A word, parents? We all know that too much screen time is bad for our kids, but we also know that our sanity is at a premium. Whether it’s a car trip, a plane trip, or a long wait at a restaurant, there are situations where a Bluey video or an interactive Dr. Seuss book could save your life. That’s why I consider tablets to be an essential addition to a parent’s toolkit, along with a goldfish cracker or a pack of crayons. The question is, what is the best tablet for kids? Which model has the best apps? Which one will withstand the most abuse? These are great questions and I have the answers .
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Spoiler alert: I think there is one that stands out above the rest. Affordable, versatile, and backed by an industry-leading warranty. Plus, it’s specially designed for kids, with robust parental controls and an anti-Godzilla case. That said, there are some others worth considering, especially if you have older children or need something to help with schoolwork, education, and entertainment.
If you’re not buying one for your kids, be sure to check out our roundup of the best tablets of 2024. Cover all users and all locations.
Best tablets for kids in 2024
Rick Breida/Yahoo
Screen size: 8 inches | Storage: From 32GB (expandable) | Rated battery life: 13 hours | Connectivity: Wi-Fi | guarantee: 2 years
Simply put, there’s no better tablet for youth than Amazon’s Fire HD 8 Kids. First, it’s the most affordable iPad of any iPad, with a starting price of $150 (frequent sales bring it down to $100 or even less).
Equally attractive, the HD 8 Kids lives up to its name in a colorful case designed to withstand heavy use. In fact, Amazon offers an unprecedented two-year warranty on the tablet, which covers not only normal but also accidental damage. So if Junior tries to sit, dropkick, or flush things out, you can get a replacement.
This case is not only incredibly sturdy, but also cleverly designed. A built-in stand allows you to stand it upright for watching videos or flip the tablet over to lay it flat for games or other interactive activities.
Amazon includes a free year of its Kids+ subscription service, which provides unlimited access to a rich library of age-appropriate books, games, apps, videos, and more. However, note that it runs a special operating system from Amazon, so you won’t have access to all of the Android apps. Limited to what’s available on the Amazon Appstore. This probably won’t be a problem, especially for younger kids, but it’s worth noting that YouTube is one of the most notable things left out on the Appstore.
This tablet features front and rear cameras for enjoying photos and videos, and includes built-in parental controls for remote monitoring and updates.
If you have older kids (around 8 to 12), the Fire HD 8 Kids Pro has a more “adult” case and more advanced parental controls. They are the same in almost every other way, including price and warranty.
Amazon offers 10-inch versions of both models, but they cost at least $60 more. I don’t think there’s much benefit to having a slightly larger screen, it just makes it heavier and harder for small hands to hold.
Fire HD 8 Kids is definitely the best tablet for kids.
- Durable childproof case doubles as stand and carrying handle
- Robust parental controls
- 2 year worry-free warranty
- Often goes on sale
- Includes 1 year of Amazon Kids+ subscription
- expandable storage
- There are a few things missing from the Amazon Appstore, including the YouTube app.
- Performance may be delayed
$150 on Amazon
Other tablets for kids
Rebecca Carhart/Yahoo
Screen size: 8.3 inches | Storage: From 64GB | Rated battery life: 10 hours | Connectivity: Wi-Fi (Cellular 4G/5G option) | guarantee: 1 year
Amazon’s tablets may be affordable, but they aren’t necessarily fashionable. Older kids will almost certainly prefer the “cooler” tablet, i.e. the iPad.
It’s also probably the more practical choice, as it has a broader app library and more accessories (including the Apple Pencil, which is great for taking notes and creating art).
iPad Mini also includes top-of-the-line front and rear cameras, making it perfect for kids who want to create Instagram and TikTok videos or dabble in filmmaking.
Why not opt for the larger, cheaper iPad 10.9? We’re not ruling it out, but the Mini is smaller and lighter (only 10 ounces), making it easy to throw in your backpack. And its 8.3-inch display (Apple’s other crisp, bright, and colorful Liquid Retina screen) is bigger than any phone you probably already own, so you can watch movies, play games, read books, and more. , perfect for scrolling through social media. media.
Big drawback: price. The Mini starts at $499 and has just 64 GB of storage. Increasing to 256GB increases the cost by $150. The aforementioned iPad 10.9 starts at $349 for the same 64GB.
