How old were your children when they started using an ereader?

hrosvit · 10-17-2012, 01:57 PM

Yes, I know that a lot depends on the child's reading skills and ability to manipulate the technology, and every child is different.

My oldest son is turning 7, and I have promised him a tablet when I think he's ready (how's that for vague?). His birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks, but I don't think he's quite ready yet. I have visions of cracked screens and peanut butter, and other apocalyptic occurrences.

Obviously, he would be reading on it, and using it for movies, music, and games. He has a Nintendo 3DS that he uses proficiently, and he can navigate around my iPad and iPod Touch, so I know he'll pick up the tech pretty quickly.

If you have children that have their own e-reader/tablet, or use yours on a regular basis, how old were they when they got their first one, or began using one often?

David Munch · 10-17-2012, 02:02 PM

Stick to your promise and wait. If he's not ready, he's not ready. And neither is your paranoia when he handles it.

hrosvit · 10-17-2012, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by David Munch

Stick to your promise and wait. If he's not ready, he's not ready. And neither is your paranoia when he handles it.

Maybe you misinterpreted my post. I am not questioning my decision to wait; I know he's not ready yet. I'm just curious when other children started using e-readers.

And my paranoia is never going to go away. I shudder to think of when he starts driving.

aceflor · 10-17-2012, 02:06 PM

8 for my son who is now 12, my daughter who is 8 now (turning 9) is not interested in an e-reader yet (she likes pictures in her books). He is proficient with his KK and has been taking very good care of it, so he will get a cheap tablet for Xmas, my daughter gets a DSi XL as her DS is now in a poor poor state.

We have no Playstation, just an old wii. They are good with the use of all these devices (smartphones, ipod) but I do not trust her yet with the care of it so she will have to wait a bit more to be entrusted with her own device, e-reader or tablet. She can use mine, but I want it back in the same state as she got it, and she cannot use it in another room.

She accepts that, as I told her this is an apprenticeship.

5thWiggle · 10-17-2012, 02:30 PM

We got our twins girls a Kobo Vox each when they turned 7. No problems other than cleaning the screen for them (kids seem to produce so much more mucus than adults - one twin wears glasses and cannot for the life of her keep them clean

). They take good care of them, but we made sure to get them hard cases. My only regret is not buying something a little more powerful - i.e. with bluetooth and a microphone. The school board in our region has a "bring your tech to school" policy, and the Vox cannot handle it. So we've got two refurb Acer A200's and BT keyboards waiting for Xmas (the whole lot together was cheaper than any single netbook I could find, and besides, they share a laptop at home). I been playing with them setting them up, and also investigating the Funamo Parental Control App, but I haven't got it yet.

Pookeysgirl · 10-17-2012, 02:33 PM

My oldest step-daughter was 11 when she got her first ereader. I've let my boys read on my Kobo and Kindle whenever they want to (they don't really like reading so it's not very often). They started using them when they were 8 & 9. I would buy them their own reader if they would actually use them regularly, they'll be 9 & 10 this December.

Chi Cygni · 10-17-2012, 02:51 PM

Mine was 3 when he became interested in ipad (1). I just bought it then so I was petrified he'd break it but nothing happened yet (ok if I just jinxed it I will buy ipad3

) He is now 5 and regularly asks for it (games, magnetic letters, interactive books, youtube for dinosaurs) Screen gets smudgy but not bad. And first, I do not allow him to use it for hours, second he gives it up after a little while. And I monitor what exactly he is doing (youtube is especially tricky, so I monitor it closely) It will be a loooong time before he gets his own tablet though. He asked me what I was reading on my ereaders and played with buttons but you know, old folks books have no pictures and it was boring.

gweeks · 10-17-2012, 02:56 PM

Both of mine have their own ereaders. Polaroid where the only way to load books is USB. They are 10 and 12. They've been using mine for a while, probably a couple of years under supervision.

Greg

CommonReader · 10-17-2012, 03:25 PM

Our daughter was 10 when she got a Cybook Opus. Best present ever. Our son is 8 and unfortunately he isn't much of a reader yet. We may give him a Kobo mini to change this. He does use a an Acer netbook without problems, though.

Asawi · 10-17-2012, 04:09 PM

My daughter was 32 when she got her Sony 350.

My goddaughter got a Nook Classic last Christmas. She was 7,5 at the time.

RDaneel54 · 10-17-2012, 05:46 PM

My oldest granddaughter got hers at age 7. She's 8 now and this summer she read a lot of books, both on her Kindle 3 and pbooks.

