Digital tablets have bright screens that display colorful and vivid images and hence are perfect for drawing your child’s attention. The best tablets for kids will help educate, entertain and enlighten them. But many parents may not like the idea of giving their children a tablet. However, it depends on monitoring their usage and allowing them to use it. Digital devices, such as tablets, help widen children’s scope of knowledge. However, many popular applications, such as Youtube, have child lock features that only show your educational and kid-related videos. As a parent, you have to keep an eye on your child’s online activity and put the right restrictions. So if you have decided that you want to go ahead and buy your child a tablet, we have listed the top-rated ones for you.
11 Best Tablets For Children
For your convenience, we have divided the list into two sections, according to the child’s age range.
Tablets for children up to nine years old
1. Best For Beginners: VTech Little Apps Tablet
This VTech tablet is ideal for first-time users, especially toddlers, who are just starting school. If you want something ultra basic, then you should consider this one. Watch this video to get a detailed review of the product. Pros
The tablet has large alphabet keys and buttons that are easy for a child to operate. A slider on top lets the child easily switch between various activities.
It has 12 learning activities, including learning letters, words, numbers, counting, and days of a calendar.
The screen has basic graphics that a child can easily understand. A dedicated button lets one change the backlight of the screen to various colors.
The tablet works on two AA size batteries and needs no charging. An auto shut-off feature turns the tablet off after 90 seconds of inactivity.
Cons
The lack of a real OS in the tablet means that you cannot upgrade and hence, your choices are limited to the activities shipped by the manufacturer.
The child will quickly outgrow the tablet due to the fundamental nature of its functions.
2. Best Interface: VTech InnoTab 3
The InnoTab comes close to providing a real tablet experience for kids, thanks to its excellent interface and multiple applications. Check this video to learn more about the product. Pros
The highlights of the tablet are its touchscreen, motion sensor, and a microphone. Its set of features are quite impressive, considering that it runs on a simple proprietary operating system.
The child can enjoy several activities such as coloring, cursive writing, and creating music.
The tablet can be a good tool to engage a restless child with the various educational activities it has.
Cons
The pre-loaded content is limited. Additional content needs to be bought at an extra price, which can take the overall cost of the tablet above the budget.
3. Best Touchscreen: LeapFrog LeapPad Ultimate
It has a large touchscreen and manual control too, making it an ideal first tablet for young kids. Check out this product review video to learn more. Pros
The tablet comes with a directional pad, also called D-pad, which has arrow-buttons on four sides. It lets the child select different highlighted icons and applications on the screen.
Children can also use the stylus or a finger to operate the touchscreen. The multiple control options make using the tablet easy.
The tablet comes pre-loaded with several child-friendly games, eBooks, and videos. All content can be updated, and additional content can be added using Wi-Fi.
There is a web browser in the tablet that provides access to pre-selected websites designated safe for children. A basic camera allows picture and video-taking.
LeapFrog wraps the main tablet body in a frame that absorbs bumps, thus minimizing the risk of damage due to falls.
Cons
A few parents noticed the battery failing in three to four months.
Problems such as buttons failing and screen cracking were reported, making the tablet less durable than claimed by the manufacturer.
4. Best For Education: LeapFrog Epic Academy Edition
If learning activities are your focus, then you must consider this LeapFrog tablet with a strong emphasis on educational content. Pros
The home screen can be customized so that your child can set their own look for the tablet.
You get three months of LeapFrog Academy subscription for free. It provides access to several activities in science, math, and reading skills.
Parents can set a usage time limit for the child. You can limit the app usage to up to 45 minutes in general and 30 minutes for videos.
The tablet comes with a sturdy bumper for protection. The screen is resistant to shattering too.
Cons
The limited amount of educational content can cause the child to outgrow the tablet quickly.
Several parents were disappointed by the tablet’s user interface.
Tablets for children older than nine years
The list we have next include slightly sophisticated tablets that the children can use beyond their teenage years.
5. Best Parental Control: iPad
Consider Apple’s iPad when you are looking for the best of tablet experience for your teenage child. Pros
The child has access to thousands of high-quality educational apps through the App Store. Several of these apps grow with the child by expanding their content.
iOS offers extensive parental control, which ranges from blocking app downloads to restricting inappropriate content.
Cons
You will have to spend on a screen protector and a bumper case since iPads can be prone to damage due to rough handling by a child.
