UK retailer Argos joined the raft of retailers offering low-cost tablets in the run-up to the Christmas holiday sales period, launching a £99.99 Android-powered device called MyTablet.

Rhoda Alexander, director of tablet and monitor research at IHS Electronics and Media, described the device (pictured) as a “carefully calculated value play”, with features such as its 1,024×700 pixel screen, low resolution front and rear cameras, and a “mere 8GB of storage” indicating design compromises “in the quest for value pricing”.

And unlike other retailers, the company is offering a device in two colours with little in terms of customisation, which Alexander said means “Argos minimises its SKU count, simplifies inventory concerns, and reduces its own risk, while offering a product competitively priced for its core customer base”.

Late last month, retailer Tesco launched its own-brand tablet, called Hudl, which features a higher resolution screen, 16GB of storage, and comes in multiple colours, for a price of £199.

Both retailers are targeting the tablets at home users. Argos said that MyTablet is “designed with families in mind offering all the functionality of a comprehensive tablet with built in parental controls for younger users”, while Tesco said that Hudl also includes such features.