11 of the best tech toys under $100

The holidays are rapidly approaching, which usually means exchanging presents with family, friends, and (gulp) coworkers. So, what's a gift giver to do when they’ve got a few techies to buy for but they’re on a tighter-than-usual budget?

The good news is you can pick up a highly-rated tech toy for under a C-note. Here we offer ten such examples.

Pebble Smartwatch / Starting at $71

Usually $149 but on sale for $71, the 33mm Pebble smartwatch is a convenient way to stay on top of your busy life. Crafted with stainless steel and strong glass, this Bluetooth-connected watch—which talks to a nearby iPhone or Android device—works with thousands of apps that let you see who’s calling or texting, glance at live sports scores, access turn-by-turn directions, play games, see your steps taken and calories burned, and so on. Download many hundreds of analog and clock face designs. Or why not remotely control music on your phone? This waterproof watch includes silicone straps that fits most wrist sizes and unlike Apple Watch or Android Wear-based timepieces, battery life extends up to 7 days between charges.

Seagate Game Drive / $90

What to buy a video game fan? More storage will likely be a welcomed gift. Considering today’s games average 35 to 50 gigabytes apiece, it’s no surprise many gamers run out of space on the modest hard drive that ships with the Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Called Game Drive, Seagate’s new 2-terabyte external hard drive can be purchased for use with both Xbox One and the Xbox 360 console—in the signature green and black colors—as well as an internal model designed for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 3. Because it’s a small portable drive that doesn’t need to be plugged into the wall—it gets it power from the console itself—the Game Drive is easy to bring to a friend’s place to play on another console. All of your game saves are also archived on the drive for your convenience.

More from Yahoo Shopping: You Don't Have To Wait Until Black Friday For These Great Deals

Liberate On-Ear Headphones / $68

If private listening is more your thing, the House of Marley Liberate is a pair of on-ear headphones that offer a unique design crafted from recycled stainless steel, Rewind fabric and FSC-certified wood. The 40-millimetre high-performance drivers deliver power and precision under each of the soft leather ear cushions on the inside of the cups, while embroidered in that demin-like material (as seen here in blue) with wood accents, on the outside. The Liberate headphones include a 4-foot braided cable with 3-button controller, so you can pause, play and skip through tracks, and a matching carrying case. It also has an integrated microphone if a call comes in while listening on your smartphone.

Chromecast Audio / $35

Turn any speaker into a Wi-Fi-enabled one, so you can listen to your music, untethered. This is the premise behind Chromecast Audio. Simply connect this small gadget to the audio input of any speaker system (3.5mm cables included) and you can then use your smartphone, tablet, or laptop to “cast” your music to the speaker throughout the home. Similar to Wi-Fi-enabled speakers that cost much more (such as Sonos family of products), you can search, play, pause, queue songs, and turn up the volume right from your device. Music can be stored locally or online via your favorite on-demand streaming service. Remember: Wi-Fi is better than Bluetooth—in quality and range—plus you don’t have to go through the hassle of “pairing” with the Chromecast Audio.

Fitbit Flex / $99.99

Admit it: we can all use a little extra motivation to get more exercise. The Fitbit Flex is a wearable wristband that first asks you to set a daily goal—such as a certain number of steps taken, distance traveled or calories burned—and then you can glance at the LED lights to see how close or far you are to reaching it (3 LEDs out of 5 means you’re 60 percent there, for example). Along with its built-in accelerometer, this water-resistant band—which are changeable, if you like—also has integrated Bluetooth to wirelessly sync your data with Android and iOS smartphones and tablets, as well as PCs and Macs. The Fitbit Flex can also help monitor how long and well you sleep, such as when you woke up and for how long, perhaps to share with your physician.

Roku 3 / $90

If you’re not interested in buying a new television but want to turn your existing TV into a smarter one, the Roku 3 offers more than 2,500 channels to choose from, including all the biggies like Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, and Google Play Movies & TV—plus the remote has a built-in headphone jack for private listening and doubles as a motion-sensing game controller for playing games like Angry Birds Space (included). Or, use your iOS and Android phone or tablet like a remote instead, via a free app. And while Apple made a big deal about its voice support on Apple TV, Roku has been offering this for a long time; simply say the name of a title, actor, or director and you’ll see relevant results. If you’ve got the cash, Roku 4 ($129.99) supports 4K video on compatible TVs, which offers four times the resolution of 1080p HD.

