Kurio Tab Connect is a premium tablet using an Android OS platform (6.0 Marshmallow) for children. It has a 16 GB internal memory with Quadcore processor for quick web-surfing, quicker photo and video processing, music streaming and faster downloads! It is expandable up to 32 GB using with a microSD card to save files, such as videos, music and photos from the device to the card or used as internal storage that allows you to install apps and save data to it.
This 7 inch multi-touch screen tablet is fully surrounded with an anti-shock bumper. I love the soft and smooth texture of this blue bumper. It’s also available in a pink colour. It has blue light protection (software to help protect the users’ eyes), pre-loaded with 30 apps, games & ebooks, front & back camera and video recorder. It has a micro SD card slot and 3.5mm headphone jack. The micro USB port is used for charging and synchronising, and also supports USB OTG (on-the-go) so you can access files stored on a compatible flash drive.
In the box, it also comes with a micro USB cable with power adaptor and instructions. For the first initial use, they recommend a 3 hour charge. So if you are buying one for Christmas or birthday present, you might want to charge it first before wrapping it up!
During initial set up, you will need to key in your Wi-Fi passcode and also sign into your Google Play account. It took me around 10 minutes to set it up with all the updates. If you are worried that this tablet is going to be associated with your Google account, you need not worry as you are able to disable the account for the child profile. There are all the other Google apps including Gmail, YouTube, Maps and Photos, the latter of which is authorised by default in each kid’s profile. It is good that Kurio uses Google profiles rather than its own system so it is easy to switch between profiles and manage content. It also means that as the child grows up they can also use more appropriate apps. The KIDOZ Store is included which is a fully curated store of kid-friendly content! You will need to create an account in order to download etc.
The table allows you to be able to create up to eight profiles and each profile offers fully separate files, apps, web filtering, downloads, parental controls and more! I have only set up one profile as this is going to be for Ms C’s use only. It’s simple to set up the parental app like adjusting the time controls by using the touchscreen to configure hours of use per day, play time range and session duration. You are also able to turn on/off the blue light protection. I understand the idea behind this, but I do find this protection makes the screen slightly too orangey. Ms C finds it quite acceptable though as she is used to her Kurio Tab Advance.
Kurio reassures parents that their advanced filtering system allows children to access thousands of websites safely, by blocking websites that may contain inappropriate content, categories and updates 32+ billion web pages daily!
For the Child’s menu, they get the option to change their avatar (20 to choose), 13 themes, wallpaper, password, help and switch user. Ms C loves the My Little Pony theme as she is a massive fan and it’s one of her favourite shows. I do like the layout of the menu itself. The categories are clear and well laid out, for example, Media, Games, Education and Ebooks etc.
This tablet comes with front and rear cameras (0.3 MP and 2 MP respectively) which is the same quality as the Kurio Tab Advance we had reviewed before. It is quite disappointing that they didn’t improve the camera quality. Hence selfies are nothing to shout about because of the low resolution front camera but they do have a Face Beauty option to optimise it. Nevertheless, many young children won’t care about the picture quality as the joy will be in taking the snaps. For the rear camera, you can set the photo quality to 1 M or 2 M and videos can be SD 480p, HD 720p or HD 1080p. I love that you can take HDR photos, panorama and use it as a scanner.
The screen specs resolution is acceptable and the touch screen is okay to touch. General navigation is acceptable but can become a little slow when too many things are open/in use. The apps load swiftly though. When you install an app from Google Play, you are asked to assign it to a category so that it appears in the right place in the child’s interface and also because of the time limit system.
The fantastic new feature that has been added to this tablet is that it allows communication between the adult smartphone and the tablet! Simply download the free Kurio Connect app (App Store or Google Play) and pair it up. Once complete, the adult is able to monitor, text and voice message, play 2 player games, remote access the child’s tablet and make direct calls to the tablet and alerts. I did try to use it to turn down the volume which works very well via a Wi-fi/3G connection. I did find that there are a few flaws to this app as sometimes I am unable to connect and it logs me out of the app. I hope they will be able to sort out this bug out soon.
I love this new feature that enables me to communicate with my child and also that this is not just a tablet for children. In fact, this tablet will grow with them. You can make adjustments as they grow. Also, children will get new weekly updates to help develop their knowledge in STEM. It makes a great Christmas gift or birthday present. It is available to buy from a number of retailers including Very, Smyth’s Toys and Argos. For more information, please visit: https://kurioworld.com/uk/products/kurio-tab-connect/
Disclosure: We received the sample for the purposes of writing this review, however, all thoughts and opinions remain our own.
