Mom28kds Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 I'm looking for a device that can store and play audiobooks with headphone capability. This would be for a 1st and 2nd grader so an ipad isn't ideal. Currently we are using the library audiobooks and using Mom's ipad and headphones and I'm looking something that is kid friendly to be used in free time. Headphone are necessary because they get distracted if they don't use them. Is there anything out there that would fit this description? Thanks :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maptime Posted July 24, 2019 Share Posted July 24, 2019 (edited) My kids use a Kindle Fire. We really only use it for audiobooks and a timer so I can’t speak to its other capabilities, but it’s been a great, affordable solution for us. Edited July 24, 2019 by maptime Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom28kds Posted July 25, 2019 Author Share Posted July 25, 2019 5 hours ago, maptime said: My kids use a Kindle Fire. We really only use it for audiobooks and a timer so I can’t speak to its other capabilities, but it’s been a great, affordable solution for us. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CTVKath Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 We use an older iPod with the wifi turned off. My 9yo daughter has had it a couple of years. She did add addresses to the address book and sometimes will type a list in "Notes" but otherwise uses it only for her audiobooks. I plug it into my laptop to transfer the audiobooks to the iPod. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKT Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 (edited) My kids each have a Kindle Paperwhite, which they use exclusively for our Audible subscription. The only thing is that you need bluetooth headphones or a bluetooth speaker to go with it (there is no headphone jack on the Kindle Paperwhite). (I'm sorry I don't have a link for the bluetooth headphones; my husband bought those in person, not online, so I'm not sure what kind we have. But any bluetooth headphones would work.) I have to say we love this set-up for audiobooks! We get a ton of use out of our Audible subscription now that we have them. My kids listen to audiobooks every single day, mostly using the bluetooth speakers in their rooms while playing, doing LEGO, making art, etc. Those little speakers are fantastic, and the sound quality is excellent. (They do have headphones, too, but tend to use the headphones for long car trips, not so much daily.) The other reason we chose the Paperwhite is that there are no video features or internet, etc. on it. The device can only be used for e-books or audiobooks. Plus, we were able to lock down all the parental control stuff, so literally all my kids can do on it is access our Audible library. (In other words, we've fixed it so they can't accidentally purchase anything, etc. The control factor was super important to us, since this is our first foray into devices of any kind for the kids.) ETA: Ack, I'm sorry; I misread your OP. (When I read "audiobooks," I always assume the person means Audible, but you were asking specifically about library audiobooks.) Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm not 100% sure if you can listen to library/Overdrive audiobooks on the Paperwhite. You can definitely get library e-books on the Paperwhite, but I think you might need a Kindle Fire to access Overdrive library audiobooks. So, a Kindle Fire might be your best bet. Edited July 25, 2019 by EKT 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wathe Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 We use old iphones (sim card removed). They were free to us - discards from family who have upgraded. They have headphone jacks. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom28kds Posted July 26, 2019 Author Share Posted July 26, 2019 10 hours ago, EKT said: My kids each have a Kindle Paperwhite, which they use exclusively for our Audible subscription. The only thing is that you need bluetooth headphones or a bluetooth speaker to go with it (there is no headphone jack on the Kindle Paperwhite). (I'm sorry I don't have a link for the bluetooth headphones; my husband bought those in person, not online, so I'm not sure what kind we have. But any bluetooth headphones would work.) I have to say we love this set-up for audiobooks! We get a ton of use out of our Audible subscription now that we have them. My kids listen to audiobooks every single day, mostly using the bluetooth speakers in their rooms while playing, doing LEGO, making art, etc. Those little speakers are fantastic, and the sound quality is excellent. (They do have headphones, too, but tend to use the headphones for long car trips, not so much daily.) The other reason we chose the Paperwhite is that there are no video features or internet, etc. on it. The device can only be used for e-books or audiobooks. Plus, we were able to lock down all the parental control stuff, so literally all my kids can do on it is access our Audible library. (In other words, we've fixed it so they can't accidentally purchase anything, etc. The control factor was super important to us, since this is our first foray into devices of any kind for the kids.) ETA: Ack, I'm sorry; I misread your OP. (When I read "audiobooks," I always assume the person means Audible, but you were asking specifically about library audiobooks.) Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm not 100% sure if you can listen to library/Overdrive audiobooks on the Paperwhite. You can definitely get library e-books on the Paperwhite, but I think you might need a Kindle Fire to access Overdrive library audiobooks. So, a Kindle Fire might be your best bet. Your answer was great! Thank you. We might do a book subscription. We are trying to get away from the library thing because sometimes it takes forever to get a book. I was absolutely interested in the device. I'll look up the paper white. Thanks :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKT Posted July 26, 2019 Share Posted July 26, 2019 11 hours ago, Mom28kds said: Your answer was great! Thank you. We might do a book subscription. We are trying to get away from the library thing because sometimes it takes forever to get a book. I was absolutely interested in the device. I'll look up the paper white. Thanks 🙂 Oh, I'm so glad it was helpful! Good luck with your device search! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slache Posted July 26, 2019 Share Posted July 26, 2019 If you're considering a subscription look into Playster. With audible you get to buy expensive books, with Playster you get to listen to thousands of books you don't own. Think Netflix, but books. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted July 26, 2019 Share Posted July 26, 2019 Woah. I have a Kindle Paperwhite AND a Audible subscription. I had no idea I could use the Paperwhite to listen to Audible. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKT Posted July 26, 2019 Share Posted July 26, 2019 5 hours ago, vonfirmath said: Woah. I have a Kindle Paperwhite AND a Audible subscription. I had no idea I could use the Paperwhite to listen to Audible. Yes, the newer models support Audible! This page shows which Kindles support Audible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted August 1, 2019 Share Posted August 1, 2019 On 7/24/2019 at 2:38 PM, Mom28kds said: I'm looking for a device that can store and play audiobooks with headphone capability. This would be for a 1st and 2nd grader so an ipad isn't ideal. Currently we are using the library audiobooks and using Mom's ipad and headphones and I'm looking something that is kid friendly to be used in free time. Headphone are necessary because they get distracted if they don't use them. Is there anything out there that would fit this description? Thanks :) We use an old iPhone 5S. Inexpensive, portable, charges readily, and gives me the power to lock it down so apps can't be added and I can keep off Safari. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drjuliadc Posted August 4, 2019 Share Posted August 4, 2019 i tried to use an old 5s and the audible app had never been downloaded to it before and when I tried to download it recently, I got a “the audible app was not available for this phone” message. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Oh that's sad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEGway Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 I pick up super cheap discounted track phones (android) at department stores (like Shopko...sadly, no longer a thing...but, even Walmart, sometimes) for as low as $10-20. If you never sign up and pay for phone service, it's local wifi only. But, if I connect it manually to our home network, I can put on any google store apps (like hoopla or audible) and download the parts of our digital library that I want them to have access to. The devices have a headphone jack as well as the ability to use the speakers (think speakerphone quality). They usually include a grainy quality camera/video feature (which my kids use frequently), but there's no way for them to put it online, so I'm comfortable with them practicing taking pictures/videos, too. It's basically a cheap android version of an ipod. I'm a big fan! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 My ds uses audiobooks extensively because of his disabilities, and we use a kindle fire, the ipad, and a reader device from the National Library Service. One advantage of the Kindle Fire for young children is the picture cover flow. So even though NLS has their BARD app, we tend not to use it because it's all text. And while I love my apple products, you're going to have much more thorough parental controls on the Kindle Fire. The Kindle Fire is also relatively cheap and durable. I kept our first couple KFs in portfolio style leather covers. Our current KF is in an inexpensive silicone cover I got from ebay. The thing to watch for with the Kindle Fires is the number of speakers. The smallest size Kindle Fire has only one speaker. The next size up will say dual speakers if you look at the comparison charts. We accidentally received one of those single speaker versions one time (ebay, item didn't match description) and the sound quality was not as good. So if you're going to play without speakers in a room, I would go for the dual speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 Do Kindle Fires have bluetooth? I've got a speaker we tried to use last night with our mp3 player but it is bluetooth only and our mp3 player could not connect that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted August 7, 2019 Share Posted August 7, 2019 1 hour ago, vonfirmath said: Do Kindle Fires have bluetooth? I've got a speaker we tried to use last night with our mp3 player but it is bluetooth only and our mp3 player could not connect that way. The Kindle Fire definitely does bluetooth, yes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmandaVT Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 DS has an old ipod nano that just does music and audiobooks. Like this: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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