Nabi 2 vs Leap Pad Explorer 2 vs Innotab 2, November 6, 2012

Like I think a lot of parents, I was researching which of these tablets to give my child. He turned 2 years old 3 months ago, so he’s quite young. But he is very tech savvy, and I wanted a tablet my son would enjoy for years to come which offered both educational and entertainment options, was an “affordable” price, and was very durable. I read tons of reviews, went to the stores, watched YouTube videos, and ultimately selected the Nabi 2. Everyone’s criteria is different, but I thought I would share my reasons for choosing the Nabi 2, and my experiences now that we have it because I know other parents are trying to chose between these options.

WHY I DID NOT CHOSE THE INNOTAB 2 OR THE LEAP PAD EXPLORER 2

WIRELESS CAPABILITY

Because I have no prior experience with either Leap Frog or VTech, I was not predisposed to either platform. I had nearly chosen the Innotab 2s (NOT the Innotab 2) because it has (limited) wireless capability to VTech’s site.

However, the Nabi 2 connects wirelessly via Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, so the connection is not only fast, but it won’t slow down the rest of my wireless network (your entire wireless network will only go as fast as the slowest device connected to it). In addition, the user interface (UI) is already set up to prevent my son from going to websites not appropriate for him, and is set up to go to sites with videos he would enjoy. The Nabi 2′s full wireless capabilities allows me to download apps and videos anywhere in the home, rather than having to connect the device to a computer first and load said items onto it.

SCREEN SIZE AND QUALITY

The Nabi 2 has a 7″ capacitive screen with 1024×600 resolution. The Leap Pad Explorer 2 features a 5″ resistive screen with 480×272 resolution. I could not find any info on the Innotab 2 screen other than it is 5″. If there are only four Atari 2600-esque things on the screen to tap at, then you don’t need a particularly responsive or high resolution screen. However, since I had planned on this purchase to last several years, I wanted the option of enjoying better graphics, and the ability to play games that require a more responsive screen. I also wanted nice video quality for watching shows and movies on, and the Nabi 2 had the best screen for all of this.

PROCESSING POWER

There are plenty of speed tests on YouTube for the Nabi 2, the Innotab 2, and the Leap Pad Explorer 2 (as well as the Tabeo, and I think the Meep). These tests mainly focus on how quickly these devices turn on, but also include how quickly they switch from one application to another. If you don’t think that matters, turn on your phone and pretend you can’t use it for a full minute. Feel good? Now pretend you have the patience of a 2 year old. Especially after you’ve become accustomed to Mom’s iPad.

Processing power also affects how well the device responds to the child’s input, and how it will run newer games/apps. I’d rather pay $200 for the best tablet processor available (relatively speaking) vs. paying $100 for a processor that is obsolete.

MULTIMEDIA OPTIONS

The Innotab 2 has the ability to play videos from a memory card, and the Leap Pad 2 does not. This is an option valuable to me because I can use it to play videos without the need for a separate DVD player nor would I need to install a DVD player in my car. For me this method of watching videos is also less cumbersome to use (i.e rather than a laptop) during long car rides/plane rides.

Because the Nabi 2 is an Android tablet with wireless capability, it plays Netflix, Pandora, and I believe it will play Amazon Prime videos and Hulu Plus (with a the right work-arounds if you already have another Android device). The “pre-installed” videos are actually preset links to child appropriate videos on YouTube, which include Mickey Mouse and Dora the Explorer.

One VERY cool feature the Nabi 2 has is HDMI output, which not even the Nexus 7 has. Why is this cool? Because you can stream children’s programs and watch them on a regular TV. I just watched an episode of Dora the Explorer via the Nabi 2 on my 60″ plasma TV! I simply connected the Nabi 2 to my TV via the HDMI output, went to Netflix (on the Nabi 2), and there you go! This adds fantastic functionality if you don’t already have a Roku, streaming blu-ray player, or a smart TV, or are on vacation and want to watch a movie in the hotel room.

For those of you who are considering this Nabi 2 over the Kindle Fire HD and the Nexus 7, IMO the HDMI output w/o additional wireless equipment also puts the Nabi 2 ahead for MY purposes (YMMV).

APPS VS CARTRIDGES

The ability to get free apps from the Amazon Store (and Google Play via another Android device) IMO adds a lot more value to the Nabi 2.

As of now, my 2YO LOVES the free alphabet apps, and so far have kept him…

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Premier kids tablet that even gives adult tablets a run for their money!, July 21, 2012

By 

Levi (Reston, VA, United States) –

  

  

This is the 2nd generation tablet from Fuhu, a company well-known for their educational online services such as Foozkids. The original Nabi came out in November of last year and was really the first tablet geared specifically towards younger kids (age 4-10). While revolutionary in that sense, it was not without a few hiccups as a first generation product often is. However, realizing this, the company bent over backwards to make things right with its customers and fixed most of the issues in software updates as well as a charger replacement. Learning a lot from that first tablet, they’ve come out with a new one that really blows the competition away. Now that there is competition – many of whom copied the original Nabi in many ways. But the Nabi 2 is so fast and responsive, comes with so much additional software, and is backed by such a customer-centric company, that really there’s no REAL competition!

Full disclosure: I am a Nabi Fan-a-tech. When the initial Nabi came out, a lot of people started using it’s Facebook page to trade information, ask questions, and get support. Some of us who had purchased the tablet for our child and are a little more tech-savvy, decided to try to answer a lot of these questions, and Fuhu made us “Fan-a-tech’s.” Which means we just keep helping the community by answering questions, providing tips, app ideas, etc. We also test updates out before they go public, and in the case of the Nabi 2, we got a chance to try them out and find issues before they went on sale. So I’ve been using one for a few weeks now and it is very fast and responsive with no freezes, crashes, etc. It is truly one of the fastest Android devices I’ve used.

Aside from speed, the other nice thing about this Nabi is that it is now able to do video chatting. It comes with Skype, and my daughter has Skyped a bunch of times already with both grandmas. In the next month or two Fuhu has said they will be coming out with an add-on rear-facing 8-megapixel camera (the included front-facing one is 2MP) that, among other things, will be used for an augmented reality game they will be putting out.

In some of the reviews that have been published on other sites, it’s been noted that the Nabi 2 does not have the Google Play store or Google apps. This was true of the first Nabi, however someone was able to provide the Google Services Framework apk that would work with it and allow for the Android Market to work. I’ve tried the Google Services Framework on the Nabi 2 and I’m able to get Gmail working, but so far not Google Play, however, one of the other Fan-a-tech’s is working on a solution, so I have no doubt that within the next few weeks, there will be that support. In the mean time there is of course the Amazon app store, and if you have an Android phone or tablet that DOES have access to Google Play, you can always transfer the apk’s from that store via an app like Android Backup and Restore, which works really well for most apps.

The other issue around the Nabi 1 was availability, but that’s because there was only one partner for it, who did not order units based on the true demand for the product. Thus many people waited months in vain. With the Nabi 2, this is solved by the fact that Fuhu now has at least 5 different major retail partners in the US alone, and will also be partnering with retailers in Canada, the UK, and other countries starting in August. They’re committed to producing over a million tablets over the next few months, and more if necessary, so supply should be no issue this time around!

Fuhu will be coming out with a bunch of accessories for the Nabi 2 starting in August, including a set of different colored bumper cases, (volume-limited) headphones, a Bluetooth keyboard, a car charger, the aforementioned rear-facing camera, and a lot more.

As I’ve alluded to and what I’m sure you will see repeated in other reviews is that Fuhu is a unique company in how they treat their customers. They are all about making a difference in the customer’s life, and making sure the customer is not just satisfied but truly happy with their purchase. They bend over backwards to make this happen. They also have decided to put a lot of effort into the Special Needs community, since they have received many emails from parents of children with special needs who got so much out of the tablet.

By the way, although the tablet is geared specifically towards the 4-10 age range, that doesn’t mean it can’t be used by those who are older. The bumper comes off easily to reveal a sleek white tablet. If you want you can even disable the Nabi Mode (kids interface/launcher) and stick to the stock ICS launcher – or load your favorite third-party launcher. I can tell you that I use mine for normal day-to-day purposes without issue or feeling like I’m using a kid’s tablet or a “toy.”

As you can tell, I’m a big fan of Fuhu and…

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