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TECHNOLOGY A23
Monday 28 December 2015
Tech Toys: Kiddie tablets ‘grow up’ as competition grows
BREE FOWLER pany aimed to “create This photo shows the Kurio Smart. Geared toward older kids, this is something that they can type
AP Technology Writer something that was kind book reports on or do online research for a school project. It’s the first kids tablet to run on Windows
NEW YORK (AP) — Kiddie of sleek and more tech 10 and its purchase includes a free year of Microsoft Office, along with some OneDrive storage.
tablets have grown up. forward for kids who were
Tablets designed just for looking for something that (KD Interactive via AP)
kids are getting more so- felt like their parents’ tab-
phisticated as they face in- let.” This photo shows an InnoTab MAX. VTech is the kid’s technology let as something the entire
creased competition from But parents still want ed- maker that was hacked, exposing the personal information of family can use, eliminating
regular tablets. The new ucational content and over 6 million children. That said, this is a pretty decent product, the need to buy something
products also have bet- safety features that come particularly for younger children. just for the kids.
ter screens, speedier chips with a tablet designed “While I appreciate that
and fashionably slim bod- purely for kids. LeapFrog’s (VTECH via AP) might have led other com-
ies. They let older children Epic, along with the other panies to adjust their prod-
do more, yet hold their new tablets for kids, are at- HDMI cable. The Smart is the shift has left those 8 to ucts, we’re upping our
hands until they’re ready tempts to bridge that gap. a Windows 10 laptop with 12 without age-appropri- game based on what cus-
for unsupervised access. The Epic looks like a regular a detachable screen and ate devices, Levin says. The tomers want in the best kid
Although many of the tab- Android tablet, but comes comes with a free year of Smart tries to fix that. experience,” said Aaron
lets were originally con- with a removable bright- Microsoft Office. Other makers of kids tablets Bromberg, senior manager
ceived as educational toys green bumper. It is much Eric Levin, Kurio’s strate- have also gone high-end of product management
for kids as old as middle faster than a LeapPad and gic director, said kids us- this year. Fuhu bills the Nabi for Amazon Devices.
schoolers, they’ve been can run versions of popu- ing children’s tablets are Elev-8 as a premium, 8-inch The tablet’s FreeTime app
more popular with younger lar Android games such as getting younger, as older tablet. But the company lets parents set up profiles
children. Older kids have “Fruit Ninja” and “Doodle kids gravitate toward adult ran into financial problems for each kid, with access to
been apt to reject them in Jump.” There’s access to products. Four years ago, early in the holiday sea- only the content they ap-
favor of their parents’ tab- the Internet, but it’s limited he said, most Kurio users son, and its products have prove. It also lets parents
let or smartphone. to about 10,000 kid-safe ranged from ages 6 to 12. been tough to find. limit the amount of time
That shift has prompted websites (though parents Now, half of them are 3 to Nonetheless, adult tablets spent on different kinds of
companies to focus more can add others). Parents 5. Although older kids may remain popular with kids. content such as videos or
on preschoolers and kin- can also limit and track be ready for adult tablets, Amazon touts its Fire tab- apps. For an additional fee,
dergarteners, as they cre- how much time a child Amazon’s FreeTime Unlimit-
ate super-durable prod- spends watching videos, ed service offers more than
ucts that can withstand re- playing games or reading. 10,000 books, apps, games
peated abuse and devel- Lynn Schofield Clark, a and videos geared toward
op games and apps that professor of media studies kids ages 3 to 10.
teach reading and math. at the University of Den- Nonetheless, Amazon is
But now, some of those ver, said kids tablets are a selling a kids’ edition tab-
companies are looking to tough sell these days. let for $100. It’s essentially
take back some of the sales “Kids are always aspiration- Amazon’s bare-bones $50
to older kids that they’ve al in their ages, and they’re Fire tablet packaged with
lost over the years, offering always interested in what a colorful protective bum-
premium products — most older kids are doing,” Clark per and a year’s subscrip-
with price tags of over $100 said, pointing to the fasci- tion to FreeTime Unlimited.
— that look and perform nation that many preteens It also comes with a two-
less like toys and more like have with smartphones as year guarantee: If your kid
the ones adults use. a prime example. breaks it, Amazon will re-
LeapFrog, maker of the Meanwhile, most parents place it.q
toy-like LeapPad, released won’t spend money on
its first Android tablet this kids-only gadgets unless
year. And Kurio is branch- they believe they offer sig-
ing out to Windows 10 and nificant educational ben-
includes a full version of Mi- efits.
crosoft Office in a new tab- “If they’re just looking for
let-laptop combination. something to entertain
The use of Android and their kid, then why wouldn’t
Windows software, in place they just hand over their
of the more basic, custom- smartphone?” she asked.
made systems used in toy Kurio aims to answer that
tablets, allows for more question with the Smart,
sophisticated apps and a device that let kids do
games and a range of things they previously might
content from standard app have needed their parents’
stores. laptop for, such as typing
Monica Brown, LeapFrog’s up and saving their home-
vice president for product work online or playing vid-
marketing, said the com- eo on their TV through an
