Save on a Tween Kindle Fire

If you've been thinking about a tween Kindle Fire for the holidays, there is a great deal today (Dec 10, 2012) while supplies last.  One per customer, you can save $50 on the Kindle Fire HD 8.9" tablet by using the code FIREHD89.  The 16GB option is $249 with the savings applied, and excellent deal for a large tablet with HD and Dolby Audio.

The site has provided some great deals throughout the holidays.  There have been a couple of opportunities to save $30 on the Kindle 8GB 7" tablet, but this is the first really great deal on a larger tablet.  I like the large size for video content, and it's great to be able to have larger space for ereading and games.  For the tween who's challenged by the awkwardness of a smaller screen, this is a nice alternative.

It's worth the extra investment to make sure that you have a good tween tablet case and a protection plan as tweens can be a little bit ruthless with their tech belongings.  My tween can be careless with her Kindle, and I definitely wouldn't pick up a tech device for her without a related plan.  My older daughter, a college student, is much more careful with her Kindle, but a case is still a much needed accessory.

Kindle Fire Deal on Cyber Monday

Save Big on Kindle Fire: Use Code FIREDEAL, CyberMonday only

 If you are looking for a good quality tablet at a great price, this is the day to pick up a Kindle Fire for your tween, teen or you! The $129 price is fantastic, and this is probably the lowest you will see any of the mainstream tablets that are trendy. My daughter's tween friend loves her Kindle Fire, and this pricing makes it comparable to the ereader choices. Well worth the investment, you may not see this pricing again this season.  Check it out here, and recognize that there is a limit of one per customer.

Vivitar Digital Camera Deals for Tweens and Teens

Digital Cameras for Preteens and Tweens:  Great Deals before Black Friday

You will find a lot of hot deals this season on digital cameras for tweens and teens. The pictured 14.1 mp is an example, a Vivitar available from Kohls. I picked up a much less advanced Vivitar for my tween daughter last Christmas, and though its price was my main interest, I'm looking at some of the current prices and loving them. The Vivitar digital camera deals this coming Black Friday are supposed to be pretty nice, but the one pictured is under $40 right now. It's a good started camera for a pre-teen or tween as it provides the basics but doesn't cost an arm and a leg. Tweens are notorious for changing interests awful quickly, and if you spend a huge sum on a camera only to watch it be ignored, it can be frustrating. My older daughters each received their first digital cameras in their tween years. One has gone on to upgrade, the other not. Comparatively speaking, you can get twice the mp at half as much as I spent on that Black Friday camera deal 6 years ago!

The New Kindle as an Ebook Reader for Kids

Kindle Ebook Reader for Kids

The Kindle ebook reader is one of the most popular items sold by Amazon, and as an ebook reader for kids, it's a great starter tech gift.  Over several years, the designs have been altered and the features improved.  Pricing on the basic Kindle has also adjusted, currently at $69.  What a great deal on a real tech tool that isn't just video games and mindless activity! 

 

The original Kindle has been adapted to create a variety of additional ebook reader options that appeal to a broad range of interests and individuals.  With the touch of a button or screen, electronic books can be quickly loaded on the device to enable easy reading and access to a vast library.  If you love to read, the Kindle is one of the most suitable devices for facilitating your thirst for more material.  There are many other E-readers on the market that will work for kids, though, and it’s important to understand the advantages inherent in choosing a Kindle.

 

The Kindle has a six inch display and weighs less than six ounces.  It’s easy to carry with you, making it possible to read at your convenience.  Protective cases allow you to transport the E-reader without worrying about damaging the device.  The e-ink pearl screen reads just like paper.  You don’t have to contend with an unnatural glare that can lead to eye strain.  The no glare experience is one of the best physical features of the device.  Kindle’s battery life is one month, meaning that a single charge will ensure that you can keep up with your latest reads without worry about having to stop because of power loss.  Charging time is approximately three hours.

 

The Kindle is easy to navigate with simple buttons at the bottom of the unit.  Content is downloaded through a Wi-Fi connection, and Whispersync technology ensures that you can access your reading material from other devices, picking up where you left off.  Search features and adjustable text and font sizes make your reading experience more interactive and educational.  Kindle will hold more than 1,000 books.  The Amazon library gives you access to millions of books and materials at affordable costs, and Amazon Prime enables you to borrow popular titles each month.

 

If your kids love to read, the Kindle will keep them supplied with lots of ebook choices.  Amazon's library is filled with both paid and free ebook online options that work with Kindle devices, Kindle apps and Kindle for the PC.  Your materials are stored in the cloud, meaning that your child's library stays intact if you upgrade to a new device.  Every year, the Kindle goes through transformations to make it more user friendly and useful. 

 

If you have reluctant readers, a Kindle is a great approach to encouraging better reading time and more reading.  Kindle materials are extensive.  Whether you are dealing with a preteen in need of reason to read or an early learner challenged in reading, there are great choices.

