Last week Amazon posted an article, The top 7 questions about Kindle for kids, answered, on their News website, and it’s kind of misleading; the AI that wrote it, as you’d expect, is confusing the facts.
For example, under the first section, right off the bat, there’s a factually false statement. It says that Kindle Kids devices are dedicated reading devices built just for kids. That’s not true at all, and that has never been the case.
The first thing you need to know about kids Kindles is they are exactly the same Kindle devices as the regular versions. The kids versions aren’t built differently. They aren’t different models. They are exactly the same as regular Kindles down to the last detail.
Any modern Kindle, except for the Kindle Scribes, can be used as kids Kindles, and any kids Kindle can be used as a regular Kindle. Kids mode is entirely software based.
All kids Kindles—the Kindle Kids, the Kindle Paperwhite Kids, and the Kindle Colorsoft Kids—are simply bundle packages that include a regular Kindle, what Amazon calls a kid-friendly case (which is just a regular Kindle case with a colorful design on it; it’s not like some super case with better build quality), an upgraded 2-year warranty, and a free trial for Amazon Kids+.
Summary of Kindle Kids Differences
Same Kindle devices. The kids versions are just bundle packages that include some extras for kids; there are no differences between the Kindles themselves.
Better 2-year warranty. Standard Kindle warranties are 1-year when purchased from Amazon. The kids models come with an upgraded 2-year warranty, and unlike the standard warranty, it covers accidental breakages, including cracked screens. E Ink screens are notoriously fragile, and somehow that makes them magically exempt from standard warranties across all brands (it’s crazy). The upgraded warranty alone makes the kids models a better overall deal.
Included Kindle cover. The kids models all come with a case as part of the package. The cases are available with different designs, depending on the model. Amazon does not sell the kids covers separately. They use the same general design as the official Kindle covers that Amazon sells, but they use a different type of material for the front and back flaps.
Amazon Kids+. All kids Kindles come with a 6 month or 1-year subscription to Amazon Kids+, a library of content specifically for kids (it’s kind of like Kindle Unlimited for kids). Kids Kindles do not have the option to get 3-months of Kindle Unlimited for free like standard Kindles.
Screensaver ads? There used to be a time when kids Kindles didn’t have ads on the lockscreen, even when using them in standard mode, and it was a good way to buy an ad-free Kindle for less. But this no longer is a thing. All kids Kindles come with ads now, but they don’t show ads when using kids mode, only standard mode, and it costs $20 to get rid of them, the same as regular Kindles.
Kindle Scribe? The Kindle Scribe—all versions—are the only Kindles that don’t support using kids mode, so they don’t sell a Scribe Kids bundle.
