Best children's computer for 6 - 9 year old?

1. 81

   DreamerMegposted 11 years ago

   Best children's computer for 6 - 9 year old?
   
   I am thinking of buying a child's laptop computer for Christmas for a 6 - 9 year old. I have looked at a number on Amazon and the best so far seems to be the Leap Pad version 2, it get a good rating. A number of children's computers get slated for slowness, easily broken and poor battery life and some people suggested buying the child an Android tablet instead. Any thoughts or comments on this please?

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2. 92

   peeplesposted 11 years ago

   I'm in favor of any tablet over leap pad. With android you can get apps to do just about anything. My oldest son (9) even has an app to help him identify different types of rocks (science) and an app that helps him sound out words he doesn't know. All the apps we have on his were free. The tablet cost us $99, but in the 3 months we have had it we have all found one use or another for it. Even my almost 2 year old can color on it.

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      DreamerMegposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you, that is helpful.

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3. 81

   AlexK2009posted 11 years ago

   Before buying decide what you want this gift to achieve other than simply pleasing the child
   
   To save your  phone bill do not buy a tablet with 3G/4G. Stick to WIFI.
   
   
   If you must buy him a computer buy a Tablet  and/or a Rasperry Pi which is a very basic  and cheap machine they can develop for themselves.  Personally I would also consider an Abacus and/or slide rule which would teach them basic concepts like rounding error and that sometimes a non-electric device is better than the latest  digital gadget.

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   1. 81

      DreamerMegposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      We already have an abacus and personally, I never figured out how to use a slide rule myself! I will consider a raspberry pi but not just yet. I think I put my eldest son off computers for life by buying him the ZX81 when they first came out.

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      AlexK2009posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      well yes, the ZX81 was not the pleasantest machine to use, I preferred the Jupiter Ace despite ram wobbles.   I used a slide rule at college and still have a tubular one gathering dust.  Good luck with the decision.

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4. 91

   puter_drposted 11 years ago

   That nook HD looks like a good tablet for families, in that it has profiles, so the children can be limited to certain content and apps, and adults can use the tablet as they would prefer.

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   1. 81

      DreamerMegposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you

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5. 73

   jose7polancoposted 11 years ago

   Well it al depends on how much you can spend on it and how well will the child take care of it.
   All i can suggest is any tablet as it can used as a laptop with wireless keyboard, case, touch screen that children love so much better than regular mouse,
   tablets are also a little more durable and easy to transport. They more designed for games and other apps. they are cheaper than most computers and you can even buy a prepaid internet plan for apple tablets and most other tablets

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      DreamerMegposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you. It looks as if tablets are getting much more of a thumbs up than I expected.

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      jose7polancoposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      My little brother is 3 yrs old and enjoy more the ability to to sit walk and take about any posture with a tablet instead of having a laptop on his lap.

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6. 76

   CZCZCZposted 11 years ago

   The tablet can be a great option, however if you are considering a laptop because you want the child to become more familiar with a keyboard and learning to type, start to be able to interact online, and take advantage of all the great learning content that is available for kids on the web, then I would get a laptop over a tablet and there are some very cost effective laptops.
   
   The lower end regular laptops shouls be fast enough for any tasks that a child may need to do on the computer and will not have some of the slowness issues that "kid" machines sometimes face.
   
   If you are comfortable with technology I would get a Google Chrome OS laptop.  The price point is great, they can use all of the services by Google such as Google Chrome for web browsing, Google Drive for word documents etc.  My little 6 year old nephew just got one and it has been great for getting him engaged with a regular computer.  He was already using mom and dads iPad and the such but they wanted him to learn a regular computer as well and so they went with the chrome OS by Samsung and it is working great.

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      DreamerMegposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks. I wasn't thinking of spending quite that much, especially as she has access to a computer with keyboard if necessary but a laptop may be something to consider for the future.

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   touch4laptopposted 7 years ago

   you may need tablet not computer, there are very nice computers with touch screen and you can convert them to tablets and not expensive, search in amazon or touch4laptop sites

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   1. 81

      DreamerMegposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      We ended up getting an Android tablet and it has been well used and enjoyed.

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8. 57

   bbbathomeposted 7 years ago

   We recommend for using desktop commuters because its handy and easy to repair.

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      RoadMonkeyposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      Not very portable though.

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   sapintegrationposted 6 years ago

   I think The tablet can be a great option. Thank you for the great article.

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