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Every time the Amazon Fire Kids Edition Tablets make an appearance in my social media stories, you can guarantee I’ll have an inbox filled with questions the next time I open my apps. (Find me @sweetersidemom) Are they worth the money? Is the price too good to be true? Are they hard to use? What age is it good for?
I want to answer all your Fire Kids Edition questions right here and also share my Mom-advice. I’ve also made a list of the apps my girls like the most. I won’t say they’re “the most educatoinal” because that’s not what this review is about. But my girls really love and use the apps I’m going to list and are occupied endlessly by them which is, of course, the goal when we let our kids have tablet time!
First of all, these Fire tablets are definitely worth the money. I’m a self proclaimed Apple LOVER and shell out lots of $$$ for iPads… quite a few over the years. However with four kids who all like to use the tablet it’s not practical to buy that many really expensive devices. We just can’t do it. I was worried I would find the android tablet clunky and just be sad it wasn’t an iPad the whole time but I’m completely not! They are SO user friendly, really easy to set up multiple kid accounts (that are interchangeable on all the tablets!) and have everything the girls want and used on their Apple iPods plus so much more.
We got ours on sale over Prime Day. I see them go on sale ALL the time though (Black Friday, cyber Monday etc) so keep your eyes pealed if you aren’t in a rush to buy! Because they come preloaded with a year of Free Time Unlimited we haven’t had to spend a single penny on apps or games or literally anything AT ALL beyond what’s already included. This is GOLD to me. I hate wasting money on weird crappy apps the kids want to try that end up being blah. This feature is 100% worth it.
Each of our girls has their own tablet. Sally is 3, Gracie is 6 and Lilly is 8. The way Free Time is set up allows you to adjust sliders that fit the age brackets of each child. I LOVE this feature because it eliminates the need to hunt around for age appropriate content. Here is an example of how Sally and Lilly’s look. You can see that we can adjust the sliders around their ages. This is great because they can get easy access to “older or younger” content that they may like and enjoy even if not technically labeled for their age.
Its worth noting that we chose the “7” even though it’s not the newest version because of the price point and the battery life. 12 hours is quite a long life for a kids device. And for what they are doing they don’t need the latest and greatest HD technology or the biggest screen just yet. They were excellent on our long Costa Rica travel days, van rides, and cross-state drives to my parents. They fit inside our travel backpacks… No complaints.
We add and use our Hulu and Netflix subscriptions onto each tablet, too. These are NOT part of Free Time. You download them in the parent section and add them to any of the family accounts you want.
Now for the favorite apps lists. You can “download” any content to make available offline AND add content to the home screen for easy access. Just tap and hold the app or book or whatever it is and select either or both options.
The iHeartRadio FAMILY app is awesome and for all ages. There is a kidzbop station, Christian radio, kids country, lullabies and even a Minion station!
First up lets do Sally. She’s 3, almost 4. She’s girly, creative, and independent so I’d describe these apps as “easy” because she can use them with no (or minimal) help from me.
1. Crayola Nail Party
2. Monkey Preschool Lunchbox
3. Pink Fong apps
4. Sago Mini Babies
5. My Cute Bella Dog
6. Ice Summer Desserts
7. Sing and Rhyme with Mother Goose Club
8. Nick Jr. Draw and Play
9. Hello Kitty Nail Salon
10. Daniel Tiger apps
11. Toca Pet Doctor and Hair Salon
12. Smurf’s Bakery
Next up is Gracie. She is in 1st grade, loves puzzles, Wreck it Ralph and girly things.
Gracie likes all of the same apps as Sally plus the following:
1. Wreck it Ralph Storybook Deluxe **her favorite race at game that you play by tilting the tablet itself is inside this book**
2. Flow Free: Bridges
3. All “My Town” apps
4. Doc McStuffins and Strawberry Shortcake apps
5. Crayola Jewelry Party
6. Mermaid Ice Princess Salon
7. Shopkins World
8. Toca Pet Lab
9. Dr. Panda Ice Cream Truck
10. Pango Build Park
And now for Lilly. 3rd grade. Artistic and calm. My little reader bug. She uses Audible on here which is awesome because it connects to your amazon account. I also love the grammar games in her grade app!
1. LEGO friends
2. Toca Plant Lab
3. Horse Hotel
4. Pet World Wildlife
5. Grade 3 Learning Games (see pic!)
6. Ms Pacman
7. Chess
8. Bubble Wars
9. Checkers
I hope this has helped give you an idea of whether or not the amazon Fire Kids Tablets are a good fit for your family. I really can’t say enough good things since we’ve had them.
I want to explore the use of a stylus with these tablets but haven’t gotten that far yet. When I do Ill share a quick update!
Have a happy Tuesday, friends.
Xoxo
-J
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