With the wide variety of portable video players, MP3 players and the like available for adults, it's little wonder that a similar market has sprung up for young children. Portable video players especially, durable and capable of playing discs or cartridges which have videos of popular characters like Dora the Explorer and SpongeBob SquarePants, are finding their way onto automotive backseats and living room sofas. What are some of the most popular ones out there? Take a read below to find out.
[NOTE: If you are looking for portable DVD players to entertain your kids with on car trips, check out this list instead.]
The Tiger Electronics Massively Mini Media Player is a small portable media player designed with your kid in mind. It has a small, colorful screen, comes in three different colors and also comes with earbuds which double as a lanyard, letting your child wear the player around his or her neck. The Massively Mini Media Player has enough internal memory to store one hour of video, two hours of music or upwards of 1,200 digital photos. Other features include Windows software for loading media onto the player, touch-screen controls and a rechargeable battery.
Disney Mix Sticks are cleverly designed MP3 players which come in four different styles for children, including Disney Princesses and Tinker Bell themes. These players can play MP3 and WMA audio files for up to eight hours on a rechargeable battery and can hold up to 60 songs without an optional memory card. Music can be copied to a player’s memory via a computer or a special full-length Disney Mix Clip album can be inserted into the Mix Stick’s internal memory card slot.
The Leapfrog Leapster Multimedia Learning System, for ages 4 and up, uses educational games on cartridges with characters like Dora the Explorer and the Disney Princesses to teach children reading, math, vocabulary and other skills. Children can read electronic books, create art and watch videos. Control is handled through a multi-directional control pad or touch-sensitive color screen. Sound is heard through headphones or a built-in speaker. The Leapster uses 4 AA batteries for power.
The LeapFrog FLY Pentop Computer is an ingenious idea: a small computer inside a pen works with special paper and a built-in scanner to provide interactive learning for kids. The FLY gives audio feedback to its user as he or she interacts with special FLYware cartridges by writing or drawing. In one example, a child can draw a calculator and input an operation to hear the answer told to them. Kids can track their schedules and get audible reminders of upcoming events. Games are also available.
The VideoNow Color FX Player, with its 2.3-inch LCD color screen, is geared for children over 5. It plays video discs which contain full length episodes of cartoons like SpongeBob SquarePants as well as other popular kid friendly programming like music videos and television shows. Sound is heard through a built-in speaker or a headphone jack. Viewing time is up to six hours on one set of AA batteries. It comes in three gem-like colors – pink, green, blue – and is fairly small. Other features include an integrated LCD backlight, contrast control and an outlet for an optional car power adapter.
The Fisher Price Kid Tough FP3 Player is simply put a MP3 player designed for your preschooler. This player offers up big buttons for easy use, a durable design and a backlit 1.4-inch LCD screen which uses icons to help your child make his or her choices. This player holds about two hours worth of entertainment, which can come in the form of music you copy to its internal memory or kid-friendly songs and stories you purchase and download from a special online store. Other features include kid sized headphones, expandable SD memory card memory for more storage and a breakaway neck strap.
){kind=link}
){kind=link}
| 