Tablets for children?

Pebbles82 · 11-16-2015, 10:15 AM

I'm not sure about this. Little boy has been asking for an ipad for a long time and we have been saying sorry, no, too expensive. So then he said he wanted a Kindle Fire as it's cheaper. We still said sorry, no, you have a Windows laptop and we think you're a bit young for a tablet.

Somehow he has persuaded other half's brother to get a tablet so he can play on it when he goes to work with other half in the mornings (when he is here - he goes to the farm in the mornings)!

That worries me more as OH brother is not very computer literate and I'm always careful to set up parental controls.

Anyway I think we might now be relenting on a tablet of some kind for Christmas (he's already getting rollerskates so that will keep him off the gadgets for a while!). I'd rather he had his own, set up safely, than used someone elses that isn't set up properly.

Just wondered if anyone has children with tablets - I still think 7, nearly 8 is a bit young - especially as he just wants to play games on it and it could break!

He has had a Vtech innotab for almost 4 years which is a bit babyish now - I didn't mind that as no internet and all the content was educational.

He has a Windows 7 netbook but there are limited games for it and it's a bit slow.

So - the Kindle fire doesn't seem to have one of the games he wants. The ipad mini is too expensive. I was wondering about an ipod touch - which is a similar size to a Nintendo DS I think. Has a lot of ipad apps and games. Still too expensive but it's a compromise.

Any thoughts!

BrainGirl · 11-16-2015, 10:23 AM

There was another tablet or 2 that I've seen that were very cheap and were Android-based. A few limitations that serious gamers wanted but I'm not sure how serious a gamer a 7 year old can be!

Pebbles82 · 11-16-2015, 10:41 AM

Oh serious lol! It has to have minion rush, minecraft and the simpsons. All three of which are on the ipad. The trouble is they have ipads at school now so they all want one.

I'm starting to feel old fogeyish because it just doesn't seem like the kind of Christmas present to get a child! And the cost! We used to limit ourselves to £60 for a big present and could usually get an impressive lego kit or toy for that.

The Kindle Fire HD6 is less than a £100 but I don't think he would be happy with it and I can imagine in a few weeks he'd be saying he wants a different one as it doesn't have all the games on he wants. Apparently the Kindles don't have all the same apps as other Android tablets. The new ipod touch is £149. Seems more kid-sized to me.

If only I could have upgraded his laptop to Windows 10 I'd be saved lol! But the xxxx thing isn't upgradeable.

BrainGirl · 11-16-2015, 10:45 AM

I don't have "real" kids, only furkids. I make their toys out of trees

But seriously, if he only wants to play games on it then surely there's an alternative, a cheaper alternative, to the ipad!

Pebbles82 · 11-16-2015, 10:47 AM

Well there's Windows 10 - if we could upgrade to it but we can't - a Windows 10 tablet might be an option but they're not cheap either. Has to be one with good parental controls too.

BrainGirl · 11-16-2015, 10:55 AM

Try this:

7 Best Tablets for Kids | Cheap Tablets for Parents to Buy | Digital Trends

Fluffagrams · 11-16-2015, 10:56 AM

I've not got children but I used to have an iPod touch myself and it was quite a nice little gadget really. The beauty of it in your case would be that you can get many of the iPad apps for the smaller screen size. Not only that but it's cheaper than the iPad so there's a little less money to lose if it gets lost or broken.

Alternatively, I think the Tesco Hudl is reviewed quite well and that's not hugely expensive however I'm not sure about which apps are available so that's something that you might have to look into.

WinnieTheHam · 11-16-2015, 11:03 AM

When I was his age I had to do gardening and house cleaning and things for my grandma to get a bit of cash, then I'd save up to get something I wanted. I ended up with £100 which I bought the DS light with, I was so happy because everyone else had one and I ended up with one too after some hard work and time!

Maybe because it's such an expensive thing get him to help out in the house a bit? I just think it's a good idea to have kids work for things they want - It prepares them for the future because that's what we have to do!

Wookiee · 11-16-2015, 01:19 PM

My two (aged 7 and nearly 4) are getting a Hudl2 each for Christmas. They've been fighting over my old Kindle Fire for ages and my iPad is very much a supervised treat since they facetimed me and I was immediately greeted by the sight on my son's bare backside slam dunking the screen.

We chose the Hudl2 because they seemed to have the best parental controls for not too much outlay, plus I used my Clubard boost to get them at a bargain price. Unfortunately Tesco have now discontinued them, but for the price I paid, they'll do as starter tablets for them both.

They mostly just want them for games and to watch kids programmes and films on. The Hudl2 has a parental timer control. It's a shame they've discontinued it really, as it seems like a perfect inexpensive tablet for younger children.

Bertiebobbins · 11-16-2015, 01:41 PM

My daughter has a tablet (she's 3) but she's only allowed it with supervision and I set the parental controls on everything. Still, it's scary how far they can get just by clicking stuff by accident, when she was smaller I could put her postman pat on and do the washing up but now she can work it herself I have to be a lot more vigilant. Tablet spends most of its time on top of the fridge so she can't get it herself! We don't have a TV so she watches things on her tablet (Netflix usually, which has good parental controls). I have an iPad I use to organise my whole life so I got her the tablet so she couldn't break my iPad as id be lost without it. We play some games on my iPad together, and it is very very handy on a long jouney/going on holiday!!

Her one is an asus memopad, I think it was about £100, it's functional but not great. It has a timer app thing but I've not used it.

My personal feeling about technology for kids is that that's the world they've been born into, they need to learn how to use it and understand the good and bad side of it so they can look after themselves online when they're no longer of an age you can realistically police their usage. My dad is very pro technology and we had the internet before the Internet really existed, we had all the gadgets etc. My brother and I are now very internet savvy where our friends aren't really.

Lol @ getting mooned on FaceTime Wookie!!