Top tablets under £300 - Best cheap tablets 2012

The new iPad still rules the roost as the best tablet in the world, but with prices starting at £399 and rising all the way to £659, it's clearly priced in a bracket way above many people's budget.

Because Apple offers its leading devices at sky-high prices, those wanting a more affordable tablet experience will have to look elsewhere, since iOS is not an option. The main port of call is Android - unless you think the iPad Mini will end up coming in at less than £300.

The Google developed operating system now adorns a multitude of tablets, from those priced at the same lofty heights of Apple's offerings, to those that can be picked up for £100 at your local supermarket – although we'd advise against purchasing most of these, and instead check out the superior options below.
If you can't quite hack the lower offerings, and you've managed to scrape together enough money to indulge in a pricier tablet experience, then take a gander at the following:

1. Google Nexus 7

• Price: from £159
• OS: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
• Review score: 4.5/5
• With a quad-core processor, beefy 12-core GPU, 7-inch HD IPS display and being the first device to run Android Jelly Bean, the Google Nexus 7 is quite simply the best budget tablet out there.

The 8GB version is available for just £159, while the 16GB model will only set you back £199. It's quite possibly the bargain of the century.

There are a few shortcomings – such as no 3G support for on-the-go data, no microSD card slot, meaning you're stuck with 16GB at most, and no rear camera – although these are all things that can be easily overlooked at this startlingly attractive price.

2. Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9

• Price: from £249.99
• OS: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
• Review score: 4.5/5

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9 is a funny little thing. It's essentially the same as its older brother, the Galaxy Tab 10.1, but with an 8.9-inch screen.

It's slightly thinner and lighter, and consequently more convenient for anyone wanting to stuff it in a bag, while the internal components are basically the same.

It's ideal for anyone who thinks 10.1 inches is just slightly too big for a tablet, but also finds 7-inch options a tad too small. A decent screen, and premium features make it a great option.

3. Acer Iconia Tab A510

Price: from £299
OS: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Review score: 4/5
For your financial outlay, the Acer Iconia Tab A510 represents a shrewd investment, especially for people willing to accept a few minor flaws.
There are cheaper tablets out there running Ice Cream Sandwich, but these budget offerings do not offer the sheer power of the quad-core Tegra 3 platform, and the lightning-fast Android 4.0 experience.

4. Toshiba AT200

Price: from £299.95
OS: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Review score: 4/5
The Toshiba AT200 is the world's thinnest 10.1-inch tablet, clocking in at a super slender 7.7mm thin, which means you can slide it into your bag without issue, and at 535g, you probably won't notice it's in there.
The Toshiba AT200 is a good, solid and portable device, delivering everything you'd expect from an unfussy Android slate. If you're looking for a standard tablet experience, the AT200 is certainly worth a look.

5. Huawei MediaPad 7

Price: from £250
OS: Android 3.2 Honeycomb
Review score: 4/5
Not quite as polished or powerful as its cheaper 7-inch rival the Google Nexus 7, the Huawei MediaPad 7 is small enough that you can comfortably stick it in your inside jacket pocket, making it a fully portable no-brainer.
Huawei made much of this being the first Android 3.2 Honeycomb tablet, but that's not much of a big deal since Ice Cream Sandwich landed - in fact there's nothing about the MediaPad 7 that's a big deal.
If you're looking for a bog-standard 7-inch tablet, take a look at the Huawei, but we'd say you're better off opting for the Nexus 7.

6. Sony Tablet S

Price: from £285
OS: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Review score: 4/5
The Sony Tablet S has a unique wedge-shaped design and top-end specs. It's a decent and refined tablet, and has the unique feature of having access to original PlayStation games.
It may not be as tidy or versatile as some other tablets, but apart from that, it's one of the best Android tablets out there, which has been further enhanced since it received its Ice Cream Sandwich update.

Amazon Kindle Fire 2

The original Kindle Fire didn't make it out of the US, but with the Google Nexus 7 now ruling the roost at the budget end of the market, it will be hard for Amazon not to focus on a wordwide launch for the Kindle Fire 2.

iPad Mini

New Apple products are always shrouded in mystery, hype and rumour, but the sheer quantity of rumblings surrounding a pint-sized iPad is making us think that maybe, just maybe, the Cupertino-based firm will want to get in on the budget end of the market with a 7-inch tablet of its own.

Windows 8 tablets

We can safely say that the Microsoft Surface won't fall into the budget tablet category any time soon, but with a slew of third-party manufacturers lining up to produce their own Windows 8 tablets, we can expect to at least get a couple of reasonably priced slates running the software giant's soon-to-be-launched platform.