Nintendo DS for 4.5 Year Old??

Personally, I think that's too young. My nephews (ages 4.5 and 6 yrs) have them and they are addicted. They don't want to play with anything else. They don't use their imaginations and they don't get a lot of physical activity. Unless you are prepared to put strict limits on use of the DS, I wouldn't do it. Besides, why get him started on it when HE isn't even asking for it? I would just be thankful that he isn't begging for one -- that time will come soon enough! Let him be a little kid!

no , no , no , no
4.5 is too young for a game system.
At least the leapster is educational there are VERY FEW games that are in his age range for the DS.
Good age for the DS is no younger than 7.

I don't think he is too young as long as you get age appropriate games. My now 5 year old got one for Christmas last year and has used it a lot. My 4 year old likes to play with his brother's so he is getting one this year. They both also have Leapsters but like the DS much more. I say go for it!

I'm in the no camp too. I think kids are getting addicted [no other word] to electronics waaaay too young. And too much screen time isn't good for kids. I'm old school. We just flew four hours to CA (and back) and didn't give our boys 5 and 2 a DVD. They just color and play with cars. They know how to entertain themselves and I think that's a good thing.

I would NOT recommend this for a 4.5 yr old. There are other electronic devices for him out there. I have children ages 15 down to 10 months and my advice to NOT to start the gaming systems until he's begging for it and can earn it. We've made our own children earn it or pay partially for it. They are more responsible with the systems because of this. Once you start the gaming stuff, it gets addictive.
We bought our 10 yr old a DS Nintendo a couple of years ago for getting straight A's. It was the worst mistake we ever did. He got addictive and then he was mean when he wasn't using it. He's been banned from it altogether. He would be in a room with his friends and they would all be playing on their DS's and not interact with each other. We have Xbox and playstation 2 now and we have an old super nintendo that they still get out every now and then. We put a time limit to how much gaming and screen time they get in a day or week. Please trust me on this, you do not want to start this so young.

you cant find more constructive toys-books etc for your son??...my kids had none of this stuff growing up-they got toys that they had to actually play with and use their imagination..these games have led to our kids being obese,lazy couch potatoes-if hes not interested-dont push it..hes still just a baby....

the answer is an astounding, absolutly NO!!!!

first of all, the thing costs MORE than 100$!!! who has the budget for that these days? and if one DID, why wouldnt we put 50$ of that on some of that bad old DEBT we are all drowning in, and spend 50$ on something else? you say all he asks for is a yoyo, maybe you can find a talented someone or other to teach him some yoyo tricks. or a good yoyo kit at a local bookstore or something. maybe he would rather have experiences; take him bowling - 50$ can get you a heck of a lot of bowling. or one of those battery powered cars for kids, what boy wouldnt want THAT? or a membership to a ymca or something where he can play and have fun all while exersizing?
maybe he wants to give some money to a charity. see if theres something in your area that he can relate to or even go and check it out or something. kids with cancer, a food shelf, the salvation army. something.

i say flat out NO. i wouldnt get an ELEVEN year old a DS "just because his friends have one". we dont need to be keeping up with the joneses, thats how we got into this mess as a country. even if you can afford it (supposedly), is it really in your best interest to get a 4 year old something SO expensive that is SO easily lost broken or stolen? why not spring an extra 100$ on a WII for the whole family, or if you already have one, a new game? technology addictions are a big deal these days, just think of all the women and girls out there with boyfriends, husbands who are playing games all the time, and ignoring the needs of their families. you dont want to start that at 4, its bad enough as it is. delay this as long as you possibly can and you stand a chance of showing your son theres more to life than video games.
get him an ourdoor playset or something. video games are fun, but they can make aweful addictions (as i said).

i hope that it helps.

I have a granddaughter the same age and I agree with your hubby. Too young to be able to work it well which leads to frustration and possible Nintendo DS throwing. Not good. Wait a bit longer and he'll enjoy it more.

We got our oldest a Gameboy when he was 9. My next got a DS at 13. The other two don't have one of their own. My 9 year old plays with my oldest many Gameboys.
Personally I think 4 is too young to have any handheld gaming system.
He wants a yoyo, cool, get him that.
Since my 9 yo was 4 he has asked for a bell, there;s a movie where the child gets a bell that only kids can hear. Everything else is gravy.

