Yahoo Sports The 8 Best Gaming Tablets for Gaming Everywhere
- 1/9
The 8 Best Gaming Tablets for Gaming Everywhere
If you enjoy gaming on the go (or you enjoy your children being occupied during car trips) and prefer a versatile device to a dedicated handheld gaming console like the Nintendo Switch, a tablet is a good option. Not only are there plenty of games designed specifically for mobile devices, but they offer the added advantage of larger, more immersive screens. As such, we’ve rounded up our picks for the best gaming tablets of the year.
For more great tablets, check out our picks for the best tablets for college, best cheap tablets, and best Android tablets.
The Best Gaming Tablets
What to Consider
Most tablets are designed for multiple uses, as opposed to just for gaming, so the best tablets for most uses also tend to be the best for gaming. (If you want a gaming-specific portable device, check out the best handheld consoles.) There are three main features to consider: screen, processor, and storage.
Screen
A high-quality screen, of course, improves your gaming experience, with size and resolution impacting the vividness of the visuals. Refresh rate is important to consider, too, as it impacts your tablet’s ability to handle intense graphics.
Controls
Most tablets have Bluetooth functionality that lets users connect devices like styluses, keyboards, or game controllers. If you plan on playing games that don’t translate well to touch controls, like first-person shooters, pick an option with controller or keyboard compatibility.
Operating System
The operating system on your tablet, as well as the coinciding marketplace, determine what games you can download. For instance, some games are available on the Apple App Store, but not on Google Play, or vice versa. Tablets with App Store, Google Play, and Steam Link compatibility should have plenty of games to choose from, whereas Amazon Fire tablets have limited game choices.
Processor
Stronger processors translate to a faster computer—less lag time, better graphics, and easier multitasking. If you plan on playing big, graphics-heavy games like Destiny 2, splurge for the tablet with the most recent, powerful processing chip.
Storage
With the prevalence of cloud-based gaming, storage may seem like an unnecessary consideration. However, if you plan to game offline or use your tablet for other storage-intensive tasks, it’s best to find a tablet with at least 128GB of space (ideally 1TB, depending on how many games you play).
How We Selected
We consulted a number of publications, including Digital Trends, PCMag, and Forbes, as well as consumer reviews, to determine the best gaming tablets on the market. We delineated the best based on use and price, so that no matter what your budget or OS preferences, you can find a gaming tablet that’s right for you.
Popular Mechanics; Samsung - 2/9
1) 12.9-inch iPad Pro
Apple
amazon.com
$1169.99
Powerful enough to handle labor-intensive tasks like photo editing and gaming on the go, Apple’s iPad Pro is one of the best tablets on the market. It’s equipped with Apple’s new M2 chip and a beautiful high-dynamic-range LCD display, which also make it a great mobile gaming device. It’s a perfect match for the thousands of games Apple offers in the App Store, as well as the 200-plus premium games available with an Apple Arcade subscription.
amazon.com - 3/9
2) ROG Flow Z13 Gaming Laptop Tablet
ASUS
amazon.com
$1349.99
The Asus ROG Flow Z13 is one of the few tablets designed specifically as a portable gaming machine. As much a two-in-one (especially with its specs) as a tablet, it comes with a detachable, full-sized RGB keyboard. It’s equipped with an Intel Core i9 processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 graphics, so you can play Windows-compatible games (or anything you can get on Steam, Origin, or a similar games marketplace). It's available with either a 120Hz 1080p or 4K display for graphics that are up to snuff with your desktop machine. Asus has made the Z13 look cooler than your average tablet, too, with a retro-futurist design that includes a small window to give you a peek at its impressive innards.
amazon.com - 4/9
3) Galaxy Tab S8+ Android Tablet
SAMSUNG
amazon.com
$799.99
With a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 is one of the most powerful Android tablets on the market, making it a great mobile gamer. While the Ultra edition offers a bigger display, we like the 12-inch display of the Plus for its portability and 120Hz refresh rate.
The S8 Plus also boasts Dolby Atmos, so it sounds as good as it looks, and it’s widely beloved by PC gamers.
amazon.com - 5/9
4) Galaxy Tab A7
SAMSUNG
amazon.com
$258.39
While the Tab A8 isn’t nearly expensive as an iPad Pro, if you want to save a couple Benjamins, you can go a step down to the previous Tab iteration: the Galaxy Tab A7. This tablet's Qualcomm SM6115 processor gives you more bang for your buck than similarly-priced Android tablets, plus you get a full HD display, Dolby Atmos surround speakers, and great battery life. It even has facial recognition. In many ways, it’s hard to justify spending more when a tablet this good exists at such a reasonable price.
amazon.com - 6/9
5) iPad Mini (2021)
Apple
amazon.com
$529.00
If you want an ultra-portable tablet without sacrificing gaming power, Apple’s iPad Mini is the way to go. It weighs just 0.7 pounds and is small enough to easily hold in one hand, so you can truly play anywhere. Meanwhile, the A15 Bionic chip means that it can handle any of the games from Apple’s App Store or your Apple Arcade subscription, which includes some of the year's best titles like Assemble with Care and Fantasian.
amazon.com - 7/9
6) Fire HD 10 Tablet
Amazon
amazon.com
$99.99
In terms of bang for your buck, it doesn’t get much better than Amazon’s Fire tablets, but there are notable drawbacks—namely the limited selection of games on the Fire app store. You won’t get the premium experience of an iPad or top-of-the-line Android tablets due to the middling processing power, but for a price that’s super easy on your wallet, the full HD screen and Amazon Prime compatibility make is a great device for playing games, streaming movies and TV, and checking emails. If you mostly play mobile games like Candy Crush or you share a gaming tablet with your kids, this is a great low-budget choice. Amazon frequently puts these tablets on sale so you can often get one for even less.
amazon.com - 8/9
7) Fire HD 10 Kids Pro Tablet
Amazon
amazon.com
$159.99
It's as powerful as the adult edition, but the Amazon Fire HD Kids Pro has been modified to make it safe and fun for kids ages six to ten. For one, it’s housed in a protective case with a stand and has a two-year worry-free warranty that covers any accidents that might occur. It also has guardian controls that allow you to block certain websites or let your kids download apps only with parent approval. Plus, this tablet comes with one year of Amazon Kids+, which includes not only dozens of games, but age-appropriate books and videos as well.
amazon.com - 9/9
8) 10.2-inch iPad (2021)
Apple
walmart.com
$344.00
If you want to take advantage of Apple’s large selection of games but don’t want to shell out the dough for the Pro or Mini, the ninth-generation iPad is a good alternative. You get a sharp 10-inch Retina display and stereo speakers, so everything will look and sound splendid. The A13 Bionic chip doesn’t pack the power of the Pro’s M2 or even the Mini’s A15, but it should hold up just fine for most games (if you're trying to play big, graphics-heavy open worlds, though, consider the Pro). It’s compatible with Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard, too, as well as any Bluetooth controllers you have.
walmart.com
