It feels like a never ending battle to find appropriate content for my kids to watch on their tablets. Especially for my son who’s entering that tricky age of being a bit too grown up for CBeebies but not quite ready for some of the older content. Plus my two often want to sit and watch things together, so content needs to be appropriate for my pre-schooler too.
The Kids Cast app is a great solution and we jumped at the chance to try it out. It has a brilliant mix of shows, games and songs all within a magical land of fantasy, castles and wizards.
Shows
There’s no adverts to content with, and although it is flagged that there are in-app purchases, I’ve not come across any so far. I love the choice of programmes available, there are some that your kids will recognise but also a whole host of retro favourites like Sooty, Noggin the Nog, Henry’s Cat, Roobarb and Custard. It’s brilliant to share my childhood memories with my kids; unlike other apps or shows I actually want to sit down and watch them too! There’s also brand new exclusive shows like Om Nom, and new content is added on a monthly basis. You can cast the shows directly to TV or cast ready devices, which is a nice change from Peppa Pig our usual TV shows.
Games
On the games front there are classics like drawing and painting, but also a basic block building game too. My daughter was able to do some of the games herself and my son really enjoyed the challenge of new games. Kids Cast doesn’t feel too educational, even though there are a lot of learning opportunities available. The whole app just feels like a step up from what they’ve been playing with up to now, but with the reassurance that all of the content has been reviewed and approved. KidsCast has been approved by the UKCCIS (UK Council for Child Internet Safety).
The Verdict
I have to admit that it took a while for me to warm to Kids Cast – it’s a bit slower on my phone (Android) for certain things, but on my kids’ tablets it works really well. Once I had shown them how to navigate the different sections, they were well away by themselves and enjoyed exploring the different lands. It’s great to have the best of individual apps all in one place, especially as it seems that there’s always something new to find (which is part of the fun)
Kids Cast offers a free seven day trial and then it’s a £3.99 subscription per month (cheaper than a magazine and no plastic tat!) You can use your subscription across multiple devices through your iOS or Google Play account.