ChristusG Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 My 9 year old DD is thinking of saving for a tablet. She already has a good chunk of change saved and could possibly buy one soon. I'm not sure which one though. We're an Apple family and have a lot of Apple products. But I think that an iPad is just too big of an investment for a nine year old. Plus, it would take her forever to save for that. So we're thinking of buying something on the Android platform. I've been looking at the Google Nexus and the Samsung Galaxy. Anyone have either of these? Any advantages to one over the other? She wants to download apps, watch videos, take photos, do creative things, read books, etc. Any other tablets worth considering? She already has an iPod Touch, so she's very familiar with apps, etc. She would possibly be selling her iPod Touch if she gets a tablet though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 DD6 has a Nabi. Great for younger kids, but I don't think the extra heft is neccesary with a NT 9yo. DD14 has a Galaxy and loves it. It was a good price vs. the Nexus and she is very happy with the purchase. She hasn't touched her iTouch since buying it except to transfer music onto the tablet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songsparrow Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 My daughter has a Nexus. She saved up to buy it herself, and she is very pleased with it. I think it does pretty much everything the iPad does. However, I find it much easier to share material with my other daughter's iPad (she has an old iPad 1 that was given to her when the owner upgraded) and therefore I would prefer that we all be on the Apple platform. My suggestions would be: 1. Check out the refurbished models that are available at the Apple online store for deals on the iPad or iPad mini, or ask friends who may be upgrading to a newer version. 2. Whether you go with the Nexus or iPad or another device, get a warranty that covers accidental damage. SquareTrade warranties can be purchased through Amazon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celticmom Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 I recently had a similiar question. I ended up purchasing the nabi xd for my dd8. According to the recommendations she is a bit young for it but she is an accelerated learner so I went with the model for older kids. We have been happy with it. It would be nice to have the padfolio with the keyboard but that is not out yet. It is marketed as a children's tablet but I may eventually get one for myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajag Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 We tried android tablets for the kids to save money, and we were not pleased. Once you get used to Apple devices just working, it's hard to put up with having to wipe and reinstall everything on the tablet once a month or so. Plus add in some apps needing a version of android you don't have and us being an Apple family and we decided we didn't want the headache any more. Our kids each have iPads now. We sold the androids at a loss and considered it a lesson that cheaper is not always better. I find it a lot easier to manage parental controls on Apple devices too. What about getting an iPad mini as a compromise? It does everything an iPad does, it'll be on your Apple account so she can use all of your apps, and it's not as expensive as an iPad 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 I have one son with a Nexus 7. They have come down in price since we purchased. We paid $249 for the 32gb. So far he is happy with it. My 13 year old is getting an ipad mini. He had some $$ saved and sold his ipod and I told him he could pay the amount of a 32gb ipad mini refurbished and I would pitch in the extra for a 64gb and an otter box. Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
violamama Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 We have looked at last gen iPads on Craigslist and refurbed direct from Apple. I just like the way the work, and the way they keep on working. We've been lucky in that my husband's work got him a new tablet (a Surface Pro) so when the boys both use an iPad, with my husband's old one, we now have two. It seems to me an iPad each for a 7 and 5 yo is extravagant. Actually, one of the only things I don't like about them is that I sometimes worry about the cost (danger of breaking or getting stolen). We have decided they won't do game boxes for various reasons, so the iPad is one way they also get a little pop culture. Every kid they met on our vacation this week could "speak" angry birds & cut the rope! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 My kids have an iPad each, an iPad 2nd gen and the new iPad. Hubby was saying he will get me the new ipad mini when it comes out but I prefer a full size iPad as I have an iPod touch for convenience. Every kid they met on our vacation this week could "speak" angry birds & cut the rope! Add to that Plants vs Zombies and at one time Fruit Ninja. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim in Appalachia Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 We have android tablets as well as an iPad 2. For kids, go with the iPad. I love Android, and for my phone that is the way I will stay, but for kids Apple has more "educational" and kid friendly apps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
