Tablets have been all the rage since Apple introduced their own Tablet 2 years ago, everyone from teenagers to grandma’s have picked one up.  The question is, at what  age is it too early to own a Tablet.

If a child puts your iPad in her mouth, it’s a good sign she’s too young for an Apple tablet of her own. But that’s not to say there aren’t other options for tiny hands craving shiny icons.For parents who don’t want to put hundreds of dollars of delicate technology in the hands of a toddler (or even a teen), there’s a swath of sturdy tablets now on the market catering to children as young as 7 months, with the cheapest starting from around $26.

In addition to cost and age guidelines, the most helpful way to choose from the various kid-friendly tablets out there is to think about what your child most likes to do — or what you would most like them to be doing.

The Right Age For a Tablet

While there are apps for all ages, actually owning a tablet can be a good learning experience for a child. There’s responsibility in having something nice, even if it’s a kiddie version, and there are lots of lessons to be learned there — not only about using apps for homework and extracurricular learning, but also in the very essence of taking care of something special.

Once your child understands that a tablet isn’t something to be thrown around and must be used in a responsible manner, it’s a good time to start looking for kid-friendly tablets. Of course, they’ll make mistakes — they’re kids, after all — but most tablets geared toward children take that into account. They’re built for the occasional accidental tumble or spilled milk.

Some tablets come with a plethora of reading and mathematics apps to help your child succeed in school. These can be a great way to encourage out-of-school learning, especially over the summer months when two plus two suddenly equals four more hours of play time. With a bit of direction, you’ll be able to help your kids keep their math skills just as sharp as their running ability!

Picking the Right Tablet

Fisher Price makes an education-focused Smart Tablet for $26, designed with children ages 3 to 6 in mind. With letters, phonics and numbers along with nine levels of game play, kids are sure to enjoy it. You’ll be be pushing it with most 6-year-olds, but the small investment might be worth it to put some distance between your iPad and your 3-year-old.

LeapFrog makes a much-loved tablet for $99 called LeapPad. It’s a feature-rich device that includes more than 100 games and activities (including the ArtStudio and Story Studio apps), a built-in camera and video recorder and interactive reading features. Also, this tablet sends you regular email updates on your child’s progress with various educational features, games and apps.

VTech makes the awkwardly named but sharp-looking InnoTab Learning App Tablet for $80. This tablet sets out to appropriate the look and feel of adult tablets (with a color touchscreen and tilt sensor, allowing kids to tap, flick and drag icons) while also being tough enough to withstand the inevitable knocks and drops.

If you’re looking to provide an affordable, but feature-rich tablet for that in-between stage after a child grows out of LeapFrog but before he or she is ready for an iPad, the new Nabi tablet for kids ($200 from Toys R Us) is a great choice. Watch a movie, play a game, draw a masterpiece, read a book or have the book read to you — it’s all here. Nabi lets you specify the age of the user as well as switching into “Mommy Mode,” which disables the interface for kids and turns the tablet into a device for adults. The company that makes the Nabi (Korean for “butterfly”) says a new version due out this year will include dual cameras and multiple child accounts.

Hand-Me-Downs: Before You Give Them Your Tablet

For many parents, especially those of us with older kids, the answer to “When is my child ready?” is simply, “When I’m ready to upgrade my own tablet.” With the arrival of Apple’s third-generation iPad and competing tablets upping their game, the reality is that older models are being passed down to kids (who have been stealing them from us since day one, anyway).

Reconfiguring your old tablet, a few new age-appropriate apps, and a padded case will often do the trick. One word of warning: Don’t just hand over your old tablet without performing a few minimum safety steps. These include installing parental controls, planning a syncing strategy (whose credit card are we using?) and removing your own stuff.

Your Choice

Remember that picking out a tablet for your child is ultimately your choice, not only what kind of tablet, but also whether or not your child is even ready for one. Don’t be fooled by fancy marketing and advertising — just because a tablet says it’s for kids doesn’t mean that’s true. Do your research, consult guides and before you know it, your child will be rocking their own tablet in no time!