Kindle Fire instead of LeapPad for 5 1/2 year old? LeapFrog LeapPad Explorer Learning Tablet (Pink)I'm in the market for a tablet for my 5 1/2 year old and 2 year old-both of whom are whizzes with my iPad 2. I'm looking at the Kindle Fire and the almost endless apps/books/movies/songs, rechargeable battery and price of only $199. It sure seems like a much better value than the LeapPad. Has anyone purchased the Kindle Fire for use by a child? How does it compare to an iPad 2? Thanks! Kindle Fire instead of LeapPad for 5 1/2 year old? LeapFrog LeapPad Explorer Learning Tablet (Pink)I'm in the market for a tablet for my 5 1/2 year old and 2 year old-both of whom... » Read More Kindle Fire instead of LeapPad for 5 1/2 year old? LeapFrog LeapPad Explorer Learning Tablet (Pink)I'm in the market for a tablet for my 5 1/2 year old and 2 year old-both of whom are whizzes with my iPad 2. I'm looking at the Kindle Fire and the almost endless apps/books/movies/songs, rechargeable battery and price of only $199. It sure seems like a much better value than the LeapPad. Has anyone purchased the Kindle Fire for use by a child? How does it compare to an iPad 2? Thanks! « Show Less
1959927
Our almost 4 year old enjoys the kid apps on the Kindle fire more than he does the leaptab. And the apps for the kindle fire are way cheaper. If you are worried about accidents get the accident insurance from squaretrade. go directly to squaretrade site as the insurance is cheaper than thru amazon for some reason.....
1959928
Definitely not the Leappad. I'd go with the Kindle Fire because you can do so much more on it. In either case, don't buy too early as the return clock is ticking and be sure to give a gift receipt. :) Good luck!
1959929
I was thinking the same thing. My son is five and he can navigate the Kindle Fire (and nearly anything else) with ease. The Fire is my wife's birthday gift, be she installed some kid friendly software on and he can pick out what books he wants to read and is very happy. I was looking at getting a Leapforg or a small laptop, but for the price and being a Prime member, this is a real deal. I only worry about damage and wear and tear. $200 isn't a lot (compared to a laptop), but it's still $200 dollars.
1959930
I'm not sure what to get my almost 9 year old granddaughter she will be 9 in jan she does not currently have anything? should I get kindle fire a dsl nintendo or leap pad help please!
1959931
I like the response from the Fire better than I do the Ipad. It picks up the touch of my sons finger better than the Ipad as well.
1959932
After getting the leap pad for our daughter for her 3rd birthday I would DEFINITELY get her a FIRE. the LP is a sick joke. Wish we would have never got it. Apps are overpriced, battery life is terrible, functions are horribly limited. Even the cheapest android tablet is likely going to be a better buy. Our 3yr old uses my wife's kindle fire better than most adults can...lol.
409165
I returned the nabi and got the Kindle fire for my 2 year old. The nabi didn't make it easy for Netflix and the kindle has the kindle freetime unlimited which is only 4.99 a month 5.42 with tax and he has total kid access, I don't worry about any in app purchases or bad content. I honestly hated the nabi, only had it one day and it didn't respond like it should. Wasn't worth $99. especially since the kindle fire was $139 and it'll grow with my son.
1107821
The LeapFrog pen and the books that support the reading system. You can buy one book or sets of books and the two Tag pens I purchased were a short fat one for a 2 year old and the Tag pen for a 3.5 year old. Both boys love them and they can read the books by pointing the pens at the words. You download the book from the computer. My daughter did the downloads so I don't know much on how to do that. I hope this helps you some.
634198
I've been looking at the Vsmile and the Leapster with the stylus. Is this what you are comparing? I'm wondering if the graphics, game quality, etc. are equal, but I'm also wondering if the Leapster with stylus is easier to run for 3 year olds. The Leapster and its cartidges are more expensive, but the stylus on the Vsmile is used on a screen the is separate from the graphics screen. Do you know anything about these questions? I've only got so much money, and I'm concerned about making the "wrong" choice.Thanks!
1049772
I also have been debating between both devices. I build PC's as a hobby, so I thought it would be an easy decision to make. Wrong!! I've gone back and forth several times looking over the specifications of each and this is my personal conclusion. I am getting the Leapster Explorer because: The screen area is larger on the Explorer The Fisher Price ixl does not have charging stand available The ixl doesn't have a program like Learning Path for the Explorer. The device doesn't aid parents in tracking kids progress very well. Due to the construction of the ixl, the Explorer is built to last a lot longer. The flip top on the ixl looks much too easy to break off. Well, that's my opinion.... Good luck to all of you.
1643457
We purchased the tablet for Christmas 2013 when she was still one. At first she enjoyed the sounds, music, piano, songs, etc. Now she is two and has figured out how to navigate to the different "programs" and make other apps work. She is more familiar and has continued learning from it, and still enjoys playing with it. The more she plays, the more she (and we) learn what it can do. I believe it was a great investment and will be a great learning-by-playing tool until she is at least school age which is around six years old. I hope my answer helps.
1139698
I prefer the LeapPad over the explorer. So I would say yes. I like the bigger screen and apps that come with it.
