Best ipad/tablet for DD age 8

[mummatotwo]

Thinking of getting one for christmas but cant decided which one would be best. Can anyone recommend one?

all she will want to do is play games

[SoupDragon]

ipod touch.

[PickledMoomin]

Nexus 7. DD is having one for her birthday.

[Chopstheduck]

Nexus 7 tablet, bigger screen, more versatile. She may think she only wants to play games, but its nice to have the option to watch films, word process, browse the net properly as she gets older.

[mummatotwo]

ipod touch isnt a ipad is it????

Anymore recommendations for the Nexus? What price would you expect to pay for this?

[Theas18]

What ever you do/get, remember parental controls, disable in app purchase and don't allow unlimited you tube /iplayer/itv player etc (iplayer etc have parental controls of their own).

Personally (and I know I'm though to be a bit draconian) I'd have it not on wifi at all for a few years except when mum/dad updates/loads stuff on etc

[SoupDragon]

No it isn't an ipad but it is far more appropriate for an 8 year old child.

A Nexus isn't an ipad either. Only an ipad is an ipad.

[Chopstheduck]

nexus is £160 for a 8GB.

I don't really understand the appeal of the iPod touch for children. It's a tiny screen to play on, easily dropped. After all is really an MP3 player, not a gaming device. I'd personally also be worried about their eyes peering at one of those tiny screens for hours too, though a 7" screen might not necessarily be a huge amount better!


I'd go for a nexus over the ipad primarily because of cost. Though sometimes apple have refurbed ipads for around £230, but they do get snapped up quick.

[SoupDragon]

LOL. The screen is no smaller than on a Nintendo DS!

[SoupDragon]

I have my own "new" iPad, there is a family iPad1 and the boys have iPod Touches. DD is nearly 7 and if buy her something like this for Christmas it will be an iPod touch, even though I could easily buy new ipads for all of them.

[radicalsubstitution]

We bought DS a Google Nexus for his 6th birthday and he loves it. It is very good value for money (160 quid) and the apps tend to be cheaper than through itunes. DH set it up for him as he already has an android phone, and so is very familiar with it all.

It has a much better processor (quad core) than the ipod touch, which is better for playing games with a lot of motion. My iPad2 grinds to an almost halt on some levels of Cut the Rope!

There are some really good, robust cases available for it as well.

Can't recommend enough.

[mimbleandlittlemy]

Worth looking at the Kindle Fire which launches here come end of this month.
My brother has had a US one for ages and is very impressed with it.

[mimbleandlittlemy]

Oh - and he is a real computer/gadget geek and often hard to please so if he likes it it's usually quite a recommendation (and he has an ipad too...).

[Haberdashery]

A Kindle Fire hasn't got access to the full Android store which I would personally be annoyed by, though some might not mind.

[radicalsubstitution]

DH is a major gadget freak and did loads of research before settling on the Nexus. He didn't like the look of the Kindle tablet, as it runs a forked version of Android. You have to get all apps and music etc through Amazon, and the cheaper version has on-screen Amazon advertising on the home screen. That's how they can sell it at a loss.

The iPad 7 is coming out at the end of October, but I imagine it will be the 'buzz lightyear' of this Christmas and will be considerably more expensive.

[posadas]

I guess the recession is over if so many people are happily buying 160 pound toys for 7 year olds.....!!!

[5inthebed]

Smaller iPad coming out this month...

[simpson]

Does anyone know how much the smaller iPad is going to cost??

[MikeLitoris]

Ds is having the nexus for Christmas.

Argos has some good deals on the Samsung tabs. Up to half price.

[5inthebed]

I reckon in the region of £175

[SavoyCabbage]

They will 'reveal' it at the launch apparently on October 17th and then they will be for sale on November 2nd.

[tropicalfish]

Im a bit old fashioned my dd is now 14 so she missed this revolution however, I would be concerned that if I were to give my dd the option of ipad attractions then she wouldnt be interested in reading a book. At the stage of being 8 I think my dd was reading 8 books a week.
I only gave my dd an electronic console when she had past the 11+ stage , in the form of an ipad touch. As soon as this was given it dramatically affected how much she read.

[MikeLitoris]

Part of the attraction for my ds is being able to have the kindle app.

[simpson]

DS (7) likes the oxford owl website which does not work on the iPad (boo hiss) so that would put me off getting the smaller iPad for him tbh.

What is the best type of screen to get?? Capacitive or interactive....

[Chopstheduck]

capacitive is supposed to be better. No idea why, though!


I wish I could afford a £160 present for my 7yos, posadas! They would love them, but I can't afford £320. DS1 is getting one because he saved up £140.

We actually bought him one of the cheaper ones that are around for his bday, turned out to be a load of crap and we had to return it, and he has been saving since for a decent ont. Def avoid the cheap ones, they are all made in China, and set to think they ARE in China which means you are subject to all the communist restrictions on which apps are available. Plus it kept freezing, shutting down and didn't hold battery life.

[radicalsubstitution]

I see absolutely no problem whatsoever in buying a child a present that they are going to use. I have a DS that thinks arts and craft are a slow form of torture. Buying him a craft kit/colouring book would be an utter waste of money. He will happily, however, draw on his tablet. He also loves playing sudoku and other maths puzzles.

He has no shortage of books.

I strongly believe that everything should be in moderation. A very wise friend of mine once told me that you could always tell the children at parties who weren't allowed sweets at home - they were the ones who crammed their faces full of sweets and chocolates. Spending an unhealthy amount of time on any one thing - whether reading until 4 in the morning or playing computer games all day - should never be encouraged.

As far as the recession being over, I work damn hard (as does DH) for my money and am entitled to spend it in any way I like.