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Laptops offer plenty of power, but they’re not always the easiest thing to carry around. Tablets, on the other hand, tend to be more portable, less bulky and now, often mirror the functions of a full-size computer.
NBC Selected editors have used tablets as computer replacements and entertainment centers for years, and one thing keeps them coming back: the weight. At around a pound, tablets are simple to travel with and tuck into a bag or store away when you don’t need them. Once you add a keyboard or stylus, they’re good for taking notes, building presentations and more.
If you’re thinking about getting one for yourself check out our below list of NBC Selected editor-approved tablets, along with expert advice on how to find the right one for you.
The best tablets of 2026
The tablet picks below come highly recommended by NBC Selected editors or are in line with guidance from our expert Alan Elterman, a sales manager at Abt, a national retailer of electronics and appliances, and what he said you should prioritize when shopping.
Apple’s most affordable iPad is perfect for making video calls, watching shows and reading books. It has a large screen and speakers on each side for stereo-like audio. “I typically use a tablet as my entertainment device when a laptop would be too cumbersome — it’s a great travel tool for that reason,” says former NBC Selected tech reporter Harry Rabinowitz. “As such, I need my tablet to do a handful of things: browse the web, watch videos, join video calls and send the occasional email.”
This iPad is powered by Apple’s A16 chip, which keeps everyday tasks like streaming, browsing and video calls running smoothly, and its 11-inch Liquid Retina display makes shows and photos look crisp and vibrant. The 12MP front camera automatically keeps you centered in frame during video calls — a small but handy touch for anyone who moves around while chatting. With Wi-Fi 6 for fast, reliable connections and up to 10 hours of battery life, it’s built to keep up whether you’re working from a coffee shop or unwinding on a long flight.
The iPad mini has an 8.3-inch screen, but don’t let the size fool you — it still delivers a full 10 hours of battery life, and an anti-reflective coating actually gives it better color contrast than the base iPad (A16). The compact frame means it’s easier to hold with one for long stretches and slips easily into a bag or backpack without adding bulk.
I own one myself — I originally bought it for my daughter to use on a cross-country flight, but I’ve since claimed it as my own because I love how compact it is. It’s become my go-to travel companion, and at night I use it in bed to catch up on my favorite reality television shows or to read on the Kindle app before falling asleep.
NBC Selected reporter Zoe Malin bought an iPad Pro, plus the Apple Magic keyboard case and Apple Pencil, when she was in college. She was looking for a lightweight device that could replace her laptop — lugging it around campus weighed down her backpack. The iPad Pro (plus accessories) was a big investment, but says it was one of the best she made during school. “I used it to type essays, read e-books, highlight digital textbooks, draw for the school newspaper — I used it for everything,” says Malin.
Nowadays, she mostly uses it for workout apps at home. The screen is big and bright, and the speakers get so loud that she never finds herself setting it higher than 50 percent volume, even while exercising. Malin bought an older generation of this iPad Pro, but the current model, now powered by Apple’s M5 chip, is significantly faster, especially for AI-driven tasks, according to the brand. It also keeps the OLED display and ultra-thin design for a sleek and effective tablet and smart laptop replacement choice for those looking.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE is a mid-range tablet built for Android users. It has a 10.9-inch IPS LCD display and an S Pen comes included at no extra cost, making it a natural fit for note taking, sketching, and annotating documents. It also carries an IP68 water and dust resistance rating along with a sizable 8,000mAh battery that can last up to 20 hours on a single charge.
Beyond the core specs, the Tab S10 FE holds up well for everyday use. Its 13MP rear camera and 12MP front camera cover the basics for video calls and document scanning, while dual speakers and expandable storage via microSD (up to 2TB) round out its practical appeal.
The latest Surface Pro has a vibrant OLED PixelSense touchscreen that is great for editing photos, streaming video, or taking notes with a stylus. It’s powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Elite 12-core processor, a jump from previous Surface Pro chips that brings faster, AI-accelerated performance for multitasking and heavy workloads, along with built-in Copilot AI assistance through Windows 11. This configuration comes with 16GB of memory and 512GB of storage, giving you solid room for everyday productivity and creative work.
