Why You Can Trust CNET Best Laptops and Tablets to Give as Holiday Gifts for 2023
Whether it's for gaming, travel, content creation, entertainment or all of the above, these are our top picks for laptop and tablet gifts.
- More than two decades experience writing about PCs and accessories, and 15 years writing about cameras of all kinds.
Giving the perfect tablet or laptop as a gift can be a harrowing process if you're not sure what your gift recipient needs it for -- everyone's requirements are different. Given the variety of options on the market, different types of budgets and distinct types of laptop users there are out there, we've picked numerous options for the best laptops and tablets to give as holiday gifts.
If you're looking to score a great deal on a new device, the holidays are the perfect time to look. Most, if not all, of these tablets and laptops will be discounted throughout the holiday shopping season. The costs listed below reflect the best prices we discovered at the time of publication. That said, deals come and go and prices tend to fluctuate, so we'll be updating this list with sale prices as we spot them. If you're looking for more selections than the ones featured below, take a look at our entire list of the best laptops of 2023, where you'll also find links to our top faves across all categories of laptops.
The newer M2 MacBook Air has advantages over its older M1 Air sibling: a larger display (13.6 inches versus the previous 13.3 inches), a faster M2 chip and an upgraded higher-res webcam. However, the entry-level M1 MacBook Air remains our top choice for gift-giving because its performance is good enough for everyday school and home office use, and it's more affordable. It regularly gets discounted, too.
Light, thin and fast, the sleek 13-inch XPS is great for a Windows lifestyle on the move. Expect long battery life (up to 12 hours) on the non-touch display model, even when streaming media on the go. You'll also have options to customize processor, memory, storage and keyboard settings to build the perfect machine for your needs.
At 2.59 pounds and just 0.55 inch thick, the XPS slips nicely into a backpack or carry-on, without sacrificing playback quality or computing power. CNET in its review declared it "certainly powerful enough for everyday tasks" and "a great coffee shop computer."
HP packed a lot of value into the Aero 13: Eye-pleasing magnesium-aluminum chassis, strong processing performance, long battery life, a bright, colorful display and a weight of around 2 pounds (0.91 kilograms). Amazingly, with all that it offers though, it has an affordable starting price.
Dell's G15 has been a favorite budget gaming laptop for the past few years, along with the HP Victus line. It was joined this year by a 16-inch version, the G16. We tested both and were impressed with what each offers.
If you're looking for a gaming laptop bargain, the G15 is the way to go. But if you can afford to spend a couple hundred dollars more, the G16 is a better bet for longevity. Either way, you'll get a good gaming laptop for the money, but we strongly recommend waiting for a sale.
Despite not being the latest and greatest iPad, the ninth-gen entry-level iPad is still our pick for gifting, and not just because it's the least expensive. It improved a lot over its predecessor, doubling the base storage to 64GB, adding a faster A13 chip and better cameras (most importantly, a wider-angle higher-res front-facing Center Stage camera that tracks your face via digital pan and zoom). It still uses the first-gen Apple Pencil, which is fine for the money, and it's still compatible with a range of keyboard cases.
The Lenovo Chromebook Duet 3 is an awesome little 11-inch ChromeOS tablet with a detachable keyboard and touchpad. Its small size and performance aren't ideal for full-time use. But the Chromebook Duet 3 is a good pick if you're looking for an affordable ultraportable device to get some work done on the go, sketch or jot down notes in class or do simple stuff like email, web browsing, mobile or cloud gaming, reading and streaming video.
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