The Three Most Child-Friendly Pieces of Tech This Christmas

We’ve passed the threshold of Halloween, which means that Christmas is well and truly on its way. The advertisements on TV herald its arrival. Now is the time when the shrewd Christmas shoppers get in before the apocalyptic rush through most of December. It’s true that children these days can work out most pieces of technology, but some are more child-friendly than others. Here are my top three suggestions:

3^rd Place – Fujifilm FinePix

Sadly, playing outside with trees and nature is fighting a losing battle against playing inside with high-tech gadgets and games. A great way to join the two together is to encourage your children to take lots of photographs. If you get your child a digital camera, you can take them out on trips and tell them they are responsible for the day’s photo album. You’ll be amazed how eager your child will be to go outside if they are encouraged to take as many photos as possible. The Fuji FinePix is a great digital camera for kids as it is waterproof (up to five metres), shockproof, dustproof and freezeproof (up to 10°). On top of all that, it has a 16 megapixel resolution and digital image stabilisation. You can get a Fuji FinePix pretty cheap on the Viking site, here.

2^nd  Place – Tablets

Tablets are incredibly child-friendly. There is a wide variety of apps on the android and apple app stores that are specifically designed for children. They are also great for watching videos – so you can slap some cartoons on the Tablet, thus freeing your TV for yourself. This is especially handy considering how great the programming is over Christmas. Tablets also have a variety of apps to help you teach your children. There are apps to help with reading, writing, mathematics, science, and pretty much anything else you can think of.  Viking has a large selection of tablets for you to deliberate over. Price is the main factor. But that’s another reason why tablets are a great present for children: you can get some very cheap ones. Getting a cheaper tablet for your seven-year-old will allow you to relax a little and not worry that your little bundle of joy is trundling around the house with a breakable small fortune in their hands.

1^st Place – Wii U or Wii

With so many games consoles to choose from, it can be really tricky to figure out which one to buy your child. Nintendo is almost a more popular option for any child aged from 3-14. This is because they have a huge amount of light-hearted, bright and happy games that are perfect for young children.  Another bonus is that some of the more infamous adult computer games, such as Grand Theft Auto and Saint’s Row simply aren’t available for Nintendo consoles – so you don’t need to worry about your little ones borrowing inappropriate games from a friend in school. Get the classic Wii if money is tight. It’s been out since 2006, so it has come down massively in price.  The Wii is actually no longer being made, but there are plenty still available to buy. There are also lots of second-hand games available for the Wii, both online and in most game shops.

If you have a little more money to spend, then invest in a Wii U now, instead of getting pestered into getting it in a year or two. The Wii U (available from the Nintendo online store) is an updated, high definition, higher performance Wii with a controller that has an embedded touchscreen on it. Your children will love the Wii U and it is the newest Nintendo console out there, so you won’t need to get a new model in a year or two.

Best of luck shopping for your little ones this Christmas.  I hope this has been useful to you – or that it has got you thinking about the most child-friendly presents at least.