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Chuwi Hi10 X1 Review

Written By Jose Altoveros
Published • November 30th, 2024
Gadget ReviewsTablets
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Short URL: https://www.yugatech.com/go/e129

The Chuwi name is still relatively new in the Philippines. But a few months back, we got to try out one of their Windows tablet PCs – the Hi10 Max. If you haven’t checked out our review of it, you can hit the link here or read our full review now live on the YugaTech website.

To sum up my experience with the Hi10 Max, it was a decent budget-friendly Windows tablet with a large 12.96-inch 3K display. While you couldn’t play games on it, at least you could get work done or watch your favorite series on a larger Windows display. It also came with a stylus, making it somewhat decent for drawing.

Now, if you found the Hi10 Max too big or out of your budget, then you might be interested in its smaller sibling – the Chuwi Hi10 X1. The Hi10 X1 is a lot smaller than the Hi10 Max with only a 10.1-inch display, and it doesn’t come with a stylus this time.

However, it’s still a portable tablet PC that runs on Windows and uses an Intel N100 chipset. Best of all, it’s a lot more affordable, starting at just PHP 12,199. So if you’re in the market for a portable Windows tablet PC, I suggest you read on.

Table of Contents

Design and Construction

We begin with the design and construction of the Chuwi Hi10 X1. Similar to its larger sibling, the Hi10 X1 features an all-metal construction, which does lend it a more premium feel.

The tablet’s back panel looks similar too with the same sandblasted gray metal finish.

At the center of the back panel, you have the Intel Inside logo at the center. Unlike the Hi10 Max, to the left of it, there’s a big fan to help with the heat. Meanwhile, the Chuwi logo is located at the bottom as part of the sticker.

Interestingly, there is another Intel Inside sticker, this time in the blue colorway. I find this redundant since you already have the Intel Inside logo at the center. Why add another Intel sticker? It just looks very tacky and out of place.

If you’re not too fond of the design of the back panel, you can get it with a back cover that doubles as a stand. This bundle also includes a keyboard, which effectively covers up the rear end of the Hi10 X1. The downside to using the cover and keyboard is that the tablet becomes even thicker. For reference, despite this tablet’s smaller size (245.4mm × 164.2mm), it is still quite thick.

Specifically, the tablet already measures 10.1mm thick and weighs 610 grams. This is bulky and heavy considering that the Hi10 X1 only comes with a 10.1-inch display. If you fit the case and the keyboard, well, you have a thick tablet in your hands. So if you’re used to the weight of Android tablets, you might have to adjust a bit.

There is good reason for the size though, and it’s for all the ports included in the tablet. You get a USB-A 2.0 port on the right side along with the 3.5mm audio port, while on the left side, you’ll find the two USB-C ports and a micro HDMI port. At the top, it’s clean apart from the vents, while at the bottom you’ll find the keyboard connector.

Speaking of the keyboard, it’s decent for typing, but your fingers will get tired after a while. While they are soft, the small keys make it a bit hard to type. Because of this, I made a lot of typing mistakes when I used it to write a few scripts.

But still, for something that portable, it’s not bad. What I didn’t enjoy using was the trackpad. Not only is it tiny, but it had an issue of automatically moving to a corner of the screen when I tried to hit the left click.

Instead of clicking save or the button I wanted on the screen, it would constantly open up the taskbar or some other app, making it very irritating to use. As a result, I ended up using a mouse just to compensate for that or simply tapping on the touch screen.

Overall, the design of the Chuwi Hi10 X1 is very similar to the Hi10 Max we reviewed a few months ago. While style is subjective, I do like the all-metal finish. However, it is very bulky, which makes it a bit cumbersome to bring around.

Display and Mutlimedia

Moving on to the display of the Chuwi Hi10 X1, you get a 10.1-inch touchscreen. There’s nothing to write home about the screen since it’s a basic IPS LCD panel, and the resolution isn’t that high. It’s only 1280 x 800, but at least you have a 16:10 resolution similar to that of newer laptops. As for the refresh rate, it’s limited to 60Hz.

The colors of the screen aren’t that great, and there’s a heavy blue tint. If you’re used to OLED panels, then you might find the screen lacking. The colors aren’t as vibrant, and the blacks aren’t as deep, especially if you’re watching shows on Netflix or YouTube. However, despite the screen’s native 1280 x 800 resolution, you can play YouTube videos up to 4K, which is decent.

Interestingly, Chuwi did not disclose how bright the screen can become. But from my experience, it is not the brightest since I had a hard time using it under direct sunlight. However, indoors, there was no issue whatsoever.

What I have to mention are the viewing angles and the amount of reflection and glare that comes on the screen. The viewing angles aren’t the best since this is just an IPS LCD panel. Just shift left or right a bit, and what you’re watching quickly changes. If there’s a lot of light in the area, the reflection and glare will also be a factor.

As for the audio, I was surprised to find that the speakers are louder than that of the Hi10 Max. Your smartphone’s loudspeaker will still be louder, but at least you get to hear more. Still, the sound quality is below average, and I would suggest using the 3.5mm audio port or pairing your favorite Bluetooth earphones or speakers.

