Holiday Gift Guide for Mac: affordable gift ideas under $100

Sales this holiday season are in full swing and there's no better time to sort out which presents you're going to buy. With an abundance of tech available online to purchase, there's so much choice available to you.

If the person you're buying for is a Mac user, here's AppleInsider's best suggestions for what to buy. All of these suggestions are also $100 or less, so none of them will break the bank.

Apple Magic Keyboard

Though Apple hardware is desirable, most people think just about the Mac itself, not any of the accessories. One thing you could do for your Mac-owning recipient is to gift them an Apple Magic Keyboard.

This wireless and rechargeable keyboard pairs automatically with the Mac, and provides a comfortable and precise typing experience in a very low profile. It also uses a woven USB-C to Lightning cable to recharge when it needs a little extra juice.

The Apple Magic Keyboard is available for $94 at B&H and Amazon.com.

Apple Magic Mouse

If you're getting them the keyboard, you may want to get the mouse to match. The Apple Magic Mouse is a wireless and rechargeable cursor-moving device that has Apple's classic aesthetic flowing through it.

As well as having a battery that lasts for a month and automatic Bluetooth pairing, it also has a multi-touch surface, so you can swipe and scroll through documents with ease.

The Apple Magic Mouse is available from Amazon for $71.99, as well as at BHPhotoVideo.com.

Wacom Intuos Medium Bluetooth Graphics Tablet

Avid artists can do better than a mouse when it comes to digital drawing. That's where Wacom steps in with its Intuos Drawing Tablet. In the price range we're looking at, you could go for a smaller tablet, but a medium-sized one provides much-needed drawing space.

Offering 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, the Intuos connects via Bluetooth and USB to your Mac, and ships complete with a stylus with three replacement nibs. Along with drawing, there are four ExpressKey buttons for triggering functions, and included trials for various art and educational packages.

The Wacom Intuos Medium Bluetooth Graphics Tablet is available from Amazon and B&H for $99.95.

Satechi Type-C Stand & Hub for Mac mini

Everyone can do with a bit more connectivity, and while you could get a dock, the Satechi Type-C Stand & Hub does the same thing but fits perfectly underneath a Mac mini. The stack saves space, something other docks certainly cannot claim to do.

Connecting to one of the rear Thunderbolt ports, the Stand & Hub offers a collection of connections, including three USB-A ports, a USB-C data port, headphone jack, and SD and microSD card readers. There's also space inside so that you can install an M.2 SATA SSD, expanding your Mac's storage discretely.

The Satechi Type-C Stand & Hub with M.2 SATA SSD Enclosure for Mac mini is available at B&H for $79.99. Alternatively, readers can order from Amazon for $99.99.

Brydge Vertical Docking Stand

For owners of a 2019 or 2020 16-inch MacBook Pro, consider the Vertical Docking Stand by Brydge. If they run their MacBook Pro closed and connected to a monitor and peripherals, this stand will save space by storing the 16-inch MacBook Pro on its end.

Even better, sliding the MacBook Pro into the dock also connects the two Thunderbolt ports to a pair at the back of the stand. This means users can have their desk setup ready to go and hooked up to the MacBook Pro, simply by slotting it into the stand.

The Brydge Vertical Docking Stand is available from Amazon for $49.99.

SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD

Storage can often be a problem for Mac users, and since you can't upgrade the internals for most models, you've gotta think externally. That means getting a drive that plugs into the Mac's ports, and a good option AppleInsider uses is the SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD series.

The SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD is a great USB-C drive, one that offers up to 1,050MB/s read and 1,000MB/s write speeds. It's also hard-wearing, capable of surviving drops, spills, and dust with its IP55 rating, and it even has a loop for you to use with a carabiner.

The SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD is available from Amazon and B&H for $99.99.

Sabrent USB 3.1 Dual Bay Hard Drive Docking Station

For data hoarders who have stacks of drives used for archiving, give them a break and simplify their workflow with the Sabrent USB 3.1 to SATA Dual Bay Hard Drive Docking Station. Looking like a toaster for hard drives, you simply plug it into a USB Type-C port, slot in 3.5-inch and 2.5-inch SATA hard drives or SSDs, and open up the drives on your Mac.

Depending on the connected drive, you could see transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps, but the real use is that it's an easy way to plug in a drive, access it, then eject it to switch to another. All without putting the drives into enclosures.

The Sabrent USB 3.1 Dual Bay Hard Drive Docking Station is available from Amazon for $49.99.