 

You'll find specifics on this basic ebook reader for kids and others here.

Wii U Gaming Systems for Tweens, Teens and Families

Normally, I wouldn't be too excited about a new video game system for our household.  However, my tween boys have me a bit interested in the new Wii U gaming system for tweens or family use.  The regular Wii has been a lot of fun, and occasionally we will move the kids off so that we can have a bowling night.  The ability to use Netflix has been really nice until recently.  Lately, the availability of Netflix features that we haven't watched umpteen times has made me seriously consider suspending the account.  The gaming system is fun, but I've wished for a while that it had the availability of Amazon Video on Demand.

The good news is that the Wii U video console is rumored to include Amazon VOD, making it an outstanding alternative to the current version if you are looking for a way to stream movies and television content to your big screen.  The continuing expansion of Amazon's content to new devices and venues makes it attractive, and this may be the final nail in the coffin of my Netflix account.

If you are trying to decide on a system that will stream Amazon Instant Video, I think that this may prove to be a worthwhile choice.  Release of Wii U is rumored in early November, just in time for the holidays.  You can check the latest Amazon Video Game Console details here.

Tablet Vs Netbook for Tweens

If you are considering a significant investment in a tech gift for your tween, there are a variety of options, more extensive every year given the advances in touchscreen technology.  If you are debating tablet vs netbook for tweens, there are some helpful considerations in narrowing your choices.

Affordable Meep Tablet for Tweens

Cost is a huge consideration when you are thinking about a tween tablet or a tween netbook.  Before the iPad was introduced, many parents hoped for the cheap netbook to be available as a holiday doorbuster.  The mini sized computers served as affordable alternatives to full laptops, easy to transport and fully functional.  I love my netbook as a portable device.  However, the entertainment value to my tweens is minimal when compared with other touchscreen devices.  A netbook for a preteen does provide compact computing.  However, a cheap netbook is limited in its usefulness beyond simple web browsing and game play.  Unless you are looking at the netbook for keyboarding skills and school curriculum, there isn't nearly as much appeal as there is with a tablet.

If you are intent on a netbook for a tween and if price isn't the biggest factor, I highly recommend something in a slightly larger size (11.6 inch screen) and with a larger amount of memory and hard drive space.  Acer dominates in terms of ratings, and the top rated choice at Amazon at this writing is its 11.6 netbook with 4 GB RAM and 500 GB Hard Drive. ( Acer Aspire One AO756-2808 11.6-Inch Netbook )  Less severe on the eyes and less frustrating with limitations on memory.  Only $350 in cost, it's going to be less frustrating.

Alternately, a full laptop in a 14.6 screen size may be a better choice for visual ease of use.

Tablets, though, provide Web browsing and game play, with tactile interaction making it much more appealing than a netbook for many preteen computer users.  If your tween likes games, apps on both iPad and Android tablets are primarily going to accomodate this need.  Further, the likeability combines with great affordability.  The Meep Tablet for a preteen is affordably priced at around $150.  Netbooks in this price range are going to be limited, but the Meep is a kid friendly device with great apps and parental controls built in.  The Kindle Fire is a 7" Android tablet in the $200 range.  These devices are much more user friendly than tween netbooks and the costs are much more budget friendly.  Ideally, many tweens would love to own an iPad, and with rumors of a 7" iPad tablet coming soon, it makes more sense to think about the iPad mini for your pre teen than to buy a netbook.  As a parent, I'd rather use a tablet than a netbook for research, and my main netbook use is for quick web browsing and composition on the road.  A tablet is more apt to meet entertainment and research needs without overly straining the eyes.

Easy Share Digital Cameras for Tweens

If you have a tween that is interested in taking photos, you may want to think about something more refined than a cell phone.  After all, cell phone shots are fun but they lack much definition and clarity.  However, it's important to realize that your choice of camera for a tween can become expensive, unnecessarily so.  It's important to set goals and evaluate your budget before you buy an expensive tween camera.  There are different levels of cost and quality, and I don't always find that an interest justifies a huge expenditure.

My tween daughter, for example, wanted a digital camera last Christmas.  She can be very artistic but flighty.  I stayed in the $50 range and actually found a nice camera that suited her and didn't break the bank.  She used it quite a bit at first, and still uses it a little bit.  She's not passionate about taking pictures, and I can see that it wouldn't have been a good idea to spend a lot.  If she becomes more interested, she will demonstrate it by using her existing camera.  When I see a passion for the photography interest, then I would consider a more costly device.

Likewise, you may be dealing with a flighty tween or with a tween that tends to be committed to interests.  Selecting a good digital camera in the $50-100 range is reasonable, depending on your budget, and can serve the needs of a more passionate tween.  Much under the $50 mark is debatable, you may find quality and you may find junk.  I really like Kodak Easy Share cameras as they are easy to work with and operate.  My older daughter has also found Nikon CoolPix to be a good camera.

