Vinci Tablet PC for Babies

What age is the “right” age to begin introducing a child to electronic devices?

I don’t mean a play cell phone. I mean an iPhone, a computer, an MP3 player.

Our oldest began fiddling around on the computer, playing educational software games, when he was around 2 or 2.5. It was okay. Phones didn’t do much back then besides take really horrible photos, so while he was fascinated with the phone, it was not a babysitter like today’s smartphones are.

Well, at the recent Consumer Electronics Show, a new tablet PC was launched for the diaper set.

Vinci is a tablet PC for babies. That’s right. Babies.

The design of Vinci seems very thoughtful – nontoxic materials, a rounded grab bar around the entire tablet for babies to grasp. No Wi-Fi or 3G connections are available – for safety reasons. I mean really, does a baby really need to be THAT wired? I think that was a smart move on the part of the developers.

What I find really interesting is that Vinci is not geared toward academic learning, but rather, “inspiring.” The makers of Vinci created a self-contained world with Vinci-specific applications and environments designed specifically for children under the age of 3.

Vinci comes installed with a kiddie storybook, a series of kiddie music videos and some games. Additional activities will be available via download.

The Vinci screen is 7″. It looks to be roughly the size of an iPad.

Do I think toddlers will go nuts over this thing? Absolutely. If the 13 month olds walking around with their mommies’ iPhones are any indication, there’s no reason to think that a series of toddler-specific games and activities wouldn’t be a huge hit.

There’s no mention of what the Vinci’s price is going to be. But I can’t help but wonder how much the manufacturers think this is worth. With a limited lifepsan of 0-3 years, I would not want to make more than a minor investment in such an advanced piece of technology – if at all.

I’m truly torn as to whether this is a good idea or just pushing technology a wee bit farther than it needs to be. I’m all for children being comfortable with and inspired by technology, but I fear that this would become just another replacement for hands-on learning. I’d rather see a 12 month-old playing with blocks or fingerpainting than staring at a computer screen.

Maybe I’m just old-fashioned.

You can learn all about Vinci at Vinci’s website. It doesn’t appear to be available for sale yet, but the site says it will be for sale through Amazon.com.