would you buy your 3 or 4 year old an itouch?

squishywife · November 2011

why or why not.

ali2005jason · November 2011

I wouldn't buy one specifically for them because it's an expensive electronic. We have one but I bought it for myself and let the kids play with it. They are pretty fragile too.

lona.hunn@gmail.com · November 2011

I bought my 12 yr old an Itouch for his birthday and damn near had a seizure doing it...but he's such a good kid..

Anyhoo, his father is getting him an Iphone for Christmas because the contract is up on the phone he has now. I'm "hoping" he will give the Itouch back to me (I don't see a reason he needs an Iphone and Itouch) so I can use it with my almost 3 year old. It would be MINE, but I'd def use it for entertainment in desperate situations.

I would never actually buy him one!

evaazalea · November 2011

Would and did, well technically DH did but it was a good investment. He has been very responsible with it. DH figured it would be a better investment then a DS as all the games are really cheap or free. It is also great for travel !

penguingrrl · November 2011

No way in hell. It's fragile and expensive, so IMO not an appropriate gift for a young child.

Mominator · November 2011

MY 3 y/o? No way in hell. He is all boy and is not gentle in the slightest. I do have a cell phone for the kids (so they can call their Dad, we don't have a house phone) and he is rough on that, no way would he not break an iTouch. That said, I really think it would depend on the kid, at that age, I think my DD would have been fine with it. Of course, that is a lot more money than I would ever spend on any one thing for my kids anyways.

CleoKitty · November 2011

I bought one for both dd and ds last year (they were almost 3 and 6 at the time.) Absolutely zero regrets.

I got them used off of Craigslist and together they both cost less than a portable DVD player for the car. They paid for themselves instantly since we were about to take a long road trip- loaded each one with a few movies and free games. They're really just perfect for travel. We bought them each a case and we haven't had any trouble with them being mistreated, handled roughly, lost, etc. Granted, my kids are really careful with their toys in general.

I spent less than I would've spent on a LeapPad version of the same thing and it's a far better deal, IMO. All of the apps are free or very low cost (instead of $20 cartridges) plus it's not something my kids are going to outgrow anytime soon. Win-win IMO.

Would I have bought them new? Nope, too much money.

emiliemadison · November 2011

Absolutely not. Toddlers/preschoolers dont need expensive electronic equipment and I dont care how much money someone has, it seems so excessive.

emiliemadison · November 2011

CleoKitty:
I bought one for both dd and ds last year (they were almost 3 and 6 at the time.) Absolutely zero regrets.
I got them used off of Craigslist and together they both cost less than a portable DVD player for the car. They paid for themselves instantly since we were about to take a long road trip- loaded each one with a few movies and free games. They're really just perfect for travel. We bought them each a case and we haven't had any trouble with them being mistreated, handled roughly, lost, etc. Granted, my kids are really careful with their toys in general.
I spent less than I would've spent on a LeapPad version of the same thing and it's a far better deal, IMO. All of the apps are free or very low cost (instead of $20 cartridges) plus it's not something my kids are going to outgrow anytime soon. Win-win IMO.
Would I have bought them new? Nope, too much money.

Ok, I guess I can see doing this. I was thinking of buying new. But used? I still think it's kinda nuts for a three year old, but buying some used that they use to watch movies in the car? I can get on board with that.

Mrs Manners · November 2011

Yes. I ordered it today. He will use it for movies in the car, music and apps plus FaceTime with me. It was $184 on amazon which is the cost of the leappad plus three games (what we had planned to get him)...once I did that math it made more sense to get the itouch.

Jodi&Joe · November 2011

People are spending $100 on a Leappad. It's $80 more for a iTouch. Sure, almost double the cost but is $80 REALLY the dealbreaker between "sure, my 3 year old can have that" and "No way. That's soooooo expensive!" And FWIW, they will likely get more use of the iPod Touch AND it will (in the long run) be less expensive since most of the apps are free -$4.99 (most ranging in the free to .99 range).

An iPod Touch can take the place of a walkman, gaming device, portable DVD player. It's all that - rolled in to one.

I get that it's fragile and does need special care. But so does the LeapPad, Leap Frog pen reader, Nintendo DS, etc etc etc. All toys should be cared for properly.

Mrs Manners · November 2011

Jodi&Joe:
I get that it's fragile and does need special care. But so does the LeapPad, Leap Frog pen reader, Nintendo DS, etc etc etc. All toys should be cared for properly.

I agree with this. I spent $28 to get the otterbox case instead of spending that money on AppleCare, it's a better protection IMO. I am very, very rough with my electronics and have these on my iPad and iPhone.

squishywife · November 2011

All this input is much appreciated. Especially how your youngesters use their itouches. We are considering this for our dds. They use my iphone regularly (love to watch youtube videos, facetime my sister, play games, listen to music, etc). They are very good with my iphone in terms of operating it and caring for it.