She's been using computers (desktop in her room, family laptop elsewhere) since she was 3 and teaching adults how to use them since she was 5.

Bright kid, but also no fear of tech. Takes care of her electronics, too.

Now my son was in his 30s when ereaders came out, so he was little older.

sakura-panda · 10-18-2012, 03:25 PM

We gave my oldest a Kindle Touch last year when he was eight. My husband was getting tired of having to buy him books every other week and got it for him. He is hooked up to my Amazon account and I send him books that I think will interest him; he also asks me for books that he wants to read.

With his teacher's permission, he is allowed to take his Kindle to school to use for reading time. (He couldn't use it last year but this year his teacher allows it.) I wouldn't let him do that if he had a tablet, rather than a dedicated reader.

RainingLemur · 10-18-2012, 08:48 PM

I've read to both of my spawn on my Kindle(s), and have let the 5-year-old thumb through a couple of the picture books I have/had on the Fire.

But, he knows not to use them unless myself or the master of the house is around (Mommy).

miguel1626 · 10-18-2012, 09:42 PM

Thankfully I've no children of my own, but a friend of mine gave an iPad to his 4-year old daughter (plus one for her 7-year old sister).

NickyWithNook · 10-18-2012, 09:58 PM

I got my daughter one when she was 9. I might have gotten her one younger but I didn't have one yet then and I guess I was unsure about ereaders in general. My younger one is 3, and she plays on my and my husband's iPads sometimes, but we read her paper books at this point.

10-17-2012, 01:57 PM	#1
hrosvit Moron Posts: 333 Karma: 3113890 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Southwest PA Device: iPad 3, Galaxy Note 2, Nook ST	How old were your children when they started using an ereader? Yes, I know that a lot depends on the child's reading skills and ability to manipulate the technology, and every child is different. My oldest son is turning 7, and I have promised him a tablet when I think he's ready (how's that for vague?). His birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks, but I don't think he's quite ready yet. I have visions of cracked screens and peanut butter, and other apocalyptic occurrences. Obviously, he would be reading on it, and using it for movies, music, and games. He has a Nintendo 3DS that he uses proficiently, and he can navigate around my iPad and iPod Touch, so I know he'll pick up the tech pretty quickly. If you have children that have their own e-reader/tablet, or use yours on a regular basis, how old were they when they got their first one, or began using one often?

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10-17-2012, 02:02 PM	#2
David Munch Scholar Posts: 1,008 Karma: 3999312 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Denmark Device: Kobo Libra H2O + iPad Air 4	Stick to your promise and wait. If he's not ready, he's not ready. And neither is your paranoia when he handles it.

10-17-2012, 02:06 PM	#4
aceflor Wizard Posts: 3,470 Karma: 48036360 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: where the sun lives, or so they say Device: Pocketbook Era, Pocketbook Inkpad 4, Kobo Libra 2, Kindle Scribe	8 for my son who is now 12, my daughter who is 8 now (turning 9) is not interested in an e-reader yet (she likes pictures in her books). He is proficient with his KK and has been taking very good care of it, so he will get a cheap tablet for Xmas, my daughter gets a DSi XL as her DS is now in a poor poor state. We have no Playstation, just an old wii. They are good with the use of all these devices (smartphones, ipod) but I do not trust her yet with the care of it so she will have to wait a bit more to be entrusted with her own device, e-reader or tablet. She can use mine, but I want it back in the same state as she got it, and she cannot use it in another room. She accepts that, as I told her this is an apprenticeship.

10-17-2012, 02:30 PM	#5
5thWiggle Benevolent Evil Lord Posts: 1,704 Karma: 48339466 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Evil Canada (We all have goatees!) Device: Galaxy Note 8.0, Galaxy Note, iPad Mini, PocketEdge(retired)	We got our twins girls a Kobo Vox each when they turned 7. No problems other than cleaning the screen for them (kids seem to produce so much more mucus than adults - one twin wears glasses and cannot for the life of her keep them clean ). They take good care of them, but we made sure to get them hard cases. My only regret is not buying something a little more powerful - i.e. with bluetooth and a microphone. The school board in our region has a "bring your tech to school" policy, and the Vox cannot handle it. So we've got two refurb Acer A200's and BT keyboards waiting for Xmas (the whole lot together was cheaper than any single netbook I could find, and besides, they share a laptop at home). I been playing with them setting them up, and also investigating the Funamo Parental Control App, but I haven't got it yet.