6. Best Hardware: Samsung Galaxy Tab S4
If you are looking for a standard Android tablet for your teenager, consider the Galaxy Tab S4. Pros
It contains the latest and best of hardware, which includes a high resolution LED screen and an octa-core processor. The hardware is best suited for teens who use tablets extensively for education purposes.
Android OS offers several parental control features such as locking the app store and also setting user profiles that restrict access to certain features.
Since it runs Android, you can also download third-party parental control apps that can transmit real-time usage details to the parent’s phone.
Cons
Older teens who are good with technology may find ways to circumvent parental control, especially since a lot of information about breaking parental locks is available online.
Third-party apps can provide a lot of data to parents about the child’s device usage, but they can cost money.
Pros
Each Fire 7 Kids Edition ships with a durable bumper case with reinforced edges to protect the tablet. Bumper contains cut-outs to facilitate the use of headphones and charger without the need to remove the case.
All content on the tablet is kid-friendly. But there is still substantial parental control provided on the tablet.
Cons
The Fire 10 works great for adolescents and teenagers. If you are looking for an upgrade from Fire 7 or want your child to have a large-screen tablet experience, then this should be your choice. Pros
The Fire 10 has a 10.1 inches, full HD display that provides crisp and clear images; ideal when your child is mostly an ebook reader.
The battery life gets an upgrade from the seven inches model. The Fire 10 has 10-hour battery life and 32 GB storage.
Cons
According to some parents, a recent update in the OS has rendered the interface a bit confusing for children.
9. Best For Monitoring Usage: Samsung Galaxy Kids Tab E Lite
Let your child enjoy the vast library of Android games and applications within the safe limits of this kids tablet by Samsung. Pros
The tablet comes with the Samsung Kids service dashboard, where you can set the time limit for tablet usage. The service automatically shuts down apps once the limit is attained.
You can deactivate in-app purchases so that the child cannot purchase anything within the app, a useful feature to prevent any surprises for the parents.
Samsung has tied up with Dreamworks Animation, Sesame Street, and National Geographic to provide subscription-based, high-quality kids entertainment and infotainment content via the tablet.
The manufacturer ships the tablet encased within a soft and durable bumper cover.
Since the tablet comes loaded with Android, it has long-term usability. It can be used as a secondary media device by your child once they step into their teenage and young adult years.
Cons
The screen resolution stands at 1024 x 600, which is not even HD resolution (1280 x 720) – the basic screen resolution one can expect from an Android tablet.
The 40 GB storage may not be enough considering the huge library of Android apps and multimedia content the kids can download on the tablet.
10. Best Content: Dragon Touch X10 Kids Tablet
Fans of Disney will love this tablet that comes pre-loaded with a lot of entertaining content from Disney. Pros
The tablet comes with 18 Disney storybooks and six audiobooks, including Disney favorites like Frozen, Finding Nemo, Zootopia, Toy Story, and many more.
Tablet runs on a proprietary interface called Kidoz based on Android. It is safe and child-friendly.
The tablet ships with a silicone case, which protects the device from drops and bumps.
Cons
The hardware can come across as outdated, but it should not matter unless the child is a heavy user.
Some parents were not impressed with the durability of the tablet.
11. Best Silicone Case: Dragon Touch Y88X Tablet
If your child has butterfingers, which leaves you nervous about the longevity of the tablet, then Dragon Touch’s tablet with its robust case is made just for you. Pros
The tablet comes with a thick silicone case. The bumpers on the side protect the device from drops while a stand on the back makes it convenient to view videos.
You get 20 Disney storybooks and four audio books right out of the box.
The screen is seven inches across and has a resolution higher than other children’s tablets.
Cons
The device’s interface seems to be slow despite the processor being a quad-core one.
Some noticed glitches in the interface, which the users attributed to the device being defective.
How To Pick The Right Tablet For Kids?
Below are the four essential points to keep in mind when buying a kids’ tablet. Whichever tablet you choose, make tablet use a safe experience for your child. In the next section, we provide a few tips on how to strike a balance between fun and safety when a child uses a tablet.
Tips For Tablet Usage In Children
Why Trust MomJunction?
Wedetso Chirhah has used his experience in writing about electronics and gadgets to compile this list of the best tablets for kids. He has done extensive research and compared and evaluated various products online to ensure optimal performance, simple user interface, and durability. Moreover, he has mentioned the pros and cons of each product and included a buying guide to help you pick the right product.
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