OPPO Pad SE now in the Philippines

Available on OPPO’s Shopee store for PhP 9,999

Published

May 30, 2025

GadgetMatch

The OPPO Pad SE is now officially in the Philippines. The budget tablet is priced at PhP 9,999, and is available in Starlight White and Twilight Blue.

OPPO’s latest offering boasts of a 9,340mAh battery, the largest for a tablet of its price point.

The tablet chiefly focuses on productivity and being a tool for both students and professionals.

It has an 11-inch LCD Eye Care Display with a 16:10 aspect ratio and up to 500 nits of brightness.

This panel also has Low Blue Light and Flicker-Free certification for long sessions.

Meanwhile, the TÜV Rheinland-certified Anti-Reflective Matte Display Variant has an anti-reflective panel that gives users a paper-like experience for reading and writing (or even doodling).

Created for seamless experiences, the OPPO Pad SE also features real-time transfers, drag-and-drop file sharing, and seamless app switching. It also supports Content Sync and App Relay.

Moreover, users will be able to complete tasks with ease using Google Gemini, which comes pre-installed upon setup. Its AI tools offer smart support for work, planning, and more.

Lastly, the tablet also supports 33W SUPERVOOC charging, so replenishing its power back to full doesn’t take too long.

For now, customers can purchase the device on OPPO’s official Shopee platform.

POCO Pad X1 review: A tablet that keeps up with your day

Simply reliable

Published

November 26, 2025

GadgetMatch and Deric Claveria

Photos by Deric Claveria

POCO calls the Pad X1 an all-round tablet built for every scenario. After using it for actual work and downtime, we can see why they position it that way. This is one of those devices that we end up carrying around because it doesn’t hold us back. And for the most part, it doesn’t.

How the display shapes the overall experience

The first thing that stands out is the display. POCO went with a 3.2K panel running at 144Hz, and it shows. The screen looks sharp the moment you wake it up. Text is crisp. Colors feel vivid without leaning too far into oversaturation.

Videos benefit the most from this bump in resolution. Stranger Things looks clean and cinematic. K-Dramas like Dynamite Kiss look bright and fluid, especially during outdoor scenes where you get a lot of gradients and motion.

YouTube videos also look clear and consistently sharp. We watched the Doctor Doom trailer, a few Fliptop battles, and a range of recommended content, and everything held up across different lighting conditions.

Brightness is another thing POCO got right. The screen stays visible even when you take the tablet outside. Glare shows up once in a while, but the panel has enough brightness to keep everything readable. This helps when we’re moving from indoor setups to open-air cafés or outdoor production locations.

Natural and fast

Performance is another highlight. The Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 keeps the device responsive across different workloads. Multitasking feels natural and fast.

You can open Canva for layout work while a YouTube video plays and the tablet doesn’t flinch. App switching feels instant. Even when several apps remain open in the background, the Pad X1 stays smooth.

This consistency holds up during longer work stretches and quick productivity bursts in between meetings or errands.

This level of responsiveness carries over to entertainment. Animations stay fluid. Scrolling stays clean. Basic interactions like navigating through settings or sliding through the gallery feel snappy.

It’s the kind of performance that blends quietly into your day because you don’t need to think about it.

Real-world battery life and audio quality

Battery life is another strong area. In mixed use–light photo and video editing, checking emails and messages, moving between Spotify and YouTube–the tablet lasts about eight hours with around 40% to 50% left.

That means it can go through a normal workday and still have enough left for streaming at night. This kind of endurance is one of the clearest signs that the Pad X1 supports your routine instead of interrupting it.

The speakers also deliver more than we expected. They get loud and stay clear. Vocals sit nicely over instruments, and the sound doesn’t distort even when you push the volume.

We played a couple of playlists–mostly 2000s pop punk and some road trip material–and the speakers stayed consistent. The overall experience sits above what we usually hear in this price range, making it reliable for music sessions, podcasts, and continuous video watching.

Accessories that extend what the tablet can do

POCO includes accessories that help the Pad X1 transition into more serious workflows. The floating keyboard is one of the standouts. It’s responsive and easy to get used to.

The trackpad gestures feel familiar because they work almost exactly like the ones you use on a laptop. We didn’t even have to check the manual to learn them. The adjustment period was practically zero.

This accessory shifts the tablet into a compact workstation, making it useful for email replies, light document work, and navigating through apps with more control.

The Focus Pen is another tool for productivity. It’s responsive enough for note-taking and quick sketches. There’s a bit of lag here and there, but it’s not enough to break the flow when you need to write something fast.

For more detailed drawing or thicker brushwork, you’ll feel the delay, but for everyday scribbles and quick storyboard drafts, it works as intended.

What helps the Pad X1 slot into our workflow is how naturally it adjusts to different situations.

You can use it as a second display next to your laptop. You can mount it as a monitor during drone flights when you need a clear feed. You can open it on a small café table and finish your tasks while listening to Spotify.

And at the end of the day, you can shift to K-dramas or YouTube without thinking about charging.

Is the POCO Pad X1 your GadgetMatch?