2044600
i have bought these LeapPad's for my grand daughters for Christmas so don't really know much about them. I do believe there is a MP3 App enabling music to be downloaded along with videos etc and am told the App is very good. Sorry I cant be much more helpful. Maybe you could "Google" more info
1948600
The touch is superior to the iPads for writing with a stylus, because it's pressure sensitive, not finger sensitive. Try writing letters on an iPad with a stylus -- you have to buy one of those pens with a spongy fake finger on it, and you still get garbage. Leapfrog products use the sort of system similar to what palm pilots had (some kind of membrane above the screen), which enables accurate writing with anything pointy. That's important because many of the games depend on accurate writing of letters in order to teach kids how to write. This would be impossible on an iPad. As for complaints about resolution, come on. A kid doesn't care about resolution. They care about whether or not the game is fun and the controls are responsive.
829938
I would suggest the Fisher Price table as we had the LeapFrog table and it lasted less than a year before it stopped working. I am a (rare, I think!) parent that does not allow her children to abuse their toys, books, etc. and they are taught to respect their belongings. All that to say that there has been no rough play with it. It looks absolutely brand new. I've changed the batteries several times using different brands each time to no avail. I contacted LeapFrog customer service twice and received an answer of "change the batteries" and "our warranty only lasts 90 days". Needless to say, they were no help whatsoever. I even asked for a wiring diagram so that I can try to pinpoint the problem myself, but they said one wasn't available. They did send a 15% discount code as consolation. In my opinion, it's not enough to purchase an expensive LeapFrog product again. This was a very disappointing situation as this table was my daughter's favorite toy and she enjoyed it while it lasted.
835672
Hi -I would recommend the V-tech tote'n'go laptops to just about anyone in the pre-reading stage of learning. It is not as glamorous as the leapfrog stuff, but it is great for letter recognition and other pre-literacy skills. That's in the twenty buck range. The Leapster 2 by leapfrog also does not need a home pc to set it up, though you can use one to access some of the advanced features it is completely unnecessary from a child's perspective to enjoy the system. Those retail for about seventy, but are regularly on sale for forty or fifty. The cartridge games are expensive, but do go on sale from time to time. My daughter loved her v-tech laptop and she loves her Leapster too. Hi -I would recommend the V-tech tote'n'go laptops to just about anyone in the pre-reading stage of learning. It is not as glamorous as the leapfrog stuff, but it is great for letter recognition and other pre-literacy skills. That's in the twenty buck range. The Leapster 2 by leapfrog also does not need a home pc to set it up, though you can use one to access some of the advanced features it is completely unnecessary from a child's perspective to enjoy the system. Those retail for about seventy, but are regularly on sale for forty or fifty. The cartridge games are expensive, but... » Read More Hi -I would recommend the V-tech tote'n'go laptops to just about anyone in the pre-reading stage of learning. It is not as glamorous as the leapfrog stuff, but it is great for letter recognition and other pre-literacy skills. That's in the twenty buck range. The Leapster 2 by leapfrog also does not need a home pc to set it up, though you can use one to access some of the advanced features it is completely unnecessary from a child's perspective to enjoy the system. Those retail for about seventy, but are regularly on sale for forty or fifty. The cartridge games are expensive, but do go on sale from time to time. My daughter loved her v-tech laptop and she loves her Leapster too. « Show Less
2099127
I bought both the Explorer and LeapPad for my 3 and 5 year olds for Christmas. I bought a couple of game cartridges as well as app cards. How do you install the apps in both? I was told at TRU that you could only install an app on one device. Good to know that he was wrong.
1243222
I know that it is almost a year later, but I hope that you bought your daughter the Intuos4 tablet.It really means a lot to children when they are given something that is professional grade rather than the product of "lesser" grade.It shows them that you believe in them enough to spend a few extra dollars so that they can have a high quality product instead of something like the Bamboo Fun, which may end up holding her back.
2163473
Hi, My daughter has the Leapster 2. It has one game installed and there is also a "paint" option, kind of like Windows "draw." She rarely played with those features, but they're not bad features. The game has dragons and you have to chase letters or something like that. If I'm not mistaken you can also download a game or two from the site. Just the same, I would definitely consider getting your niece a game to go with it -- Leapfrog.com was having a sale, maybe still is, which made many of the cartridges very affordable. My daughter loved Digging for Dinosaurs, Wall-e, the Backyardigans, and Finding Nemo in particular. She got the Disney Princess game but only played with it once. It looked like a real stinker. If cost is a consideration (as it is for me) maybe just let her parents know that you got her a Leapster 2 so they can plan on getting her a game or two. And how nice of you to get her such a lovely gift! It is a truly educational tool and was a huge hit in my house.
1132531
Lilly.n Kindle fire is a great product but not for what you want. You are right about the LePan. There is a LePan 2 that I am considering buying myself. I have been researching for months now. When you read the low star reviews and the same issue keeps showing up, I believe it. If the complaints are all over the place I don't take them seriously. Every Android I get my eye on ends up with major issues. I think I am just going to get the apple ipad and play it safe. ps amazon.com is cheaper than hsc. best of luck, God Bless
664020
just different. Most of the games are somewhat eduational. You are limited to the games that you pay. Whereas an Ipad, you can buy many games or get them for free and have a bunch on there to switch between. We have an ipad too, but the leappad has been fun for my kids. It just depends on what you are desiring. Both are great, for different needs.
1422954
I like the Innotab 2 because it's pretty much like an iPad for kids. You can get games according to their age. It's very convenient.