Holiday Gift Guide for Mac: Affordable Gift Ideas Under $100

Mac gift ideas under $100

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The sale is in full swing this holiday season and there’s no better time to start figuring out which gifts to buy. With a plethora of technology available to purchase online, there is so much choice available to you.

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

While Apple hardware is desirable, most people only think of the Mac itself, not any of its accessories. One thing you could do for your Mac’s recipient is gift them an Apple Magic Keyboard.

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

If you give them the keyboard, you might want the matching mouse. The Apple Magic Mouse is a wireless and rechargeable cursor-moving device that has Apple’s classic aesthetic flowing through it.

In addition to a month-long battery and automatic Bluetooth pairing, it also has a multi-touch surface so you can easily swipe and scroll through documents.

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 tablet will provide much-needed drawing space.

The Intuos offers 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, connects to your Mac via Bluetooth and USB, and comes complete with a stylus with three replacement nibs. In addition to drawing, there are four ExpressKey buttons for activating functions and there are trial versions for various art and educational packs.

Everyone could use a little more connectivity, and while you could get a dock, the Satechi Type-C Stand & Hub does the same, but fits perfectly under a Mac mini. The stack saves space, something other docks certainly can’t claim.

Connecting to one of the Thunderbolt ports on the back, the Stand & Hub provides 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 you can install an M.2 SATA SSD, which can discreetly expand your Mac’s storage.

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

For owners of a 16-inch 2019 or 2020 MacBook Pro, consider Brydge’s Vertical Docking Stand. When using their MacBook Pro closed and connected to a monitor and peripherals, this stand saves space by storing the 16-inch MacBook Pro on its side.

In fact, sliding the MacBook Pro into the dock also connects the two Thunderbolt ports to a pair on the back of the stand. This means users can have their desk setup ready to use and connect to the MacBook Pro simply by sliding it into the stand.

Storage can often be a problem for Mac users, and since you can’t upgrade the internals on most models, you’ll need to think externally. That means getting a drive that plugs into the Mac’s ports, and that’s a good option AppleInsider used is the SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD Series.

The SanDisk 1TB Extreme Portable SSD is a great USB-C drive, offering up to 1050MB/s read and 1000MB/s write speeds. It’s also hardwearing, resistant to drops, spills and dust thanks to its IP55 rating, and it even has a loop that you can use with a carabiner.

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. Looks like a hard drive toaster, just plug it into a USB Type-C port, insert 3.5″ and 2.5″ SATA hard drives or SSDs, and access the drives on your Mac.

Depending on the drive connected, you could see transfer rates of up to 10 Gbps, but the real benefit is that it’s an easy way to plug in a drive, access it, and then eject it to transfer to another to switch. All without placing the drives in enclosures.

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