Amazon Glow | Interactive Entertainment & Video-Calling | Learn, play, read, create. Together | Kids 3-9+

I am a kinship carer and kinship adoptive parent as well as a natural parent. My youngest was four when Glow was released. With required video chats throughout the week with two different parents and a restless four year old the Glow was a dream come true. The built in games, library, and activities and the way the users could interact was cutting edge. There was a wide range of skill levels avaliable. For a system in its infancy it was leaps ahead of the competition.The system had faults. It would be glitchy at times and boot the app user off but it was still more engaging and useful than any other tool we'd found. The surface the mat was on needed to be super clean (difficult at times with little ones) and flat. There was a learning curve to getting all the interactive aspects to work smoothly but that was no worse than teaching them a new game. With almost four hundred thousand (400,000) children in foster care this could be a game changer for how those families stay connected and how it helps foster carers truly "foster" the children and their natural family connections. If Amazon's concern was low sales, as I've heard it was, they should look at government contracts. The set up was easy and once we figured out our way around in the system it was a highlight fir us every week.I'll have to find our photos and come back to post.

Amazon Glow was the device we never knew we wanted. We grew to love so much over the year plus we used it. We miss it terribly.With this device, our boys could call their cousins and grandparents on their own, and have daily meaningful interactions. They had a blast with all the games! We all loved how they would use the Glow to stay connected with family that was out of state. Sure we could use phone and video calls to stay in touch, but it was the casual nature of the interactions like, "Hi Grandpa! Would you like to play a game?" that really made this platform shine!The games were innovative, and the interfaces were really clever! How the Glow allowed them to see each other while playing on a shared gameboard was truly unique. A small video window wasn't fighting for screen space, and the "touchscreen" was so large and intuitive.Other than long distance interactions, the Glow allowed brothers to play fun and challenging games with one another. One would get the Glow, and the other would get a tablet. This worked beautifully! They could play in different rooms, or at the same table. They were both entertained and played [relatively] peacefully with one another regularly. There were so many games! And new titles were ALWAYS being released! This was a unique platform that really provided truly unique opportunities.We've used Osmo for years, and while that is a great platform for educational games, etc., but it is completely different from the Glow. The Glow allowed for real communication and connections, whereas Osmo is designed primarily for a single user at a single location.There really isn't anything out there like the Glow for the regular consumer. I mean, sure, we could set up (2) devices, one for an online connected game, and another for a video call, but then you need two devices each, and getting all the connections to work reliably and consistently would be a bit of a pain and possibly a game of luck. Having everything in one consolidated and effective device made it so easy.If they didn't wish to be the steward of this platform, for whatever reason, we wish Amazon would allow another private firm buy the technology and keep it going. We miss you Glow!

At first, my five year-old granddaughter wasn't so sure about this new Amazon device. As the reviews note, it can be a little glitchy. Kids need to be warned to keep that extra hand off the white mat so as not to confused the laser. This is amazing technology. The 3-D scanning of you kids' items and the ability to add it to several activities really personalizes the experience. The old days of using FaceTime on a phone that gets waved around and never points the right way is over. The glow requires sitting in front of it and our granddaughter is in perfect position. It's very easy to set up. Parental controls are extensive and the Glow can communicate ONLY with those approved by the parents. It cannot make phone calls, can't browse the web, can't stream YouTube or other content and has a large (and expanding, they say) library of content. The monthly fee is $4.99, but the first year is included. If it wasn't, I'd still pay the subscription price. We can read books together while turning pages, play board games, do jigsaw puzzles, draw and much more. I purchased mine during Amazon Prime Days and got it at 60% off, so that made me very happy. Consider getting one. Amazon has the return windows open for 60 days on this device.