Own a tablet? Grab these 5 accessories

You probably love your tablet for multiple reasons: It's thin and light; using your fingertips is intuitive; it's fun to read e-books on it; and there's no shortage of downloadable apps that are free or close to it.

Even with all the benefits — especially compared to your aging laptop — you can still squeeze more functionality out of your slender mobile companion with a few smart accessories. Whether it's for typing reports, extending battery life, enjoying your music or protecting your investment, here are a handful of hardware add-ons that can help you get more out of your tablet.

KEYBOARD, PLEASE

Mobile workers or on-the-go students who really want to travel light might consider picking up an iPad mini (from $299)and the Logitech Ultrathin Keyboard Folio ($89.99; logitech.com).

Weighing just 285 grams (or 593 grams with the iPad mini), the fitted case-slash-keyboard protects your go-to gadget from the knocks and bumps of daily life and helps you get your work done with ease.

Using Bluetooth connectivity, the wireless keyboard includes time-saving iOS shortcut keys, including Cut, Copy, Paste, Undo and others.

Also available for iPad Air and the 10.1-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 and 4 (each for $99.99), the velvety cover protects both the front and back of your tablet — even from water spills. And it serves as a dual-view stand that holds the iPad mini in two positions (angled for typing or propped up to watch video or make a FaceTime call).

Logitech says the Ultrathin Keyboard Folio's built-in battery lasts up to three months on a full charge.

If you own an iPad 2 or 3rd/4th generation iPad, however, consider picking up Logitech's Solar Keyboard Folio ($49.99), which uses both indoor and outdoor light to power the built-in Bluetooth keyboard. Similar to the Ultrathin Keyboard Folio, this solar-powered folio protects the front and back of your tablet and offers a multi-view stand mode to prop up the iPad in a variety of ways.

PROJECT YOURSELF

Sometimes you just want to watch your videos on a bigger screen.

As the name suggests, the Pico+ WiFi Portable Projector from Favi Entertainment ($299; favientertainment.com) allows you to wirelessly project content onto a wall or screen up to 100 inches (measured diagonally).

Supporting both Miracast (Android) and Airplay (iOS), this small device — about the size of a smartphone — creates its own Wi-Fi hot spot, so you can wirelessly connect your tablet without the need for a wireless network.

The battery lasts up to three hours of continuous playback. And the integrated 5,000 mAh battery can charge up your mobile devices — even while it's projecting video, photos or a presentation.

Along with its wireless support, this product can also display up to 1080p content from an inserted USB device, SD memory card or HDMI-connected cable box, Blu-ray player, computer or video-game console.

THANKS FOR THE MEMORY

You've taken countless photos and videos on your tablet or smartphone, but what are you doing to protect them?

The 2-terabyte Seagate Backup Plus Slim ($99.99; seagate.com) is billed as the world's thinnest external hard drive. Like any other drive, it can be connected to your PC or Mac to archive important files — via fast USB 3.0 speeds — but you can also wirelessly back up photos and videos on your tablet or smartphone.

The metal drive works over your home or office's Wi-Fi connection, or you can upload to a cloud service, such as Dropbox and Google Drive, even over cellular connectivity. You just need to download the free Seagate Mobile Backup app on an iOS or Android device and install the Seagate Dashboard software (included on the hard drive) to your personal computer.

What's more, the Dashboard software will also back-up Facebook, Twitter and Flickr photos and videos — even the images you're tagged in.

POWER PLAY

Tablets boast much better battery life than laptops, on average, but travelers may still want a portable power pack to juice up their device when needed — especially if you play games or watch video, as these activities can drain the battery faster.

The Cobra JumPack ($149.95; cobra.com) is a unique power brick. Not only does it have a USB port to charge up your tablet, phone, camera or other mobile tech — thanks to its integrated 7,500 mAh battery — but with a starting current of 200A and 400A peak current it has enough power to jump-start most cars multiple times on a single charge.

Ideal for summer road trips, the Cobra JumPack also has a built-in LED flashlight with a strobe and S.O.S. mode for roadside emergencies.

Small enough to fit in a purse or jacket pocket, this portable charger includes jumper cables, a wall charger and a 12V charger to charge your battery in your vehicle ("cigarette lighter" port).

SOUND INVESTMENT

Finally, something for music lovers.

Rather than settle for thin-sounding tunes emanating out of your tablet, consider buying a Bluetooth speaker such as the Jabra Solemate Mini Wireless Speaker ($99.99; jabra.com).

Sold in multiple colors, this compact and well-constructed speaker lets you listen to your music up to 33 feet away from the source — even outdoors, because of its durable weather-resistant body. The built-in rechargeable lithium battery lasts up to eight hours between charges.

Because Bluetooth is a universal standard, it'll work with any Bluetooth-enabled tablet, phone or laptop, plus it has built-in NFC (near-field communication) for simplified pairing.

The Solemate Mini houses two 5-watt speakers, with dual 1.5-inch wide-range drivers for rich sound. Control your music (or podcasts or audiobooks) with the speaker's buttons or use your mobile device.

Follow Marc on Twitter: @marc_saltzman. E-mail him at techcomments@usatoday.com.