Amazon Fire - The Perfect Tablet for Low Screen Families

I have mentioned many times on the blog that we are a pretty low screen family and while we do embrace technology when it comes to our kids its done in a very moderate and measured way. We aim for little to no screens Monday to Friday but we are somewhat more relaxed on the weekends allowing for a movie night or if it's pouring down and we have exhausted our creative outlets than some educational apps.

As a family we have always been passionate about getting outdoors and not being tempted to stay in to watch something although I do see the benefits of allowing some screen time but the idea of my 7yr old having access to the internet and user uploaded sites such as YouTube despite parental controls does make me break out into a sweat - so where is the middle ground when it comes to allowing your child some freedom as well as opportunities for online learning but still keeping them safe? Well we have been reviewing the Amazon Fire for Kids tablet and for the first time I feel that this tablet really does have parents in mind.

So what is different about the Amazon Fire for Kids? Well each child can have a profile and in my sons profile he has access to hundred of age appropriate apps and shows such as horrible histories and The Gruffalo but he doesn't have access to an internet browser, YouTube or the ability to purchase - this means he can still make choices, choices which have been carefully selected and I as the parent have piece of mind that he can't have anyone message him, spend money or be able to search for anything that may not be appropriate.

Other features that I like about this tablet is the easy to use time moderation where you can set how long they can use the tablet before it turns itself off. If you have children who have issues with giving their tablets up this is a good way to introduce time limits. In terms of durability this tablet has been designed for kids in mind as it comes in a kid-proof case as well as a 2yr worry free guarantee so if they break it Amazon replaces it.

So what we have decided for now is to keep tablets mainly for when we travel, which is fairly often and also for when we are eating out somewhere were we know the service will be longer than normal, this has worked really well for us as it means they have something to look forward too at times that it may become boring or we will be travelling for a few hours. This past week we took the sleeper train to Edinburgh as well as spent a night in Shrewsbury - a 3hr drive away. It was nice knowing that they had something to break the boredom that was safe and in many cased educational as well.

I was kindly invited by Mumsnet to try out the Amazon Fire For Kids tablet - words and thoughts 100% my own