However, this is not surprising. Apple makes “cool” gear, but cool equipment may come at an additional cost.
- Compact, lightweight design
- Lots of apps and accessories
- Great front and rear cameras
- expensive
- Base model has only 64GB of storage
- unlikely to survive a gravitational explosion
$380 on Amazon
Rick Breida/Yahoo
Screen size: 11.5 inches | Storage: 128GB (expandable) | Rated battery life: 10 hours | Connectivity: Wi-Fi | guarantee: 1 year
Let’s talk about Twofer. The Lenovo Tab P11 is a full-featured Android tablet with a spacious screen and great speakers, but it also doubles as a basic laptop when bundled with Lenovo’s detachable keyboard and pressure-sensitive stylus. It is possible and ideal. For lower elementary school to junior high school students.
Why use this over a Chromebook? Because it runs Android, you can do almost everything you can do on a Chromebook, but you also get the benefits of a standalone tablet. It’s a great product with a 2K screen resolution and 120Hz refresh rate for smooth gaming. (To be honest, this isn’t just about schoolwork.)
Lenovo offers a generous 128GB of onboard storage, and there’s a microSD slot for adding more, but I had a hard time removing the SIM card-like tray that protects that slot.
Like many tablets, the Tab P11 has a good, if not great, camera. It has a 13-megapixel sensor on the back and an 8-megapixel camera on the front. The latter is great for things like Zoom calls.
I didn’t like some of the bloatware apps that Lenovo preinstalled, but I did like the reading mode toggle, which was designed to make the screen look more Kindle-like (i.e., monochrome). The same applies to productivity mode. This mode adjusts the interface to look more PC-like and allows you to multitask in windows.
The value proposition here is pretty great. For about $350, you get a multi-functional tablet with a useful keyboard and advanced stylus. It may not have been designed with children in mind, but I think it’s great for children’s productions and play.
- Great cost performance
- Very good quad speaker sound
- The included keyboard is spacious and comfortable.
- Pressure sensitive stylus is good for art and notes
- expandable storage
- so-so camera
- MicroSD slot is difficult to access
- some bloatware
$254 on Amazon
Test method
I’m not a toddler or a teenager, but I’ve tested tablets extensively, not just for this story, but for as long as they’ve been around. At this point in the game, and for the viewer in question, there’s nothing that really demands close inspection. All of the tablets here have varying degrees of beautiful screens, plenty of apps, and all-day battery life. The quality of the cameras certainly varies, but for child users it is not that important.
Our “tests” primarily focused on things like durability, versatility, and overall value. That’s how we ended up with the Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids, Apple iPad Mini, and Lenovo Tab P11, respectively. These are all top picks in these categories.
FAQ
What are the most important features in a children’s tablet?
Especially for young children, durability should be at the top of the list. Whether you spend $500 or $150 on a tablet, it’s an investment. An unexpected encounter on the pavement can irreparably damage that investment. The Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids is encased in a hard foam case that’s not particularly durable per se, but could withstand even an angry elephant. Amazon is so confident in its protection that it protects the tablet on the back. It comes with a 2-year warranty and covers accidental damage.
What activities can children do with their tablets?
Of course, there are the obvious ones like games, movies, educational apps, and painting/coloring apps, but I especially love that I can fit tons of children’s books on my tablet. (My wife and I carried backpacks full of paper books, which wasn’t fun.) Most of these aren’t interactive, like tapping a word to hear its pronunciation or using small animations. There are many interactive features that make the story even more interesting.
Are there any headphones suitable for tablets for children?
Yes, thank you for your question. I’ve been in restaurants and other public places where kids are blasting audio from their tablets, and it’s…offensive. For maximum cuteness, consider something like the iClever Kids Headphones (about $20), which come with light-up cat ears. This is a wired headphone, so it won’t work with the iPad Mini (which doesn’t have a headphone jack), but a Bluetooth version is also available.
What are parental controls? Do these tablets have parental controls?
Tablets are pretty much the gateway to the internet, not to mention some parts of it. do not have Child friendly. Parental controls allow you to set your tablet to only allow age-appropriate apps and content. You can also set limits on total usage time. Amazon offers robust parental controls as part of the Fire HD Kids ecosystem. Apple also offers parental controls for iPad. If you end up using an Android tablet, check your Google Family Link settings. This is also very broad.