The POCO Pad X1 is the kind of device you keep using because it behaves the way you expect it to. It feels fast. It lasts long. It plays content well.

It offers accessories that let you cross into more professional tasks. It doesn’t try to be a flagship powerhouse, but it doesn’t need to. Its strength lies in being dependable. And when you combine that with an impressive display and solid sound, you get a tablet that fits neatly into workdays and weekends alike – that’s why we’re Swiping Right.

If you’re looking for a device that won’t slow down your day, the POCO Pad X1 makes a strong case. It’s built for the small transitions in your life–those quick shifts between work, play, planning, and rest. And that’s exactly why it stands out.

News

POCO F8 Series now official

POCO enters the premium flagship smartphone territory

Published

November 26, 2025

GadgetMatch

The POCO F8 Series is now official, with the brand unveiling the dual flagship devices via a global launch event in Bali, Indonesia.

Available in the POCO F8 Ultra and POCO F8 Pro variants, the series has the following prices:

POCO F8 Ultra — Denim Blue, Black

12GB+256GB: US$ 729 / £ 749 (early bird: US$ 679 / £ 599)
16GB+512GB: US$ 799 / £ 799 (early bird: US$ 729/ £ 649)

POCO F8 Pro — Titanium Silver, Blue, Black

12GB+256GB: US$ 579 / £ 549 (early bird: US$ 529 / £ 449)
16GB+512GB: US$ 629 / £ 599 (early bird: US$ 579 / £ 499)

The launch marks POCO’s entry into the premium flagship segment — the brand’s boldest step yet while maintaining its mantra of value through high-performance technology.

During the event, POCO also formally announced its partnership with audio company Bose, bringing Sound by Bose technology to both F8 smartphones.

Ultimate flagship statement

The series headliner, the POCO F8 Ultra defines what a next-generation flagship should be. It is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor and an upgraded VisionBoost D8 chipset.

This dual-chipset architecture unlocks the device’s full performance potential. Users can expect Smart Frame Rate up to 120fps, Super Resolution up to 1.5K, and Game HDR.

Meanwhile, the POCO F8 Pro runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite mobile platform.

Both phones introduce AI Super Resolution through a new GEX module, specifically optimized for five titles, including Call of Duty: Mobile and Honkai: Star Rail.

Speaking of gaming, WildBoost Optimization also fine-tunes CPU and GPU load distribution for lower power consumption and less heat.

All of these are complemented by LiquidCool Technology which features a 3D dual-channel, dual-layer IceLoop system.

Both F8 series devices run on Xiaomi HyperOS 3 for intelligence and connectivity. Features include Xiaomi HyperIsland, Xiaomi HyperConnect for cross-device interconnectivity, and Xiaomi HyperAI for advanced tools for productivity.

Mobile audio experience redefined

Meanwhile, Bose helped develop a premium triple-speaker acoustic system for the F8 Ultra to enable rich bass, detailed sound, clear vocals, and an immersive soundstage.

On the visuals side, the F8 Ultra debuts the POCO HyperRGB display. Unlike traditional 2K OLED displays, the 6.9-inch panel adopts a full RGB subpixel structure where red-green-blue subpixels are fully used.

This system allows for 19.5% lower power consumption compared to the POCO F7 Ultra. On the other hand, the F8 Pro has a 6.59-inch display with the same features for up to 22.3% lower power consumption.

Ultra-grade photography

Bringing pro-level photography to the segment as well, the POCO F8 Ultra features a 50MP Light Fusion 950 sensor with OIS.

With a large 1/1.31-inch sensor, the main camera has 43% better light sensitivity. The system also reduces lens flare and glare, with its 1G+6P lens setup and precise multi-coating process.

Software enhancements include 1440p ultra-clear dynamic shots with EIS and HDR enhancement.

The F8 Ultra likewise comes with a 50MP 5x periscope telephoto lens for up to 5x optical zoom, 10x in-sensor zoom, and up to 20x Ultra Zoom.

Rounding out the triple 50MP camera setup is a 50MP ultra-wide shooter. In front, meanwhile, is a 32MP selfie camera.

Not to be left behind, the POCO F8 Pro has a 50MP 2.5x telephoto camera and a 50MP Light Fusion 800 main camera with OIS.

New POCO Pads also released

In addition to the new POCO F8 Series, POCO has also launched two new tablets: the POCO Pad X1 and POCO Pad M1.

The Pad X1 is powered by a Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 and delivers stable 120fps in the most demanding scenarios.

It has an 11.2-inch 3.2K display with up to 144Hz refresh rate and a 8850mAh battery with 45W turbo charging. The quad speakers are fine-tuned with Dolby Atmos and supports 200% volume boost.

For a larger screen, the POCO Pad M1 has a 12.1-inch 2.5K display with up to 120Hz refresh rate. It likewise has a quad-speaker system with Dolby Atmos, and a massive 12000mAh battery.

This slate is powered by a Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 and runs on Xiaomi HyperOS as well.

The tablets and their accompanying accessories are priced as follows:

POCO Pad X1 — Grey, Blue