Asus MemoPad 7 HD vs HP Slate8 Pro Specs Comparison

Written by B Johnson April 26, 2016
Asus MemoPad 7 HD vs HP Slate8 Pro Specs Comparison
In the year of 2013, there were many tablets coming out like crazy on the market. From low-end devices like Asus MemoPad 7 HD, mid-end tablets like HP Slate8 Pro or Google Nexus 7, not to mention many other slates in high-end territory like iPad Air or Samsung GALAXY Note 8.

Asus MemoPad 7 HD is actually one of the tablets that has been discussed a lot in my previous reviews, which is pretty weird because this tablet is actually not that impressive compared to other affordable devices in terms of specs and performance, such as Google Nexus 7 or HP Slate7 Extreme.

(Asus MemoPad 7 HD vs HP Slate8 Pro Specs Comparison)

But I think it’s still acceptable because Asus MemoPad 7 HD received a lot of great reviews around YouTube, which is pretty fantastic because this tablet used to cost $150 when it first came out in 2013.

Asus MemoPad 7 HD vs HP Slate8 Pro benchmarks and gaming performance

Meanwhile, the challenger for Asus MemoPad 7 HD in this comparison review, HP Slate8 Pro, is also an impressive tablet in many ways.

If you haven’t known already, HP Slate8 Pro is an amazing tablet from HP. It’s got a sharp display (almost full HD), powerful gaming performance (thanks to Tegra 4) and it also has a great aspect ratio.

However, it doesn’t seem that this HP’s device gets what it deserves on tablet market, either in sales or recognition. I mean, despite being a powerful and great gaming tablet, there are not many reviews or discussions involving HP Slate8 Pro around YouTube.

So this is why I thought it would be interesting to bring up again HP Slate8 Pro in my next comparison review against Asus' affordable slate – Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

So if you wanna see how this review goes between these 2 devices, especially my take on their gaming performances, then here check this one out, my comparison review between Asus MemoPad 7 HD and HP Slate8 Pro.

Introduction

Around 3 years ago, HP made a great move by releasing a bunch of new Android tablets under the SLATE series.

If I’m not mistaken, there were 3 tablets under this series that got launched by HP in 2013 - from the low-end HP Slate7 Plus (Tegra 3), the mid-ranger HP Slate7 Extreme and of course, the high-end one, HP Slate8 Pro.

HP Slate8 Pro actually is on the same level here with HP Slate7 Extreme when it comes performance. And that’s because both devices are running on the same Tegra 4 quad-core processor.

However, as a high-end variant in HP SLATE family, of course HP Slate8 Pro gets a much better treatment from HP than HP Slate7 Extreme, especially in terms of spec sheet.

And that’s true because HP Slate8 Pro has a larger, wider and much sharper display (almost full HD), better cameras, bigger battery and it also comes with a nicer looking design than its sibling.

However, unlike HP Slate7 Extreme that comes with a digital pen at its disposal (DirectStylus), HP Slate8 Pro doesn’t have it, which is unfortunate because with its huge screen real estate and wide aspect ratio, I thought it would be nice to use the stylus on this device.

Anyway, the challenger for HP Slate8 Pro in this review, which is Asus MemoPad 7 HD, is of course not on the same page with HP’s device, especially in spec sheet.

However, one of the things that in my opinion, is pretty impressive about Asus MemoPad 7 HD is actually its price, which is really cheap for a tablet made by Asus.

So when it first came out, Asus MemoPad 7 HD only cost $150. But amazingly, even with that cheap price point, there are some great things to appreciate from this affordable device.

For example, according to CNET on YouTube, this tablet has a gorgeous 720p display, while a reviewer on PhoneArena praised the rear-camera of this device. So I can tell Asus MemoPad 7 HD is still a pretty good device in low-end category.

However, between these 2 tablets: which one is the best gaming tablet in this comparison review?

Which one is the best tablet in the whole aspect?

Is it worth it to buy any of these devices, especially for playing games?

Soon you’re gonna find out the answers of these questions at the end of this review. So be sure to stick around!

Design

As far as the design goes, I think HP Slate8 Pro is on the better position here against Asus MemoPad 7 HD. But it’s acceptable given that HP’s tablet carries a higher price tag than Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

One thing that is so interesting about the design of HP Slate8 Pro is actually its screen size and aspect ratio that strike the resemblance with the Retina display on iPad mini.

