Many of us looking online for ideas on Christmas gifts for our kids have come upon the two top learning tablets for kids: the LeapFrog LeapPad interactive learning tablet, and the VTech InnoTab learning tablet. Based on available prices online, it is clear that the VTech InnoTab learning tablet is at an advantage, since it’s only about half the price of the LeapPad learning tablet. But perhaps the price difference of about $20 is justified.
The two competing brands for learning tablets for kids are almost identical. They both have a 5” color touch screen, and a tilt sensor. They can both be navigated through hand motions like patting, flicking, tapping, dragging and sliding. Both learning tablets have an optional stylus, and both can be used for watching videos, reading animated stories in different eBook formats, listening to mp3’s and playing games. These learning tablets can also connect to either a Mac or PC for transferring media, using the included USB cable. The LeapFrog LeapPad learning tablet has a feature called Learning Path. This informs parents or guardians of their child’s learning progress via email. VTech’s version of this feature is called Learning Lodge Navigator.
The Leap Frog LeapPad Interactive Learning Tablet, however, features a camera that can be used for snapping photos or capturing videos. Your little one can even snap a photo of herself and use it in the Story Studio Princesses and Mermaids app, which is an app that helps kids develop their creativity by allowing them to write their own stories, by choosing their own verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, etc. For boys, there is also the Story Studio: Pirates & Aliens. Over 100 cartridges and apps are available to the LeapPad tablet, too, and the onboard memory included is a whopping 2GB. Some of the apps, eBooks, cartridges, and games available to this tablet are Disney Tangled, LeapSchool: In the Kitchen with Hap!, LeapSchool: Lights, Camera, Animals!, Disney Pixar Cars 2, Video App: Corwin’s Quest: The Blue Whale’s Tale, SpongeBob SquarePants The Clam Prix and eBook: Disney Princess Cinderella.
The VTech Kids Tablet may not have a built-in camera for videos or photos, but it is a highly ideal alternative for those looking into buying a learning tablet on a budget. As mentioned, this learning tablet is about half the cost of LeapFrog’s interactive learning tablet. With an onboard memory of only 64MB, the VTech InnoTab has 1.04GB less memory available to it, compared to LeapFrog’s learning tablet. However, this memory can be expanded by using an SD card, as there is an SD card slot on the VTech InnoTab Learning Tablet. Some of the onboard apps included in the VTech learning tablet are Friends List, Calculator, Clock, Art Studio, as well as Video and MP3 player.