kids tablet help - which one to buy?

[rong]

I want a tablet for my kids. I want to spend the least amount of money possible.

It needs to have the following features:

1. Access to a good range of cheap/free games/apps
Apps and games to entertain and educate a 4 yr old that are either free or super cheap. I have seen tablets that seem pretty good (ie innotab or leapad, but it seems I'd need to pretty much always buy games for it and the games are like 15 quid each. Fuck that for a 4 yr old! I'm thinking android phone apps cheap. Like lots of free apps or apps for a couple of quid max.

2. Sturdy build to survive a battering by a kid
No point in having something that will break if they drop it.

3. Screen big enough to watch movies on
I've seen some ok seeming ones but with 5 inch screens. If I secure that to the back of the head rest in my car the kids are gonna struggle to watch it behind me, well certainly the kid that's not directly behind me, so ideally a 7 inch screen minimum although if anyone thinks 5 inches will do the job then I could be convinced.

4. Not run on AA batteries.
I want an internal rechargeable battery like a standard laptop. Battery life is also important as I'm thinking of flights/long drives etc

5. 8 gig Memory minimum
I don't care if it has a 2 gig memory or an 8 gig memory, as long as I can just buy a memory card for it, but then that needs to be taken into account for the price, as I need at least 8 gig of memory for putting movies on it.

6. Overall cost is important
ie including having to buy usb cable, chargers, a stylus, memory cards if required. I understand that some come with these things and others don't so if I need any of these items and they don't come with it then this needs to be included in the price.


Anyone know anything about these and can give me some advice? Or alternatively if you can direct me to a website that will answer all these questions for me and show a comparison. I can see lots of feature comparison sites but not a overall cost including apps/games comparison.

[daviddem]

nexus 7 ftw

I got them for my 7 y/o twin girls, they love it.

Does everything you asked for above.

Most apps/games have a free version on Android (usually full version supported by ads).

However even non free stuff can be had for free... check mobilism.org, the mobilism market app or Black Market App...

edit: no memory card slot but the base version comes with 16gigs of memory. You can also plug in a USB stick into it via a USB-on-the-go cable to read files from it (can also write if you have root).

[Renton]

Man if I ever have kids I'm gonna be an asshole parent, I know it. Cause I'd never buy a tablet p.c. for a toddler. I guess 4 years old isn't so bad, but my sister's 2 year old has one and that just seems ridiculous to me.

Little kids are supposed to fingerpaint and draw and roll around in the grass, they aren't suppose to play call of duty.

[rong]

My.only issue there is durability. Is it gonna withstand the treatment of a 4 yr old? It doesn't seem as sturdy as the ones aimed solely at kids.

[daviddem]

meh... you can buy an otterbox defender for it if you want.

I would second Renton though, it wouldn't hurt to wait a couple of years.

[Renton]

I didn't mean to be a judge with my post. More of a reflection of what an asshole parent I'd be.

[rong]

Man if I ever have kids I'm gonna be an asshole parent, I know it. Cause I'd never buy a tablet p.c. for a toddler. I guess 4 years old isn't so bad, but my sister's 2 year old has one and that just seems ridiculous to me.

Little kids are supposed to fingerpaint and draw and roll around in the grass, they aren't suppose to play call of duty.

This was true once, but that was only because no alternatives existed. Now it seems strangely unfair not to get them used to technology as they'll be behind the rest of the kids.

As long as you use them to supplement traditional parenting rather than excuse the lack of it I don't see a problem. My daughter has arts and crafts time every day, goes outside to play every day whether its to the beach, park, lake or just the garden to play on the trampoline. She gets limited and controlled tv time each day, reads several books each day, had regular play dates with her little buddies and goes to preschool twice a week for 4 hrs at a time. In spite of this very active lifestyle there is still plenty of time left each day to play educational games on a tablet without screwing her up. And I don't pretend not to enjoy the free time this gives me nor do I feel guilty about it.

[Savy]

I didn't mean to be a judge with my post. More of a reflection of what an asshole parent I'd be.

You'd have them working a part time job from the age of 3, so they could probably afford it themselves.

[daviddem]

Also if you buy a low spec kiddie one, she is going to want a new one when she is 6 and she wants to play 3d games and watch cartoons in high def

[kiwiMark]

You'd have them working a part time job from the age of 3, so they could probably afford it themselves.

laff'd.

and it's their own fault if they can't.

[Renton]

Is four years old enough to understand that its not OK to give the tablet a bath or bang it up against a wall? If so then it seems fine as long as you set limits. You sound like the consummate parent so you probably know what you are doing.

[Keith]

They don't need a tablet at that age. With a 6 and 3 year old there's no way our oldest is gonna get a tablet of his own for the forseeable future. They get supervised use of the computer and for their age are totally proficient in the technology.A tablet at that age just seems like a cop out from actually interacting with your kids.