If you are looking for other Christmas gifts, consider things that can grow with your son. Personally, I LOVE the yo-yo idea. We have picked up a mini Froebel blocks set for our 3.5 year old son and plan on getting another box of Tinkertoys (our first was secondhand and some pieces are too well-used to stay together). These gifts are fine for kids your son's age, and believe me, they get a ton of use. Constructive Playthings also has a wagon of bristle blocks: I bought a set for my nephews 4 years ago, and they are still being used regularly. (The boys are 5, 7 and 9 years old now.) I'd also suggest waiting a bit on the DS... for most families, that's somewhat of a big-ticket gift. If he shows interest in one, then he'll get to have a time to really want and anticipate it, instead of having to 'grow into' using it. Esp. if he's telling you he wants a yoyo--that's probably what he really wants!

It all depends on what you feel is important, and I do agree with many of the posts that state it is "your" decision. That being said...

My husband and I think it is deplorable to buy our kids more and more technology that serves NO truly viable purpose besides entertainment. My kids need no more excuses to stay inside sitting on their behinds playing a game...there are so many better, more productive things they can do with their time. Yes, you can learn a few things from a toy like a DSI...but you can learn those same things with a book, a constructive toy, or just playing or working with your child. Why would you ever promote less socialization, less creativity, and less physical effort to a child that young?

We have a 9 and a 6 year old who if we let them would spend 99% of their time gaming instead of enjoying themselves playing with other toys, sports, playing with friends, or even just being outside. The more technology access you give a child, and younger...the more likely they will become less physically fit, less social, and less able to amuse themselves without an "electric babysitter" (note the funny comment below about it being a great "shut-up tool"...which is fine for some people, but not the way I want to parent my kids).

I recommend checking out stores online like Creative Kidstuff or the Learning Store just to name a couple for some great gift ideas that will enhance your childs learning and growth, instead of providing them with an expensive way to occupy their time while providing no other benefit or function.

Either way...it is totally up to you, and what you and your husband enjoy and believe in...do what you think is best.

I got my daughter her first DS when she was 5 (she's a "gadget girl", she loves tech stuff versus dolls, clothes, etc. When she was four she would casually play with mine so I waited a year & then bought her one of her own) and by the time she was 5 1/2 she was playing it regularly. Now she's 7 1/2 and she still loves it, in fact I got her the new DS XL for Xmas. Personally I think it's a good investment if your child is genuinely interested in gaming, but don't waste the money if he hasn't shown any interest just wait until he's old enough to really appreciate it.

I also want to mention that I haven't had any issues with my daughter becoming "addicted" to the system, I know that seems to be a concern of many parents who are considering buying their children a gaming system.

The world is a changing place-I think people need to realize this. It never hurts to keep up on the technology-even for the youngsters. It builds hand eye coordination and makes them responsible.

My boys got the mini nintendo's when they were 5 and 6 and they loved them and were responsible for them. After two years, we upgraded to DS lites and last Christmas they got DSi's.

You couild always start off with a used game system-a little cheaper and he won't care whatsoever and you can see how he handles it. And you won't be crushed if he doesn't treat it with the respect it deserves if you didn't pony up a lot of cash.

They play these games alot on the bus and for car rides and there are the brain smart games orientated towards learning.

Goodness gracious-some of these posts are crazy. Don't let anyone bring you down and lecture you on how to be a parent or how to set up your household budget like mrsiamlove there. Not everyone is in debt and not everyone who plays video games is addicted (and I see he/she has pointed out that men only neglect their families). A little off to the far side in my opinion.

If you choose to give it to him, I would suggest that you limit the time he can play with it on a daily basis. The Academy of Pediatrics suggests a time-limit of "no more than 2 hours of quality TV each day"; I personally interpret that to be no more than 2 hours of screen time (computer, video games, TV combined) per day. I recently read some research suggesting that there are negative impacts on relational skills and other issues with early introduction to "screen" activities like Nintendo. But I don't remember how much screen time those kids had, and it's like anything--it requires parental supervision and guidance.

My friend got her son a DS Lite at age 3 so I guess it depends on the kid. The only thing is that my friend's sons carry the DS Lite with them almost everywhere so I am not sure if that is a good thing though. I think if you get him the DS Lite now, you might run out of things to get him when he gets older.

We are a gaming family so we got our son one last Christmas when he was 3.5. He loves it! It is harder to control than the iPod/iPhone games, but there are options for little ones. Sesame Street came out with 2 this year for the DS. Elmo letters and cookie numbers. (I can't remember the exact names.).