Cameras

As much as I don’t want to, we have to talk about the cameras on the Chuwi Hi10 X1. As we always say with tablet cameras, you really shouldn’t bother. At the rear, you have an 8MP shooter, while at the front you get a 5MP camera for selfies and video conference.

Honestly, don’t bother using the camera on the Hi10 X1. At best, they’re only for taking pictures of documents, and that’s it. Your smartphone camera will definitely do a better job of taking photos even if it’s an entry-level unit. The front camera is somewhat decent for video calls though.

Plus, it’s a lot more hassle to take photos using the Hi10 X1. On Android tablets, you just have to click the app and you’re ready to shoot. Since this is a Windows tablet PC, you have to open the start menu, type in camera and hit the app. Not exactly the easiest thing to do, plus you look stupid doing it.

OS, Apps, and UI

As mentioned earlier, this is a Windows tablet PC. Just like the Hi10 Max, the Hi10 X1 comes out of the box with Windows 11 Home. There’s nothing too much to write home about apart from it being Windows. There are no pre-installed apps, not even Chuwi-exclusive apps. It’s a clean slate. Not even Microsoft Office is here.

But that’s the beauty of the Hi10 X1; it allows users to install any Windows application into this tablet. Well, that’s assuming this tablet can run it. Games, productivity apps, and pretty much anything you can think of can be run on this tablet just like a laptop or PC.

If you want to use it like a tablet, there is even an auto-rotate that changes the layout from landscape to portrait. Other than that, there’s nothing more to say about the OS.

Performance and Benchmarks

Under the hood, the Chuwi Hi10 X1 runs an Intel N100 chipset. Our unit comes with 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of SSD storage.

You might think 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage isn’t enough, and you’re right. But remember, this tablet PC isn’t exactly something that would replace your laptop.

If you’re going to be using it mainly for productivity purposes with the Windows experience then you should be fine. The processor can easily handle running multiple tabs of Chrome together with other programs such as Spotify and Discord. You could even have YouTube or Netflix running, and it will still run well.

What you will notice is that storage space can run out rather fast. The moment you start downloading lots of files or installing apps, it fills up rather quickly. With that, I would recommend having an external hard drive on standby just in case.

Just like the Hi10 Max, there’s no dedicated GPU on the Hi10 X1, meaning you can’t run games on this tablet PC. Well, at least that’s what I initially thought based on my experience with the Hi10 Max. Surprisingly though, it can run Genshin Impact without any issue whatsoever.

While I had to turn down the settings to the lowest, I still kept it at 60 FPS. The game ran smoothly with only the occasional framerate drops once you start spamming multiple skills. The graphics quality isn’t great, but given how small the screen is I wouldn’t mind doing my dailies on this tablet.

So with that, I’m genuinely surprised that this small tablet could run Genshin Impact even at the lowest setting. To give you a better idea though, you can check out the benchmark scores here. But of course, do set your expectations.

Battery and Connectivity

Lastly, we have to talk about the battery of the Chuwi Hi10 X1. Given its compact size, you would expect it to have something big right? Well, sadly that isn’t the case. It only packs a 25.84Wh battery pack or in smartphone terms 7,000mAh. That’s not a lot, and it shows.

When fully charged, the tablet only has around 4 hours of battery life available, according to the system settings. And as you know, that is a very optimistic battery output. When I was using the tablet just for work, from 100% it went down to 65% after just 1 hour. Mind you I only had Chrome, Spotify, and Discord open.

If you plan to play Genshin on this tablet, I highly recommend bringing a power bank or the supplied power brick. While battery life is still dependent on the end user, you will find yourself finding a wall socket when you bring this around.

Conclusion

Overall, the Chuwi Hi10 X1 is a decent Windows tablet PC. The chipset is decent enough for daily use, and it can even run Genshin. The downside is the screen isn’t the best, and the battery is quite short, but for me, all of that I can overlook given its very affordable price point.

Just how affordable is the Chuwi Hi10 X1? Well, depending on where you order it, it starts at PHP 12,199 for the tablet alone. If you want the package deal that includes the keyboard and the case, that only costs PHP 15,199. To give you an idea, that’s the same as a lot of entry-level Android tablets. But with the Chuwi Hi10 X1, you’re already on Windows.

So if you want a budget Windows tablet without breaking the bank, the Chuwi Hi10 X1 is one to consider. Just set your expectations with what it can do given the limited capabilities of the Intel N100 chipset.

But what do you think of the Chuwi Hi10 X1? Would you cop it or save up a bit more for the larger Hi10 Max? Whatever the case, share your thoughts in the comments below.

What we liked:
* Windows OS in a small form factor
* Can run Genshin
* Very Affordable

What we didn’t like:
* Low resolution display
* Short battery life

Chuwi Hi10 X1 specs:
10.1-inch IPS LCD touchscreen @ 1280 x 800 pixels
Inter N100 chipset, up to 3.4GHz
Intel UHD Graphics
8GB LPDDR5 RAM
256GB SSD
8MP rear camera
5MP web camera
WiFi
Bluetooth
3.5mm audio
Windows 11 Home
25.84Wh / 7,000mAh battery