So HP Slate8 Pro comes with an 8-inch display adopting the 4:3 aspect ratio, slightly similar like the mini iPad with its 7.9-inch screen and the same 4:3 aspect ratio.

So of course, this makes HP Slate8 Pro appear to be wider horizontally unlike other regular Android tablets out there that mostly use 16:9 aspect ratio, which on the other hand, makes them look thin in portrait mode.

I’ve got to say that it is a great decision by HP to use this aspect ratio because it will enhance the experience of using this tablet, especially for watching movies, reading books, browsing the web and playing games.

However, by using this aspect ratio is, it actually makes it harder to use this tablet single-handedly because the width of the tablet is much bigger than the size of our palm. So when you use this tablet, you always have to hold it with your two hands.

The opposite happens to Asus MemoPad 7 HD as this tablet comes with16:9 aspect ratio on its 7-inch display.

As a result, the tablet appears to be thinner than the width size of HP Slate8 Pro in portrait mode.

So the experience of using this tablet, especially for enjoying media contents is definitely different than on HP Slate8 Pro.

In terms of design, I think there’s nothing special about Asus MemoPad 7 HD. I mean, this tablet looks generic and has no characteristic on it that makes it look unique and stand out against the competition on the market.

According to CNET, this Asus’ tablet feels really cheap with its design and also its glossy plastic finish.

The sharp edges found on the top and bottom sides around this tablet also make it really uncomfortable to hold in the hands, which totally ruins the whole experience of using this device.

Between the 2, I think it’s really obvious that HP Slate8 Pro comes out as the winner here thanks to its more appealing design and wider aspect ratio. Not to mention, the HP logos on the front and rear sides totally make this tablet look professional and elegant.

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Asus MemoPad 7 HDHP Slate8 Pro
No SIM
Released July 2013
7.0 inch IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 800 x 1280 pixels (~216 ppi pixel density)
Quad-core Mediatek MT8125 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7 CPU
PowerVR SGX544 GPU
1 GB RAM
Android OS, v4.2 (Jelly Bean), upgradable to v4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)
microSD card slot for up to 32 GB
Internal 16 GB
5 MP rear-facing camera with autofocus
1.2 MP front-facing camera
No GPRS
No EDGE
Wi-Fi 802.11
No Radio
GPS
Java MIDP emulator
Bluetooth
USB
Non-removable Li-Po battery
Released December 2013
8.0 inch Capacitive touchscreen, 1200 x 1600 pixels, (~250 ppi pixel density)
Android OS, v4.2.2 (Jelly Bean)
Nvidia Tegra 4 T40 S Quad-core 1.8 GHz Cortex-A15 CPU
8 MP Camera, autofocus, LED flash
microSD card slot for up to 32 GB
16 GB Internal storage
1 GB RAM
Bluetooth
USB
No SIM
No EDGE
No Data
GPRS
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band
No Radio
GPS
Java
Beats Audio sound enhancement
Non-removable Li-Po 5680 mAh battery
Up to 11 hours 30 min (multimedia) Talk time

Under the hood, HP Slate8 Pro looks really strong here in terms of specs than Asus MemoPad 7 HD. First of all, its display is bigger, 8-inches with higher 1200x1600 pixels resolution (almost full HD).

Try compare that to Asus MemoPad 7 HD that is only packing a smaller 7-inch screen with lower 1280x800 pixels.

And the superiority of HP Slate8 Pro continues to other sectors of this device, from its more powerful Tegra 4 processor, a higher 8MP rear-facing camera with LED flash, bigger battery capacity and of course, a staggering 72-core GPU.

Meanwhile, Asus MemoPad 7 HD looks really humble or mediocre, if you would, with its hardware.

Its Mediatek MT8125 processor along with PowerVR SGX544 is less powerful, its rear-facing camera has lower 5MP sensor with no LED flash and I believe its battery capacity is not any bigger, which is why this tablet has average battery life.

The good thing though, Asus MemoPad 7 HD comes with the support of expandable storage for up to 32GB, similar just like what you can get on HP Slate8 Pro with its microSD card support.