It also has a built-in kickstand that adjusts up to 165 degrees, letting it function as a laptop, a tablet, an e-reader reader and more, and Microsoft rates the battery for up to 15.5 hours of local video playback. Two USB-C/USB4 ports handle charging, fast data transfer, and external display connections. It’s worth noting that the keyboard and Surface Pen are sold separately, so factor those into your budget if you want the full laptop-like experience this device is designed to deliver.
The Amazon Fire HD 10 is arguably the most budget-friendly full-size tablet on the market for streaming, reading and browsing. Storage starts at 32GB and is expandable up to 1TB via a microSD card, giving you plenty of room for downloaded shows, books and apps.
Beyond these core specs, the Fire HD 10 includes 5MP front and rear cameras for video calls and casual photos — while it’s not as great as the cameras on the other tablets on this list, it gets the job done. This tablet also comes with hands-free Alexa support, so you can control smart home devices, check the weather or play music with just your voice.
How I picked the best tablets
To come up with a list of the best tablets, I spoke to Elterman about what to look for when shopping. Below is the criteria he suggested paying attention to.
- Operating system: An operating system (OS) is the software at the root of your tablet — it manages nearly all its other processes. Your OS also decides what kinds of apps you can download, and what the general interface of your tablet will look like. Different people prefer different OSs — usually it’s easiest to use the same system your other devices use due to familiarity. With that in mind, I included a mix of tablets that use different systems.
- Size: Part of the convenience of a tablet is how much smaller it is than a laptop. All of the tablets on this list are less than 11 inches long and weigh around a pound, making them easy to carry all day and compact enough to fit in most bags and backpacks.
- Battery life: Every tablet above has at least 10 hours of battery life, allowing you to use them for most of the day without needing a recharge.
How to find the right tablet for you
Tablets can cost less than $100 or more than $1,000 and come with all sorts of features. To find the best one for your needs (and essentially budget), keep the following factors in mind:
The other devices you use
Like your phone and your laptop, your tablet is powered by a specific operating system, typically either Apple’s iPad OS, some version of Android, or Amazon’s Fire OS. When buying a new tablet, it’s important that you pick one that uses the system you are most comfortable with, says Elterman.
With your phone, tablet and computer all using the same operating system, you can more easily sync messages and apps to create a more seamless experience between your devices, in my experience. For example, my Apple phone, tablet and laptop all sync together through Apple’s software, allowing me to sync content like messages and photos across all three devices.
Your storage needs
There’s nothing worse than having to go through your device and delete items after running out of storage space, says Elterman. While you can store your photos on cloud services like iCloud and Google One, they often have monthly subscription fees and are not ideal for storing apps and games.
Think about what you are going to use your tablet for. If you are primarily going to stream content, browse the web and hop on video calls, you will not need a large amount of storage space, and can likely opt for the smallest storage option, in my experience. If you are going to be using dozens of apps, downloading games and taking photos and videos, get a model with more than the minimum storage offered.
Consider a case and warranty
Smartphones, tablets and laptops are all expensive pieces of tech we travel with often. Most of them can benefit from protective gear like a case or screen protector. This is especially true if you have a more expensive tablet like the iPad Pro, as fixing damage can be very pricey, and a case or extended warranty can mitigate those costs, says Elterman.
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Meet our tech expert
At NBC Selected, we work with experts with specialized knowledge and authority based on relevant training and/or experience. We also ensure all expert advice and recommendations are made independently and without undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.
- Alan Elterman is a sales manager at Abt, a national retailer of electronics and appliances based in Glenview, Illinois. Since Abt sells tablets, I only spoke with him about technical shopping guidance, and did not ask him for specific product recommendations.
Why trust NBC Selected?
I am a commerce editor at NBC Selected and a journalist who regularly covers wellness, lifestyle and more. I have written about the no-touch phone law, the best screen protectors and more. For this story, I researched the latest tablet offerings from top tech brands.
Harry Rabinowitz is a former reporter for NBC Selected who has covered tech for years. For this piece, he tried multiple tablets for productivity and entertainment. He also spoke with an electronics expert and conducted thorough research on top-rated tablets that fell in line with expert guidance.
Catch up on NBC Selected’s in-depth coverage of tech and tools, wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok to stay up to date.
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