placeofgrace Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 My 9 year old DD is thinking of saving for a tablet. She already has a good chunk of change saved and could possibly buy one soon. I'm not sure which one though. We're an Apple family and have a lot of Apple products. But I think that an iPad is just too big of an investment for a nine year old. Plus, it would take her forever to save for that. So we're thinking of buying something on the Android platform. I've been looking at the Google Nexus and the Samsung Galaxy. Anyone have either of these? Any advantages to one over the other? She wants to download apps, watch videos, take photos, do creative things, read books, etc. Any other tablets worth considering? She already has an iPod Touch, so she's very familiar with apps, etc. She would possibly be selling her iPod Touch if she gets a tablet though. What about a Kindle? My ds has a Kindle Fire HD and it does everything you mentioned. I think it only has a forward facing camera though, so if taking pictures is a big deal, you might not like it. My nephews have ipad minis. My SIL and brother are an apple family also and wanted something that could use all the apps and stuff they had already invested in. The only apple device we have is an ipod touch. I was able to sync my son's music from iTunes with the kindle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 My understanding from my research when looking at devices for my 9 year old is this: The Kindle Fire is not really an android tablet. You have to buy your apps from Amazon. If they are available for Android/Google, you can't just buy them and have them on your Kindle Fire, you have to wait for Amazon to sell them. ETA: I guess you can, but it takes some tech work to "root" the device. http://www.techhive.com/article/244474/how_to_install_the_android_market_on_your_kindle_fire.html You might want to go to the app store for Google/Android and see what they have first. That is what we did before buying the Nexus 7 for my son. There are two games he really likes on Apple that are not available but I am told they are in the works. Everything else we found on https://play.google....tore/apps?hl=en I would also read this article: http://www.infoworld...let-isnt-212632 My first choice will always be an iPad, but I must say I am quite impressed with this Nexus 7 my son got and it is changing my views on Android a bit. Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted May 30, 2013 Author Share Posted May 30, 2013 Yes, I realized that the Fire is not completely an Android tablet, which is why we weren't considering it. Thanks for the article link though...very interesting! I'll talk with DD about a mini vs an Android. She's already excited about some Android apps she saw though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MooCow Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 DD has a nexus 7 and youngest ds has a Nabi. They both love it. Dh went back and forth trying to decide for ds; in the end he chose Nabi because it has a parental control app. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 One more thing I will add. My son had an 8gb ipod touch. By the time we sold it, only about 5 games fit on it. The games keep taking up more memory as they get better graphics, etc..... So, when we looked at the Nexus and told him he had to pay for part out of his B-day $$, he didn't want to pay the additional $50 for the 32gb vs the 16gb. I finally just decided to pitch in and pay for the extra knowing that if he filled the 16gb and wanted to sell and buy another we would lose possibly more than $50 in the deal. My STRONG suggestion is to get the higher memory. Apple charges $100 for more, Android only charges $50. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted May 30, 2013 Author Share Posted May 30, 2013 Yes, I told DD that she needs the 32gb tablet, which is the same amount of memory that her current iPod has. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 My girls each have a Nexus 7, and we are very happy with the purchase. DH is going to get this year's model as soon as it's available (shouldn't be long now). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aoife Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 my 12yo DD has a Nabixd and I have one too and we LOVE them I love mine more then my ipad which I pretty much retired after getting the nabi. I highly recommend them for older kids and even adults. My younger kiddos have the nabi2 and my 3yo has a nabi jr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delighted3 Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 We are a Samsung family here. We have 3 Samsung players and 2 Samsung 7.0 tablets. I would highly recommend the Samsung tablets. Joy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dahliarw Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 I have a samsung galaxy tab. We bought it for travel, but now my kids use it all the time. We have the smaller one. Their favorite games are Cordy (there are 3 different ones) and all of the angry birds games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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