Kindle Fire instead of LeapPad for 5 1/2 year old? Has anyone purchased the Kindle Fire for use by a child?
1066459
My wife and I are very happy with the K Fire. I installed 2 educational children apps "Kids Math" and "Kids Match'em", a calculator and Mapquest; they all work excellent. There are thousands of android apps, all Dr. Seuss animated books and of course e-books. This device offers the educational piece, the entertainment, netflix, youtube, pandora, silk browser, etc. and of course amazon. My wife got one of the roocase covers which would give plenty of protection to the device in case of a drop. I would recommend this device to a kid 5 or 6 and older; perhaps younger children with supervision. The WiFi connection can be easily disconnected so that younger children don't access internet or buy apps accidentally. When you consider the price of the Leapfrogs cartridges and apps (2 cartridges, 2 e-books and 2 sets of rechargeable batteries) you are at the price of the K Fire. The Fire will grow with your child for years to come; the Leappad will get outgrown sooner or later; however both devices the LeapPad and the Explorer get played frequently by our 4 and 6 year olds and are basically worry free. They both are great devices and of course the K Fire was not designed to be toy but can be used by children with the proper protection (cover, screen protector, stylus).
1344258
I got my 6 year old the leapfrog tab 2 and she likes it but she gets very aggregated because the batteries die to quickly. If you decide to get 1 I recommend get a power cord that fits it because Batteries can be a hassle and aggregating.
1253033
You'd be amazed at what kids can do. Give them the tablet and they just take off like a rocket learning. With a few guided lessons and with just the right apps your child will certainly enjoy using and growing with the Leapfrog LeapPad Tablet. we've had ours since my son was 3 1/2 but my God daughter turned 3 this September and she sits down with it and taps away and watches videos, takes photos and tries playing games. great part is they don't grow out of it for a while when they are that long and its so durable that even if a child has the dropsy's its still safe to use. My son has thrown ours several times and it just amazes me that it still works I can't say the same for his other gaming counsel.
910730
We have the leap pad 2 and it works fine but I did have to return the first one because it didn't work. The second one did work and we haven't had a problem with it.
1180236
Jessica, So glad you asked before buying this thing. The zeepad we got was total garbage. I got it for my nephew and it was almost unusable. The screen is unreadable, it pixelates like crazy, and the device itself feels shoddy. Thankfully, Amazon is awesome and I was able to easily return it for a refund that I put towards the purchase of a Kindle Fire (the 159 dollar ad supported one). Lesson learned as far as I am concerned. The Fire is an awesome device and nothing in the under 300 dollar tablet market comes close to it for performance and value. As for 10-inch tablets, my ASUS Transformer is amazing and I use it constantly. Either would do what you are looking for. Hope this helps.
429520
go with the leapster 2. my nephew has it. cheaper games and more fun for 4-8 yr olds. For 2-4 the discovery is great but limited, too much advertising, the leapster 2 is very durable. not sure how durable discovery is but possibly. read some of the reviews on the discovery. My father in law got it for my daughter. And my nephews have the leapstere so they can;t share games. either is great but I'd go with the 2. note there is no camera on the discovery
1351483
Hello,they have games and apps for older children (which I haven't tried yet since mine are 5 and 2 years old). Plus the new Innotab 2S is Wifi ready so that would probably be really cool for her.
1057768
My children are older, but we have downloaded several games from the google play store. I checked and there are some games there for toddlers that are free. I would advise going there first and see if there are any games you feel would be appropriate for your child before purchasing the ValuePad. If so, then I would recommend this unit. As your child grows, so will the options available and the price is not so much that you would have to worry about a young child handling it.
453943
My oldest likes to play on my youngest's LeapPad (she's 11), but she finds the games a bit slow, and knows all the "educational" things in the games...for an 8y/o it would depend on if he's ever had any other gaming system, but probably would get bored with it sooner then you'd want.
1422955
honestly my 6 1/2 year old LOVED this until he got his hands on my kindle. Now he wants both. for the 5 year old this would still be great but the 8 year old, NO WAY.
1294879
The Leapster is a good substitute. Both of our boys had Leapsters first and my oldest son still played with his until he got his DS on his 9th birthday (granted, he was getting a little old for it...). I have a 3 year old and she's still a little young for the Leapster, but she can use the drawing feature and will mess around with it. Definitely by age 4.
693256
I don't think this would be good for a 7yo. We have purchased three games for ours, and my 15mo really enjoys it, but my 5yo (2nd grader) only plays with it to show her little sister how to play the games. My toddler can turn the music and drawing app on by herself. I think a Nintendo DS or Kindle Fire would be a much better purchase for a 7yo! My 5yo will stay on her Kindle Fire HD for hours if I let her!!
30646
You'd be amazed at what kids can do. Give them the tablet and they just take off like a rocket learning. With a few guided lessons and with just the right apps your child will certainly enjoy using and growing with the Leapfrog LeapPad Tablet. we've had ours since my son was 3 1/2 but my God daughter turned 3 this September and she sits down with it and taps away and watches videos, takes photos and tries playing games. great part is they don't grow out of it for a while when they are that long and its so durable that even if a child has the dropsy's its still safe to use. My son has thrown ours several times and it just amazes me that it still works I can't say the same for his other gaming counsel. You'd be amazed at what kids can do. Give them the tablet and they just take off like a rocket learning. With a few guided lessons and with just the right apps your child will certainly enjoy using and growing with the Leapfrog LeapPad Tablet. we've had ours since my son was 3 1/2 but my God daughter turned 3 this September and she sits down with it and taps away and watches videos, takes photos and tries playing games. great part is they don't grow out of it for a while when they are that long and its so durable that even if a child has the dropsy's its still safe to use. My son has thrown... » Read More You'd be amazed at what kids can do. Give them the tablet and they just take off like a rocket learning. With a few guided lessons and with just the right apps your child will certainly enjoy using and growing with the Leapfrog LeapPad Tablet. we've had ours since my son was 3 1/2 but my God daughter turned 3 this September and she sits down with it and taps away and watches videos, takes photos and tries playing games. great part is they don't grow out of it for a while when they are that long and its so durable that even if a child has the dropsy's its still safe to use. My son has thrown ours several times and it just amazes me that it still works I can't say the same for his other gaming counsel. « Show Less
774816
Thanks once again. I ordered her LeapPad today. Got a great bundle deal from LeapFrog plus free shipping. Her school just got one this week also, so we will be able to work together.
261250
My son has had both the Ultra and LeapPad 2. The Ultra is a child version smartphone without the phone capability. It has LeapSearch (Internet), calculator, calendar, to name a few, unlike the LeapPad 2. My 6 year old likes both of them but he sat on his LeapPad 2 so he got the Ultra. Depending on your budget and age of child, I would tell you the LeapPad 2 is a great start because all the Apps work on either LeapFrog product.
879479
It depends on how responsible your child is as well. One drop on the hardwood floor and our 5 year olds DS now has a half blank screen. I also didn't find many educational games that he could play without his older brothers helping. We are going for a Leapster 2 this Christmas. He's a sponge with educational games and loves to learn.
519484
Its comparable with my 2 year old Kindle, but its not a Fire. The power monkey comes with a ton if different plug adapters, my husband, daughter and I never leave home without our power monkeys. We love it!