Today's infants quickly move from the womb to a touchscreen. A survey by Common Sense Media found that half of children under eight years old access a mobile device like a smartphone, a video iPod, or a tablet; and experts are mulling the ramifications of this.
Kim I agree, my 19 months old boy loves my iPhone and tablet he can switch between apps very easily. We hardly watch any Television so touchscreens are the mode of entertainment for us, besides that I have downloaded lots of interactive books by touchybooks etc that really interest him and his younger brother whose just 6 months old. The only downside to introducing touchscreen at such a young age is that it may cause short attention span amongst the young ones
This is a gaming issue, not really a phone issue, as far as I can see. I can remember when I was the father of an eight year old, and much younger than that they are not going to be making calls or holding sustained conversations on a phone.
If there's a problem - and I really don't know if there is - it's babies spending their time occupied with computer games. Smartphones are just a convenient delivery device.
I really don't see a problem with babies using smartphones. But there are concerns about the effects of the computer-to-human interaction on our brains.
Everything in moderation. I don't think TV watching for many hours is health either.
Children need a mix of input for learning overall, I'd say.
I agree with your point about it coming down to parenting and the kids themselves. All of this stuff can be bad or good depending on how its used. It sounds like your kids are getting a touchscreen education the right way.
My kids are 2 and 4 and are already proficient at touchscreen (well, really Apple touchscreen) devices.
We have downloaded various learning apps to them, which seems to have actually helped them. As with any device/tv, leaving them unattended with it is usually not a good idea (besides the potential for physical damage).
We do not strictly enforce "education only" on the devices (really, almost impossible if you want to avoid tantrums) - but I think this helps because our kids don't constantly demand the devices either.
Our kids still enjoy when we read books together, so I think it comes down to parenting and the children themselves. The people that end up as basement geeks are pretty much destined to do so, and I don't think it matters if they start with a touchscreen device as opposed to a TV.
At the very least, these devices are interactive, and rarely allow you to just sit there and veg, as you can in front of a TV.
The difference, of course, is that there's far more to do on an iPad or smartphone that is educational and interactive for children than there is/was on television. If parents are giving their babies an iPad, for example, loaded with apps intended to teach, that could be a good thing. If they're just using the iPad as another distraction, as a stand-in babysitter (as many do with TV) then that is reason for concern. Still, I don't think children should spend the majority of their early lives in front of a screen. There's more to be concerned about there than literacy -- people who grow up hiding behind electronics could easily become antisocial by nature.
While NFC's original goal was to enhance mobile commerce applications, it is finding its way into a number of other uses, which is creating both opportunity as well as challenges for IT departments.
Enterprises would like to move to cloud computing but are hesitant because they are concerned about providers’ ability to secure company data. Here are some tips that help to ensure that if breaches occur, the business is not left holding the bag.
Big-data has become a big point of emphasis for many businesses. While the technology is available to deploy these applications, the needed personnel often is not. As a result, analytic engineers' salaries have blown past the six-figure mark, and hiring these experts has become a challenge for IT managers.
Increasingly, companies are using videoconferencing technology to help employees collaborate with co-workers, partners, and customers. As a result, demand for technicians is rising, and companies are finding it difficult to retain their quality workers.
Software-defined networks, which deliver virtualization functions to enterprise networks, have the potential to dramatically change network design and significantly reduce costs and maintenance.
A recent survey by Endace found that 23% of companies experience some type of network problem daily and another 25% have a serious problem each month. Enterprise networks are still very unreliable and probably will continue to be in the near term.
ITRC found that more than 600 security breaches took place in 2012. Flaws were found in some of the nation's most respected companies: Apple, Citibank, and Wells Fargo. So, it seems the bad guys are doing better than the men in the white hats.
Mobile TV is everywhere, and yet, nowhere. Nobody uses it – because the handsets aren't good, the pricing is too high, and the coverage is not good enough. But Qualcomm's FloTV Personal TV aims to change all of that.
Apple may want to do a TV offering, but to meet its goal it would have to address three specific issues that have been exposed by earlier attempts to make Internet TV work.
A survey by JD Powers found that customer interest in product features is lessening as phones evolve. Rather than features, price is driving purchases, and that change could have a dramatic impact on how IT departments secure these devices.
Netflix seemed to be a threat to all of TV, but with the current quarterly earnings report, it sure doesn't look as if that's true now. Netflix really proves that even Internet viewing of video isn't immune to profit and other business issues. This is a lesson we need to learn if we want a viable online video model.
Some say that exposure to violence in gaming, online video, etc., is creating a violent culture. Tom says it's not that straightforward. Rather than regulate violence, we should understand it better.
We think Amazon's Kindle Fire is pushing Apple to a smaller iPad format. But Sony's Vita and the interest in a small device for portable gaming may create the real threat. Keep your eye on the tablet-gaming space!
The drive to stream TV directly to HD sets, to tablets, or to PCs in the home may create a broader demand for streaming, and this could create a major new source of traffic pressure on mobile networks, mobile pricing, and mobile service policies.
Expert Integrated Systems: Changing the Experience & Economics of IT In this e-book, we take an in-depth look at these expert integrated systems -- what they are, how they work, and how they have the potential to help CIOs achieve dramatic savings while restoring IT's role as business innovator. READ THIS eBOOK
your weekly update of news, analysis, and
opinion from Internet Evolution - FREE! REGISTER HERE
Wanted! Site Moderators Internet Evolution is looking for a handful of readers to help moderate the message boards on our site – as well as engaging in high-IQ conversation with the industry mavens on our thinkerNet blogosphere. The job comes with various perks, bags of kudos, and GIANT bragging rights. Interested?
To save this item to your list of favorite Internet Evolution content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
Email This
