BMAX I11: Entry level tablet with a refined look and enviable performance

The BMAX I11 is a very competitive entry-level – almost mid-range – tablet, which boasts a refined look with a metallic finish and backs up that look with competent specifications for today’s market and 4G network connectivity. All these features and more are combined in a device that is priced well under $200, so it could be a tempting option for everyday multimedia consumption, as well as productivity, study and work.

On the other hand, if you feel more comfortable with a notebook rather than a tablet, we might be able to recommend the BMAX S13 notebook as an alternative.

A well designed tablet

Usually when we talk about affordable tablets, we expect a plastic construction and a totally forgettable monotonous design, but the BMAX I11 is one of the few that breaks that curse in this market segment. It’s not particularly spectacular, but we can appreciate the fact that it sports a slim body made of aluminum alloy.

Going into details, the tablet is just 7.7 millimeters thick and weighs only 450 grams, so at least in this aspect it is comparable to high-end tablets.

As you can see, the tablet sports a metallic finish that gives it a premium feel that we don’t see every day in this price range. The back cover even has a dark gray stripe that breaks the visual monotony and gives the matter a touch of personality.

If we detail the equipment carefully, we will notice that most of the ports are condensed on the left edge. In this order of ideas, here we find a  USB type C port and a slot for micro-SD and Nano SIM cards, not to mention the presence of a power button and a hole to reset the tablet to its factory parameters.

On the right edge we only find a 3.5mm audio jack and nothing on the upper lip. The bottom, meanwhile, is home to the grilles for a pair of stereo speakers.

Screen

The screen is without a doubt one of the greatest successes of this tablet. It is a 10.4-inch IPS panel with a 5:3 aspect ratio, resulting in a resolution of 2,000 x 1,200 pixels . The fact that it is a fully laminated screen is commendable, which reduces the effect of parallax and also gives more realistic and vivid colors.

As if that were not enough, it supports 10 touch points, emits low levels of blue light and has very thin bezels that complement that modern and premium look that the manufacturer is committed to.

Hardware and features

The BMAX I11 is powered by a UNISOC Tiger T618 octa-core 2.0GHz CPU chip, which is supported by a Mali-G52 3EE GPU. It’s not a stellar performance chip, but it’s at least comparable to a Snapdragon 460 processor in terms of power, so it ensures smooth performance in everyday applications and tasks. That said, it has what it takes to move games as long as we settle for modest graphics quality and a 30FPS experience.

When we take into account the fact that it ships with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, we know that we don’t have to worry about its performance in the most common scenarios. Speaking of internal storage, we have the option to add another 256GB using the available Micro-SD slot.

The operating system we have to work with is Android 11 in its purest form. It’s reassuring to know that you have a relatively recent version of Google’s OS, but perhaps more interesting to know that it includes some features to take advantage of the screen; These include reading mode, gesture navigation, and eye protection mode.

When it comes to autonomy, a 6,600mAh battery awaits us that can only offer 7 hours of continuous video playback; nothing to brag about, but for the price obviously there had to be sacrifices, and that has been the case with the battery.

Before ending this section, it is worth mentioning that it has a 13MP rear camera with LED flash and a 5MP selfie camera that supports facial recognition, albeit by software.

Connectivity

The presence of 4G connectivity is one of the biggest selling points of the BMAX I11, since it means that we can communicate or surf the internet as if it were a mobile phone. Additionally, the card slot gives us the choice between using a nano SIM + MicroSD card and nano SIM + MicroSIM, so there is also the possibility of having dual SIM in standby mode.

Since it is a standalone device, it also consists of GPS, Beidou, Glonass, Galileo and A-GPS navigation.

Naturally, the tablet includes dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0 for wireless pairing with other peripherals.

PROS:

• 4G connectivity
• Affordable price
• generous memory
• Fully laminated IPS panel
• Elegant design and aluminum construction

CONS:

• Mediocre performing CPU
• Battery life is somewhat short

 

BMAX I11 Specifications: