5 Of The Coolest Gadgets Under $30 That Are Compatible With Your Android Phone

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These days, it's not necessarily hard to find interesting gadgets to use with your phone. There are loads of cool gadgets and gizmos out there that you can use with your Android phone to turn it into an ergonomic gaming device, portable projector, or even as a part of an air quality system. What can be tricky, though, is finding quirky gadgets that are worth buying on a budget.

When you think of phone gadgets or accessories, you might think of fairly run-of-the-mill options, like tripods, styluses, or phone holders. Although there are plenty of them out there, there are also some rather innovative and unusual options available, too. Thankfully, it isn't just iPhone users who get to have all the fun; a lot of them are compatible with Android phones.

A lot of exciting gadgets can easily set you back a good amount of money. However, you don't have to break the bank to find something worthwhile. You might even be surprised by how far your money can stretch if you know what to look for. For less than $30, you can easily turn your Android phone into a microscope set-up for fun DIY science experiments, a portable digital art station, or, with the right device, a pseudo-retro gaming set-up using a vintage-styled controller.

When you picture microscopes, you probably picture some kind of large, clunky equipment that belongs in a lab. That doesn't have to be the case, though. With the right gadget, you can run a microscope camera anywhere via your Android phone's USB-C port using a dedicated app.

The portable microscope offers magnification ranging from 50x to 1000x, allowing you to get a close look at anything you could fit under the lens. It can also capture videos and still images at a full high-definition resolution of 1920 by 1080 pixels. That means you can use it to document your work as you go, if you're using it for hobbies that involve close work, like soldering, circuitry, or miniature art. Alternatively, it's a fun option for capturing fun, close-up macro photos and videos of anything you can squeeze under it.

A digital microscope USB camera could be a particularly neat gadget for hands-on fun at home via amateur science experiments with kids or young people. Of course, that doesn't mean that they're the only ones who can enjoy it — you might be surprised by what can be revealed by the camera's digital zoom. However, based on reviews left on the gadget's Amazon page, the top end of the microscope's 1000x digital zoom can look a little fuzzy, so don't expect to make any grand discoveries with your smartphone just yet.

8BitDo is no stranger to quirky controllers, accessories, and adapters that offer compatibility with a wide range of devices. One especially eye-catching controller for mobile gamers is the M30, which brings fourth-generation retro gaming design principles to Android. 8BitDo's M30 is a Bluetooth-enabled controller inspired by the Sega Genesis (Mega Drive) controller, complete with ten buttons and an eight-directional control D-pad. With the right adapter, you can even use it on an original Genesis or Mega Drive console.

You can connect the M30 controller up to your Android phone via Bluetooth or with a wired USB-C cable, depending on your preference. Once you've paired it for the first time, it should connect to your phone with a touch of the smart button whenever you next want to use it. As it's a wireless controller, it will need to be charged sometimes, but it can last up to 18 hours on a single charge — so you shouldn't need to worry about it often, unless you find yourself getting lost in 20-hour-long gaming marathons often, that is.

The coolest part of the M30 is its retro design. After all, there are a lot of other Android-compatible gaming controllers on the market — including several others made by 8BitDo itself — but the choice to lean into the retro Sega look for this one sets it apart from the others. There is a small catch, though; if you regularly play games like "Arknights: Endfield" or "Genshin Impact" that require a lot of character movement or precision, then this might not be the controller for you, as it doesn't include a joystick. However, for less than $30, and for most mobile gaming, it'll probably offer just about everything you need.

Remember the days of the Game Boy Printer, Nintendo's nifty (but weird) peripheral that you could hook up to your handheld to print out screenshots, or snaps from your Game Boy Camera? This is probably the next closest thing you can get on the market right now. Core Innovations' CTP500 is a handheld thermal printer that you can connect to your Android mobile to print just about anything you'd like.

Something interesting about the CTP500 is how it works. Thermal printers work by using heat and pressure to produce monochrome images and text without using ink. Even if you haven't realized it, you will have come across them before, as they're fairly commonplace for receipts. So, this portable printer uses thermal technology to produce grayscale printouts and labels of whatever you send to it from your phone via Bluetooth.

As well as being a neat way of printing out photographs directly from your phone to use as wall decor, or a way of easily grabbing a physical copy of messages and to-do lists from your notes app, it also doubles up as a label maker. All you need to do to make the switch is load it up with a roll of adhesive paper, which comes with the printer itself. Watch out, though — thermal printing isn't permanent, and can fade over time.

If you happen to be someone that mosquitoes just seem to love to bite, this might be a gadget you want to stick on your keychain. The Heat It Classic is an unusual little smartphone device that claims to treat any underlying itchiness left behind by bug bites using heat. All you need to do is plug it into your phone's USB-C port, run an app, and apply it to the affected area.

The Heat It aims to neutralize discomfort left behind at the site of mosquito bites via a sharp jolt of heat. Using a bespoke Android application, you can decide how hot you want the device to be, ranging from 117 to 126 degrees Fahrenheit. You can also control how long the gadget stays hot for, alongside a number of other settings, including a sensitive skin mode.

Your smartphone itself powers the gadget, not only through the app, but also by supplying it with power so that it can heat up quickly. Despite that, it doesn't seem like it uses a lot of power at once — so you don't need to worry about it draining your battery. According to the product listing, you could treat anywhere up to 1000 mosquito bites on a full charge. Should you be so unlucky, that is.

Drawing tablets give you the option of turning your touchscreen doodles into digital art. With the right make and model, and some kind of art application, you can run them through your Android device to turn it into a portable illustration station. Huion's H420X is a budget drawing tablet that offers compatibility with Android 6.0 and up, alongside options for running it through your PC or Mac.

Although you can technically already draw on a digital canvas with just your phone and a finger or stylus, if you've ever tried it, then you've probably noticed that it can feel a little awkward or limited in comparison to drawing or writing with a pen. Drawing tablets can change the way you draw or write digitally using different levels of pressure sensitivity. This sensitivity allows the tablet and pen to communicate with each other to detect pressure, which in turn dictates how the digital brush looks in your software.

The H420X comes with a cable and adapter so you can connect the tablet directly to your phone through USB On-The-Go (OTG). Once connected, you can control your phone using the tablet and pen, the same way you would use a USB mouse with a PC. When working in mobile mode, it offers a working area of 2.6 by 4.17 inches, in an upright position.