protective film for the display, and a small microfiber cloth.

The charger is optional. It’s a 10W Type-C adapter.

Design and construction

No surprises in terms of design. The Lenovo Tab M9 looks like a regular modern tablet. It weighs just 344 grams and the 7.99 mm profile isn’t too thick either.

The optional case is rigid and it offers good protection.

It also has a kickstand which is great when using the device in landscape mode for watching videos or reading some text.

As you can see, the bezels around the small IPS display are thick. The top one houses a 2MP snapper.

The back of the device is made of metal and that’s why the rigidity of the chassis is great! The camera bump is minimal.

Ports

On the left, there is a MicroSD slot while the right side houses the Volume button and the Power key.

One of the speakers is placed on top. Expectedly, the other one is on the bottom side accompanied by an Audio combo jack and USB 2.0 Type-C port which is for data transfer, charging, and USB-C digital headset.

Display and Sound Quality, Get our Profiles

Lenovo Tab M9 (TB310XU, TB310FU) – Type ZAC3
Diagonal	9 inches (22.9 cm)
Panel Type	IPS Touch
Resolution	1340 x 800 pixels
Max Refresh Rate	60 Hz
Aspect Ratio	5:3
Pixel Density	173 PPI
‘Retina’ Distance	Greater than or equal to 50 cm

Viewing Angles

Viewing angles are good. We take photos from different angles to evaluate the quality.

Also, a video with locked focus and exposure.

Color Coverage

The whole “sail-shaped” map below (Fig. 1) consists of all the colors we can see, while the black crooked line shows all the colors from real-world scenes and nature around us.

Then, we’ve drawn some of the most important and interesting color spaces, compared to the colors the panel of Lenovo Tab M9 can show:

Standard/For Web: sRGB – widely used color space for most consumer devices, ideal for Web design and development
For Print: AdobeRGB – used in professional photo editing, graphic design, and print
For Photographers/Video Editors: DCI-P3 – used in high-end film production, post-production, and digital cinema
Premium HDR: Rec.2020 – the widest consumer ITU color standard, covering a massive 75.8% of the visible spectrum, a benchmark for premium HDR content

Lenovo Tab M9: the yellow dashed triangle (– – – – – –) represents the range of colors this monitor can display.

In our tests, we calculated the total color coverage of the monitor at 85% of the sRGB color gamut and 68% of the DCI-P3 color gamut.

(Fig.1) Lenovo Yoga Tab 11 covers 68% of the sRGB gamut

Brightness and Contrast

The maximum brightness is 454 cd/m² in the center of the screen and 424 cd/m² averaged across the surface with a maximum deviation of 13%.

The Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) on a white screen at maximum brightness is 7930K (in Standard mode).

The contrast ratio is 1900:1.

Uniformity: Luminance, Contrast, and Color Deviation

The figure below shows the results from our uniformity test across different sections of the screen. It’s measured at 182 nits (Windows slider = 40%) — a brightness level we consider typical for standard working conditions.

DeltaE values below 4.0 are acceptable for regular users. For those working with colors, screens with DeltaE values no higher than 2.0 are recommended.

Color Accuracy

Let’s check the difference between real colors and those you’ll see on the Lenovo Tab Plus. We measure that distance in DeltaE – the higher the number, the more different they look.

Values below 4.0 are acceptable for regular users, while values below 2.0 are suitable for color-sensitive work. A value below 1.0 means the difference is indistinguishable to the naked eye.

For the next graph, we’ve selected 24 common colors, including dark/light skin, blue sky, green grass, etc.

Lenovo Tab M9 in its factory condition (Standard mode)

Comparison in the sRGB color space (primaries and D65 white point specified in ITU-R BT.709, sRGB encoding curve).

Response time (Gaming capabilities)

We test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “black-to-white” and “white-to-black” method from 10% to 90% and vice versa.

We recorded Fall Time + Rise Time = 20.6 ms. Short pixel response time is a prerequisite for a smooth picture in dynamic scenes.

