Guide to Choosing a Computer System for Your Child

Before going further into choosing computers for children, I believe that you would like to know the answer to the following question:

Why do children need computers?

The easiest answer for this one is: "A child needs a computer so that he can play computer games". Everybody agrees. Nevertheless, let's not just limit on the short term use of the computer... Let's analyze a little the world we live in and see what can acomputer do for children.

Computers are starting to have more and more importance in our daily life. Almost everywhere you go, you find computers. At office or at home, a computer is almost indispensable.

Not knowing to use a computer, you find many difficulties. Moreover, things will not get easier in the future, because the world is getting more and more computerized. That is why your child should get accustomed and work with computers from an early age. If your child does this, it will be much easier for him to adapt to the ever-changing technology.

Educational products are nowadays released mostly on computer CD's.

More and more educational products for children are now released in the form of programs and electronic encyclopedias and can only be viewed with a computer, somehow forcing you to buy a computer for your child. Unlike the traditional learning methods, learning with a computer has the advantage of interactivity. Children love to learn with computers, because they can control the way they learn and what they learn.

Of course, a child will use a computer mainly to play computer games. At first, the computer will be for your child like a more expensive toy. The computer will be his favorite toy. Your child will play computer games the entire day. However, after a while, the child will settle down and start exploring the other sides of the computer.

At first, the only thing I was doing at my computer was playing. Then, as time passed, I started being interested in how computers work, the internet, 3D modeling and so on. Now I can say that I know a lot about computers.

The disadvantage of computers as toys is that it is a lot more expensive than other toys for children, but on the long term, the money you spend will come back multiplied many times in the form of knowledge for your child. That is why I do believe that a computer is a very good investment on the long run for you and your child.

Which computers for children to buy?

Since the main use of the computer for your child will be to play games, you should choose a fast system on which modern games will run smooth. Also, because modern computer games use lot's of space, a high capacity hard drive is recommended. The computer you choose for your child should be equipped with a DVD, because DVD's are starting to replace CD's as main data transport medium.

Now that you have chosen a computer system for your child, all you need is a monitor. You can choose from two types of computer monitors: CRT and LCD. LCD monitors are the ones you usually find in a office. They are flat and do not produce radiations. However, they are not recommended for the purpose your child will use it, because of the slow reaction time. CRT computer monitors are bigger and cheaper. They are more indicated for children who like to play computer games a lot.