Google Tablet vs Kindle Fire for a Tween

The news about Google's Nexus Tablet to be priced in a competitive range with Kindle Fire provides parents with a lot of interesting considerations as far as which tablet for a tween.  Deciding on the best tween tablet, after all, is not a sweeping decision by a blogger.  Rather, it's a decision making process for parents based on goals and budget.  My relatives just purchased a Kindle Fire for my 94 yo grandmother, and she gets the biggest kick out of Angry Birds.  The device is fun and intuitive for those not so tech savvy.  For tweens, more apt to understand their way around touchscreen toys and gadget gifts, the devices are much simpler to learn and use.

Kindle Fire for a Tween has a lot of advantages in that Amazon developed the content platforms well in advance of releasing their tablet.  It's given parents an inexpensive alternative to the iPad for tweens and kids because there is so much content.  Further, a lot of the content is free to Prime subscribers.  Your tween can read, watch and play without having to spend a bundle.  Google's tablet may be good, but until the release, the consumer won't really know much.  Content isn't completely non-existent, but there isn't a lot of free content, and if there's any, the store doesn't make it very easy to track down.  Familiarity makes Kindle Fire easy to imagine using at varied ages, and there are lots of hands on users' reviews that testify to its ease of use.  It's not exactly like an iPad, but if your tween needs an affordable alternative, Kindle captures the attention.  The Google Nexus Tablet will have to prove itself.

Kindle for Tween Summer Reading

If you are looking for a way to keep your tween's academics up a bit this summer, may I recommend Kindle Touch?  I love the price, love the clarity of the screen, and love love LOVE the amount of free Kindle reading material.  There are lots of classics available, and believe me, if you challenge your tween, he or she is capable of being drawn into some wonderful fiction.  My 10 year old, for example, is a huge fan of The Lord of The Rings trilogy. 

Amazon has an ever changing variety of free books in various children's categories, as authors can elect to offer their materials free for limited periods of time.  Definitely worth eyeing this on a daily basis.  Check out children's books for all ages, and watch those that are available on the page for free.  Within categories, you will also find free materials.  You don't need to over progam your tween summer reading program.  Just make good material available.  The Kindle Touch is an exceptional platform.

Find more articles about Tween Ereader Options.

Netbooks for Tweens and Accident Protection Plans

I'm in the process of replacing my laptop with a netbook, and I've been researching for a couple of months, being that I want a protection plan.  My tweens use my laptop, and the same will be true of my netbook, I'm sure, so I need to be prepared for inevitable bumps, drops, and so forth.  I held off on my purchase because some of the netbooks are a bit scarce at this moment.  The under $300 selection seems to have all but disappeared, or they are low or out of stock.  There are some listings on various sites of 320 GB hard drives, with an under $300 price, and I've seen them in stores.  Walmart actually had such a netbook priced at $248, and fortunately, I found it in stock.  Last summer, when we considered a Walmart computer for my daughter, there were no accident protection plans.  That has since changed, and my new netbook, with protection plan, is on its way. 

If you are watching for netbooks, don't expect to see significant price drops this year.  Rather, expect to see increased memory and hard drive space.  Watch for deals on the accident protection plans.  I avoided some retailers because the plans were nearly as costly as a new netbook.  I was tempted to build my own netbook at HP, but the protection plan made the cost more than I wanted.  Watch for deals on these plans during back to school promotions. 

On another note, if your tween does permanently damage his laptop or netbook, it's helpful to find a trustworthy repair shop in your locality.  My laptop wasn't able to be repaired, but my hard drive information was successfully transferred to an external hard drive, making it possible to salvage pictures, iTunes music, and school work. 

Zapped Games: Interactive Tablet Games for Tweens

The Game of Life Zapped Edition, pictured above, is already available, with other interactive tablet games for tweens coming later in the year. 2012 will truly be the year of interactive devices for tween tablets, and for tablets in general. The appeal of these external devices and activities may determine the success of the tablets they complement more than the merits of tablets themselves. Many of the companies are banking on the iPad for their success. If a more affordable iPad becomes available this year, that success may be sealed. Zapped Games integrate iPad or other Apple touchscreen devices with a gameboard, creating a new way to play old favorites.

Also on the horizon for iPad is Mattel's AppTivity, a series of toys that are developed for interacting on the screen of the iPad.  Mattel Hot Wheels are among the releases, but your tweens may be more excited about Fruit Ninja or Angry Birds AppTivity figures.  Angry Birds tablet games for tweens are very popular, and the interactive figures are sure to be a hit.

Keep your eyes out for Meep!, an Android tablet in the works by Oregon Scientific.  The device is kid centered, looks to be durable, and will have many interesting external devices to use in concert with the tablet. 

