Twenty years may seem like a relatively brief period of time but many industries have been revolutionised across the last two decades. The rise of the digital age, along with help from a new phenomenon such as artificial intelligence has, perhaps, speeded up the process like never before.

From big business we move down to the relatively humble world of parenting where once again we find some big changes. If you thought a two-way baby monitor was the cutting edge of technology then you really should read on.

 

Digital Revolution

It’s easier than ever before to find parenting tips and these can help us to cut through the wealth of technology that is out there. This can seem overwhelming at times so it helps new mums and dads in particular to arm themselves with as much information as possible.

Technology has changed parenting so much over the last twenty years and some may feel that this is isn’t necessarily a good thing. Mobile apps can now step in and take on some roles such as story telling and, while these may prove to be useful once in a while, it really is important to maintain human contact as much as possible. Technology is there to help parents, not to replace them and here’s how the latest tech can be used in a positive way.

 

Parenting on the go

Some of the biggest changes in terms of parenting have been seen with travel tech. Parenting while on the move has always been tricky as there are so many external distractions and figures indicate that parents could be ignoring the road for up to 25% of their overall drive time

It’s clearly going to be difficult to reduce that 25% to zero on the longer journeys but there have been big advances in kit that can help. In-built DVD players in the rear seats can now be purchased as after-market items so there’s no need to change the family car and a child’s favourite movie can certainly help to while away the hours.

For a quieter approach, there are child-sized versions of kindle and iPads from all of the main manufacturers with books and games already pre-loaded. MP3 players are also available in abundance but for something more educational, the LeapFrog LeapPad comes highly recommended.

Parenting comes with many challenges but the issues of keeping children entertained while on the go are particularly tricky so these advances in travel tech for kids are extremely welcome.

 

Must Haves

At Christmas 2018, the leading eCommerce retailers issued a list of children’s Must Have presents for the festive season. A number of familiar names were included but as a general theme, robots seemed to be winning the day.

Smart Robots - those that interact - found their way into many Christmas stockings to the delight of their many recipients.

 

Taking Over?

The rise of the robots is a fear in commerce and industry and while those toys are hugely popular, they come back to the issues raised earlier. All of the tools in this guide are designed to make parents’ lives easier but they should never take over.

Remember who Mum and Dad are and this new tech can enhance rather than replace.

 

Additional Sources

 

https://www.mylegalneeds.com/library/how-children-may-cause-distracted-driving-accidents.cfm

https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2397319,00.asp

https://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/best-tech-toys-for-kids/