The Best Tablet For Hearthstone

Jonathan Biran

6 years ago

Contents

What you should look for in a tablet for Hearthstone

What is Hearthstone?

Developed by Blizzard, Hearthstone was launched on the 11th of March, 2014. The game gained traction extremely fast and exploded in popularity and continues to be the most popular card game in the world. Hearthstone can be played from both PC, tablet and on mobile.

What you need in a good tablet to play Hearthstone?

Storage – This refers to how much usable download space is available on the device. A tablet with a higher storage space will allow the user to access either more, or higher quality apps.
Storage is a must have considering Hearthstone is quite a large game compared to other iOS, or even android applications, especially considering it is a fairly simple game. This stands true even after Blizzard took action sometime in the middle of 2018, reducing the storage space required to run the game. Purchasing a tablet with low storage space will result in copious amounts of lagging, and an overall poor experience. As expected, downloading Hearthstone with an inferior tablet result in the forfeiture of other uses for a tablet such as photos, videos, movies and games.

Speed – While Hearthstone appears to be a simple yet, well designed game on the surface, it requires a device with quite a fast processing speed. This is because Hearthstone contains a vast amount of detail on the screen at all times, with multiple moving particles which may cause lagging without sufficient processing power. Poor speed will also cause disconnections, a large inconvenience considering the time spent reconnecting may result in a forfeiture of a turn (due to the rope), likely leading to a loss. Only with a good tablet and processor can Hearthstone run smoothly without endless frustration.

Battery – Grinding the Hearthstone ladder can take endless hours, as games in the current meta may last up to 20 to 25 minutes. A large battery is a must have simply for convenience. Having a poor battery in any tablet results in more frequent charging, translating to less play time overall, or being chained to a particular area in order to play the game (while charging). A good Hearthstone tablet should be portable and allowed to be taken everywhere. Only a decent battery life can do this will allow you to enjoy the game anywhere.

Regular system updates – Regular system updates are essential, these are usually absent for older devices as the manufacturer focuses on their more recent products. Hearthstone has a minimum operating system standard for both iOS and Android devices, older operating systems will be unable to run the game.
Minimum requirement for Android: Android 5.0 (Lollipop) / Fire OS 4.5.1 or later
Minimum requirement for iOS: iOS 8.0 or later

Other factors to consider:

Weight – A lighter tablet would be ideal as it allows for a portable device that can be brought everywhere conveniently. Tablets that are too light simply feel like an inferior product or one that can easily be broken, on the other side of the spectrum, heavy tablets will simply feel uncomfortable.

Size – Hearthstone is best played on a medium sized tablet, with it being easy to hold making it more transportable. It should be big enough to clearly show all the card information and ideally, the small particles Blizzard puts a large effort into designing. However, the device should not be overly large, as playing Hearthstone should on a tablet which is compact and not bulky.

Best tablets for Hearthstone 2019

Name	Screen Size	Weight	CPU
Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 (Editor's Choice)	9.7'	429g	Qualcomm Snapdragon 820	Check Price
iPad 9.7 (2018)	9.7'	478g	A10 Fusion	Check Price
iPad mini 4	7.9'	299g	Dual-core A8	Check Price
Microsoft Surface Pro (Editor's Choice)	12.3'	768g	Intel Core m3/i5/i7	Check Price
Huawei MediaPad M3	8.4'	326g	HUAWEI HiSilicon Kirin octa-core	Check Price

1. Samsung Galaxy Tab S3

This is currently the best device on the market to play Hearthstone, the manufacturers at Samsung created the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 as the most premium tablet out in the market. Being the current top tablet out there, it is the ideal pick to play Hearthstone on.

Design wise, the tablet has a glass back and simular to the iPad, is 6.1mm thick. The glass design gives the tablet an extremely premium feel, simular to Samsung’s top phone range like the S8 and S9. Looking at the display, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 has a much more superior display compared to the Apple iPad. The S3 runs a super amoled display which allows for greater and high quality contrast in terms of colours as it does not have the traditional back light.This is mainly due to the super amoled screen the S3 has compared to other competitors who still remain with an LCD screen.

The S3 boasts a strong quad core processor that clocks in at 2.15 Ghz and also packs a solid 4 gigabytes of RAM. The combination of a great processor and RAM allows Hearthstone to run without any worries from crashes (outside in game bugs which lies due to the developers at Blizzard). While the internal base memory is not anything great, it has an expandable memory of up to an astounding 256 gigabytes of data.

Battery wise, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 packs quite a large battery. While it is not the largest in terms of mAh, the 6000 mAh battery will give life to the tablet for 12 hours, even with video playback use. The 12 hour battery life being one of the best through the entire tablet market. However, it does not end there, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3, like most Samsung products have their signature fast charging technology. While it is unlikely you will need a second charge in a day, you can rest assured this tablet will suit an all nighter Hearthstone run perfectly.

2. iPad 9.7 (2018)

Made by Apple, this is currently one of the best devices on the market to play Hearthstone. The iPad is considered simple in design as it does not include the fancy customisation Android has. In addition, the iPad is a great size that can be held comfortably with one hand. It also displays the in-game Hearthstone particles, effects and description of the cards clearly and without lag. While the app may crash occasionally due to an older iOS or in game bugs, it is extremely infrequent. As long the iPad is properly updated, the game should run the smoothest of all the other competing devices.

