OnePlus Pad 3 VS ZTE Nubia Pad Pro

The most immediate real-world difference between these two tablets is size and weight. The OnePlus Pad 3 is a noticeably larger device at 289.6 × 209.7 mm with a volume of 364.37 cm³, while the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro is more compact at 253.3 × 164.6 mm and 304.36 cm³. In practice, the Nubia Pad Pro is closer to a one-hand-holdable device, whereas the OnePlus Pad 3 sits firmly in large-tablet territory — better suited to a desk, stand, or two-handed use.

On weight, the Nubia Pad Pro holds a significant advantage at 523 g versus the OnePlus Pad 3's 675 g — a difference of 152 g. Over an extended reading or video session, that gap becomes very tangible in wrist fatigue. The OnePlus Pad 3 partially compensates by being impressively thin at 6 mm compared to the Nubia's 7.3 mm, which helps with in-hand feel and pocketability despite the larger footprint.

One standout differentiator is that the OnePlus Pad 3 ships with a stylus included, while the Nubia Pad Pro does not — a meaningful value advantage for note-takers and creative users who would otherwise need to purchase one separately. Neither tablet offers water resistance, a detachable keyboard, or tilt sensitivity. Overall, the Nubia Pad Pro has the edge for portability and one-handed comfort, while the OnePlus Pad 3 wins on bundled accessories and offers a larger canvas for productivity and media consumption.

Screen size is the defining split here. The OnePlus Pad 3 carries a 13.2″ panel against the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro's 10.9″ — a difference large enough to fundamentally change how each device is used. The Pad 3's larger canvas makes it better suited for split-screen multitasking, video consumption, and document editing, while the Nubia Pad Pro's more compact display reinforces its role as a portable, on-the-go tablet.

Despite the size gap, both tablets resolve to virtually identical pixel densities — 315 ppi on the Pad 3 versus 312 ppi on the Nubia Pad Pro — meaning text sharpness and image clarity will look essentially the same up close on both screens. Similarly, both share the same LCD IPS panel technology and a 144Hz refresh rate, so scrolling smoothness and color rendering characteristics are on equal footing. Neither device supports HDR10 or carries branded damage-resistant glass, so there is no differentiation on those fronts.

With identical sharpness, refresh rates, and panel types, the display comparison comes down entirely to scale. The OnePlus Pad 3 takes a clear edge for users who prioritize screen real estate, while the Nubia Pad Pro offers no compensating display advantage — only a smaller footprint that suits those who prefer a lighter, more compact form factor.

The chipset gap here is substantial. The OnePlus Pad 3 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite, Qualcomm's latest flagship platform built on a 3 nm process, while the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro uses the previous-generation Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 on a 4 nm node. That generational difference shows clearly in the Geekbench 6 scores: the Pad 3 posts a multi-core result of 10,059 and single-core of 3,234, versus the Nubia Pad Pro's 7,325 and 2,213 respectively — roughly a 37% lead in multi-core and 46% in single-core. In practice, this translates to faster app launches, smoother heavy multitasking, and a more capable experience in GPU-intensive tasks, where the Pad 3's Adreno 830 at 1,100 MHz also outclocks the Nubia's Adreno 750 at 900 MHz.

Efficiency is another angle worth examining. The Pad 3's 3 nm chip draws a TDP of 8.2W compared to the Nubia Pad Pro's 12.5W — meaning the Pad 3 delivers significantly higher performance while consuming less power, a direct benefit of the smaller process node. Both tablets match on RAM at 16 GB, but the Pad 3 pulls ahead in memory bandwidth at 85.1 GB/s versus 76.6 GB/s, and its faster 5,300 MHz RAM speed versus 4,800 MHz gives it a further edge in data-intensive workloads. The Pad 3 also supports 2 external displays versus the Nubia's 1, a useful differentiator for desktop-style productivity setups.

Storage is the one area where the Nubia Pad Pro counters: its base configuration offers 1 TB of internal storage versus the Pad 3's 512 GB, which matters for users storing large media libraries or extensive offline content without cloud reliance. That said, on raw computational performance, the OnePlus Pad 3 holds a commanding and well-rounded advantage across CPU, GPU, efficiency, and memory throughput.

Tablet cameras are rarely a primary purchase driver, but the specs here tell a notably uniform story — with one exception. Both the OnePlus Pad 3 and the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro share an identical 13 MP main rear camera, and their feature sets are virtually mirrored: HDR mode, touch autofocus, continuous autofocus during video, manual ISO, white balance, exposure, focus, and a video light are all present on both devices. Neither offers optical zoom, OIS, slow-motion recording, or panorama modes.

