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 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.

Tablets for Tweens: Kindle Fire

Kindle Fire
An inexpensive, cutting edge, tablet computer choice
for your tween, or for you.

Tablet computers are at the top of many holiday wishlists, including those of tweens, with the iPad 2 being high in demand. However, many parents will shirk and shudder at the $500 price tag for the basic model of the popular tablet pc. Amazon has just announced pre-order, however, for it's latest offering in this tablet computer medium, the Kindle Fire, which will be released Nov. 15 of 2011.

The $199 tablet is more than just an ereader, though the Kindle name has been associated with the ereading platform since it's introduction. However, the Kindle Fire is a tablet sized device which incorporates video streaming (Amazon Instant Video), digital music, ereading (in color display, with this latest release), document viewing, and web browsing, with the Amazon Silk browser. Use of cloud computing allows storage to be handled via the cloud, rather than on the device, freeing up space.

Whereas the iPad, and other Apple products such as iPod and iPhone have memory limitations, with greater memory models costing significantly more money, Kindle Fire includes unlimited storage for Amazon content. This may be the biggest drawback for the tween who might want to use the tablet as a listening device, for streaming audio from their iTunes library. However, the use of a tablet, for many, is more about the apps and activities, than about the music. iPods seem to be the tween's preferred music playing device.

You can view more information about the Kindle Fire, along with demonstration videos, and comparisons of the various choices in Kindle ereaders, and in the Kindle Fire tablet computer, in order to make a good decision as to whether this is the tablet for your tween.

Educational Apps for Kindle for Tweens

Unscramble Letters to Create Words
Develops Spelling and Vocabulary Skills



Did you know that Kindle has many apps available for purchase, and download?  Or that many of these apps are free of charge, or for sale at low costs?  What's nice for the tween age range is that many of these free apps have great educational value, as they develop strategy, vocabulary, or math skills.  Some are based on traditional paper and pencil games, while others are similar to popular simple PC games, like MineSweeper. 

While the apps do work on Kindle ereaders, they are not compatible with smartphone apps at this time.  Nevertheless, the availability of these apps makes Kindle a great travel distraction for tweens, at minimal cost. 

Check out some of the following selections (images are clickable, for details):

Every Word is a game of unscrambling letters to make words:
excellent for developing and strengthening spelling and vocabulary skills in tweens.

Kindle 3G With Special Offers: Cutting Costs on a Kindle for a Tween

Ereaders are great  gift options for middle schoolers, but as parents, it's always disconcerting that tech gifts for kids are so pricey.  Kindle has made both it's wi-fi, and 3G versions a little more economical with special offers options.  In both cases, $25 has been cut from the price of the normal selection, through sponsored screen savers and other special offers.


 Kindle wi-fi requires a wifi connection to download new content, and to use the web capabilities of the Kindle ereading device.  Kindle 3G provides a free 3G connection, with no contracts or monthly fees.  The ability to vote on screensavers through a Kindle App, Admash, makes it possible to impact the sponsored content.