My son loved MarioKart, Diego's Animal Safari, Warioware, classic Mario, and Chocobo tails.

I got one for my 3/now 4 year old this summer. My 2.5 year old plays it without much help needed. ITS A GREAT THING TO HAVE! I finally get a break from the kids and they are quiet in the car and while waiting well, anywhere!!!!! Great "shutup tool" as I say! lol

i dont think 4.5 is to young!! thats what i bought my 4.5 year old son this year! he played it in the gamestop and loved it! we went through the same with him not being interested in the leapster anymore and he got an ipod touch last christmas. as long as hes not sitting around and playing all day i think its fine! my son still has his imagination and still plays with his action figures. so maybe take him to a store like gamestop and have him test it out first.

My youngest just turned 5 in Sept, he loves his ds, mostly the racing games.

My first son got one at 4 and my 2 year has a leapster. I don't know, everyone has an opinion on these things, but it helped with my first son's fine motor skills and my two year old practices writing letters with his leapster. I think as long as you limit time they are fine.

We just bought a DS Lite for our five year old boy for Xmas. He is very active in karate, wrestling, gymnastics, and loves his school work. He loves to color and do puzzles and play outside. I think it is good to have a mixture of activities, and it is up to the parent to make sure that none of them overtake the others. Kids who sit in front of a TV, computer, or gaming system do so because the parents are enabling them to. I agree with Kristine that you also need to be able to keep your kids up on the ever changing technology of the world. I can't believe all of the technology that my son is already exposed to in Kindergarten...so different than when I was there, and I'm not THAT old. As long as you can limit the time, I think exposing your child to all sorts of activities is the best thing.

Good luck!

You have good answers on both sides, but you have to remember that it completely depends on YOUR child.

My husband and I both have DS systems for ourselves and my son was naturally interested in them. He was about 2.5 the first time I let him sit on my lap and work with the stylus to tap the numbers in a simple bingo game. For my son, it was perfect because he's known how to count to 100+ and recognize the numbers by sight since he was 2. He could actually PLAY the game with no problem, but it really helped motivate him to work on his fine motor skills, which were lacking.

Now he's three and will still ask for "Michael's white book" which is the DS system he has (it's my old DS lite because I upgraded to a DSi!). He can choose a game, put it in, turn the system on, grab the stylus and play for a bit, then he will say "all done with white book!" and hand it back to me to be put up so his 1-year-old sister doesn't chew on it. :-)

If your son is able to actually play the games (remember that a DS lite will also play Gameboy Advance games, so more options for simple games for him) and you'd like him to work on his fine motor skills, then I'd say go for it and make sure he uses it in moderation. If he's not quite there yet with numbers, letters, reading, etc., then maybe go with a Leapstar that does more of the work for him.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

That is a good age to get a DS. He should have no problem at all with it.

I think 4.5 is fine for a DS but you'll have to help him be responsible for it and help with some of the games. Our younger daughter got one at 5 since she loved to play on her older sister's. There isn't a huge selection of games without reading but my daughter likes the Dora and Diego games, Littlest Pet Shop, and "Smart Girls" games. There's "Smart Boys" games, too. and they don't require any reading and are fun. She does well with the Nintendogs games, too.

We limit the time the girls can spend on video games but they're used a lot on car trips and anytime one has to wait quietly for the other at lessons, etc.

Lots of strong opinions on this topic. (-: If he's not asking for one yet, I would probably wait. Some kids are prone to becoming more addicted to them and it can be one more thing to monitor/struggle with. I have one of each--a boy who just uses the hand held games for long drives or flights and one who pushes the limits and would play forever if we let him. It is a battle enforcing the time limits with our younger son (11). Our boys got Game Boys when they were 5 1/2 and 8 1/2. We were bringing the boys with us on a business trip/cruise and we knew there were going to be long lines and waits and times when we needed them quiet and still. For the first year or so our younger son just used his to watch videos. He didn't start with the games right away. I don't think there were as many options back then for games for the little ones. They got their first DS a couple of years later and had to share it. We have since upgraded to a DS Lite, but they have to share that one too. My younger son is now asking for a DSi, but we haven't decided yet about that. My older son had been BEGGING for a Game Boy when we first got them. We gave in because of the trip. If your son isn't aware of the DS or isn't asking for one, I would personally wait awhile longer. Plus, the technology changes so frequently that there might be something new available by the time he really wants one.