The ToyBox

Ricardo Bilton & Gloria Sin

The anaPad is a wooden iPad whiteboard for kids

By | June 23, 2011, 12:43pm PDT

Summary: Etsy creation anaPad solves one of the central issues with owning an iPad and having children: sharing.

If there is anything more risky than letting your cat play with your iPad, it’s placing the $500 device in the hands of your children. But it’s so shiny, and hard to find parents heartless enough to deny their children the right to poke at its glossy screen.

But there’s a middle ground. For parents eager to place an iPad in the hands of their kids, but notably less eager to give them a real iPad, Etsy inventors twigcreative have created the anaPad. One part iPad, and two parts whiteboard, the anaPad “promotes analog learning and creativity in a digital world.” Or so say its inventors.

So, yeah, it’s a whiteboard with with iOS magnets. But it’s still pretty neat. And costs $30.

[anaPad, Wired]

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Ricardo Bilton writes for ZDNet's The ToyBox. His work has appeared in The Japan Times, The New York Observer, and The International Business Times, among other publications.

Disclosure

Ricardo Bilton

Ricardo Bilton has no investments that may conflict with his work with ZDNet. Similarly, he has not worked with any companies that he may write about in his technology coverage.

Biography

Ricardo Bilton

Ricardo Bilton writes for ZDNet's The ToyBox. His work has appeared in The Japan Times, The New York Observer, and The International Business Times, among other publications. He lives in New York, and is a graduate of Amherst College.
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RE: The anaPad is a wooden iPad whiteboard for kids
harrim47 Updated - 27th Jun
@liamknuj@...
Thanks for the reassurance!
We raised our two kids without "childproofing" our house other than locking the door under the sink and the knife drawer. That way when we visited others that weren't parents, they knew what not to get into. Now both kids are raising their own the same way.
Btw. This product is dumber than the pet rock.
Anyone else find this the silliest thing on the planet?
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@Aerowind
get the kids mindset early into getting "accustomed" to playing with an"iPad".

Apple won't sue over this, they may even let them place the word "Apple" on it. happy
@Aerowind
I agree....my four year old grandson loves the iPad. He uses both mine and his grandmother's and hasn't destroyed either one yet. Perhaps Apple ought to tout how rugged it is happy
For Retarded kids you mean.
@james347

Such a short post, but you managed to show your stupidity, lack of empathy and prejudices. Lucky for you your credibility is already so low, we can't measure any reduction.
@james347 Not for your kids either, as it's pretty clear you won't ever be having any... lol
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I think not
Will Lewis 24th Jun
There are always dumb-box versions of tech products: Barbie laptops that have a 3 inch mono display in the middle of the "screen", cell phones that only call Little Miss Muffett, small Magna-Doodles designed to look like PDAs. My daughter has one of each and they all sit in the toy bin unused. This product is even worse. It has removable parts. That means the icons for the non-existant "Apps" will all eventually end up in the vacuum cleaner bag. Useless and stupid. My four year old would look at me as if I just fell off the train from Retardville if I tried to give her this.

Wait WAIT! I take it all back. This is the Amish Ipad (the "aPad"?). How could I have missed that. It's genius.
@congospruce ROFL

My sentiments exactly
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@congospruce On the bright side, at least you can finally uninstall certain Apple-provided apps that you don't need! Even if it's accidentally.
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pathetic
dcdavy 24th Jun
very pathetic
Anything that will fit in a kid's mouth will sooner or later go into it.
I can see this being a hit with infants and toddlers... those removable parts scream "CHOKING HAZARD!" though.
What a total waste of time and energy! This wouldn't fool any child over the age of 2. Parents need to grow a pair! The word 'no' is not a dirty word. If you don't want them using yours, just say no.

And for those who would think I say that because I'm not a parent, I am. When I tell my son no he knows I mean no and does not touch things he's been told not to.
0 Votes
+ -
@liamknuj@...
Thanks for the reassurance!
We raised our two kids without "childproofing" our house other than locking the door under the sink and the knife drawer. That way when we visited others that weren't parents, they knew what not to get into. Now both kids are raising their own the same way.
Btw. This product is dumber than the pet rock.

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