iPad query- child locks

Hi all.
I relented and got the wife an iPad.
she loves it, I love it (enough to consider getting rid of my macbook) and unfortunately so does my 4 yr old!

Now I have no objection to him playing with it, he loves angry birds HD and painting etc.
What I do have an issue with is him being able to access email, settings, facebook etc etc.

I have looked into the restrictions thing, and it kind of helps, gets rid of the app store,safari and any apps that have a decent rating.
But, he can still access enough to cause issues (shutting off wifi, playing in itunes etc)

Is there anyway to kid proof these things- with literally just selected apps, no settings, no itunes etc

if not someone should design an app that does it!!

At present, since the iPad doesn't support multiple user accounts, there's not much you can do apart from WATCH the child whenever they are using it and stop them when they are using something they shouldn't.

It would be neat if you could "lock to page," giving access only to one page's worth of apps (apps you've obviously picked).

You might suggest this to Apple.

I agree with chas_m (but I try not to let it happen too often), but with all due respect, you are the child's parent, not Apple!

You're right, I am the childs parent, I'm not suggesting that they should be responsible.

However in the time it took me to reach across the sofa earlier my son had managed to exit angry birds, open my email account and had somehow managed to click reply!

I am sure that was in no way intentional on his part, purely being an inquisitive toddler.

And another reason for getting one was to keep him amused on car journeys with films etc
Dont get me wrong, it is a fantastic concept, and he has taken to it very very quickly, I just wish there was a way to lock it out. I have emailed via the support people, will see if it appears at some point.

As far as your email, you can always turn your account off. Other than that, if he is smart enough to figure out how to get into the settings and turn the WiFi on and off, then I see another $500 (at least) purchase in your future.

As the parent of 3 and grandparent of 8, I know how "creative" these young minds can be and putting your personal or sensitive information on a device then giving it to a 4 year old may not be the best thing to do. Remember, he is only going to get older... and smarter... and more curious!

Oh yes, and not only is he creative, he's also a technology snob.
I dug out my first gen ipod touch, put a couple of games on there, disabled everything else. He gave me the kind of look I'd expect from an adult who I had just passed a still warm T*rd!
'dont want that one daddy, where the big one?' Go Figure!,
and $500, I wish, try $680- for the 16gb wifi (£429 Sterling)

Wow! I had no idea they were so much more across the pond. I will sell you mine for £375 and I will go buy another one for myself!

Especially in your case, however, I don't know that any parental controls will be strong enough to safely co-mingle your personal stuff and his games, movies, etc.

Just wait until you let him take one to school. ATPM 16.06 - Segments: The iPad Goes to School: Creating a Vast Army of iPad-Carrying Minions?

BTW I thought I had seen something in the app store that mimics creating the equivalent of user accounts but can't seem to find it.

Slydude, that was a good article, thanks.
My son starts school this september, I was quite surprised to see that they start on IT lessons in the first week! nothing too hard, just this is a mouse etc
Bit of a shame they use windoze boxes, was hoping they would be on OSX!

scottyk617 said:

Slydude, that was a good article,

Click to expand...

Ill jump on too ..... Sly that was a good read. Well written

Cheers

Thanks guys. That was more fun to write than some of the more technical stuff. The kids I have used it with thus far are always excited about the prospect of getting to use it.