Monthly Archives: December 2013

‘Twas the Week Before Christmas…

It’s the week before Christmas and all through the land, there are parents who are still trying to find that perfect toy for the special child(ren) in their life. Here are a few of our last-minute favorites, toys that your children will be thrilled to find under the tree this year.

Big Hugs Elmo (Playskool)

Once again, that fuzzy, red monster has managed to be THE hot toy of the season. He’s large (about the size of a one-year old), loves getting—and giving—hugs, and will often ask for a bigger or tighter squeeze from your little cuddle bug. Elmo also asks to play ponies, jump like froggies, (and will comment along with appropriate noises), and dance. Elmo also moves his arms up and down, sings bedtime songs, and snores when you lay him on his back. About $50, and available at http://www.toysrus.com or in physical stores near you. But you’d better hurry.

Sesame Street Lullaby & Good Night Elmo (Hasbro)

Haven’t had enough of Elmo yet? Decked out in his Dorothy the Goldfish pajamas, this Elmo is all set to comfort your little one as he or she drifts off into dreamland. Kids can snuggle up with Elmo and press his tummy to hear a lullaby or one of a few bedtime phrases. Strangely, there’s no Off button, which means Elmo could start talking if your child accidentally rolls over him. About $15. http://www.hasbro.com.

Furby Boom (Hasbro)

Furbies have been around for a while, but this latest incarnation has some special features. The new Furbies come in bright patterns and colors. Having an app seems to be a requirement for toys these days, and Furby’s got one for Apple or Android (including some kids’ tablets. The Furby Boom, like past Furbies, has a mind of its own, and the more you interact with and play with it, the more you shape its personality. Furby remembers his name and has more than twice as many responses as previous generations did. Furby can learn English or help you understand “Furbish.” And the app lets you mix smoothies, give your little pal a virtual shower, and even hatch and raise digital Furby Furblings. About $64. Available at http://www.hasbro.com or your favorite toy store.

Tabeo e2 (Toys R Us)

As we discussed last week, tablets are great way for kids to start interfacing with technology in a way that’s both safe, educational, and won’t trash mom and dad’s expensive tablet. The Tabeo e2 has all the specs needed to run the newest apps, 8GB of flash memory, Jelly Bean 4.2, Dual core 1.0 Ghz CPU, Quad-core GPU, and 1GB of RAM. All this makes for a zippy tablet that’s a breeze to use. The parental controls (which you have to set up before turning the e2 over to the kids) are pretty comprehensive and allow you to keep your kids from doing anything you don’t feel is appropriate for them. Comes with a charger, USB cable, and a protective case to keep it safe when those accidental tumbles happen. About $150. You can pre-order yours at http://www.tabeo.com.

A final note. If you’re still looking for something for the dads on your list, be sure to check out the winners of the Mr. Dad Seal of Approval, which recognizes toys and games that dads and kids can play together. The complete list is at http://mrdad.com/seal.

Best wishes for a safe, play-filled Holiday from all of us on the Parents@Play team.

Take a Tablet and Call Me in the Morning

Given that full-featured tablets like the iPad, Amazon Kindle Fire HDX, Samsung Galaxy, Microsoft Surface, Google Nexus, LG G Pad, Sony Xperia, and others aren’t cheap, it’s no big surprise that a lot of parents are somewhat reluctant to turn one over to a child. We worry—understandably so—that the cute little kid in the backseat will either break it, go on line and browse inappropriate content, or buy stuff we don’t want them to have. This week we take a look at four tablets that are fun enough to keep the kids entertained, yet safe and cheap enough to keep mom and dad from pulling out too much of their hair. All are Android-based, wi-fi-enabled, 7-inch touchscreens that come with a protective sleeve to protect against drops, as well as a number of ports, which may include mini/micros USB, SD, and HDMI. These tablets also come preloaded with a selection of kid-friendly games and apps, and parental controls. But let’s talk about the differences.