10-17-2012, 02:33 PM	#6
Pookeysgirl Wizard Posts: 1,705 Karma: 12696746 Join Date: May 2010 Device: K3, Kobo Mini	My oldest step-daughter was 11 when she got her first ereader. I've let my boys read on my Kobo and Kindle whenever they want to (they don't really like reading so it's not very often). They started using them when they were 8 & 9. I would buy them their own reader if they would actually use them regularly, they'll be 9 & 10 this December.

10-17-2012, 02:51 PM	#7
Chi Cygni 秋子 permanently lurking Posts: 839 Karma: 6587575 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Europe Device: Oasis 3, Pocketbook Era	Mine was 3 when he became interested in ipad (1). I just bought it then so I was petrified he'd break it but nothing happened yet (ok if I just jinxed it I will buy ipad3 ) He is now 5 and regularly asks for it (games, magnetic letters, interactive books, youtube for dinosaurs) Screen gets smudgy but not bad. And first, I do not allow him to use it for hours, second he gives it up after a little while. And I monitor what exactly he is doing (youtube is especially tricky, so I monitor it closely) It will be a loooong time before he gets his own tablet though. He asked me what I was reading on my ereaders and played with buttons but you know, old folks books have no pictures and it was boring.

10-17-2012, 02:56 PM	#8
gweeks Fanatic Posts: 502 Karma: 3367460 Join Date: Apr 2007 Device: Rocket, Nook ST, Kobo WiFi, Kindle PW	Both of mine have their own ereaders. Polaroid where the only way to load books is USB. They are 10 and 12. They've been using mine for a while, probably a couple of years under supervision. Greg

10-17-2012, 03:25 PM	#9
CommonReader Fanatic Posts: 528 Karma: 2530000 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: Sony PRS-T3, PRS-650, Vaio Tap 11, iPad Mini	Our daughter was 10 when she got a Cybook Opus. Best present ever. Our son is 8 and unfortunately he isn't much of a reader yet. We may give him a Kobo mini to change this. He does use a an Acer netbook without problems, though.

10-17-2012, 04:09 PM	#10
Asawi Gadgetoholic Posts: 1,462 Karma: 2731820 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Sweden Device: Kobo Libra2, Tolino Vision 6	My daughter was 32 when she got her Sony 350. My goddaughter got a Nook Classic last Christmas. She was 7,5 at the time.

10-17-2012, 05:46 PM	#11
RDaneel54 Aging Positronic Brain Posts: 633 Karma: 2155452 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Aurora (when off-Earth) Device: Amazon Oasis; iPhone, iPad Mini	My oldest granddaughter got hers at age 7. She's 8 now and this summer she read a lot of books, both on her Kindle 3 and pbooks. She's been using computers (desktop in her room, family laptop elsewhere) since she was 3 and teaching adults how to use them since she was 5. Bright kid, but also no fear of tech. Takes care of her electronics, too. Now my son was in his 30s when ereaders came out, so he was little older.

10-18-2012, 03:25 PM	#12
sakura-panda Guru Posts: 923 Karma: 9558874 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Southeast Michigan, USA Device: 2017 10.5" iPad Pro (Kobo, NOOK, Kindle, Google Play Books & Scribd)	We gave my oldest a Kindle Touch last year when he was eight. My husband was getting tired of having to buy him books every other week and got it for him. He is hooked up to my Amazon account and I send him books that I think will interest him; he also asks me for books that he wants to read. With his teacher's permission, he is allowed to take his Kindle to school to use for reading time. (He couldn't use it last year but this year his teacher allows it.) I wouldn't let him do that if he had a tablet, rather than a dedicated reader.

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10-18-2012, 08:48 PM	#13
RainingLemur Spork Connoisseur Posts: 2,355 Karma: 16780603 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: Nook Color	I've read to both of my spawn on my Kindle(s), and have let the 5-year-old thumb through a couple of the picture books I have/had on the Fire. But, he knows not to use them unless myself or the master of the house is around (Mommy).

10-18-2012, 09:42 PM	#14
miguel1626 Great Old One Posts: 189 Karma: 998538 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: L1 Orbit Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro, iPhone 8 Plus	Thankfully I've no children of my own, but a friend of mine gave an iPad to his 4-year old daughter (plus one for her 7-year old sister).

10-18-2012, 09:58 PM	#15
NickyWithNook Guru Posts: 749 Karma: 3942770 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: American living in Australia Device: Kindle Fire, Kindle Paperwhite (Don't use Nook anymore)	I got my daughter one when she was 9. I might have gotten her one younger but I didn't have one yet then and I guess I was unsure about ereaders in general. My younger one is 3, and she plays on my and my husband's iPads sometimes, but we read her paper books at this point.