When babies are addicted to screens

Sometimes I post things and I let you be the judge. But today I can’t help myself. This baby seat from Fisher Price, called the Apptivity Seat, features a mirror for baby to look at that is designed to be popped open and replaced with an iPad.

In case you want your baby to play Angry Birds.

Ok, I know there are countless wonderful things to do with an iPad – show Baby pictures of family members, for example – but I can’t get behind this. Babies are not yet addicted to screens to fight boredom and isolation. They think the real world and in-person friendships are fulfilling enough.

A six-month old still has a chance at standing in line at the grocery store with only magazines and gum packages to stimulate his senses. He can start looking down at his phone when he’s four and he’s already seen Britney Spears’ unflattering beach photos.

Do I sound like an old-fashioned great grandma?

In my day, we put our babies in vibrating bouncy seats and all they had to play with were their own two feet!

(That’s not even true. My son’s Fisher Price seat had a bar with toys hanging over it.)

Next up, the iPad for potty training.

Obviously this is called the iPotty. Yep, that’s a real thing. iShitUnot. (Find it on Amazon.)

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Whitney

RookieMoms.com co-founder Whitney lives with her husband, son, and daughter in the San Francisco Bay Area where she writes about parenting, crafts, and activities that moms can do with babies in tow. She and Heather also publish 510Families.com, a site for East Bay parents.