The best tablets for kids

The Fire HD 10 Kids Pro is the biggest and best option from Amazon’s range of tablets for kids. It comes with one free year of Amazon Kids+ — a kids-focused subscription service stacked with movies, shows, books, and games — plus a headache-saving two-year guarantee.?

Parents can set time limits, while age filters keep all content age appropriate. That means you don't have to constantly monitor what your kids are looking at. It's already in hand. Parents can also give children selected access to bonus apps such as Netflix, YouTube, Roblox, or Minecraft.

As with previous gen editions of the Amazon Fire, the Kid Friendly case is both fun and durable — it’s made to withstand drops, spills, and rough play. But if something does happen to break, Amazon will send you a new tablet.

Older kids need a tablet that can keep up with schoolwork and keep them busy beyond educational games. Look no further than the Apple iPad.

The App Store has a number of (free) educational apps, and kids will be psyched about the iPad's games and augmented reality capabilities. There's even an AR frog dissection, if you want to combine education and gaming.?

Parents can set controls, restrictions, and locks — or even limit which websites your kids visit and which movies they can stream.?But you have to figure all that stuff out for yourself. It can be a little tricky to set up.

The iPad is basically a mini computer, decked out with spec that blows away most tablets (or even laptops). That means it’s far more delicate than youngster-specific tablets, such as the Fire, but child-proof cases are available.

The Kindle Kids Edition is bare-bones compared to the other tablets on its list, but for its intended purposes — reading and listening to books —?this tablet serves a young bookworm very well indeed. It has no games, videos, or apps, so there are no distractions. It's purely about building great reading habits.

In terms of reading material, it comes with a year's subscription to Amazon Kids+, which includes lots of popular books and Audible titles for kids — everything from Big Nate to the entire Harry Potter series.

Your little reader will also get access to two valuable reading tools: "Vocabulary Builder" creates flashcards out of any words they look up in the device's built-in dictionary, and "Word Wise" puts simple definitions above tricky words.

You've also got the option of adding books to your kid's library through the Kindle Store and checking in on their reading progress.?

This is Apple's best bang for your buck — the newest iPad Air. It sits between the entry-level iPad and the powerful iPad Pro. But Air is way more Pro than it lets on. Older kids won't feel lame having to share this with their parents.

As with other iPads, the App Store is home to thousands of educational apps for all age groups and interests, from simple maths and reading to science.

The parental locks and restrictions are still applicable (though as nothing comes pre-installed, you’ll have to set these yourself). Even if a responsible older kid doesn't need their usage monitored 24/7, controls are handy for keeping them from getting distracted during homework hours.

Schoolwork may actually be enjoyable with the crisp visuals and no-lag screen. And while all tablets are portable, the slender and lightweight build makes this super easy for carrying in a backpack between classes.

Nobody does kids' tablets like Amazon. That's why the Fire 7 Kids, which has been around a few years now, is still going strong — and at a decent price while still packing plenty of features that younger kids will love.

It comes with a year’s subscription to Amazon Kids+, with over 20,000 movies, shows, book, and apps for kids aged 3-7. Content features popular characters from Disney, Nickelodeon, Peppa Pig, and more. Kids+ basically saves parents from having to comb through an app store for entertainment.

You get the same age filters, time restrictions, and control options as with the Fire HD 10 — and it’s always worth noting how amazing FreeTime is. This keeps an eye on your kids' usage so you don't have to. The kids content is so genius that little ones don't realise they're learning or being monitored.

The Lenovo Tab M11 is a very respectable option at a budget price point. It's designed to be a mini entertainment system, with a cinematic mode, Dolby Atmos quad-speakers, and HD visuals. A 10-hour battery gives you enough power for binge watching, too.

It's also made specifically for families. The Google Kids app has all kinds of features both both learning and play, while parents can rest assured that the kids are in safe hands thanks to robust parental controls. It will even recommend content and maintain safe-searching online.

There's a stylus include for note-taking and doodling. And if you need to stay on top of your admin it has a smart scanner features that can convert documents into pdf files.

There are bigger spec tablets out there, of course. That's to be expected when you're shopping at this price point. But if you need something affordable to keep the whole entertained, you can't really go wrong. Particularly if you want to snuggle up on the sofa and stream with the kids.