Almost everyone has a tablet nowadays, so why not pick one up for the person in your life who doesn't have one?
Tablets are more portable and lightweight than laptops but provide the extra screen surface a smartphone can't. Our holiday gift guide wouldn't be complete without the busload of new tablets that came out this year especially since they all seem to be better than the next one, specs-wise and price wise (we wouldn't be surprised if you got one for yourself).
iPad Air - $499
The iPad Air is a surprisingly smooth device. In fact, it's so smooth we gave the tablet a 5-star rating.
It's thinner, lighter (hence the name Air), faster and better with the battery. The range of accessories, the ecosystem and the general speed with which the iPad works, especially when it comes to the heavy lifting, is massively impressive.
We're sure someone in your life would be eternally grateful for an iPad Air, and luckily for you, Apple has kept the price within range of its other products - so while still expensive, just remember that it could be even more costly.
New Nexus 7 - $229
Google's earlier Asus-made Nexus 7 was already an amazing compact tablet so it's no wonder the new Nexus 7 is also a dream.
With a low starting price, great battery life, powerful performance and beautiful HD screen it hurdles right over the expensive less impressive iPad mini - and for just a little more money, it offers greater functionality than a Kindle Fire HD.
The 16GB or 32GB go for a mere $229 and $269 respectively, with an LTE version selling for $300.
iPad mini 2 with Retina display - $399
The iPad mini was missing one little thing to really compete with Google's Nexus 7 powerhouse, and with the newest iteration from Apple, it looks like the search engine giant will have a worthy Cupertino 7-incher.
Actually, the iPad mini 2 measures in at 7.9-inches, exactly the same size as the year-old iPad mini, but the display comes with a resolution boost of 2048 x 1536 meaning that it has a Full HD display. This doubles the original iPad mini's 163ppi to 326ppi.
With the Retina technology on board, the new iPad mini comes with a resolution of 2048 x 1536 meaning that it has a Full HD display. This doubles the original iPad mini's 163ppi to 326ppi.
Surface Pro 2 - $899
Microsoft's latest tablet seems pretty much the same as the previous iteration but in actuality, the 10.6-inch Surface Pro 2 is much more powerful.
The added upgrades really can't be ignored especially if you're looking to get a Windows 8.1 device. Running Intel's latest i5 Haswell chip gives it some appreciated speed and battery life making it almost as quick as an Ultrabook.
The $899 price is steep, especially for a tab, but someone in your life would probably greatly appreciate this well-made machine over its bulkier, even more expensive counterparts.
Amazon Kindle Fire HDX 7-inch and 8.9-inch - $229 & $379
The latest editions of the Amazon tablet lineup are the Amazon Kindle Fire HDX 7-inch and the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 and they're decent enough devices.
In fact they're more than decent - they're downright perfect for movies, books and music, and we can't stress enough the light weight of the device, which really helps in portability and sustained holding/viewing.
