Tablets often don’t come with a kickstand or enough ports, so it’s a good idea to purchase a few accessories to enhance your experience. These are some of our favorite tablet accessories, many of which you can also find in Best iPad Accessories guide.
Satechi Aluminum Desktop Stand for $45: This is my favorite tablet stand, so much so that I recently took it with me on a trip. It packed relatively well, and it was very stable — no oscillations around here. You can also adjust the angle a bit. It works perfectly with my 12.9-inch iPad Pro, so it can also handle the hefty sizes.
12 South Compass Pro Stand for $50: This is made for the iPad, but I have had no trouble using it for many other tablets. It’s more travel-friendly than the Satechi above and is quite stable, but when I lift the tablet off, the rear legs tend to shift position. You can place it at a fairly low angle for sketching, or hold it upright to watch movies. Unlike Satechi, it’s not a great choice for keeping the tablet upright on a mattress.
Lamicall Gooseneck Tablet Stand for $21: I’ve been using this on my bed frame to hold my Galaxy Tab S7 FE for months. The gooseneck requires a bit of financing to get to the right place, and if you keep tapping the tablet, it will swaying around. But it’s a great hands-free way to watch movies. You can stick the clip to any surface, like a desk or a kitchen counter.
Twelve South HoverBar Duo Mount/Stand for $60: This has been attached to my desk for several months to prop up the Nokia T20. You can use it as a stand or an arm stand, and I prefer the latter. It’s sturdy and adjustable, and best of all, it doesn’t wobble as much as the Lamicall above when you tap the screen.
Vissles LP85 Mechanical Bluetooth Keyboard for $149: If you want to use a third-party Bluetooth keyboard with your tablet, choose the inexpensive one (like this Logitech) will do the job perfectly. But if you’re a mechanical keyboard geek like me, this Vissles is a pretty easy upgrade to try. You can connect it to multiple devices and switch between them on the fly, the keys light up in different colors, it’s configurable and best of all, it delivers the clicking experience you want with mechanical keyboard. It needs to be recharged every three to four days.
12 South StayGo Mini USB-C Hub for $60: This works well with iPads and other tablets. You can either plug it in and hold it flat against the edge of the slate, or use the included cord to keep it stretched. You get one USB-C port that you can use for pass-through charging, one USB-A, one HDMI, and a headphone jack.
Anker Nano Pro Charger for $20: Most tablets charge at around 18 watts, so this tiny 20-watt charger from Anker should do just fine. The plugs do not fold, but it is very compact. If your tablet do supports faster charging — for example, the Galaxy Tab S7 FE supports 45 watt charging — then I recommend Satechi’s 108-watt USB-C three-port charger ($75). This will allow you to charge your phone, tablet and laptop using the same plug.