Meep! (Oregon Scientific)
Meep! is a good choice for very young kids or slightly older ones (up to 4^th grade) who have no experience with tablets. If they’ve played on your iPad or other adult tablet, they’ll be frustrated. What sets Meep! apart, though, are the attachable accessories (purchased separately) such as a mic and piano keyboard. One especially great feature: The Meep! Store (for purchasing or downloading additional apps) takes only Meep! Coins, which you (the adult) purchase. You can then set a budget which the kids can’t exceed. http://www.meeptablet.com

Kids Tablet PTAB750 (Polaroid)
Like the Meep!, the Polaroid Tablet is a good choice for tablet virgins. It’s the most rugged of the tablets we reviewed, and we loved its unique look, with large, easy-to-find buttons (home, back, power, and volume) right on the front. It also comes with a stand for hands-free operation. The Polaroid has a limited selection of pre-loaded games and apps, but you can download as many as you want through the Amazon app store or the Nook Android app. While not the most robust, the parental controls took only about a minute to set up. Screen resolution and camera (.3MP) were not great, but again, acceptable for a first tablet. http://www.polaroid.com/kids-tablet

Kurio 7s (KD iNteractive)
While it looks similar to the other kids’ tablets, the Kurio has some very unique features, including front and rear cameras and the preloaded full (commercial-free) versions of some of the most popular apps and games (including Angry Birds, Fruit Ninja) and great educational apps from Mr. Nussbaum. Kurio also has the best parental controls we’ve seen. The Genius web filtering system does an excellent job, and you can set up as many as eight unique profiles, each with its own time limits and app/game restrictions. And besides the Kurio App Store, you have access to a variety of other Android app stores. http://kd-interactive.com/

ClickN KIDS Tablet (ClickNKIDS)
This tablet takes ClickN KIDS’ award-winning reading programs and wraps them in a tablet. The emphasis is definitely on education—the ClickN KIDS comes with more than 100 reading lessons—but there’s plenty of opportunity for entertainment too. Unlike most of the other tablets in this category, which were designed mostly for kids, the ClickN KIDS will appeal to teens and adults as well. Once you log into the password-protected Grown Ups interface, you’ve got a small, but full-featured tablet that you can use for email, Skype, Netflix, etc. At 5 hours, battery life is a little short, but the tablet charges quickly. http://www.clicknkidstablet.com/

Ready, Set, Christmas!

Now that Black Friday and Cyber Monday are distant nightmares, we can start focusing on great gifts for the season instead of how much we’ll save if we stand in line all night. Here are a few of our current favorites.

North Pole Communicator Microphone
Get the family together, dial up the North Pole, and have “real” back-and-forth conversations with the “big man,” elves, and others. The communicator is fun for the kids and will amuse adults as well. It’s a really fun way to get the family engaged in a nightly activity. hallmark.com

Hallmark’s Keepsake Ornaments
Giving and collecting ornaments is an important part of Christmas for many families, and Hallmark’s Keepsake Ornaments are often part of that tradition. There’s a huge variety, so finding the perfect gift for your child or loved one is easy. Some celebrate milestones and nurture memories, others capture scenes from your favorite movies, TV shows, or cartoons. Our favorite this year is “Lions and Tigers and Bears,” a Wizard of Oz ornament where the characters move and speak lines from the movie. http://www.hallmark.com

Santa and the Christmas Eve Flight
This interactive storybook is adorable and a great way to spend some quality reading time with your kids. As you read key words and phrases, Santa responds with questions or choices. Your child’s responses actually shape the story, which means it could change every time you read it. There are more than 30 responses from Santa, which makes for a pretty diverse range of possible storylines. http://www.hallmark.com

Holiday Specs
When you look at any light source (such as Christmas tree lights or candles) these holographic glasses, turn it into a snowflake, reindeer, snowman, Santa, or about a dozen other possibilities, depending on which one you get. Holiday Specs come in paper (think movie 3D glasses) or plastic (think brightly colored, silly opera glasses) and are cheap and a whole lot of fun. We plan to hand these out to everyone before we open gifts on Christmas Eve. Sure, the Specs are silly, but adults get a kick out of them too. They’re also greet for long winter car rides. Have the kids turn off their electronics and stare out the window. They’ll literally be able to see Santa everywhere. Please don’t wear them while you’re driving. http://www.holidayspecs.com

Build a Bear
A visit to Build a Bear is a great holiday activity for the whole family. We recently went to the new workshop at FAO Schwarz, and the kids loved every second of our visit. There were a huge number of many holiday (and non-holiday, of course) choices, including Santa, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, mice, polar bears, and some delightful “small fry” elves. But we ended up torn between torn between Frosty the Snowman and Santa. There’s also a wide variety of clothes, accessories, and costumes for the stuffed toys. Our son loved choosing his toy, stuffing it, giving it a personality and a sound (it sings when you squeeze its hand), and dressing it for Christmas. He built a new holiday friend, and we had a really nice afternoon together as well. Back home, you and the kids can have some virtual playtime as well, on the secure online experience of “Bearville” which is protected and one of the safest websites in the USA. And yes, of course there’s an app for that—do you really have to ask?) Visit http://www.buildabear.com/ to find a workshop near you.