Amazon Fire Kids edition - traveling with 2yo
November 20, 2016 2:05 PM   Subscribe

My sister and bro-in-law are flying across the country with their active 2yo. My sister is looking at the Amazon Fire Kids edition to help keep the kid entertained. He has a wide range of interests: trains, tractors, AND excavators. Any advice?

Specific apps, hacks, how to use, etc. all welcome. This will be in addition to a small selection of favorite toys, not a sole source. Thanks in advance.
posted by HaveYouTriedRebooting to Technology (13 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Does he have a favorite show? Most kids at that age don't bounce shows that much so having a bunch of episodes of a single show is usually your best bet.

Shows on Amazon tend to be downloadable which is required for viewing on a plane so having the kid hooked to a show on Amazon Prime would help. Otherwise some Cable Operator apps and shows allow downloads as well.
posted by bitdamaged at 2:39 PM on November 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


I just got a regular Amazon fire and a case with a handle. If I remember correctly, the kids version basically just comes preloaded with links to apps that you have to download anyway? If you can acquire episodes of the show Mighty Machines, that is 90% of what my kid uses the tablet for.
posted by TheLateGreatAbrahamLincoln at 2:46 PM on November 20, 2016 [1 favorite]


Little Builders!

The Kids' Picture Show, a bunch of vehicle collections where basically they show the vehicle and say the name, my children love this shizz. Make a YouTube playlist.
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 8:03 PM on November 20, 2016


We have a Fire and a 2yo daughter. She is very adept with both of our phones, but when my brother bought her the Fire he included a really thick dense-foam case.

Agreed that you should take care of downloading it before your trip. Wifi is so hit or miss on a plane, even if it's included. My daughter has very little patience for anything beyond the usual five-second "skip ad" countdown, so for the sake of everyone around you, assume ahead of time that the wifi won't work.
posted by St. Hubbins at 8:40 PM on November 20, 2016


I highly recommend the Toca Boca apps for that age. Toca Kitchen has always been a huge hit with our kids. The apps are visually nice, don't require any reading, and respond to silly things kids think to do within the app. Hey look, there's a Toca Train one! And this Toca Farm one has a tractor section. One thing to think about is a pair of comfortable over-the-ears headphones that the kid can use if he wants to watch a show.
posted by LKWorking at 8:16 AM on November 21, 2016


If you're thinking about headphones, get the kid used to them ahead of time. Kid headphones may or may not fit a toddler, and even if they do, he may not want them on his ears. (Or he will love them. Who knows?)
posted by St. Hubbins at 10:04 AM on November 21, 2016


Consider helping him expand to Dino Trux. My 3 year old grandson is obsessed
The app reviews are not encouraging yet, and he may not be quite old enough yet, but it's on the horizon for him.
posted by SLC Mom at 11:36 AM on November 21, 2016


Seconding the Toca apps. And the Dr. Panda ones are great too.
posted by tacodave at 1:30 PM on November 21, 2016


I don't like Dino Trux for my 3yo as there is just too much anger and fighting. We try to aim for TV-Y rating for our kid (I think Dino Trux is TV-Y7)

Blaze and the Monster Machines is a decent show that my then 2yo loved. We bought the first three seasons on Amazon for the Fire and then downloaded some of his favorites to watch when without wifi.
posted by jillithd at 3:05 PM on November 21, 2016


Response by poster: Thanks all! Now I want Toca Train on Android for myself :-)
posted by HaveYouTriedRebooting at 9:48 PM on November 21, 2016


Don't bother buying a kids version of a tablet, basically they just shoehorn a bunch of crummy apps on there and restrict what can be installed. Just buy a regular tablet and a sturdy case. You will be much happier.
posted by Literaryhero at 11:24 PM on November 21, 2016


One of my daugher (2 & 10 months) shows is Octonauts on Netflix, unfortunately its not downloadable on there.
posted by bitdamaged at 9:07 AM on November 22, 2016


Oh awesome note as of today Netflix can download content for offline viewing
posted by bitdamaged at 2:32 PM on December 1, 2016


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