[jyms]

Ya I have a 9yr old and he doesn't have one. But saying that, he has a PS3, Wii, PSvita, ipod touch, Nintendo 3DS, and uses my computer and my Samsung Note 2.

[daviddem]

^^ these are the very reasons I got them one of their own... no more messing with my stuff

[!Luck]

I think the argument of, but but but I don't want them to behind isn't really valid. Tablets in general are more consumption oriented devices anyways. That being said, I would get one for my kids but i would view as a fancy toy.

[BennyLaRue]

My.only issue there is durability. Is it gonna withstand the treatment of a 4 yr old? It doesn't seem as sturdy as the ones aimed solely at kids.

Whether or not the intention is for the kids ones to be kid-proof, they really aren't. They're all plastic and Chinese-made shitty.

You know the kid will leave it on the floor and you'll step on it Day 2. Ain't nothing built to withstand that. Enraged, who knows what will happen? I urge you to consider this decision for the child's sake.

[kiwiMark]

I think you should buy them three each to spite the haters

[supa]

This was true once, but that was only because no alternatives existed. Now it seems strangely unfair not to get them used to technology as they'll be behind the rest of the kids.

Behind them in what? Social Networking?

[daviddem]

It's true that it won't teach her much about technology. You might want to consider a command-line-only Linux laptop if you want to make a hacker out of her.

[rong]

Lol you fuckers. It teaches whatever the game you're playing is designed to teach. There's math ones, spelling, logic and reasoning, all sorts.

And Keith, I pretty much addressed your point already. Sure some people use them purely as a method of occupying the kids, but that doesn't mean they have no value or that they can't be used responsibly in a way that enhances a child's learning.

Benny, this isn't going to be given to her like a doll that just lives in the toy box for her to get out when she feels like it so its not just gonna get trashed but I accept that it may get dropped a bit.

[supa]

Lol you fuckers. It teaches whatever the game you're playing is designed to teach. There's math ones, spelling, logic and reasoning, all sorts.

Well then Leapfrog ldo.

[BennyLaRue]

Get her a big sturdy desktop. You get the tablet.

[d0zer]

A tablet at that age just seems like a cop out from actually interacting with your kids.

Anything can be used as a cop out from actually interacting with your kids, people have done it for years with TV. Tablets are actually interactive though, and can be used as a better teaching tool than educational TV because of that interactivity. There's no reason that you have to use a tablet to distract your kids so you don't have to interact with them, you can still set reasonable limits on its use like anything else.

On long drives when your kid is getting antsy, it's nice to have a tablet to bust out to occupy them.

[kiwiMark]

plus they're girlchildren. what's he gonna do, raise them to be winners?

[jyms]

Anything can be used as a cop out from actually interacting with your kids, people have done it for years with TV. Tablets are actually interactive though, and can be used as a better teaching tool than educational TV because of that interactivity. There's no reason that you have to use a tablet to distract your kids so you don't have to interact with them, you can still set reasonable limits on its use like anything else.

On long drives when your kid is getting antsy, it's nice to have a tablet to bust out to occupy them.

This x10. I'd rather my son interact with some stupid game than stare at the TV

[daviddem]

^^ yeah, I must say that since the kids have had their tablets, they spend much more time having fun with them than slumped in the sofa in front of the TV, and that's a positive change.

[kiwiMark]

I bet they're looking up bomb-making and porn, just like my mum was always afraid of

[kiwiMark]

how ludicrous it is that those two go hand in hand sort of only hits me now on reading that

[eugmac]

when i was a kid around that age, i used my robots/action figures/lego men/random things that can be used as awesome props to create epic battle scenes. it stimulated my imagination and probably did help to make me into the person i am today. can a tablet do the same?

[eugmac]

oh man i miss lego so much now that i mention it.

[rong]

I play with lego at least once a week. It's surprisingly expensive though.

[eugmac]

my parents never bought me new lego. just had a huge tub of odds and ends bought used here and there - the random odds and ends are best 'cause you can just build whatever your imagination feels like.

[jyms]

when i was a kid around that age, i used my robots/action figures/lego men/random things that can be used as awesome props to create epic battle scenes. it stimulated my imagination and probably did help to make me into the person i am today. can a tablet do the same?

Have you not seen the new Lego Star wars, Batman, Indiana Jones, Harry potter video games?

