OnePlus Pad Go 2 First Impressions: Better Than You Might Expect

OnePlus has always been a really decent tablet maker, combining its smooth UI and performance into a form factor that undercuts the likes of the iPad Air and provides value in a world where everything seems to be getting expensive. Now, after launching the flagship OnePlus 15 last month, the company is back with a new tablet in the form of the OnePlus Pad Go 2. I’ve been using the tablet for a few days now, and while I still can’t give my full review before the launch on December 18, my first impressions have been excellent.

The new OnePlus Pad Go 2 offers significant improvements over its predecessor, including a 12.1-inch 2.8K display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The panel is super bright, capable of reaching up to 900 nits, and covers 98% of the DCI-P3 color space. There are thin bezels to hold onto the tablet during long movie sessions, which will be frequent thanks to Dolby Vision support. The panel also has TUV Rheinland Smart Care 4.0 certification, so it shouldn’t harm your eyes much at night, though we are still testing that metric out.

The Pad 2 retains its utilitarian design, and the black variant I received looks sweet. However, like many matte black finishes, it does pick up a lot of fingerprints. Beyond that, there’s 5G support for the very first time, meaning you don’t have to drain your phone’s battery for a hotspot. It’s important to mention that cellular support is only for the Black variant.

Performance & Battery

Under the hood, there’s the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Ultra chip, built on 4nm technology. I’ve tested a fair few phones with the same processor, and it’s pretty capable, though you’ll have to wait for my full review to find out how it works on the OnePlus Pad Go 2. OxygenOS 16 runs the show here, with a new Open Canvas philosophy that improves multitasking and provides intuitive touch controls for splitting two apps or managing windows.

Powering the processor and the big, bright display is a 10,050 mAh battery, which OnePlus claims can deliver up to 15 hours of video playback and over 50 hours of music. There’s support for 33W of fast charging, and a power brick is bundled in the box. Oh, and there’s also reverse charging support if your other devices are running out of juice. Also, while the OnePlus Pad Go 2 does support the upcoming Go 2 Stylo, it’s not included in the box, which is a bummer.

Stay tuned for our review, which will drop on December 18 following the price reveal.