Get kids an old computer. They prefer something big they can see, with switches that make a resounding clunk, and drives that make clanking noises.
To a kid, playing games from the 1980s off a floppy disk is not a significantly difficult experience than using the very latest technology, but I suspect the former is far better for their developing brains.
Meanwhile, you can get them to learn how to type on the keyboard and learn the basics of needing to type in commands to make the computer do something, which is a lifelong skill - tapping icons on a tablet is not.
My kids started with desktops, and in family areas of the house. I did not go as far as getting something from the 1980s or teaching them to use the command line as toddlers, but they were second hand desktops running Linux.
It was easier with the older one as phones and tablets were not as pervasive so I can understand it has become harder to do.
I also think another thing that benefitted them greatly was that we did not have a TV ( https://pietersz.co.uk/2008/05/i-have-no-tv/ )
I also thing another issue is that parents are also addicted to devices so pay less attention to children. its not the only issue, but it makes it worse. It was epitomised for me by a woman who, when her son refused to put down his tablet on a train trip, took a photo of him on it and posted it to FB for advice.
when i was around 8-9? i got my first "PC".
but thing is, it was not a whole PC. it was just the keyboard...
i played with that keyboard for 1 year before my family could afford to buy the rest of the PC.
in that year i learned the position of every key and would show off to friends how i can find any key, with my eyes closed.
To be fair, my first computer _was_ inside its keyboard.
I watched a colleague's kid play a game on his iPhone. It was on airplane mode. But every so often a window would pop up trying to show an ad, and the kid would hand it to his dad, asking dad to "fix" it.
A pre-millennial computing experience would have the benefit of not having that sort of bullshit. For the patience-building experience it could be real floppies, but putting the games in an emulator is also an option. I guess Windows 11's "Install Copilot Edge OneDrive 365? [Yes/Maybe later]" popups means you'll have to go Linux...
Cool idea. Where would I get one?
Maybe an old Amiga. It's easy to get started, as most games boot automatically from the floppy disk. When they are ready for more advanced usage, the default boot ends up in Workbench where they can get a desktop environment.
After a while, expose them to programming through AMOS or Blitz Basic.
Just a start.
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=dell+pentium+ii+mid+tow...
In this case I gave them a COMPAQ Portable III I rescued from my father-in-law's computer repair shop.
doesnt HAVE to be old.
just a regular PC with keyboard mouse monitor and the unit.
edit: maybe a DVD unit for reading AND writing disks.
myroom.isfine.org on a pinch. I tried to make everything as authentically annoying as it was, having to rewind tapes shapes character
Look up the Pocket 386.
Don't give kids a computer, give them a camera. A real one.
A toddler needs manipulative toys to develop patience and motor control. Blocks to stack, puzzles to fit together, balls to throw and catch, books with pages to turn. Nothing electronic at all.
I agree. As they get older there is more room for electronic stuff and it can have benefits. I think the first apps my kids used were things like GCompris.
Hard agree. And a lot of unstructured play. Actually, that should all last well into their pre-teens IMO.
...lots of unstructured play I surely did have with my slow as molasses bloated Pentium 4 machine with XP and no internet in my childhood. Developed a LOT of patience when downloading stuff from the Net (on 256Kbps, no less!) on one PC and moving it over to my machine.
> And a lot of unstructured play.
... which gets ever more hard to provide, sadly. Many people can't really afford an appropriately sized home - but in contrast to "earlier" times, can't send the kids outdoors as a replacement either as they're unsafe due to car-centric culture, the death of third spaces and, in the US, gun and other violence.
No, let them paint.
I did that and now they want me to buy film for it, which costs a small fortune. And would be even harder to find someone to develop.
Why does it have to be a film camera? A "real" camera can still be a digital one.
There's plenty of places online you can mail film to to be developed.