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The latest player in tablet wars: Toys "R" Us

Toy manufacturer Toys "R" Us may not be the first firm you'd think of to break into the tablet market - but a new child-focused tablet is on the cards.
Written by Charlie Osborne, Contributing Writer
Tabeo table toys r us

The $149.99 Tabeo tablet will be launched on Monday. The Tabeo is equipped with Wi-Fi capabilities, but is also billed as a gadget loaded with controls and security features "that parents want". The 7-inch tablet has 50 apps pre-installed, which are "carefully selected to entertain and educate children, while helping them explore the Internet," according to the company.

In order to keep a close eye on what sites your children access through the devices, the Tabeo comes with customizable security settings for different users. In addition, parents can choose to receive an email if the tablet detects browsing may be "unsafe" if the build-in Internet browser is bypassed. If children find a new site they want access to, they can send an emailed request to their parents.

"Over the past year, we've spent considerable time talking to parents and children to determine what features and functions they really want in a kids' tablet, resulting in tabeo," said Troy Peterson, vice president of Toys "R" Us, U.S. "We are proud that tabeo offers robust and flexible parental controls that can help protect children as they surf the Internet."

In addition, the toy maker is launching the Tabeo App Store, which will only include kid-friendly apps and content.

The specifications of the tablet include a 4GB flash memory, micro SDHC Slot, 1GHz CPU, and 1GB RAM. The tablet runs on Android's 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system. Tabeo's dimensions are 223 mm x 142 mm x 12.2 mm, and it weighs 380g.

It will be available only at Toys "R" Us, so shoppers won't be able to try it out and then hunt for a better deal on a rival's website.

The tablet goes on sale Oct. 21, and pre-orders are now available online at the company's website.

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