The days of relying on I Spy and a stack of comics to keep young passengers happy on car journeys are long over. Adults and kids alike demand electronic entertainment to keep them occupied, and this inevitably means using a tablet such as an iPad. This list of the best car headrest tablet holders includes products that could help alleviate arm-ache from propping them up and car sickness from looking down for extended periods.
Mounts that fix firmly to the headrest of the seat in front of a rear passenger can cost just a few pounds, and are well worth it to stop the cries of boredom and “are we there yet?”. But if they squeak, rattle or fall off in the middle of a trip, you might wish you’d never bothered. Which of the seven we tested will be best at taking the tablets?
How we tested them
We tried the seven mounts with three tablets – a second-generation iPad, an iPad Mini and a Microsoft Surface Pro, both with and without covers, to see how securely they held them.
Points were awarded for the ability to shift between landscape and portrait views, and for ease of installing and removing the tablets, because you won’t want to be leaving them in the car when you reach your destination. Finally, we took into account the prices charged at the time of writing.
Verdict
There’s no need to spend a fortune on a mount to keep your tablet secure on a long journey. The Travel Bear took the crown as a cheap solution that was easy to use and didn’t interfere too much with the front passenger’s headrest settings. The Tryone and Vidence are almost identical to each other and do a great job – just choose whichever is cheapest on whatever day you’re looking. The Lamicall is similar, but more expensive and not as versatile, while the pricey Targus is built to last.
- Travel Bear
- Tryone Car Headrest Holder
- Vidence Car Headrest Mount
Travel Bear
The Travel Bear is made from an elasticated fabric that stretches over the entire front headrest. The tablet or phone sits in a transparent plastic pocket that allows touchscreens to function normally. It also has slits for charging cables.
Travel Bear holds the device securely, is squeak-free and is easy to use, even with heavy tablets. It doesn’t require any adjustment of the headrest, either – good for front-seat passengers.
The big drawback is that small children will not be able to reach the screen to control the device. That could mean parents have to stop the car, or hope the voice controls work. But if your kids have long arms or your car is small, the Travel Bear functions well.
Tryone Car Headrest Holder
- Price: around £12
- Tablet size: 4.7-10.6 inches
- Rating: 4.5/5
- Contact: www.amazon.co.uk
When the Tryone arrived, we noticed the box looked suspiciously like the Vidence’s. Apart from a few extra stickers; inside, they did indeed appear to be identical products. The Tryone is a great mount, and now costs less than the Vidence, so it moves up the leaderboard.
In common with the Vidence, the Tryone has another advantage over most of the mounts here; the rubber-lined sprung clamps will also securely hold a smaller smartphone. This makes it suitable for journeys when a tablet isn’t available, or for teenagers who insist on staying in touch via their handset.
Vidence Car Headrest Mount
- Price: around £14
- Tablet size: 4.7-10.6 inches
- Rating: 4/5
- Contact: www.amazon.co.uk
In the time since we last tested the Vidence it’s undergone a name change (it used to be called the Viden). It topped our tests previously and we had no trouble recommending it when it cost £8, but it doesn’t feel like it’s worth nearly double that – and that increase in price is magnified if you need to buy more than one unit.
The Vidence relies on two spring-loaded clamps. One grips the tablet or phone, while the other slots in between the headrest mounting posts to provide a secure anchor point to the car. A double-jointed arm allows the device to be pulled back by up to 20cm, meaning it will be in reach of the child in most cars and they will be able to control the unit by tapping its screen.
There’s some wobbling when on the move if using a heavier tablet with the arm fully extended, but it means the screen’s distance can be adjusted to suit the passenger. A ball joint also allows the device to be tilted to the best angle for viewing.
Lamicall Car Headrest Mount
- Price: around £12.99
- Tablet size: 4.4-11 inches
- Rating: 4/5
- Contact: www.amazon.co.uk
The Lamicall mount is the simplest here to use and install. It uses spring-loaded jaws to clip between the headrest posts, and then a simple ball joint attaches to another spring mounting for the tablet. Like the Viden and Tryone, it will also hold a smartphone securely.
The ball joint held up our heaviest iPad without wilting on rough roads, helped by the fact it hugs the seat to get extra support. However, this is also its downfall: larger headrests mean the top of the tablet screen will be tilted downwards, which is fine for smaller children, but less than ideal for taller teens and adults.
Halfords iPad Holder & Headrest
Assembling and mounting the Halfords mount is not the work of a moment, especially because there are only very basic instructions included. But once you’ve worked it all out and got your tablet installed, it feels substantial and secure. Yet it only really seems suited to larger tablets as the iPad Mini felt a bit lost in its bigger jaws.
There are a couple of other problems, too. The holder sits lower than where it mounts on the headrest, meaning the screen is level with the shoulders of an adult or larger child, rather than being at eye level. More irritating was a rattle from the ill-fitting jaws.
Olixar Tablet Car Headrest
This nicely designed mount is let down by some cheap-feeling materials. It’s complicated to set up, too, but we’d forgive this if it did a better job of holding a heavier tablet.
There are four knobs to tighten to get the adjustment right, before the device slots between three mountings and is clamped in place using a ratchet. Once it’s all in place it looks great, allows you to get the viewing angle spot on, and the tablet can be removed easily by pressing a single release button. But on the move with a heavier iPad, the mount moved and rattled irritatingly as the plastic parts flexed.
Now you’ve set the kids’ tablet up in the back, check out our list of the best double-DIN head units…