[Pascal]

my parents never bought me new lego. just had a huge tub of odds and ends bought used here and there - the random odds and ends are best 'cause you can just build whatever your imagination feels like.

someone gave me a massive box of old lego when I was a kid, used to play with it. Never got new bits but still had lots of fun

[bode]

my parents got my 3 yo a leap pad for christmas, but all the games and shit are $20 min. Havent searched for it since, but i remember seeing a Nubi or Navi or something like that which is an android tablet geared for kids, which i think is even locked down some so they can't surf pron and shit at 4 years old. It had a red rubberish exterior that looked like it could take a beating.

[spoonitnow]

Man if I ever have kids I'm gonna be an asshole parent, I know it. Cause I'd never buy a tablet p.c. for a toddler. I guess 4 years old isn't so bad, but my sister's 2 year old has one and that just seems ridiculous to me.

Little kids are supposed to fingerpaint and draw and roll around in the grass, they aren't suppose to play call of duty.

This all fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucking day

[Galapogos]

my parents never bought me new lego. just had a huge tub of odds and ends bought used here and there - the random odds and ends are best 'cause you can just build whatever your imagination feels like.

Same for me and this is what I actually thought Lego was all about. It wasn't really a social game amongst my friends and me so I didn't see how other people played with Lego. When I saw their Lego creations on at their house I just figured they managed to scrounge together enough grey pieces from their bin to make a space station or whatever. Playing with Legos the way they were meant to be played seems boring.

[rong]

my parents got my 3 yo a leap pad for christmas, but all the games and shit are $20 min. Havent searched for it since, but i remember seeing a Nubi or Navi or something like that which is an android tablet geared for kids, which i think is even locked down some so they can't surf pron and shit at 4 years old. It had a red rubberish exterior that looked like it could take a beating.

Nabi 2 is top of my list. It's twice the price of leap pad but apps and games are Android prices. Toying with the idea of nexus 7, but its another 50% on the price.

[Renton]

Maybe you should buy her a board game, perhaps Monopoly. Perhaps one of those different editions of Monopoly like U.K. edition where the government owns all the railroads, utilities, houses, and hotels, all the negative chance and community chest cards are removed, and you only get 50 dollars for passing go, but the poorest player gets 500 dollars from the bank every turn.

edit: oops wrong thread

[kiwiMark]

I like that that was an honest attempt at presenting all those things as negative

[daviddem]

Maybe you should buy her a board game, perhaps Monopoly. Perhaps one of those different editions of Monopoly like U.K. edition where the government owns all the railroads, utilities, houses, and hotels, all the negative chance and community chest cards are removed, and you only get 50 dollars for passing go, but the poorest player gets 500 dollars from the bank every turn.

edit: oops wrong thread

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage...poly-game.html

[kiwiMark]

How do you get a job writing for the sun I wonder.

[rong]

Maybe you should buy her a board game, perhaps Monopoly. Perhaps one of those different editions of Monopoly like U.K. edition where the government owns all the railroads, utilities, houses, and hotels, all the negative chance and community chest cards are removed, and you only get 50 dollars for passing go, but the poorest player gets 500 dollars from the bank every turn.

edit: oops wrong thread

Actually Monopoly is a great example of how pure capitalism leads to the accumulation of wealth for the few at the expense and destruction of the masses and how a little wealth redistribution would lead to a more sustainable society and equality for all.

Be a bit of a boring game though.

[Pascal]

How do you get a job writing for the sun I wonder.

asking daviddem seems like a good shout

[Keith]

Just to derail the thread a bit , have any of the parents with youngish kids here been to www.moshimonsters.com . Loads of free games to play there and some of them are quite parent friendly(try mushroomer amd snow drift) . You don't need to do the subscription stuff to get the games , but they are always there as as an option for xmas/birthday presents.

[oskar]

One of my friends kids is three and a half, and she has been able to navigate an ipad and play simple games since she was two. On the other hand I have a half sister that is three years older and I wouldn't rust her with a shovel - some kids are always more special than others.
If you don't trust them with your stuff, you could just get them a used android phone with a large screen. They run the same apps, they're just a bit smaller and considerably cheaper.

On a side note I love how quickly this thread derailed into a: Why-rong-is-a-horrible-parent - discussion.
I'm wondering if people said the same things when my dad put his c64 in our room when he got a 286. Oh it's a copout! He's ruining his childrens imagination with tricolor techonology! Oh the huge manatee!

[Renton]

Stay greedy, friends.

[jyms]

Just to derail the thread a bit , have any of the parents with youngish kids here been to www.moshimonsters.com . Loads of free games to play there and some of them are quite parent friendly(try mushroomer amd snow drift) . You don't need to do the subscription stuff to get the games , but they are always there as as an option for xmas/birthday presents.

My Kid has played a few of these. He's played Moshi monsters, he has played some Toontown game and he's also played Club Penguin which is very parent friendly as well for kids between 6 and 10, although I think there are some older ones still playing it.

[Savy]