It doesn’t matter if you purchase your tablet online or in-store its guaranteed that the retailer will tempt you to part with even more of your hard earned cash by revealing the latest range of innovative accessories.
With average mobile spending around $60 on accessories, tablet owners have to shell out even more to get their hands on the right covers, cables and gadgets.
Some accessories are seen as essentials while others are deemed pure luxury items but either way the manufactures have seen us coming and are able retail their products at some pretty ridiculous prices.
Before you go spending too much on complementing your device, take a look at our handy guide to 15 accessories that can be easily produced at home for next to nothing.
1. Build a dock out of Lego
If you want a dock for your tablet why spend $80 when you can use your noggin like this guy and build one out of Lego, its perfect for watching movies on your tablet but be warned, developing an updated model to include media ports might require a little more effort.
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2. Better Blocks Android Dock
If LEGO isn’t your plastic building brick of choice try making your dock out of ‘Better Blocks’ the perfect alternative, advantages include glow in the dark bricks and better shapes for building mini androids.
3.Homemade Android Tablet Stylus
If you need a stylus for your android there are plenty on the market but they don’t come cheap,
(remember we not talking about a Nintendo DS here! Android styluses must be conductive). This link provides you with all the steps you will need to build your very own using some very simple house hold items including a mechanical pencil, a paperclip, thumb tack and needle nosed pliers.
4. iPhone Stand
If you’ve made the mistake of purchasing something you don’t actually need, don’t punish yourself by mulling it over and over in your head. Simply move on and find another use for the object in question. Like this bright spark who decided to turn his sheer regret for purchasing an iPhone into pure creativity and built himself a neat little stand for his HTC Legend.
5. Android USB host cable
Touch screens are fantastic but certain applications still benefit from the use of a hardware keyboard or mouse. Multi-port docking stations are expensive but this tablet user demonstrates how you can provide the perfect interface for your hardware with a simple usb host cable.
6. Android RC Car
Accessories aren’t just for protecting and standing your droid they can be fun just like this remote control car that has been fitted with a special circuit board. This allows the car to be controlled with a simple app over wifi. Check out the video as this idea makes the most of android motion controls by turning the phone into a steering wheel.
7. Homemade Droid Dock
To have the perfect setup for your tablet or phone ideally you need one dock at home and another set up the office so you can effortlessly travel between the two without all that annoying unplugging and packing away. For those who feel that an extra dock is out of reach, fear not as like this resourceful individual you can build a second home for your device armed only with an empty noodle pot and a pair of scissors
8. Android Tablet Case – 10.1 inches
Tablets are sleek and light weight so are a perfect target for gadget thieves. If you really want to protect your device from would be kleptomaniacs this handy solution is highly recommended.
Just cut out a hole the exact shape of your tablet from a dusty old book and voila you have a case that is not only sturdy but the perfect decoy. Please note although an iPad is depicted in the source article this method can be applied to any android tablet.
9. “Homemade” Heads Up Display
Fed up of your boring old needle point speedometer? Give your car that fighter plane cockpit feel with this handy ‘heads up display’ (or HUD if you really want to be Maverick) completed using a careful location of your android device with the ‘Speedo’ app running. Be warned though this mod may not function correctly during daylight hours.
10. Cushioned Android Tablet Stand
Looking after your tablet is important and those of you aiming to keep yours in pristine condition will certainly benefit from this stand. It is made purely from foam packaging providing a nicely cushioned and scratch free environment for your device.
11. Android Tablet Case for 8” Tablet
A lot of people may think that using homemade solutions may make you look like a cheapskate and alienate you from the rest of the android community but this doesn’t have to be the case. Just follow the steps provided in this link to knock up your very own branded tablet cover using a tiny bit of sewing knowledge and some household items.
12. Metal Folder Holder – Android Tablet Stand
If you like to do a spot of filling while watching your favourite movies then boy do we have the perfect accessory for you. Simply take a standard desktop folder holder and use a pair of pliers
to cut the first rack short to hold your device. Remember, only cut down the first row as damaging the others will limit the amount of folders you can hold and seriously affect the multifunctional benefits of this product.
13. Moleskin Android Tablet Case
It is important not to forget that a lot of mobile device accessories are purchased to enhance the appearance of our gadgets and to add a degree of personalisation. Those favouring the executive look should try this solution. It improves on the previous book disguise by using a more stylish moleskin case with the addiction of a state of the art elastic closing mechanism. The item pictured is the most expensive available, please remember it can be produced on a much smaller budget by simply removing the apple logo.
14. Super Nintendo Controller for Your Android
Playing retro games on the android is extremely nostalgic and a great way to relive your youth but you wont get the full experience unless you can incorporate an ‘old school’ d-pad. Try out this mod if you want to pair up a Super Nintendo controller with your android.
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15. DIY Ball
If Nintendo games aren’t retro enough and you need a bit more realism than games like Teeter. You may need to try something like this ball maze mod and app to get that perfect recap of your childhood recreation.
