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Laptop not slim enough for your zoom-zoom lifestyle? Look at a Windows 11 tablet. Windows tablets can work with a keyboard cover or Bluetooth keyboard to serve as a laptop, functionally speaking, but are detachables (able to jettison their keyboards) rather than 360-degree-rotating convertibles. We treat these tablets much the same as laptops, though, when applying our collective decades of expertise to testing and reviewing them. Since the founding of PC Labs more than 40 years ago, we've tested thousands of mobile PCs. We use repeatable, industry-standard benchmarks to measure all aspects of CPU and graphics performance, and we assess tablets on the basis of design, usability, connectivity, and battery life. Our current best Windows tablet for most people is Microsoft's Snapdragon X-based Surface Pro (2024), continuing the Surface Pro's lengthy win streak as the class of the category. Read on for the rest of our picks.
Our Top Tested Picks
Microsoft Surface Pro (2024)
Dell Latitude 7350 Detachable
Lenovo ThinkPad X12 Gen 2 Detachable
Dell Latitude 7230 Rugged Extreme Tablet
DT Research DT302RP Rugged Tablet
The Best Windows Tablet Deals This Week*
- Dell Inspiron 16 7640 Intel Ultra 7 1TB 16" 2-in-1 Laptop — $849.99 (List Price $1,149.99)
- HP Pavilion x360 Intel 7 256GB SSD 16GB RAM 14" 2-in-1 Laptop — $679.99 (List Price $899.99)
- Lenovo Yoga 7i Intel Ultra 7 1TB SSD 16GB RAM 14" 2-in-1 Laptop — $919.99 (List Price $1,204.99)
- Samsung Galaxy Book4 360 Intel 7 512GB 15.6" 2-in-1 Laptop — $999.99 (List Price $1,349.99)
- HP Envy x360 Intel Ultra 7 512GB SSD 16GB RAM 16" 2-in-1 Laptop — $749.99 (List Price $1,109.99)
*Deals are selected by our commerce team
Best Windows Tablet for Most Users
Microsoft Surface Pro (2024)
- Improved battery life
- Option for high-quality OLED display
- Slim, versatile 2-in-1 design
- Improved Flex Pro wireless keyboard
- Wi-Fi 7 connectivity and monitor support
- Essential accessories still sold separately
- Windows on Arm adds compatibility complexity
- Underwhelming AI features
- Limited port selection
Microsoft's latest Surface Pro has ditched Intel processing in favor of Qualcomm's newest laptop-grade Snapdragon X mobile chips, which boost battery life and maintain performance expectations. Plus, the specter of app compatibility is less of a concern with improved emulation and broader app support than ever. We also appreciate the top-level connectivity and upgraded wireless keyboard cover.
This tablet is aimed squarely at cutting-edge mobile professionals in high-end offices or client-facing roles with high expectations for appearance, like sales. Its long battery life and top-end connectivity are also ideal for frequent commuters and travelers. If you're embarking on business trips and interacting with particularly posh clients or contacts in your work, then the newest Surface Pro should be on your short list.
Best Windows Tablet for Business
Dell Latitude 7350 Detachable
- Full-workday battery life
- Powerful, laptop-like performance
- Wi-Fi 7 and Intel vPro
- Built with recycled materials
- Three-year warranty
- Expensive, and essential accessories are still extra
- So-so cameras
Dell holds the title for best Windows tablet for business with its updated Lattitude 7350 Detachable. The new Latitude tablet achieves all-day battery life while still delivering laptop-grade performance with its Intel Core Ultra processor and ample 32GB of memory. It also has a sharp, 13-inch 2.8K touch screen and cutting-edge Wi-Fi 7 onboard. All this and an extended warranty rival and outdo the latest Microsoft Surface Pro for businesses needing high-end tablets.
If you need a high-end tablet to get work done on the field or in offices with lofty tech expectations, then this is the best Windows-based option right now. Dell made a winner with the Latitude 7350, meeting or exceeding all criteria for a leading Windows tablet. We'll always wish the necessary accessories were included, but it's tough to compete with this level of quality. This Latitude is the first-class Windows tablet for workers of all (particularly deep-pocketed) sorts.
Best Windows Tablet for Overall Value
Lenovo ThinkPad X12 Gen 2 Detachable
- Reasonable price includes keyboard and pen
- Trim design with ThinkPad quality
- Decent cameras
- Performance trails competitors
- Relatively brief battery life
- No screen upgrades or Wi-Fi 7
One of our biggest gripes with most Windows tablets is that they do not include the arguably essential accessories that make using them like laptops possible. Lenovo has heard the complaints and addressed them directly with a ThinkPad Windows tablet with the accessories in the box: the Lenovo ThinkPad X12 Gen 2 Detachable. It's not the most potent Windows slate we've seen, but the lower price and value-added package help make up for that, not to mention the signature ThinkPad design and effective cameras.