But overall, I think it’s very obvious here why HP Slate8 Pro is more expensive than Asus MemoPad 7 HD. HP's device is just way better in terms of specs and performance than Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

Screen, UI and Battery Life

Anyway, starting from now on, I will discuss about the screen, UI and battery life of the tablet I’m reviewing, all in the same one section, in order to make it simple.

Besides, I’ve already talked a lot about these 3 elements of almost all the tablets I have reviewed on this website. So I don’t think it’s necessary anymore to explain them again and again in the future comparison reviews.

Okay first, let me start with Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

So Asus MemoPad 7 HD, as its name suggests, indeed is a 7-inch tablet sporting the 720p or HD resolution.

And its display is adopting the 16:9 aspect ratio, which is nothing special here because that's the same aspect ratio that most of 7-inch tablets out there are using.

The opposite happens to HP Slate8 Pro as this tablet comes with an 8-inch display with very unorthodox 1200x1600 pixels resolution, which can be considered as close to full HD (1200x1920 pixels).

Interestingly, unlike most of Android counterparts on the market, HP Slate8 Pro uses 4:3 aspect ratio, the same ratio used by iPad mini on its 7.9-inch display.

So compared to Asus MemoPad 7 HD, of course the display of HP Slate8 Pro will appear to be wider in portrait mode, making it slightly harder to use single-handedly.

However, this bigger screen real estate actually gives a much better pleasing experience to users especially for enjoying media/entertainment contents like movies, books or games because the screen is much wider.

On the other hand, the screen of Asus MemoPad 7 HD with its 16:9 aspect ratio of course looks thinner in portrait mode, but it actually makes it easier for users to hold it with one hand, while the other hand can conveniently control the screen.

Speaking about visual interface or UI, Asus MemoPad 7 HD and HP Slate8 Pro stand on entirely different bandwagons here, Asus’ tablet comes pre-installed with heavily-customized UI from Asus, while HP’s device is more comfortable to run on the pure stock Android UI.

So there will be some new added features as well as customized visual interface found on the UI of Asus MemoPad 7 HD, while HP Slate8 Pro looks quite standard with its stock Android UI just like any Nexus devices.

But it’s actually great for the battery life of HP Slate8 Pro.

So thanks to HP’s decision to go with the stock Android UI, not only does this tablet perform fast and smooth in higher resolution screen, but it’s also capable to last much longer in battery life, which is shown by its impressive 11 hours and 30 minutes of battery life for doing video playback entirely (according to benchmark test).

Meanwhile, Asus MemoPad 7 HD with its heavily-customized UI is no doubt more power hungry than HP Slate8 Pro.

And that can be seen in battery benchmark test held by some tech site which showed its capability to survive only in 6 hours and 10 minutes in moderate use.

The good thing is, Asus has provided this tablet with some extra features like battery saving mode that allows users to adjust some specific settings in order to control its power usage, like screen brightness, internet connectivity limitation, WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.

This will help make this tablet more efficient with the use of power, thus ensuring its great longevity of battery life.

Cameras

As a more expensive tablet, of course HP Slate8 Pro has the superiority in some departments that makes it a better tablet than Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

And that’s true because in photography department, HP Slate8 Pro looks more promising with its cameras than Asus’ device, especially in mega pixel count.

So HP Slate8 Pro features an 8MP camera on the back with the support of LED flash, while the other 1.2MP camera can be found on the front side to do selfies (yeah, like there’s no other things to do besides taking selfies, huh?).

On the other hand, Asus MemoPad 7 HD has a lower 5MP rear-facing camera with another 1.2MP shooter on the front. Not to mention, there’s no LED flash found on this device.

So if you love taking photos at night with very low lighting, it’s probably not ideal to use Asus MemoPad 7 HD. Instead, you can count on the 8MP rear camera of HP Slate8 Pro as this tablet already comes with LED flash.

As far as camera quality is concerned, HP Slate8 Pro is probably more reliable here for photography than Asus MemoPad 7 HD because, obviously, its rear-facing camera has higher megapixel count and it’s also equipped with LED flash.

Unfortunately, I haven’t seen any photo or video taken with the rear camera of HP Slate8 Pro. So to be perfectly honest, I’ve got nothing to share here in this regard.

I know that mega pixel count doesn’t have anything to do with picture quality.