Acer Iconia 7 Tablet / $95

Want a tablet but can’t afford an iPad? You’d be surprised how good an inexpensive tablet can be, like the Android-based Acer Iconia 7. Fast and light (about 320 grams), and with a high-resolution 7-inch screen (1280 x 800 resolution), this touchscreen tablet is ideal for playing games, viewing videos, reading ebooks, browsing websites, and more. Along with support for Google Play’s 1.5 million downloadable apps, this tablet includes Bluetooth connectivity for optional wireless keyboards, speakers, headphones, and other accessories. Under the hood of this paperback-sized tablet you’ll find an Intel Atom quad-core processor (1.33 GHz), 1 gigabyte (GB) of system memory, and 16GB of storage—though it’s expandable via its existing microSD slot (up to 64GB).

More from Yahoo Shopping: Hot Devices For A Cool Winter

Amazon Kindle / $70

If all you need is an ebook reader, however, then you can save some cash and go with the Amazon Kindle, which sells between $70 to $99 (2014 model) and often on sale down to $49. This affordable, Wi-Fi-enabled ebook reader has a crisp 6-inch e-ink touchscreen with text that looks like the printed page and doesn’t suffer from sunlight glare like its tablet brethren. Along with borrowing books from your local library or “side-loading” your own content to the integrated 4GB of internal storage, the Kindle grants you access to the Amazon's comprehensive e-book store and services (i.e. Amazon Prime). While it doesn’t have a backlight like the Kindle Paperwhite, you can’t beat the price, weight (191 grams), and size (0.4-inches thick).

Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard / $86

Smartphones and tablets have a number of benefits over personal computers—they’re more portable, affordable, and last all day on a single charge—compared to a laptop’s keyboard while taking notes, writing lengthy emails, or cranking out reports. Logitech’s Wireless Solar Keyboard K760 gets its power from light—be it a small lamp, overhead light, or the sun’s rays—and fully charged it’ll work for at least three months, even in total darkness (or so claims the company). This Bluetooth keyboard works specifically with Apple’s iOS devices (iPhone, iPad or iPod touch) as well as Macs, but Logitech also offers Android- and Windows 8-based wireless keyboards, too.

Vizio 2.0 Soundbar / $99.99

A sound bar for under $100? Before you pass judgment, lend your ears to the Vizio S3820W at your local electronics store. Designed for small to medium-sized TVs, this compact horizontal speaker bar houses 3-inch full-range drivers and 2- x 4-inch deep bass modules for full and rich sound with well-balanced highs, mids and lows,  plus it supports Dolby Digital, DTS TruSurround, and DTS TruVolume technologies (the latter of which softens volume fluctuations). When you’re not listening to what you’re watching on television, the S3820W is also equipped with Bluetooth, so users can beam music from their smartphone, tablet, or laptop. Inputs include 3.5mm stereo mini, stereo RCA, coaxial RCA, and optical.

More from Yahoo Shopping: How To Buy The Right TV

Tile Tracker / from $25

If you want to drop a hint about a loved one’s absentmindedness, give the gift of Tile, a small, white and Bluetooth-enabled tracker that helps find lost items via the Tile app for iOS and Android devices. Simply stick Tiles on everyday items — like house keys, your wallet, or a purse — and if you can’t find them, open up the app, tap the name of the item (like “John’s Keys”), and it’ll ring loudly so long as you’re within a range of under 150 feet. Even if you’re farther away, you might be able to find your lost stuff because Tile logs its last known location on a map (meaning you might see you left your wallet at the office, for example). On the flipside, if you can't find your phone, double-tap your Tile to make your lost phone ring — even if it's on silent — or log into the Tile app or website on another device. Prices are $25 for one Tile, $70 for a four pack, $130 for an eight pack, or $180 for a 12-pack.

Tell us, dear readers: Do you have any sub-$100 recommendations of your own? Be sure to post your suggestions (and why) in the Comments section below!