[coco1900]

Is it worth getting ipad deal from Subaru or maybe amazon fire HD 10 tablets .?

 

[zulater]

we're using the att lte/wifi deal and the kids just have iphones so in a way yes. Worth the $ for "unlimited" wifi. The Ipad deal looks to be better than purchasing outright but I haven't really looked into it very hard since we have 2 ipads and the kids have iphones there was no need to get more.

 

[PINHAULER]

Funny enough, the Canadian Ascent models do not have the WiFi feature enabled yet. Probably something to do with it being such a new feature for Subaru here and no agreement in place yet with a specific carrier.

However, my kids each had an android tablet already and my wife has an awesome data plan with 10GB/Month. We just used her phone as a hotspot. For the few times we'll really use it, there was no need to get yet another data plan and the kids didn't even come close to burning through it on our recent 17 day road trip.

 

[crowdc]

I will probably be using these:

XTRONS 2 x 10.2 Inch Pair HD Digital TFT Screen Touch Panel HDMI Video Car Active Headrest DVD Player New Version Black IR Headphones

 

[PINHAULER]

We got a pair of universal headrest mounts for the kids' tablets. They have a quick release so the kids can opt to watch like a TV or hold it in their hands to play games/apps.

The Ascent has very well located twin USB ports just behind the centre console too. This setup worked great for us and is easy to remove if you're not using it for daily driving. The main downside is that our headphones are not wireless... but I'm sure bluetooth headset options exist for Android/iPad products too.

These are the mounts we used.
https://www.amazon.com/TURATA-Unive...4884356&sr=8-2&keywords=turata+headrest+mount

 

[counciltucky]

These are the mounts we used.
https://www.amazon.com/TURATA-Unive...4884356&sr=8-2&keywords=turata+headrest+mount

unfortunately amazon says those are not available anymore, anyone else have a recommendation? I just ordered 3 different mounts to test out. Unfortunately our first 3 choices were too wide for the headrest.

 

[Cannibal869]

I'm using a pair of Lenovo Tab 4 8" tablets for the kids...Magnetic headrest mounts, streaming off of a ZoomGo wifi media stick (plugged into the cargo area power port).
We don't actually let them use it too often, except on long-ish road trips.

 

[Cannibal869]

double post suckas!!!

Actually, my *ideal* setup would be sort of like the airplane systems:

1) rear headrest mounted (or removable) Touchscreen monitors that can independently watch or stream preloaded movies / video clips
OR 2) both can be controlled by a 3rd remote device to watch a particular video simultaneously in sync (i.e. during the preflight safety video). I would love if the headrest monitors were basically just dummy terminals (touchscreen monitors only) and that the main guts / computer control / loaded video memory resided in the 3rd remote device (maybe stored on a microSD card or similar easily removable device), which ideally I would like to have as a small parent / driver controlled ipod like device. Haven't been able to find any kind of setup like this though.... dunno if that makes sense to you all.

If anyone has any leads on something like this, please post it up!

oh and Happy New Year!
-C

 

[denissh]

non of my kids like to have Tablet on head rest..

2x Fire HD 8 Tablet ($49.98 on sale )
2X Kid-Proof Cover Kids Case ($17)
2X Wireless Headphones Bluetooth Over Ear Headphones ($17) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HNMTCE2/

unlimited WIFI $20 mer month

 

[Subiesailor]

Both kids 6-9 have ipads though 9 yr old just got a Chrome book for school stuff / typing etc. Both do school stuff on the Ipads also.

For road trips exceeding 2 hours we take ipads. Typically in a week total screen time is 1-2 hours. Long road trips that goes out the window. Except they are not connected we pre load content. At various points the eldest is asked to research points of interest and act as tour guide at which point mom typically activates her teathering on her cell phone so eldest can research.

Pre loaded content our kids have taken to swapping ipads on their own sometimes to view other/s content etc.

We tried head phones but found we like to be able to eavesdrop on them occasionally from the front seats. No mounts or other gimmicky stuff to clutter up the car and attract parking lot smash and grabs during stops.

 

[Soca]

Both kids 6-9 have ipads though 9 yr old just got a Chrome book for school stuff / typing etc. Both do school stuff on the Ipads also.

