Over the Thanksgiving holidays, my daughter, age 3-1/2, was quite taken with my brother-in-law’s iPad and its touch screen. Getting some sort of kid’s touch-screen tablet for her seems like it might be fun, but I’m not sure it there’s something out there that would be a good fit for her - it would depend as much on the available applications as on the hardware itself. I’m not quite experienced enough at this to know the right questions to ask, and I’d hate to buy something that winds up gathering dust.
So, does anyone have experience with tablets made for kids? Ideally something with an intuitive interface, applications for the pre-literate, and a reasonable cost.
Alternatively, we’re just about ready to replace our grown-up laptop, and I could justify a higher price for a combination adult computer and little-kid tablet - again depending on the suitability of the hardware and the availability of applications.
I have no experience with it because at this point I’m just looking for my own daughter, but I’m leaning toward the Leapfrog Leap Pad. There are 300+ apps available for it and of course they’re child-specific. They’re for children up to 7.
I had thought of going for a Nexus 7, thinking it would continue to grow with her beyond the age of 7 when she’d outgrow the Leap Pad, but I seriously can’t imagine going more than 3 years without wanting to update to a newer version of the tablet anyway. When she outgrows this one - if it’s still in working order - she can pass it down to her brother and move on to a real tablet.
Do you have any experience with the Google Nexus? (I haven’t owned a tablet, so I don’t really know what to look for.) Are there kid-specific applications available for that type of tablet? Are they low cost? How is it for grown-ups? If I bought something for use by both me and my daughter, I’d be a little afraid of getting the worst of both worlds - no applications for a young child to use, and not enough functionality for me.
I had seen that, and I was hoping someone might have first-hand knowledge of it. One thing that made me cautious was that their apps are like $25 a pop. I don’t mind that for something she’s going to use and like, but since this is totally new for both of us, I don’t know what she’s going to use and like.
I don’t have experience with the Nexus but I have read a lot about it. I also have a 7 inch Android tablet so I know thr form factor works well; not too big or small. The Nexus hardware is great and the complaints are mainly stuff like no SD card slot which you probably wouldn’t be worked about on a child’s tablet. Of course as with any electronics you need a gentle kid or a tough case.
There are TONS of child specific apps available for any Android (or iOS) device. Thousands, maybe tens of thousands. So many of those are free that you might never pay for one. I have hundreds of apps but have only paid for a few. Google Play and the Amazon Appstore (Amazon.com: Apps & Games) are where to get apps. You can browse both of them on a computer, and Amazon even allows you to try many of the apps live in your web browser. Additionally Amazon gives away a paid app for free each day. They are mostly games but also occasionally utilities and kid games as well.