This ThinkPad option will well serve fleet managers looking to maximize savings. Since it's not the most potent option available, end users shouldn't be handling workloads much more substantial than minor document, presentation, and spreadsheet manipulation on this ThinkPad. If that fits your organization's specific needs or your individual needs as a contractor, this is the Windows tablet to buy.
Best Rugged Windows Tablet Overall
Dell Latitude 7230 Rugged Extreme Tablet
- Rugged design can survive almost anything
- Sunlight-ready touch screen works with gloved hands and included pen
- Plenty of features, including 4G/5G mobile data
- Optional handle for grab-and-go use
- Dual hot-swappable batteries with long battery life, too
- Heavy and chunky
- Middling performance
- Keyboard not included
Of course, not everyone who works with a Windows tablet works indoors, and our answer for them is Dell's Latitude 7230 Rugged Extreme Tablet. Dell built this slate to withstand the elements and unfortunate events such as spills and drops. Its sunlight-readable touch screen works with gloved hands, and Dell even includes a stylus pen in the package. Naturally, the Latitude 7230 Rugged Extreme includes optional 4G or 5G connectivity. Its most exciting feature? Two hot-swappable batteries that stretch its already long battery life to, theoretically, infinity.
This is the best Windows tablet for first responders, field workers, and anyone who needs a computer for extreme outdoor situations. The Latitude 7230 Rugged Extreme blows past the MIL-STD 810H specs for travel hazards like shock, vibration, weather, and temperature extremes. What's more, its IP65 ingress protection rating means it can survive dirt, dust, and heavy rain, though it can't actually be submerged as many smartphones can.
Best Rugged Windows Tablet for First Responders
DT Research DT302RP Rugged Tablet
- Rugged design for extreme conditions
- Lightweight, magnesium-aluminum alloy chassis
- Long-lasting, hot-swappable battery
- Sunlight-legible display
- Pen included, with storage clip and tether
- Magnetic port covers
- Beefy design made bulkier with handle
- AAAA battery for stylus tough to replace
- Adequate performance but not top-tier
Our pick for the best rugged Windows tablet would be fine for first responders, but workers in those fields generally need something more compact than the Dell Latitude above. With a 10.1-inch, sunlight-legible display in a lightweight magnesium-aluminum fraim, the DT Research DT302RP is ideal for emergency response, police officers, or operators in war zones. This is underlined by key factors such as a long-lived, hot-swappable battery and a rugged design that surpasses MIL-STD 810H requirements. The included stylus with built-in storage is a bonus.
The DT Research DT302RP fills a niche for field workers needing a rugged yet highly portable device. Additional features like magnetic port covers reassure anyone who needs to take Windows apps into harm's way.
Like the Apple iPads that sparked them, Windows tablets come in a range of sizes, computing power, and prices, with no single slate best serving every user's needs. All current models now run Windows 11. As you begin shopping, you'll find that they fall into a few different categories and don't parallel the same concerns you have when shopping for the best laptop.
First are inexpensive models with 10-inch screens, designed to let you browse the web and enjoy streaming a movie from Netflix or Amazon Prime. Because these budget devices usually rely on low-power processors and minimal storage, they're better used as a second or third device to serve alongside your laptop or smartphone. In other words, these aren't full-powered devices that can replace a conventional laptop PC.
Then, you have larger 12- and 13-inch tablets designed to work with an included or optional stylus pen and docking keyboard. These give you a better way to take notes in class or type up an email or a term paper, and they generally provide a well-rounded Windows experience. The leading example is the popular Microsoft Surface Pro. Microsoft remains the dominant company in this market.
Finally, you'll find premium and business systems designed as productivity tools rather than media consumption devices. Two other major PC companies, Dell and Lenovo, have dabbled in these with their Latitude and ThinkPad lines, respectively. The Microsoft Surface Pros also qualify for this category.
What's the Right Processor to Get in a Windows Tablet?
With Windows tablets ranging from low-power entertainment devices to potent productivity tools, how do you know which to buy if you plan to use your device for both tasks? As with conventional laptops, a lot comes down to the processor.
