bargnshopnmama Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 (edited) I'm just looking for some opinions here. We have a wii and a ps3 in our home (not ready to spend more money to upgrade to a newer system yet). However, we are looking into buying something for our son for either his birthday or Christmas. He turns 6 on Thanksgiving day! The dilemma is choosing what to get. I'm wanting something that is portable so he can use it on the go, and also so he's not wanting to fight over the tv all the time. He's really into Pokemon right now so we've considered getting him an older model of the ds. I was looking online at gamestop and vintage stock and these games are still 40 bucks a pop used! I'm not really wanting to shell out a bunch of money for something and then not be able to afford all of the expensive games so do I go with a tablet geared toward kids instead? I figure at least that should have some free games on it and then buying a few every now would be much more affordable. Also having learning games would be a huge benefit. If i go the way of a tablet, what should I get? I have a nook color myself and I admit it doesn't get any use anymore. Because you can't access the android market on it the apps are very limited and expensive. Recommendations or opinions? Edited October 29, 2014 by bargnshopnmama Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamieva Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 amazon fire $99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momlori Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 You can try Ebay for used Nintendo DS units and games Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shopping4my3son Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 My younger two kids (8 & 12) have a Kindle Fire and a 3DS. They like their Kindle Fire better than the 3ds and use it more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
len_mullen Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 OP, I also recommend a Kindle Fire. I think you will find the device itself less expensive than most handhelds and the games that are not free (at least once in a while) are very inexpensive. Besides playing games, the Fire can be used to surf the internet, check mail, read books, and do some educational things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bargnshopnmama Posted October 29, 2014 Author Share Posted October 29, 2014 I'll have to look into the Fire! Isn't there a new one coming out or that just came out? I think it comes with a trial of prime as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamieva Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 A newer one came out that I believe is $189. I would buy the $99 one as with a 6 year old theres a little higher risk of damaging it. Look into a good case for it as well. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyreejames Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 I would look into the kids edition of the Kindle Fire. It's $149 and comes with a rubber bumper case as well as a 2 year warranty. DS7 has the kindle fire HD can use it for gaming, watching tv, reading books, and he has some learning apps on it. I've gotten more than my money's worth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaymacfla Posted October 31, 2014 Share Posted October 31, 2014 The Kindle Fire, like the I Pad, has only so much storage space. This is it's biggest limitation, so Androids are much more attractive as the space limitation becomes an issue. The problem with Androids are that many under-performing clones and the best bet if you were to choose one would be with a name brand such as the Samsung Galaxy Tablet. If you are going to get a new contract with your carrier, the cost may not be as steep on BF. Like others have said, the Kindle will be your best overall bet, given the child's age, application cost, and device cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myboysnme Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 Hmm, he's 6 - the only reason I'm thinking hold off on the tablet is because what are you going to get when he's 7 or 9? I'd go with handheld game system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howpomp Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 If he is into Pokemon then the 3DS, plenty of titles available. Kindle Fire is great device but it is not likely we will see any Pokemon titles released for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laddhorn Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 I suggest the 3DS. He is 6, and while there are plenty of games available for a tablet that he would enjoy, a tablet is easily broken. My daughter was given a tablet last year (a cheapo) and it's screen was broken within 2 months. She is very easy going and not extremely active. As your son is into Pokemon, a DS would be excellent for him. If you go with the older DS model, you will also be able to play the gameboy color games. You will only find these games on ebay as gamestop no longer stocks them. There are 4-5 gameboy color Pokemon games out there. They would probably be cheap as the DS is outdated and the last that would run them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peppysfireball Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 I bought my grandkids tablets at 5 adn 7 . They need to start learning to use them as the schools are going to them. My granddaugher who is 2 is getting one for xmas this year. She plays with mine every day and loves it. I have a kndle fire and my granddaughter can turn on the netflix app and pick her own movie and turn it on. She can go back and find a game and play it no problems. We all have fires. I have the 99 one that was the black friday deal last year. We have never experienced any issues with the lack of space. My son even puts movies on his. I have square trade waranties on all ours which is a better deal than teh kids kindle as I had a 40% off code and only paid 21.00 for full accident protection for 3 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pnambic Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 I was totally a skeptic, but all of my kids have loved (heck, probably still love) the Pokemon games.My twelve year old actually downloaded a song to his tablet recently that he was telling me was the soundtrack to one of his favorite scenes from one of his favorite Pokemon games.If your sons likes Pokemon, I can't see getting a tablet over a DS game system. A tablet can't do Pokemon....at least I don't think it can....And we bought almost all of our Pokemon games from Gamestop used for between $10 and $20. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spotted1 Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 We purchased the Ematic Genesis quad core tablets for $49 each from Walmart for our older girls (ages 7 and 10) and they love them. I like tablets over handhelds because of their ability to stream movies, access the internet for school work research, etc. We have one google play account and the girls can access shared books, movies, and music from either tablet anywhere there's wifi. Plus there are a ridiculous amount of game options, including mobile versions of console/handheld favorites (Minecraft, Sonic, emulator apps for games like Pokemon and Super Mario Brothers, etc.) that are free or incredibly cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chelamarc Posted November 3, 2014 Share Posted November 3, 2014 You pose a tough question, but I would have to agree with others and say the Kindle fire is the way to go. My kids LOVE everything Pokemon and have the 3DS/lite/Game Boy and are looking forward to the two new Pokemon games coming out soon.....but they spend much more time on their kindle than they do their DS systems. The kindle offers more variety in terms of apps/games/videos and MANY MANY are free. You may also find some Pokemon apps on the kindle such as Pokemon TV, Pokemon puzzle and How to Draw: Pokemon characters. Good luck! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momee2twins Posted November 4, 2014 Share Posted November 4, 2014 Our son got his Ipod 5th gen touch when he was 6 ( his older sisters got them that year so...) and he's been fine with it. All three are getting Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 10.1 tablets this year. Bigger screen. (games and netflix rule our house) I looked at getting ipads, but for the memory space, the cost was too great. The ipods have 32 gb and we have maxed them out with videos and games on long trips. The tablets come with 16 gb and can expand up to 64 . If you really want to go with apple, there should be some good deals on the mini again this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim3498 Posted November 5, 2014 Share Posted November 5, 2014 If your child is a gamer the better option is the ds. The tablets are fun, and do have some lower level games, but you just don't get the same level of gaming with a tablet that he would get with a Ds. My son is 16 and still enjoys the Pokemon games. I usually try to pick the new ones up at toysrus when they have the buy one get one for 40% off on games (usually the weekend the pokemon games come out). The new ones come out 11/21. The names are Pokemon alpha sapphire, and pokemon omega ruby in case you may be interested in those. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanyon71 Posted November 5, 2014 Share Posted November 5, 2014 The best advice I can give is find out what their friends have and go with that. Makes life easier, especially when they play a game with a friend and then want to be able to play that game themselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom8w Posted November 5, 2014 Share Posted November 5, 2014 We have a Kindle Fire, which the kids enjoy for games as well as movies. They also enjoy their DS versions. My boys love being able to video record activities, tweak voices, and goof off. They save up for games, so they don't have a bunch of them. Either could be a good fit, but I think new content for the DS systems is more costly. In either case, the kiddos are tough on their equipment. Protective gear and protection plans make good sense. The boys bought their 3DS together, and the protection plan expired right before the device died. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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