Starting to think about Christmas

With the kids in school now they are starting to use computers for the first time ever in their almost 6 years. We no longer have a desktop only my laptop and I dont want the kids on that. DH suggested getting them a cheap laptop to access some kids sites, but IDK.. I was going to get them each a leap pad but others have said a tablet would be better. However tablets, ipads, ipod touches and whatever else is out there now I have NO knowledge of. Im scared to get the iphone bc I fear I wont know how to turn the darn thing on. I want the kids to be on top of technology but I dont want to spend alot bc they are almost 6 and lets face it. Kids ruin things. What ever I get will be for EDUCATIONAL purposes only but we are also hoping they would be able to watch videos while we are out. Something that has a protective case is a MUST! I just want something kid friendly that can grow with them.

thanks!

 

My boys are 7 and they both use iPod touches .. which they LOVE. But I also put a cheap laptop on layaway for them for Christmas. I have one child that loves to explore the educational sites and play the games on them and the other will use it quite a bit as well. If you're looking for something mobile .. the iPad or iPod are good choices .. but if you're worried about them ruining it, then you'd have to keep a close eye on them when they are using it. Mine are very good with their things .. and we haven't had any mishaps with the iPods (yet!).

 

L&L use our ipad & love it. They probably know more about it at 5 than I know! As for ruining it, we got a good, protective cover & made some rules about always sitting down while using it. They know if i see them being rough with it they will lose the privilege for some period of time, so they are careful. We have had it a year & haven't had a single problem.

 

I should have mentioned that I dont want to pay that much for the ipad or the ipod. I dont think I'd pay those prices for me to have one Pretty frugal momma here.

 

I got my FIL to get my girls ipod touchs last year as their big gift. They love it.

 

Our ipad doesn't belong to L&L it was a family gift from the inlaws last year, which made it much more affordable.

 

I think you need to identify what you want them to be able to do before making a decision.

A desk top will allow them to surf the internet, do word processing, power point (presentations) and play games and would be more useful for school work, especially as they get older

An ipod will allow them to play music, video, games and surf the internet. It's more useful for when you want them to have some entertainment.

A tablet is a mix of the two but I don't own one so I don't know how good the word processing/powerpoint/other program creation abilities are.

Honestly, for videos, a tv and either DVD player or on-demand box is the way to go.

I personally would not try to buy an all in one for all of the things above because there is no product out there that is perfect for all of the functions you want to perform.

 

Once they navigate a tablet, the Leap Pads will hold zero interest. I suggest one of the cheaper tablets. I know my sister is getting my niece a Kindle Fire for Christmas. it's not overly expensive compared to some tablets out there.

 

My girls have leapster explorers and old iPhones( no sim card) and still play on their explorers. Mom is buying the leap pads for Christmas. My girls don't have access to the Internet on the iPhones yet just the games, video and music I load on it

 

We just ordered these for our service technicians to take into the field and I've been so impressed with the one we bought to experiment with. It feels indestructible compared to my iPad, it's compact, and instead of whatever style touch screen the iPad has, this one requires more pressure to complete tasks. $99 each isn't terrible and I'd be willing to bet that they'll get down to $80 or so on black Friday.

 

:umm: wow, I'm behind on all this technical stuff. :blush: I guess I need to be looking into Ipads/pods and stuff. Sigh... I'm so lost when it comes to this stuff!!

 

We're going with inexpensive tablets b/c they love my phone. i checked out the leap pads and wasn't impressed. I've downloaded lots of educational games for them and have found a bunch more they will love. :good:

 

lougood. what tabs are you getting? Can you share the games you have and will dl? Im so new to this. Is tehre a chage for them or are they free?

 

What about a Netbook? We have one that DD1 uses and it's easy since it's a smaller style laptop without as many frills.

 

My girls have Netbooks at school that they use, so we contemplated getting one for home too, so they use what they are used to.

My daughters love to use our iPhones, and my one daughter is wishing she could have a "big phone" (iPad) but that's just not really what I want to spend. We are contemplating a Kindle Fire, but for me that they can use. Then if they are a big hit and they seem to handle it well, we may buy another one come birthday time so they each can have one.

My DH is a techie, and he won't go for the LeapPad. He'd rather get them a real tablet of some type. He said something about the screen size/resolution, I don't know, when he talks really techie I shut down. He may be getting a work-issued iPad soon anyways.

 

We decided to opt out of the whole LeapPad/Leapster thing too. They're almost as expensive as real (grownup) gadgets -- and the games seem to be really expensive too. :blink:

My DDs know how to use Daddy's iPhone fairly well (they're not bad on the iPad either, but he rarely lets them use it). If you want it mainly for entertainment and educational games, I would suggest an iTouch. They're not cheap, but less expensive (and IMO less trouble) than an iPhone -- unless you really want them to be able to make phone calls on it.

I have no intention of giving my kids free access to any kind of technology gadget at this age, though! If we did get them their own iTouches, they would be kept under lock & key.

When they're old enough to have real homework (that isn't supposed to be done by hand), we'll probably wind up getting them each a notebook computer, but I don't see that happening for a few years yet.

 

If you are upgrading your own iPhones the iPhone's without a sims card are just fine for their use

 

You are not alone sister! My 5 and 9 yr old are just NOW getting mp3 players for Christmas!! :lol: Kaelyn got a leappad for her birthday, which she likes, but she's already finished the game we got for her 3 times already! So I'm thinking about getting her a nintendo DS and giving her leappad to the twins, and then buy a second one for them to share games on.

I don't know about you, but growing up, I remember getting excited about a BOOK! Or a barbie doll! Or new coloring books and crayons!! Man, our parents had it CHEAP compared to now!! :laughing:

 

my kids have been using a laptop since they were 3 and have never ruined a thing on it! they both play Nick Jr. and will play some of the facebook games if one of us is sitting with them...as for the iPod touch/iPhone/tablet computer, if you use a laptop you can use one of those!

 

We haven't decided yet! DH and I were looking last night. They actually have some decent Coby ones for between 100 to 150 at Walmart. Some of the games I have are by intellijoy I think, I have to check. There are a ton of good quality free games out there and some excellent very cheap ones too. Next time I have my phone I'll make note of them and let you know.

 

thanks ladies!

 

I got my girls refurbished laptops at Overstock.com. Really reasonable, and you can get an extended warranty as well. I've bought all their electronics at Overstock (portable DVD player, CD player, etc) and Overstock makes it very easy to return their items if you have the warranty and there's any problem.

Best,
Mia