The iPad is a very thin tablet with a 6.1mm thickness. As many know, the iPad is considered fairly durable with an aluminium body. This metal body allows the iPad to not only be strong on the surface, but light. In comparison to other tablet with glass bodies, where drops will likely ruin the body with a multitude of cracks which will worsen over time. In saying so, considering it is aluminium, the iPad can scratch fairly easily, so avoid leaving it on rough surfaces without a case.

The iPad packs a solely exclusive modern Apple designed chip, the A10. The clock rate measured for the A10 clip is 2.34 Ghz, slightly higher than the S3 quad core processor. It also includes 2 gigabytes of RAM, half of that compared to the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3. That said, in the whole scheme of things, it is not a very large difference as Apple’s software is much simpler than Samsung’s software, which requires more RAM.

Note, as of August 2018, Hearthstone takes up 2.7 gigabytes of data on the iPad.

3. iPad mini 4

Another Apple product, the smaller version of the iPad 9.7. The iPad mini 4 remains a great tablet to play Hearthstone on. Specs wise, the iPad mini 4 is below standard compared to the iPad 9.7 in almost every way. The mini has a slower processor, packing the A8 processor, 2 generations below that of the normal iPad 9.7. However, the iPad mini also carries 2 gigabytes of RAM. While it is slower than the other two tablets, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 and the iPad 9.7 (2018), the iPad mini 4 is still one of the better tablets out there that can run Hearthstone smoothly. Given the software is updated regularly and there is not too many other apps open at the same time, it is a great tablet for Hearthstone. In terms of battery life, the iPad mini 4 is rated to last up to 10 hours, however, use for intense gaming will dramatically reduce this time. Hearthstone as a less taxing game, this allows the tablet to run for 5 to 6 hours comfortably before having to worry about the battery and getting it plugged in.

On the upside, the mini is very light given it is not only designed by apple, but is a smaller tablet in general. Measuring at 203.2mm x 134.8mm x 6.1mm, the iPad mini only weights 299 grams.

Everything else considered, the iPad mini 4 is a solid tablet choice, especially for playing games like Hearthstone that do not require very high processing power or RAM. With apple products, the experience is almost flawless and there is no doubt, it is a quality product.

4. Microsoft Surface Pro

The Microsoft Surface Pro is currently the best tablet hybrid on the market, hence, it deserves a mention as one of the better tablets to game Hearthstone on. There are both several upsides and downsides of playing Hearthstone on a hybrid tablet laptop device such as the Microsoft Surface Pro.

Playing Hearthstone on the Surface Pro is definitely a different experience compared to other tablets as the game is run through the PC version. A clear down side is that this PC version is not optimised for touch screen like the tablet outlay..That said, you can still use the touch screen to play Hearthstone, on top of the normal mousepad / mouse cursor navigation.

Upsides of the Microsoft Surface Pro, it doubles as a laptop, so multitasking is a viable option. The Surface Pro, like other PCs and laptops can run multiple programs at one, and do not restrict other applications when one in particular is open. Switching between Hearthstone and other application or the browser will not disconnect the Hearthstone game like on traditional tablets such as the iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tab S3. Hearthstone is quite a slow paced game, having the option to view other forms of entertainment such as Youtube or twitch streams while playing allows for a much better gaming experience.

On the downside, as a hybrid product, it is much heavier compared to the usual tablets available on the market. The current Microsoft Surface Pro has different weights depending on the processor chosen. The i5 version it weighs 770 grams, lighter than the i7 version at 784 grams.

5. Huawei MediaPad M3

One of the more affordable options, the Huawei MediaPad M3 (see lowest price) is a great buy to satisfy your Hearthstone needs. While spec wise the Huawei MediaPad M3 may appear to be much better compared to the other Apple products such as the iPad 9.7 or iPad mini 4, it performs comparatively worse. This is due to the more intensive software the ftAndroid operating system it runs.

The displays measures in at 8.4 inches, slightly larger by half an inch against the iPad mini 4. The pixel density and screen to body ratio for the Huawei MediaPad M3 is also higher than the iPad mini 4, this makes for a clearer and crisper viewing experience. As another great feature of the M3, it packs a huge Octa core that clocks in at 2.3 Ghz, a processor that can even compare to bigger sized tablets like the iPad 9.7 and Samsung Galaxy Tab S3.

On the clear downside, this tablet is much thicker compared to its competitors with the Huawei’s depth measuring at 7.3mm. The internal storage initially provided is only 64 gigabytes, that said, as an Android tablet, you have the ability to expand its storage up to 128 gigabytes.

Conclusion

Overall, going for the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 is the best choice for gaming, which includes Hearthstone. The display, battery life, feel of the product and speed are all top notch. However, going for the iPad 9.7 is also a great option, a reliable tablet that will run Hearthstone through the iOS software that apple has honed over the years. For a smaller more convenient tablet, the iPad mini 4 is the best small option, while the specs are lower, the simplicity in the tablet’s design allows for a smoother experience than Android.

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