Finding an inexpensive tablet these days requires little to no effort, except knowing where to look, of course. The point is, there's now a very noticeable saturation of tablets throughout the pricing spectrum, so whether users opt for a premium unit or a fairly-priced alternative, they will find one.
In 2016, tablet diversity hasn't stopped, and for whatever purpose a user might need a tablet for, whether it's primarily for reading e-books, playing games, satisfying the need for larger screens, or all of the above, there are a lot of options that won't break the bank.
Here are the best tablets you can buy under $300.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S
Samsung's Galaxy smartphone lineup are excellent pieces of technology, and the same can be said for its Galaxy tablet line. The Galaxy Tab S' most affordable variant comes with an 8.4-inch screen, but those who fancy larger screens may opt for its 10.5-inch sibling.
The Galaxy Tab S might not come as entirely polished as the Galaxy Tab S2, but it's far from deserving an "outdated" moniker, since its specs still pretty much ambles well even with today's standards.
Under the hood is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, or Exynos 5 Octa 5420 in other variants, and an Adreno 330 or Mali-T628MP6 GPU. Inside is 3 GB of RAM and 32 or GB of internal storage. On the back is an 8-megapixel camera, while on the front is a 2.1-megapixel camera. The Galaxy Tab S ships with Android 4.0 KitKat, though it is upgradeable to Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
The 8.4-inch Galaxy Tab S costs $249.99 on Amazon.
Amazon Fire HD 10
All tablets under Amazon's Fire line are very inexpensive, at least compared with its field competitors, but its cheap price doesn't dampen the lineup's features. The Fire HD 10 is one of the most affordable 10-inch tablets at below $230, and its performance is pretty creditable despite. Amazon bills it as an entertainment tablet, and for good reason: Prime Video, Amazon's streaming service, is well-integrated in this device.
The Amazon Fire HD 10 costs $229.99 on Amazon, but users can get it now for just $199.99.
Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2 10
Tablet-based Windows is best experienced on a Surface Book, but not everyone can meet the lineup's steep price point. Fortunately, there's Lenovo's Yoga Tablet 10 that runs Windows 10 without a hitch, and it does so at a stellar price.
The Yoga Tablet 2 10 looks somewhat odd compared with other tablets, given its cylindrical hinge at the bottom of the display, but this, despite being a vexing design choice, allows for better battery life and excellent audio performance. Under the hood is a 1.86 GHz quad-core Intel Atom Z3745 chip, with an Intel Gen 7 GPU. Inside is 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal storage. On the back is an 8-megapixel shooter, while on the front rests a 1.6-megapixel shooter for selfies.
The Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2 10 is currently sold out at Lenovo's site, but there are a lot of listings for it on Amazon.
Apple iPad Mini 2
Sure, the iPad Mini 2 is a little outdated, but the tablet still performs pretty well, and is now significantly inexpensive with the arrival of succeeding Apple tablets. The iPad Mini 2 doesn't come with the iPad Mini 4's TouchID, slimmer design, and other features, but it's still a pretty excellent all-around media device.
The Apple iPad Mini 2 costs $237.99 on Amazon.
Asus ZenPad S 8.0
The Asus ZenPad S 8.0 dons one of the best screens found on a budget tablet, coming with a resolution of 1,536 x 2,048 at a pixel density of 320 ppi. It's a robust, sturdy and well-performing tablet for its price, boasting 10 hours of battery life. The camera, however, slightly lags behind even with its 5/8-megapixel front/rear shooter configuration. Another drawback is with the device's bloatware, which is always annoying.
Under the hood is a quad-core Intel Atom Z3560 or Z3580 processor, with a PowerVR G6430 GPU. It comes in 16, 32, or 64 GB variants, with either 2 or 4 GB of RAM.
The Asus ZenPad S 8.0 costs $129.99 on Amazon.
Think we missed anything? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