The only meaningful differentiator is the front camera. The Nubia Pad Pro equips a 20 MP selfie sensor compared to the Pad 3's 8 MP — a gap that matters most for video calls, which are among the most common use cases for a tablet camera. A higher-resolution front camera captures more facial detail and holds up better when cropped or used in portrait-mode framing during conference calls. For users who rely heavily on video conferencing or front-facing content creation, this difference is tangible.

With rear cameras on equal footing across resolution and features, the Nubia Pad Pro takes a clear edge in this category purely on the strength of its 20 MP front camera. It is a narrow but real advantage for the specific scenarios where tablet cameras actually get used.

Audio is a near-complete draw between these two tablets, with one small but noteworthy exception. Both the OnePlus Pad 3 and the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro feature stereo speakers and omit a 3.5 mm headphone jack, meaning wired audio users on either device will need a USB-C adapter or dongle. Neither supports LDAC, aptX, aptX Low Latency, aptX Adaptive, or aptX Lossless.

The single differentiator is that the Pad 3 supports aptX HD, while the Nubia Pad Pro supports no high-resolution Bluetooth audio codec at all. aptX HD enables 24-bit audio transmission over Bluetooth, which can deliver audibly improved wireless audio quality compared to standard codecs — provided the paired headphones also support it. For users with a compatible wireless headset, this is a genuine, if niche, advantage.

For most users relying on the built-in speakers or standard Bluetooth headphones, the two tablets are effectively tied. However, audiophiles or those with aptX HD-compatible headphones will find the OnePlus Pad 3 the marginally more capable option for wireless listening.

Battery capacity is a straightforward win for the OnePlus Pad 3, which packs a 12,140 mAh cell compared to the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro's 10,100 mAh — a difference of over 2,000 mAh, or roughly 20% more capacity. In real-world terms, that margin can translate to several additional hours of video playback, browsing, or light productivity before needing to reach for a charger.

Worth noting, however, is that the Pad 3 also drives a significantly larger 13.2″ display, which draws more power than the Nubia's 10.9″ panel. The larger battery may therefore partially offset the cost of powering that bigger screen rather than purely extending runtime. Both tablets support fast charging and share the same structural limitations — no wireless charging and a non-removable battery — so the charging experience is qualitatively identical on both sides.

On raw capacity alone, the OnePlus Pad 3 holds the advantage in this category. Whether that edge fully survives the demands of its larger display in day-to-day use cannot be determined from these specs alone, but the 20% capacity buffer is a meaningful starting point in its favor.

Across the broad sweep of connectivity and software features, these two tablets are remarkably alike. Both share USB 3.2 Type-C, identical Wi-Fi download and upload speeds, the same privacy controls, split-screen support, Picture-in-Picture, dynamic theming, dark mode, multi-user support, and offline voice recognition — among many other shared capabilities. Neither includes NFC, cellular, GPS, HDMI output, or a fingerprint scanner, so connectivity limitations are equally distributed.

The only differentiators in this entire category are motion sensors. The OnePlus Pad 3 includes a gyroscope, compass, and accelerometer, none of which are present on the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro. This matters more than it might initially appear: the gyroscope enables accurate screen rotation, immersive gaming, and AR applications; the accelerometer underpins step counting and orientation detection; and the compass supports navigation apps and augmented reality overlays. Without these sensors, the Nubia Pad Pro is limited in any app or game that relies on motion or directional input.

Given how closely matched everything else is, the OnePlus Pad 3 takes a clear edge in this category. The sensor suite it carries is not exotic — these are components users reasonably expect in a modern tablet — making their absence on the Nubia Pad Pro a tangible functional gap rather than a minor omission.

This category offers no differentiation between the two devices. Both the OnePlus Pad 3 and the ZTE Nubia Pad Pro use DDR5 memory and support multithreading — and that is the entirety of the data available here.

DDR5 is the current standard for high-performance mobile memory, offering improved bandwidth and power efficiency over DDR4, while multithreading allows the CPU to handle multiple tasks simultaneously across its cores — both expected features at this tier. Since neither spec varies between the two products, no advantage can be drawn from this group.

This category is a complete tie. Users should weigh the other specification groups — particularly Performance and Connectivity — for meaningful points of differentiation between these two tablets.