More input please both ways. I am open to the hellnoyour3yearoldshouldnthaveanitouch side. Sometimes I need to be put in check

Jodi&Joe · November 2011

Mrs Manners:
Jodi&Joe:

I get that it's fragile and does need special care. But so does the LeapPad, Leap Frog pen reader, Nintendo DS, etc etc etc. All toys should be cared for properly.

I agree with this. I spent $28 to get the otterbox case instead of spending that money on AppleCare, it's a better protection IMO. I am very, very rough with my electronics and have these on my iPad and iPhone.

DUH! I didn't realize they had the otterbox series for the touches. Why didn't I think of that? Joey just has an angry birds cover on the back of his. And then the screen (clear) cover (that film thing that you put over the screen). I know what I'm adding to their stockings this year!

FWIW, I bought both of theirs through Best Buy and paid an addt'l $35 for their protection plan, which is better than Apple's. They will replace it for basically anything (other than being lost). If it goes in the toilet, they replace it. Gets smashed on the ground. They replace it.

lona.hunn@gmail.com · November 2011

CleoKitty:
I bought one for both dd and ds last year (they were almost 3 and 6 at the time.) Absolutely zero regrets.
I got them used off of Craigslist and together they both cost less than a portable DVD player for the car. They paid for themselves instantly since we were about to take a long road trip- loaded each one with a few movies and free games. They're really just perfect for travel. We bought them each a case and we haven't had any trouble with them being mistreated, handled roughly, lost, etc. Granted, my kids are really careful with their toys in general.
I spent less than I would've spent on a LeapPad version of the same thing and it's a far better deal, IMO. All of the apps are free or very low cost (instead of $20 cartridges) plus it's not something my kids are going to outgrow anytime soon. Win-win IMO.
Would I have bought them new? Nope, too much money.

This makes more sense to me..

CleoKitty · November 2011

FWIW, I paid about $75 each for the iPod Touches that I bought this time last year. I imagine that you can probably find them even cheaper now if you start keeping an eye on Craigslist. There's even a good chance that if you start asking around someone in your family or close friends has an old 3G or 3GS iPhone just sitting unused in a drawer that they'd be happy to sell or give to you. Do you know anyone who just upgraded their iPhone when the new one was released last month?

AggieCouple · November 2011

CleoKitty:
FWIW, I paid about $75 each for the iPod Touches that I bought this time last year. I imagine that you can probably find them even cheaper now if you start keeping an eye on Craigslist. There's even a good chance that if you start asking around someone in your family or close friends has an old 3G or 3GS iPhone just sitting unused in a drawer that they'd be happy to sell or give to you. Do you know anyone who just upgraded their iPhone when the new one was released last month?

This. We bought TB (almost 4) a 8GB iPhone 3G for $85 and ML (5) a 16GB iPhone 3G for $95 on craigslist. Both are in excellent condition, with no screen scratches. We went with the iPhone because it has the camera. Used iPod Touch 4 (the only one with cameras) were running $200+.

Do be careful. I got scammed a little, buying an iPhone First Generation, advertised as a 3GS. It had a few dead pixels, too. I was able to sell it back for almost as much as I paid, even being completely honest, but I was lucky. I could have been out $80, but I was only out $20.

ali2005jason · November 2011

Ok, I can see buying them used for them. My kids love ours and constantly fight over it. I would be open to buying a used one so we'd have two. But, to buy new is ridiculous to me. And FWIW, I'm not getting my kids the LeapPad. They've got enough electronics with their DS's and the touch.

GinandTonic · November 2011

Last year, when he was 5 1/2, DS bought, for himself, a used iPhone - the older generation at the time, I have no idea what it is - from a friend of ours (god, that was a bad sentence). For 50 bucks. He uses it like an iTouch.

I like it better than a DS - the apps are free or really cheap. He can use it for music or videos or whatever.

It's actually in better shape than mine right now - I have a big huge shattered Droid that I won't pay the insurance deductible to replace, since it works just fine.

A brand new iTouch? Maybe not. And I told him next year that - maybe - he can get some sort of iPad, Kindle Fire, Nook or something.

patty78 · November 2011

I did buy my 4 year old an itouch. She was always taking my iphone for her games and I wanted my phone back! The problem is it is so small she sometimes misplaces it around the house, we have always found it though:)

penguingrrl · November 2011

Okay, cleo, what you did makes sense. My answer is also colored by the fact that *I* don't have an iphone or ipod touch or ipad or any of that stuff, so no way are my kids getting it when I don't have it. The highest technology I own is a several year old netbook and a first generation ipod nano.

Raspberry807 · November 2011

You'd have to control and monitor it. We bought our 8yr old an iTouch for Christmas last year and she has lost it. I think at that age they can certainly play with one, but they are nowhere near responsible enough to take care of one.

ShoppingMamma27 · November 2011

Not unless I get one first haha!

Want a personalized experience?

would you buy your 3 or 4 year old an itouch?

Re: would you buy your 3 or 4 year old an itouch?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards