The Rare Just Another Rabid Reader Product Review of the Fisher Price iPad Apptivity Case

 

 

I had purchased this product for my autistic 3 year old who was gifted a first generation iPad from her uncle. I know, I know. Most people think I am a little crazy for giving an iPad to a 3 year old, but for her it is a therapy tool and has helped her so much since she has had it.I wanted to wait until we had had it for at least a week or so before I posted the review. Let’s face it. A 3 year old who has autism and some other problems is going to drop a device like that and risk serious damage. That was what I was waiting for. She had dropped the iPad once before receiving the case and we got very lucky in that it had not sustained any damage. I know it could have been worse.

Now, since having the case, it has been dropped several times. There is not even a scratch on it. It has withstood the rough and tumble lifestyle of a very hyperactive preschooler and withstood the flings across the room when, due to her autism, she gets frustrated when she cannot do something right. It has held up to the abuse she dishes out without nary a problem. And, she loves that it is pink and has pretty designs on it. The stylus was an added bonus.

I have seen some other reviews where people have noticed that the stylus broke easily. We have not had this problem. My daughter has outright chewed on the thing and it has held up to that. Some have commented that the screen was less than responsive with the built in screen protector. I have not had that problem at all. It does what she wants when she wants it too and we have had no complaints in that department.

Now, why, you might ask, am I only giving it 4 stars then?

Well, I wish the stylus was held on in the case more securely. When you open the case, it falls out and i had to hunt on the floor for it and reposition it and get it set just so. While you have access to the volume buttons and the sleep button and the screen lock button, you can’t use headphones with the device. This greatly upset my daughter because she has some new tiger headphones that she cannot use with it in the case, and she is not able to use the device out of the case. She also is not able to adjust the volume herself so we can’t tell her to turn it down when it is too loud because she lacks the dexterity to get into the little hole on the back to access the volume. You can’t charge the device in the case so it is harder to have it ready for the child first thing when they wake up. Some minor pet peeves, but we still love this product. Be warned, if you have a first gen that was made without the camera, you cannot use the cards that come with the device as they require using the camera to be useful. The cards were not a huge selling point for us, so no big deal, but for others it might be.

Overall, a very sturdy product and it is made by Otterbox. You will get your money’s worth and then some out of this case.