For road trips exceeding 2 hours we take ipads. Typically in a week total screen time is 1-2 hours. Long road trips that goes out the window. Except they are not connected we pre load content. At various points the eldest is asked to research points of interest and act as tour guide at which point mom typically activates her teathering on her cell phone so eldest can research.

Pre loaded content our kids have taken to swapping ipads on their own sometimes to view other/s content etc.

We tried head phones but found we like to be able to eavesdrop on them occasionally from the front seats. No mounts or other gimmicky stuff to clutter up the car and attract parking lot smash and grabs during stops.

Some pro parenting tips right there. Might have to borrow that in a few years.

 

[TheLex]

Kindle Fire HD8's are cheap and have enough memory to load up a bunch of videos for the kiddos. I think I paid $39 for the Fire HD8 on Black Friday. Amazon has em on sale a few other times during the course of the year.

They're cheap enough so that if the kids break one, I'm not terribly sad.

 

[Cannibal869]

double post suckas!!!

Actually, my *ideal* setup would be sort of like the airplane systems:

1) rear headrest mounted (or removable) Touchscreen monitors that can independently watch or stream preloaded movies / video clips
OR 2) both can be controlled by a 3rd remote device to watch a particular video simultaneously in sync (i.e. during the preflight safety video). I would love if the headrest monitors were basically just dummy terminals (touchscreen monitors only) and that the main guts / computer control / loaded video memory resided in the 3rd remote device (maybe stored on a microSD card or similar easily removable device), which ideally I would like to have as a small parent / driver controlled ipod like device. Haven't been able to find any kind of setup like this though.... dunno if that makes sense to you all.

If anyone has any leads on something like this, please post it up!

oh and Happy New Year!
-C

Necropost update:

I think I found a way to do setup #2:

Work iPhone (unlimited data streaming) -> HDMI output lightning cable adapter -> HDMI signal splitter -> two 7" portable mini-monitors.
Also throw in a cigarette lighter powered USB hub for good measure and for the added power requirements.
Seems to work great! Plus with the work iPhone paired to the headunit, I can now have volume control of the videos over the car audio system.
My kids are pretty young (3 and 5) so while I could have them using individual iPads or such, it's probably a better idea to have them forced to watch the same video stream. Since work is paying for the data, I don't mind streaming everything (instead of side loading content). But if really needed, yeah, you could side load content too.

As they get older, I can migrate back to the individual tablet solution.

-C

 

[DocRock]

And to think that, when I was a kid, our summer trips often meant 500 miles of driving a day. We passed the time by talking to each other, watching the scenery, and counting license plates from different states. We all reached adulthood with no permanent damage.

 

[Cannibal869]

And to think that, when I was a kid, our summer trips often meant 500 miles of driving a day. We passed the time by talking to each other, watching the scenery, and counting license plates from different states. We all reached adulthood with no permanent damage.

Tru dat. In a way, yes it’s sad. Don’t get me wrong - I actually haven’t had to bust out the monitors yet... But we also haven’t taken any long (over two hours) road trips. As the kids get older I’m sure it’ll all be less necessary.

 

[crowdc]

I'm only doing the tablet idea is for the 2 year old who needs distractions for a long drive. The wife and I listen to our audio books and have the audio all up front and have the kiddo listen to his Movies; it's great for the LONG road trips. We did a jaunt to St George on our way to Laguna Beach in January and having a tablet for his movies made the drive for him MUCH better and less stressful.

In a couple of weeks we'll be driving to SF form Utah and we're totally looking forward to it.

 

[Kevin Williams]

And to think that, when I was a kid, our summer trips often meant 500 miles of driving a day. We passed the time by talking to each other, watching the scenery, and counting license plates from different states. We all reached adulthood with no permanent damage.

I took a stack of books. On a 3 week road trip from Ohio to CA and back I went through 20 books (about 10,000 pages).

Today they have phones and tablets. BUT when we get somewhere scenic, they are put away (or taken away for the rest of the trip if no compliance) to look outside.

We drove 15 hours to Texas from AZ. Most was rural empty scenery so the tablet was allowed!