But if the camera sensor used on HP Slate8 Pro is as good as the camera of its sibling, HP Slate7 Extreme (which takes great shots by the way), then you can totally count on HP Slate8 Pro for taking photos/videos, especially when knowing that this tablet is a flagship model in HP SLATE series.

Amazingly, the same thing actually happens also on Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

So according to CNET and PhoneArena, this tablet amazingly is capable to take some decent quality photos/videos out of its rear-facing camera, which is unbelievable given its cheap $150 price tag (when it first came out).

And most of us always think that cheap budget tablet below $200 usually will suck in quality with their cameras.

However, you cannot expect its rear camera to be as good as the cameras of flagship devices like iPad mini or Samsung GALAXY Note 8.

Even so, for an affordable $150 tablet, in my opinion, I think Asus MemoPad 7 HD is still a pretty good performer here in photography.

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I think the best way to know which one between these 2 tablets is the best gaming tablet in this review is definitely by seeing how they perform individually when playing some of the latest and the most graphically-demanding games on the market.

So according to some video reviews I’ve seen on YouTube (which you can see too on my theGametabletz YouTube channel), Asus MemoPad 7 HD doesn’t look so impressive when it comes to gaming performance.

Even though this tablet is capable to handle some heavy 3D games like GTA III, Dead Trigger and ShadowGun Deadzone all in high graphics and all run smoothly, this Asus’ tablet still suffers a lot when thrown with one heavy game from Rockstars Games called GTA Vice City.

I believe this game could only run in medium quality graphics, not in full graphics.

The worst part is, GTA Vice City is not even a new game. So I have doubts that GTA San Andreas can run smoothly on Asus MemoPad 7 HD, especially in full highest graphics.

However, that is the opposite with what happens to HP Slate8 Pro.

So thanks to Tegra 4 quad-core processor embedded beneath this tablet, as well as its staggering 72-core of GeForce ULP GPU, this tablet is definitely a real beast when it comes to playing games.

There’s no Android game that cannot be played by this tablet. All games that you see today on the market, even the latest and most graphics intense titles on Google Play Store, all can be played perfectly on HP Slate8 Pro in buttery smooth performance.

Even with only 1 tiny GB of RAM, HP Slate8 Pro has no problem at all when used entirely as a gaming device. And this is not very shocking because we all know that Tegra 4 processor is extremely powerful especially for gaming.

In fact, Tegra processors have been heavily marketed by Nvidia as gaming processors, given its superiority in graphical performance.

So no wonder if many Tegra-equipped devices out there on the market are mostly great for playing heavy 3D games, like the first-gen Google Nexus 7, HP Slate7 Extreme, Xiaomi MiPad, Nvidia Shield Tablet or even a low-end HP Slate7 Plus.

With HP Slate8 Pro, you can actually play many great games, including newer titles that are really heavy in terms of graphics and visual effects.

To name a few, there are: Modern Combat 4 and 5, NOVA 3, Asphalt 8: Airborne, Need for Speed: No Limits, Dead Trigger 2 and even GTA San Andreas. And all of these games will run smoothly even in full highest graphics.

The other great thing about HP Slate8 Pro is its strong capability to handle Tegra K1 games that are made specifically for Nvidia Shield Tablet or Xiaomi Mi Pad.

So HP Slate8 Pro can also handle some console-quality games like Half Life 2, Portal, Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath and some other Tegra K1 titles, with the exception of 'Trine 2' that requires Tegra K1 processor.

And of course, you can also count on this tablet to play some of your favorite PSP (PlayStation Portable) games like Pro Evolution Soccer 2015, Prince of Persia Rival Swords and some other PSP games by using one Android app called “PPSPP”.

Anyway, according to some benchmark tests held by some tech sites around the net, Asus MemoPad 7 HD managed to reach 3821 points in Quadrant v.2, which is significantly lower than the 5757 points grabbed by Archos 101 XS 2, thanks to its Mali-400 GPU and Quad-core ARM Cortex A9 CPU.

Meanwhile, in 3D Mark Ice Storm 2013 (Ice Storm Extreme) benchmark, Asus MemoPad 7 HD scored over 1570 points, which is way lower than the 7182 points claimed by the 2013 edition of Google Nexus 7 (Snapdragon S4 Pro and Adreno 320 GPU).

