Best budget tablets
The iPad Air 2 is ruling the roost as the best tablet in the world, but with prices starting at £399 and rising to £659, it's clearly priced in a bracket way above many people's budget.
Apple's sky-high prices mean those wanting a more affordable tablet experience will have to look elsewhere, although the iPad mini 2 has seen a price cut since the iPad mini 4 and iPad mini 3 arrived on the scene. It's still not super cheap, but it can just about be considered a budget tablet now.
Google's operating system now adorns a multitude of tablets, from those priced at the same lofty heights as Apple's offerings (many of which will be packing Android Marshmallow soon) to suspiciously cheap tablets that can be picked up for less than £100 at your local supermarket – although we'd advise against purchasing most of these.
We're also seeing Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 tablets dropping in price, although for the most part they're still not at the level of the Android slates.
If you can't quite hack the lower offerings, and you've managed to scrape together enough money to indulge in a pricier tablet experience, then take a gander at the following:
- 10 best tablets in the world today
- 15 best Android tablets in the world
For those of you who are still with us, well done. To reward you for your loyalty, here are some of the best budget tablets available for under £250 that are currently on sale:
7. Asus MeMoPad 7 ME572C
Asus' follow up to the Nexus 7
Weight: 269g | Dimensions: 200 x 114.4 x 8.3mm | OS: Android 4.4.2 | Screen size: 7-inch |Resolution: 1200 x 1920 | CPU: Quad-core 1.83GHz | RAM: 2GB | Storage: 16/32GB | Battery: 3950mAh | Rear camera: 5MP | Front camera: 2MP
It may not have a catchy name, but with the company behind the Nexus 7 making it the Asus MeMoPad 7 ME572C was always likely to be good.
A full HD display, stereo speakers and 2GB of RAM are a good start. A slim, attractive design and solid battery life don't hurt either and it even one-ups the Nexus 7 with the inclusion of a microSD card slot.
With the Nexus 7 now off sale the 7-inch MeMoPad 7 is perhaps the closest alternative and it's one of the best options for fans of small-screen Android slates. It doesn't hurt that it's pretty cheap too.
- Shortlisted: for "Best Value Tablet" in the 2015 TechRadar Phone Awards
Read the full review: Asus MeMoPad 7 ME572C
6. Amazon Fire HD 6
If you live on Amazon you'll want a Fire
Weight: 290g | Dimensions: 169 x 103 x 10.7mm | OS: Android (Fire OS) | Screen size: 6-inch | Resolution: 800 x 1280 | CPU: quad-core | RAM: 1GB | Storage: 8GB/16GB | Rear camera: 2MP | Front camera: VGA
The Amazon Fire HD 6 is one of the most enticing tablets to come from Amazon, mixing efficient integration with the Prime services and a compact footprint that makes it easy to drop in your bag.
It's no tablet king, but it does what it sets out to well. Its crazy low price tag means it's perfect to hand off to the kids without the fear that they're wielding an expensive bit of kit around.
It may be too small for some, and the cameras aren't up to much, but the Fire HD 6 gives you the core tablet experience for not very much outlay, making it a budget tablet worth buying.
Read the full review: Amazon Fire HD 6
5. EE Harrier Tab
Super low-cost 4G tablet
Weight: 338g | Dimensions: 212.8 x 124 x 8.5mm | OS: Android 5.0 | Screen size: 8-inch | Resolution: Full HD | CPU: octa-core | RAM: 2GB | Storage: 16GB | Battery: 4650mAh | Rear camera: 8MP | Front camera: 2MP
The EE Harrier Tab is a tablet of greater taste than its shiny-as-you-like fake metal rear might suggest. It doesn't have an EE-heavy interface, performs very well, and has a well thought out design that is both light and practical.
If the idea of a 4G tablet appeals, this is one of the best budget options. It is much better than the Vodafone alternative, the Smart Tab prime 6, thanks to its higher-quality screen.
However, if mobile internet is something you can live without, the Tesco Hudl 2 is an even better buy at a jaw-dropping £99, though that budget slate has sadly been discontinued, so it could start to become hard to find.
