Our Lifesaver in the Air: Fuhu Nabi 2 Tablet Review
When we contemplated spending up to 20 hours at a time in airplanes with a young toddler, I was terrified. No way in the world could I pack enough books, puzzles, games, and toys to keep him occupied for even four hours! We began researching different tablets that could carry all the books, puzzles, movies, games, and educational apps we wanted in one unit. We settled on the Fuhu Nabi 2 and we are very happy with our purchase. This tablet is toddler-proof, easy to use, and has literally saved my sanity on multiple occasions.
My favorite feature of this tablet is its sturdiness. It has survived many flings of a frustrated toddler, and being crushed in a stuffed bag for three overseas trips and many domestic trips. The silicone bumper protects the tablet from scuffs and scrapes, and cushions any tumbles that the tablet takes. After this tablet, others have come out with similar bumpers, but this tablet seems to be the only one specifically built for kids.
My toddler and I also enjoy its ease of use. When my son was eighteen months old, he had a hard time navigating between apps and although it was nice as an entertainment device, he often got frustrated if he couldn't get it to do the things he wanted it to do. If I played along with him and helped him with accessing and using some apps, he could spend hours on it. A few months later, he gained the coordination and skill to navigate between apps and play many games, educational apps, and coloring apps by himself. He recently started watching feature-length films and so we have several of those loaded up via the microSD card ready to enjoy on long flights. We also use the handy mini HDMI cable to hook the tablet to the TV, so wherever we are, we can watch movies off of the tablet.
The delineation of parent vs. "nabi" modes is really nice and secure. As the parent, I can password protect the "adult" division of the tablet where I can download content and apps, and make purchases. Any in-app purchase buttons that are pushed in "nabi" mode require me to put in my password before continuing on to purchase something. This has saved us a ton of money, because you know how much toddlers love pushing buttons! From parent mode, I can decide which apps Landon can see in "Nabi" mode and easily remove apps that he is having trouble with or no longer using.
The pre-loaded content on the tablet seems to be an awesome feature for older kids. They have educational games and apps from Preschool on up. The original operating system allowed us to have the Amazon appstore as well as Google Play and the Nabi store, but several times a day an app would stop and close in the middle of using it! Since the operating system update, I have noticed less apps seizing up, and a happier toddler! Many of the pre-loaded games are very well designed and advanced compared to the cheapo free apps that I load on it for educational purposes. For older kids there are also places for parents to put a chore chart- that unlocks certain features of the tablet once a parent signs off on chores being done, and a treasure chest where you can reward their effort with nabi coins that can be used to purchase apps in the Nabi store. There are also time controls to help control and limit screen time, which I appreciate for all the days when we are not in an airplane. The operating system is now Android and the Google Play store is its app store. I have had no trouble finding apps that are great for toddlers from 18 months to preschool age. I'm sure we can adjust and increase the difficulty of apps as he gets older- we have already had to update and refresh the apps several times to keep up with his growth and development!
Although this is one of the pricier kids tablets on the market, we are very pleased with our purchase and how well this tablet has worked for us so far. Our son is a very active and rambunctious toddler and this tablet looks like new if we use an electronics wipe to clean the screen and silicone bumper every once and awhile. It is easy to use-even for toddlers, and it is easy for me to control content and refresh the apps and movies loaded on as needed. The new operating system, preloaded educational material and incentives to do important family chores and duties first before playing games really makes it a winner in my book. We hope that this tablet can grow up with our boy and know that along with helping preserve my sanity on airplanes, he is learning from it too!
Check it out here!
Frequent Flyer tip: In order to make it more special and captivating on long car rides/airplane rides, we severely limit his time on his tablet during a normal week. I prefer to do interactive learning activities with him when I can, and use the tablet to help entertain him when we are traveling. This has been a great strategy so far to help him be occupied with the tablet longer when we want him to be. Along with that, we don't have to worry about him always whining for it and getting addicted to using it all the time during the week.
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| Here it is in all its glory! photo here |
My toddler and I also enjoy its ease of use. When my son was eighteen months old, he had a hard time navigating between apps and although it was nice as an entertainment device, he often got frustrated if he couldn't get it to do the things he wanted it to do. If I played along with him and helped him with accessing and using some apps, he could spend hours on it. A few months later, he gained the coordination and skill to navigate between apps and play many games, educational apps, and coloring apps by himself. He recently started watching feature-length films and so we have several of those loaded up via the microSD card ready to enjoy on long flights. We also use the handy mini HDMI cable to hook the tablet to the TV, so wherever we are, we can watch movies off of the tablet.
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| On a five-hour bus ride from Cilacap to Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia... Couldn't have done it without you, Nabi! |
The pre-loaded content on the tablet seems to be an awesome feature for older kids. They have educational games and apps from Preschool on up. The original operating system allowed us to have the Amazon appstore as well as Google Play and the Nabi store, but several times a day an app would stop and close in the middle of using it! Since the operating system update, I have noticed less apps seizing up, and a happier toddler! Many of the pre-loaded games are very well designed and advanced compared to the cheapo free apps that I load on it for educational purposes. For older kids there are also places for parents to put a chore chart- that unlocks certain features of the tablet once a parent signs off on chores being done, and a treasure chest where you can reward their effort with nabi coins that can be used to purchase apps in the Nabi store. There are also time controls to help control and limit screen time, which I appreciate for all the days when we are not in an airplane. The operating system is now Android and the Google Play store is its app store. I have had no trouble finding apps that are great for toddlers from 18 months to preschool age. I'm sure we can adjust and increase the difficulty of apps as he gets older- we have already had to update and refresh the apps several times to keep up with his growth and development!
Although this is one of the pricier kids tablets on the market, we are very pleased with our purchase and how well this tablet has worked for us so far. Our son is a very active and rambunctious toddler and this tablet looks like new if we use an electronics wipe to clean the screen and silicone bumper every once and awhile. It is easy to use-even for toddlers, and it is easy for me to control content and refresh the apps and movies loaded on as needed. The new operating system, preloaded educational material and incentives to do important family chores and duties first before playing games really makes it a winner in my book. We hope that this tablet can grow up with our boy and know that along with helping preserve my sanity on airplanes, he is learning from it too!
Check it out here!
Frequent Flyer tip: In order to make it more special and captivating on long car rides/airplane rides, we severely limit his time on his tablet during a normal week. I prefer to do interactive learning activities with him when I can, and use the tablet to help entertain him when we are traveling. This has been a great strategy so far to help him be occupied with the tablet longer when we want him to be. Along with that, we don't have to worry about him always whining for it and getting addicted to using it all the time during the week.
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