When asked to compare and contrast Vtech’s Innotab 2 against Leapfrog’s Leappad 2 for the Izziwizzi Kids Playfest, I certainly had a challenge ahead of me, and together with my 4yr old daughter Miss M we were very excited to get stuck into. So after a week of playing games, taking silly pictures of each other, videoing little brother Mister B dancing and downloading Miss M’s favourite songs I feel we finally had a grasp on how each tablet behaved and the opportunities available on each.
I was initially surprised to find how similar they are, so when it comes down to which is best, I think really it is down to personal preference along with several differing factors of which I have highlighted below for you:
Design/looks: The Innotab 2 has a more chunkier feel to it – great for little fingers compared to the sleeker look of the Leappad 2 which I think would appeal to the older age ranges.
The Innotab 2’s touchscreen seemed a bit less sensitive than the Leappad 2 which seemed a lot more responsive.
Memory: The Innotab 2 comes with an inbuilt memory of 2GB although is expandable with an SD card compared to 4GB on the Leappad 2 (no SD card slot)
MP3 player: The Innotab 2 comes with a ready to use MP3 player, the Leappad 2 doesn’t but an app is available to buy for £3.50
Your own film and video content can be downloaded onto the Innotab 2 for your child to watch although the Leappad 2 can only have paid for content downloaded onto it.
The apps for each are similar although there are some cheaper games available for the Innotab 2, but my initial view of these are that they are short lived and a child will lose interest quickly. Overall cartridge games can cost up to £20 each for both tablets therefore I feel they are fairly equal although the Leappad 2 does have a larger library of downloadable apps.
Please watch our comparison video to make your own mind up:
All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions. We are not paid for reviews although we do receive the product to try out and enable us to write the review.
Upon opening the box containing the Innotab 2 by Vtech which we reviewed for the Izziwizzi Kids Play Fest, Miss M couldn’t wait to get her fingers on the children’s tablet and get started. The chunky, sturdy casing immediately grabbed her attention and she couldn’t wait to see what happened when she switched the unit on. The first thing you are asked to do is set up a profile under which it saves all your own gameplay. Then we were required to attach the Innotab 2 to a PC via the USB lead in order to register the product and set it up within the Innotab Learning Lodge Navigator which is the download centre in which you can download further apps, see your child’s progress and download/upload photos and videos between the Innotab 2 and your home PC.
This did take around half an hour to set up during which time Miss M did grow a little impatient but when I finally gave her control of the Innotab 2 her face lit up and she couldn’t wait to get stuck in. It comes with 15 apps:
Camera – Rotating twistable lense – fun at all angles! Video Camera – Miss M loved capturing us unaware and then playing it back to us MP3 player – easy to transfer music from PC – perfect for littles ones to play and dance to or use in the car E-book Reader – interactive books which highlight words and provide facts and animation Art Studio – fabulous choice of tools/colours – kept Miss M occupied for hours Photo Editing – lots of fun scenes, accesories and fun effects – we had lots of fun with this Game: Face Race – motion sensor game although we found it didn’t hold interest for long Clock Calendar Notes Friends Calculator
The final 3 apps come on the included cartridge: E-book ‘What’s that noise?’, camera game Alien Rescue and Colour & Pop
Two further apps can be downloaded of your choice from the £2.99 selection in the Learning Lodge Navigator. Although we did find these games fun, they were short and we reached the end within 20 minutes. It would have nicer to see more depth to them to help maintain interest as the levels we played were entertaining and fun.
Cartridge games are also available which although retail at anything up to £20, I believe they would probably have a lot better games, with more depth to them and a wider variety of activities – Miss M would definitely like to try some of these in the future so I suggested she add them to her list for Santa!!
Miss M thoroughly enjoyed the Art Studio and spent a lot of time using the wide choice of coloured pencils, paints, stickers etc. but the thing that caught her eye most was the special effects – tubes of stars/hearts, rainbow effects etc. Another app that really appealed to Miss M was the Colour & Pop app which is basically just black and white pictures and you select different coloured paint to colour them in. I did notice in this particular app the screen did sometimes require a couple of taps from the stylus when selecting an art tool rather than an immediate response which although I would have found frustrating, it didn’t bother Miss M in the slightest.
The camera is also great fun, with a rotating twistable lense Miss M found it fun to take pictures of not only her family but herself. And what she found highly amusing was making our faces look silly with the special effects. Although not the best the quality, the photos are perfectly acceptable for a child. They are able to use them within the games to give faces to characters which is a nice touch.
Another highlight for Miss M was the MP3 player. I downloaded some music that she likes from my PC to the Innotab 2 and it was a simple, straightforward process. She was then able to play her own music and dance around the front room with little brother Mister B copying her every move. This would be ideal with headphones for long car journeys. You can also upload videos and films for them watch – great for keeping little ones entertained!
We have had lots of fun trying out the Innotab 2 and definitely think it will be a hit this Christmas, it’s lots of fun for little ones in more ways than one although you do need to bear in mind the costs over and above initial purchase. To get longevity out of this for your child and to make it last a few years I do feel you would need to purchase a number of games and apps to keep them interested and occupied.
All in all the Innotab 2 has proved to be a great multi-tasking product giving little ones an introduction to technology thats full of learning opportunities!!
Please watch our video review to find out more:
All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions. We are not paid for reviews although we do receive the product to try out and enable us to write the review.