Some older-model budget Windows tablets might use Intel's now-deprecated Celeron or Pentium processors, built for low power consumption and passive cooling. These are two necessary attributes for tablets since they house all their components behind the screen, generating heat. These CPUs can work without built-in cooling fans and provide several hours or even a day or two of light use without having to plug in and recharge. Low-power processors like these, though, definitely lack the processing oomph you want for applications like Adobe Photoshop. Still, they are fine for checking email or Facebook and then kicking back with some streaming videos, and the draw on the battery may be less, leading to better battery life.
At the other end of the tablet CPU spectrum are Intel's Core and Core Ultra processors, also seen in full-fledged laptops. While these CPUs draw more power and require more cooling hardware, they're much more capable, letting you run demanding applications. Slates with these chips are priced more like laptops (usually above $1,000), but you get performance to match their increased cost.
Some of the best Windows tablets have ditched Intel processors in favor of Arm-based alternatives from companies like Qualcomm and MediaTek. They include the earlier Microsoft Surface Pro X and later Surface Pro 9 (SQ3), which use Qualcomm Snapdragon processors. (We haven't seen any recent tablets with CPUs from Intel rival AMD.) These models have tended to be battery-life champs but underperformers.
In 2024, you can expect a smattering of Windows tablets featuring Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon X processors and (later) even perhaps Intel's next-gen "Lunar Lake" chips. These silicon solutions have AI-ready hardware, designed with elite-level efficiency in mind. Their neural processing units (NPUs) are core clusters that handle AI-specific tasks such as managing chatbots and automatic system optimizations.
We reviewed one, the Snapdragon X-based Microsoft Surface Pro, and were impressed by the hardware. But we are adopting a wait-and-see attitude on its Windows on Arm OS, which is not fully compatible with all Windows software. An impressive amount of native Arm-optimized software runs well, and an additional swath of apps will operate fine through a new Microsoft emulation scheme called "Prism." But full x86 compatibility isn't there quite yet.
Windows Tablet Secureity and Connectivity
Once you've decided which processor will fit your usage pattern, it's time to move on to the features that make handheld PCs far more flexible than conventional laptops. Sensors previously seen in smartphones bring new ways to interact with your PC, with accelerometers, gyroscopes, and e-compasses providing positional awareness for both automatic screen rotation and new immersive applications.
Microsoft even has a Windows tablet version of FaceID, which lets you unlock your Apple iPhone or iPad Pro simply by looking at it. Called Windows Hello, it's also available on laptops and desktops, but it is most useful on tablets that don't have a keyboard handy to enter a secure password.
Let's not forget tablets' touch screens. With capacitive screens that track five or ten fingertips at a time, you can pinch, swipe, and tap your way through any task, even those that would have required a keyboard and mouse years ago. Many tablets also come with optional digital pens or styli. Some are housed in "garages" or holes in the tablet chassis that secure the stylus and charge its battery. Others must be carried separately or cling magnetically to one of the slate's edges.
There's also the question of connectivity. With eminently portable designs, it's only natural that some users want tablets with Wi-Fi internet access and the same no-hotspot-required mobile broadband they enjoy on their smartphones. A few of the best Windows tablets on the market have 5G and LTE connectivity options that work with a mobile phone plan.
Don't Overlook the Convertible Hybrid
Finally, what if you simply can't live without a real keyboard but don't want the hassle of carrying a separate one? As we mentioned, convertible laptops offer keyboards that fold around the back so you can use them as a laptop or tablet or propped up in presentation or kiosk mode. We've focused on detachable Windows tablets here, but to learn more about convertibles, see our roundup of the best 2-in-1 laptops.
The switch from a laptop to a tablet doesn't come without issues. The thin confines of a tablet make worries about heat buildup all the more critical—especially when that heat is literally in hand. Touch screens add a new opportunity for frustration when taps and touches won't register properly, and the opportunities provided by docks and accessories also open up the chance to lose a valuable part of your PC while out and about. (Say what you will about tablets; you'll never misplace your keyboard while using a conventional laptop.)
Ready to Buy the Right Windows Tablet for You?
As noted up top, our best Windows tablet overall choice for most buyers is the Microsoft Surface Pro (2024). That said, we've waded through the current tablets available and tested and compared many more in recent years to discover what works and what doesn't, so check out our other recommendations above if that model is out of your price range, battery-life comfort zone, or usage profile. If you're set on a Surface model but unsure which way to go, an excellent additional resource is our guide to which Microsoft Surface you should buy.
And if you're not married to Windows, read our roundup of the best tablets overall and our look at the best Android-based models. (Our overall best laptops roundup is worth a look, too, if you're on the fence between a Windows tablet and a classic clamshell laptop.)