This Asus’ tablet is also left behind by Google Nexus 7 in Quadrant test with its low 3821 points, compared to Google’s tablet that managed to reach 5158 in the same test.

On the flip side, HP Slate8 Pro is capable to run GFXBench Egypt 2.5 (HD on-screen) with impressive 48.6 fps, which is still better than the 31 fps gained by Sony Xperia Z Tablet with its Snapdragon 600 processor and Adreno 320 GPU.

So it’s pretty obvious here that Tegra 4 processor is way more powerful than Snapdragon 600 processor.

Between the 2, of course I will straightly go with HP Slate8 Pro because this tablet is really powerful for playing heavy 3D games. In fact, it is actually still one of the best gaming tablets on the market right now.

So if you’re really into gaming and you want to play any games on many platforms (like Android OS, PSP or Tegra K1), then look no further, HP Slate8 Pro is one great option for you. Its display size is really ideal for playing games and its performance for gaming is incredibly powerful.

The good thing is, this 8-inch tablet is powered by a pretty huge 5680mAh battery inside, making sure that it’s long lasting especially when used for doing some heavy stuff like gaming.

My Personal Opinions

Well, we’re finally here at the end of this review. So which one is the best gaming tablet in this comparison review? Which is the best in the whole aspect? Is it worth it to buy any of these tablets especially for playing games?

Okay, first, let me start with Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

So this is a 7-inch tablet with 720p resolution. Its performance is average, in fact it’s not a great performer especially for playing games. However, there are actually some great things to appreciate from this device.

First of all, it only costs $150 for the basic model with 16GB internal storage, which has microSD card slot by the way. But that cheap price was the price when this tablet made its debut in 2013. So you can expect this tablet to cost much even lower now on the market.

In less than $150, Asus MemoPad 7 HD is still one pretty good tablet, of course in low-end category.

Its display looks colorful and gorgeous (according to CNET), its rear-facing camera takes good pictures (PhoneArena) and it’s also a great device to enjoy media contents like movies, music, books or games.

However, don’t expect this tablet to be as great as HP Slate8 Pro especially in performance because that’s not gonna happen.

HP Slate8 Pro with its Tegra 4 processor is just way more powerful than Asus MemoPad 7 HD with its Mediatek MT8125 processor. So if you’re really into gaming, then HP Slate8 Pro is definitely the one to go.

The superiority of HP Slate8 Pro also continues on other sectors like display, cameras, design, battery life and pretty much everything about this tablet is just way better than Asus MemoPad 7 HD.

But that’s still acceptable given that HP Slate8 Pro is more expensive than Asus’ tablet.

So the decision to buy any of these tablets will actually come down to your budget and needs. I mean, if you’re on a tight budget, and you only want to buy a cheap affordable tablet to watch movies, listen to music or browse the web, the Asus MemoPad 7 HD can still a pretty good option for you.

However, if you’re looking for a reliable gaming tablet and you also happen to have a lot of cash to spend for a single tablet, then HP Slate8 Pro can be a great destination for you.

Its display is insanely sharp (almost full HD), its performance is incredibly fast, it has great design, it has great cameras, its battery life is solid and the most importantly, it’s great for playing games.

In fact, HP Slate8 Pro can be a great alternative for an iPad mini.

Pros and Cons

Asus MemoPad 7 HD

Pros:
  • Cheap when it first came out in 2013 ($150)
  • Good quality display
  • Pretty good cameras
  • Good tablet to enjoy media entertainment contents
  • The support for microSD card slot
Cons:
  • Pretty good battery life
  • Not that powerful for playing heavy 3D games
  • Cheap looking design with glossy finish
  • no LED flash
  • heavily-customized UI contributes to its low battery life

HP Slate8 Pro

Pros:
  • a sharp display (almost full HD)
  • insanely powerful for playing games
  • nice appealing design with iPad mini’s aspect ratio (4:3)
  • microSD card slot for up to 32GB
  • Great cameras with the support of LED flash
  • Solid battery life
  • hardware are sufficient to get the latest Android software updates
Cons:
  • No stylus (unlike HP Slate7 Extreme that has it)
  • Tegra 4 tablets mostly are plagued with over-heating issues
  • Design could be better with more premium metal finish just like iPad mini
  • it only has 1GB of RAM

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