When travelling with children, gadgets like tablets can be really useful to keep them entertained but they don’t always come cheap so it can be a lot to splash out on!
Moneysupermarket are looking for cheaper alternatives that will do the job but at a much more appealing price, and have recruited 200 bloggers to test out more affordable versions of the 5 most packed holiday tech items to find out which ones are the best buys!
We were given the chance to try out this 7″ LélikTec ® Android budget tablet in white. The RRP is only £59.99 and it is currently selling on Amazon for only £41, which is ridiculously cheap! So I wondered how much it would really be able to do.
So far I have been pretty pleased with it, and for keeping the children entertained it is ideal especially at this price!
7″ is a smaller screen than the original iPads but a similar size to the iPad mini or the Samsung galaxy tab 2. It’s a very small and compact size to fit into a bag but being that bit larger than a smart phone screen. It makes it easier for young children to use and handle when playing games, and enables them to see easier and more clearly when watching videos.
The tablet comes with Google Play store where you can download loads of apps. There are plenty suitable for children and lots and lots which are free. I have not even put my credit card details into our tablet, as I will be letting the children play with it I don’t want to risk any accidental purchases and there are so many free games available that I see no need.
So far we downloaded Youtube, Candycrush, Car racing games, Lego game, a bubble game, Cake Maker game, Sketchpad games and the Croods game. Later on I will add more. I find adding new games a few at a time keeps their attention as once they are bored of one, there is always something new!
There is also a web browser which works fine and the pages loaded up fairly quickly. We easily connected it to our wifi. The tablet is enabled for 3G but I am not sure how this will work without a contract. When travelling you could easily connect it to publically provided wifi in hotels or service stations, and while in the car allow the children to play games or watch videos that are already downloaded onto the tablet. Of course having the internet permanantly enabled on the tablet wherever we go, would have been my children’s preference but I would not be happy with them watching too much Youtube over 3G anyway as it can get very expensive as it uses up so much data so quickly.
I was not able to get the flash games to load up properly on the cbeebies website, but this is a problem I have had with other tablets. It told me I need to update the software, then when I click it came up with something for apple, whereas this is on the android system – so I just left it.
When using the touch screen, the response time is fine. It is not as quick as an iPad but I have not noticed a massive amount of difference between this and our other Android tablet, the Samsung Galaxy 2.
The tablet also has a camera which is easy for the children to use. It comes in a small box with the charger and instructions booklet, and I found it keeps its charge for a fairly decent length of time. The specs say battery life is 3 hours but this would be with constant use, when it is left on the side it will keep charge for the rest of the day.
My husband, who is more of a gadget connoisseur than me, felt that the build quality was not the best but from my point of view, I’m more amazed that you can get a brand new working tablet for 40 quid! For my needs of just keeping the children entertained with some games, it is brilliant value.
A cheaper budget tablet like this could also be an option to consider for parents thinking of buying the children’s tablets, as those games are very expensive but there are so many free games for android so in the end it may work out very good value.
Here are the full specs:
| Brand | LélikTec |
| Item Weight | 331 g |
| Product Dimensions | 18 x 12 x 0.8 cm |
| Item model number | A 13 |
| Color | White |
| Screen Size | 7 inches |
| Screen Resolution | 800*480 |
| Processor Brand | ARM |
| Processor Type | ARM710a |
| Processor Speed | 1 GHz |
| Processor Count | 1 |
| RAM Size | 512 MB |
| Computer Memory Type | DDR3 SDRAM |
| Hard Drive Size | 4 GB |
| Graphics Coprocessor | Mali 400 |
| Graphics Card Description | Mali 400 |
| Wireless Type | 802.11bgn |
| Hardware Platform | PC |
| Operating System | Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich |
| Software Included | Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich |
| Battery Type | battery_type_lithium_ion |
| Battery Charge Time (in hours) | 2 hours |
| Average Battery Life (in hours) | 3 hours |
| Lithium Battery Weight | 40 grams |
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Anna Marikar, mum of four and seasoned blogger, has spent over a decade sharing her parenting journey and passion for kid-friendly crafts and free printables.
Her easy-to-follow craft ideas and practical parenting advice have transformed In The Playroom into a cherished resource for parents.
Wow, that’s amazing value for a tablet for toddlers. You really wouldn’t be worried about accidental damage there. I suppose the area most lacking is the battery life I would say.
That really is excellent value. Even if it’s a bit slower and not so powerful, it’s brilliant for children or adults who aren’t very careful!
Did not realise you could get something like this so cheap! I thought the kindle fires were pretty cheap at £150 or so compared to iPad, but this is crazily cheap!
Yes it is crazy isn’t it! I was lead to believe in the past that the super cheap ones will probably be soo slow and unusable, not able to do anything on it. but it’s not the case! I was honestly quite shocked to see what you can get for such a low price!