Read the full review: EE Harrier Tab
4. Tesco Hudl 2
Supermarket giant brings the goods
Weight: 410g | Dimensions: 224 x 128 x 9.14mm | OS: Android 5.1 | Screen size: 8.3-inch |Resolution: 1920 x 1200 | CPU: Quad-core 1.83GHz | RAM: 2GB | Storage: 16GB | Battery: 5710mAh | Rear camera: 5MP | Front camera: 1.2MP
A few years ago the prospect of a Tesco-brand tablet wouldn't have filled us with confidence, but the impressive Hudl changed our minds and the Hudl 2 has impressed us all over again.
At just £99 it's really incredible value for money, thanks to an 8.3-inch HD screen and stereo speakers. The low cost combined with handy parental controls also make it a great cheap tablet choice if you've got kids around.
There's not much built in storage, but a microSD card slot makes up for that somewhat, and the battery life could be a LOT better, but this is about as cheap and cheerful as a tablet gets. Unfortunately it's also been discontinued, so you might have to shop around to find it.
- Winner of "Best Value Tablet" in the 2015 TechRadar Phone Awards
Read the full review: Tesco Hudl 2
3. Lenovo Yoga 10 HD+
Big battery and a built in stand
Weight: 615g | Dimensions: 261 x 180 x 8.1mm | OS: Android 4.4 | Screen size: 10.1-inch | Resolution: 1200 x 1920 | CPU: 1.6GHz quad-core | RAM: 2GB | Storage: 16GB/32GB | Battery: 9000mAh | Rear camera: 8MP | Front camera: 1.6MP
The Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ combines a versatile and solid stand with a decently sharp screen, reasonable performance and amazing battery life.
It's not your run of the mill tablet with its folder book design, and that may put some off. It's also quite big and bulky.
That said, for those looking for a cheap tablet which will last a transatlantic flight the 10 HD+ is one of the strongest contenders.
Read the full review: Lenovo Yoga 10 HD+
2. Google Nexus 9
Pure Google in a tablet
Weight: 425g | Dimensions: 228.2 x 153.7 x 8mm | OS: Android 5.1.1 | Screen size: 8.9-inch | Resolution: 1536 x 2048 | CPU: 2.6GHz dual-core | RAM: 2GB | Storage: 16GB/32GB | Battery: 6700mAh | Rear camera: 8MP | Front camera: 1.6MP
When the Nexus 9 launched it was going toe-to-two with the iPad in terms of screen size and price. However that was back in 2014 and the Nexus 9 can now be picked up for a lot less.
Buy it direct from Google and you're faced with a steep £319 charge, but shop around and you can get it for just a touch over £200 now, which makes it an incredibly attractive offering. Issues with screen quality are easier to handle at this price - it's still great, just not up to iPad Air 2 standards.
There's a decent slug of power, Android Marshmallow inbound and HTC's BoomSound speakers for excellent sound quality.
Read the full review: Google Nexus 9
1. iPad mini 2
The best value iPad out there
Weight: 331g | Dimensions: 200 x 134.7 x 7.5mm | OS: iOS 9 | Screen size: 7.9-inch | Resolution: 1536 x 2048 | CPU: Dual-core 1.3GHz | RAM: 1GB | Storage: 16/32/64/128GB | Battery: 6470mAh |Rear camera: 5MP | Front camera: 1.2MP
What's this? The iPad mini 2 in a list of the best cheap tablets? Why yes. It may be a premium slate but it's been superseded by the iPad mini 4 and the already discontinued iPad mini 3 and as such it's dropped in price to under £250.
Better yet, as the iPad mini 3 is basically the same tablet with added Touch ID you hardly miss out on anything by buying this older model, though you do miss out on the power-boost found in the iPad mini 4.
Still, with a brilliant screen, a stunning design and quite a lot of power the iPad mini 2 is difficult to beat at this price point. It looks, feels and performs like something far more expensive, making it the best budget tablet around.
Read the full review: Apple iPad mini 2
from www.techradar.com/
