Quote:
Originally Posted by erictoma
I think that eReaders are not suitable for kids from 8 to 10 in my opinion.
1- Electronic devices are easily broken if not handled carefully.
2- Most of the eReaders require hands dexterity, tiny buttons, rubber pads.
3- Ereaders can contain a lot of titles in the same time, even adults find themselves jumping from one novel to another without even completing one.
4- Ereaders require the ability of reading English in order to perform simple task like browsing navigation from menus
5- Ereaders also require knowledge to resolve bugs, to store ebooks make notation ect
6- they tend to freeze, even adults will past their entire days calling customer services
7- they are expensive, you will have to pay at least 1000 dollars for your kids.
8- Your kids will have territorial fights between them, you cannot duplicate the ebooks, you have to buy the same ebooks 7 times or you face some domestic dispute .
Because you seem to be a rich person  I recommend you to hire an employee who can oversee all those gadgets at your home and can pass his month calling customer services and fixing bugs.
Kids like to run to jump , let them have fun and take maximum benefit of their childhood. |
I am sorry but I disagree with this. 10 years ago this may have been the case with 1-5, but these days kids start using electronics at a very young age. My 3 year old has his own laptop (not a kids laptop, my old one which is only 3 years old), he does need help sometimes, but I prefer him to learn and come to me when he needs help. Kids need learn to be careful with important things. I think it depends on the child, some are much more careful and technically inclined than others.
As for #6, this can happen with any product. I am looking at buying my son a Vtech reader (books to help with learning) and it can also freeze up or have glitches. There really is no way around this. I have had my Nook for 6 months and I have yet to have a problem. 8-10 year olds will be smart enough to learn to do a reset if there is a problem and usually that can solve the problem (for Nooks anyway, not sure about the others).
7. If the parents are buying books for their children anyway, what is the difference? You can get a lot of free or cheap ebooks and use Overdrive, so they can save there.
8. I am not sure about other readers, but I know that for the Nook as long as you put in the credit card number of the ebook you bought (if at B&N, if at other stores you can still share without the credit card number) you can use it on any Nook. The Kindle also lets you share books with 4 (it may be more or less I can't remember) other family members.
I can tell you that if my boys enjoy reading half as much as I do, they will have a reader at a young age. I think the age depends on the level and maturity of the child and that is where the parent has to make the call.
For the OP question, I think maybe a Sony would be optional because I think you can use multiple formats. Although, because epub is becoming so popular, I would almost go with a Nook. I love mine and I think the kids like the lcd screen and being able to see the books cover while searching. if you think you can find most books in mobi format or are willing to buy from amazon, then a Kindle would be a great choice as well.
Good luck!