Health Impact: PWM (Screen flickering)

Some use PWM to regulate their brightness, which means that instead of reducing the light intensity, they pulse or flicker. Our brain merges the image, so it appears darker, but this strains both it and our vision, especially when the frequency of the pulses is low. You can read more about that in our dedicated article on PWM.

In the graph below, you see the intensity of light at different brightness levels—on the vertical axis is the brightness of the emitted light, and on the horizontal axis—time.

The light from the backlight of the Lenovo Tab M9 display is not pulse-width modulated, providing visual comfort in the discussed aspect.

Health Impact: Screen Reflectance

Glossy-coated displays can cause eye fatigue in high ambient light conditions due to reflections. We measure the level of screen reflection with the display turned off, at a 60° angle.

The reflectance of the Lenovo Tab M9’s screen is 99.1 GU.

High Gloss: >70 GU
Medium Gloss: 30 – 70 GU
Low Gloss: <30 GU

Sound

When we subjectively listen to a sound file through the built-in speakers (Dual stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos), the sound quality offered by Lenovo Tab M9 is good.

Software, Video of the interface, Camera

Software

Our gadget is updated to Android 13. The 2024 November security patch is also installed which is okay for a budget device.

The UI looks at 99% as stock Android. Useful features such as Battery Saver and Dark mode are onboard to preserve the battery life when you are away from the charger.

It’s nice to see that you can tweak the color temperature as well. The gesture navigation works without any lags but you could also switch to the regular 3-button mode. Lenovo has implemented a Split Screen option for running two apps at once on the screen. Floating Windows enables multitasking by letting you open several apps simultaneously in separate windows.

Camera

The camera menu offers Night Mode, HDR, face retouch, and mirror front camera options.

The snaps of the 8MP rear camera are nothing to phone home about even for an entry-level tablet like this one. HDR helps to resolve a bit more detail in the shadows.

HDR Off

HDR On

Still, sometimes using HDR results in oversharpened images.

HDR Off

HDR On

The front camera FOV is pretty narrow. The stills of the 2MP unit are subpar. Things like skin tones and details are almost non-existent.

You can record 1080p@30FPS videos with the back camera. The bitrate is a bit above 15MB/s. The videoclip looks soft and also shaky because the unit lacks any video stabilization.

Performance: CPU, GPU, Storage

CPU options

Well, the MediaTek Helio G80 isn’t a powerhouse. Still, it gets the job done for Web browsing and watching videos.

GPU options

The integrated Mali-G52 MC2 is good enough for casual games like Subway Surfers.

Asphalt Legends UNITE runs decently on the “Performance” preset but the picture quality is too pixelated.

Storage

Our device has 64GB of eMMC storage. Its read and write speeds are definitely low.

Stress test stability, Battery Life, Thermals

We tortured this tablet with the 3DMark Wild Life Stress test. The result is just a 1.4% performance hit after 20 loops. That’s great, especially when considering the fact that the spot around the camera feels barely warm during gaming.

Battery

The 5100 mAh battery lasts for 15 hours and 6 minutes of video playback. This is a very good score!

Verdict

Considering the low price of the Lenovo Tab M9 (TB310FU), this tablet isn’t bad at all! Our only advice is to pick one with 4GB of RAM. Even then, try not to open a lot of tabs at once while browsing the Web which can cause system hiccups. The microSD card slot and the 3.5 mm headset jack add more points to the overall positive impression. Also, the audio quality is clear and it’s Dolby Audio enhanced.

Now, the 9″ display has wide viewing angles and it’s also PWM-free. We are surprised by the 85% sRGB coverage and the pretty high 1900:1 contrast ratio. Hold your horses – the max brightness reaches 454 nits! The main con of this screen seems to be the low-ish 800p resolution.

At the end of the day, the Lenovo Tab M9 looks like a good bang for the buck thanks to its sturdy metal build, bright IPS display, and long battery life.

You can check the current price of Lenovo Tab M9 (TB310FU) here: Buy from Amazon.com.au (#CommissionsEarned)

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Anatoliy

29 days ago

Есть ли интерфейс на русском языке?

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