Meep for Tablets for Tweens

One of the exciting tablets for tweens on the horizon this year is Meep!, to be released by Oregon Scientific later in the year.  Pricing isn't yet known, but the product is an Android tablet aimed at use by young people.  This is a great alternative in concept for the 9 to 12 age range, as it appears to be designed for durability.  Compared to LeapPad Explorer and Vtech Innotab, the system will have wi-fi capability, and will have access to free and inexpensive Android apps.  The device is more of a long term investment for kids who might quickly outgrow touchscreen toys.  It is also apparent that many interactive devices such as musical instrument add ons are being created to integrate with Meep!.  The educational potential in this device may be very exciting, especially if the pricing is affordable.  Watch for more information in the coming months.

New Netbooks for Tweens in 2012

New netbook releases in 2012 are looking up, already, with the mid-January availability of a new Acer netbook choice in the under $300 price range. I'm on the hunt for a new, lightweight computer for our home, and this looks promising, with a reasonable price as well as increased storage. Whereas most previous netbooks for tweens, teens and others included a 250 GB harddrive, the Acer Aspire One AOD270-1679 10.1-Inch Netbook has a 320 GB hard drive, with 1GB memory. As a lightweight low cost computer, this is an excellent starter for a tween.

As always, I recommend with tweens that portable electronics include accident protection plans, simply due to the fact that tweens can be a little sporadic. One day, you're reliving the terrible twos, the next, you're sure that your tween is mature enough to handle the responsibility of a computer. It's those unpredictable days that cause me to consider an accident plan with my own children, as we've experienced some close calls. You will find the accident protection plans range greatly in price, and in some cases, aren't even offered.  When we researched a college laptop for my daughter, there were no accident protection plans available through WalMart, and Best Buy's plans at the time were pricey.  While we obtained a special deal at the time, I was unaware then of Amazon plans available, which are very affordable, and cover as much as 3 years' accident/drop/spill insurance.  This is definitely worth a look, if you are purchasing any electronics gadgets for tweens.

Ultrabooks for Tweens

One of the highlights of the January CES show was a new generation of laptop models, known as Ultrabooks.  When you are looking for a good computer for your tween, you may wonder if ultrabooks for tweens are sensible.  Much of that decision depends on your goals in finding that tween computer.

Ultrabooks are ultra thin, and very lightweight.  This makes them easy to transport, and is a great feature in light of some of the awkwardness that tweens face during their years of extreme physical change.  Ultrabooks are designed in the same small dimensions of the popular netbooks, making them less prone to drops.  However, with a tween, even the most lightweight device can be dropped. 

The major highlight of an Ultrabook is it's instant on, instant off, quick up and running function.  This isn't an essential for the tween, but is nice. 

Pricing on Ultrabooks is a bit higher than netbooks, ranging from the $500 range and up, depending on assorted features.  A lower priced version may be a great investment for the tween, as in the case of the Acer model displayed above. A more expensive Ultrabook isn't a big necessity, and in fact, a less expensive netbook is a good alternative, due to the costs. Of course, your own tween's need or interests for tech tools will influence your decisions, but with my own experiences, tweens and tools seem to encounter many close calls. I'd rather invest the extra money in a protection plan, in order to assure a longer time of the tool being in use. An older child in the teenage years would potentially be well served by an Ultrabook. Further, using a netbook during the tween years allows a child to demonstrate responsibility, allowing the opportunity to earn the right to have a more advanced tool in later years. However, you can read more about ultrabook computers and explore models to get a feel for the range of choices available.

Netbooks for Tweens: Textured Casing with ASUS Eee PC 1008P-KR-PU37-PI

When you select a tech tool for a tween, sometimes color and style matter more to that young person than performance. Netbooks for tweens are outstanding choices for a few reasons, and color isn't the highest priority, of course, but it doesn't hurt if the design is attractive. This ASUS model in its Karim Rashid Design (Pink) is fun and different. It's a little higher priced than some of the inexpensive netbooks. However, as a netbook for a tween, it's a great choice due to more memory and ram than the cheapest models. Whereas most cheap netbooks have 1GB memory and 250 GB hard drives, this model has 2GB memory and 320 GB hard drive. This is more comparable with moderately priced laptops, and provides the tween with something that should last well through the teenage years.

The netbook doesn't include an optical hard drive, which means that it is ultra portable, and easy to transport whether to the library, or around the house. The size of a netbook is more suited to the tween, who can experience awkward moments with a full-sized laptop. More and more, the need for discs is becoming less necessary, and the need for mobility, more important. With any tween tech gadget, it's wise for a parent to consider investing in an accident protection plan. The awkward stage is one of lots of physical and emotional changes, and accidents may not be intentional, but they can be disabling to a tween computer.