Last week, the little’s and I headed out to Universal city walk to meetup with a few of my MomsLA colleagues, eat lunch, mingle and hear about navigating the holidays with GameStop by Suzanne Katra from Techlicious. As we stuffed our faces with carbs and sauce from Buca di Beppo, Suzanne Katra and a GameStop representative gave us a detailed rundown of kids and technology and how to get the most bang for our buck while shopping at GameStop.
Although writing about what I learned that morning is not required, I felt the information was interesting and valuable enough to share with all of you.
Did you know:
- 46% of 5-8 year old’s have a TV in their rooms
- Gaming consoles are introduced at age 8, on average
- Online games are introduced at age 10, on average
- 49% of parents “sometimes” give a handheld video game player to a child when running errands. 17% “often” do.
- Overall screen time decreased by 21 minutes per day vs 2 years ago for kids under 8 to 1 hour 55 minutes. Reason: more time on: mobile devices and less time on: TV, DVD, Computers, Video Games.
(Resources: Microsoft/Comscore study 2013 and Common Sense media 2013 survey: Kids 0-8)
It is safe to say that according to these statistics, video games are unavoidable. But did you know that they’re also better for your kids than watching tv? Video games are social, require the player to engage and interact and have the ability to improve hand-eye coordination all of which are better than “zoning out” in front of the tv. Listen, I’m not saying plug your kids in to games right now – I’m saying video games are a good alternative to TV but obviously pale in comparison to going and playing outside with friends.
Being well informed about game systems and games is the very first priority. Here are a few valid points Techlicious suggests.
Set Up Gaming Limits
Parents can establish screen-free zones and turn off electronic devices during dinner. Children and teens: limit entertainment media to no more than 2 hours per day (does not include homework) and children under 2 years old no TV at all.
Research Age Appropriate Games
Probably the most time consuming, yet has the most effect. If you can take just a few moments out of your day to research the games that are appropriate for your child’s age level everyone will win. Here are a few valuable resources to do so:
Common Sense Media – is the nation’s leading non-profit organization that provides trustworthy information about media and technology.
Plugged In – brought to us by Focus on the Family, Plugged in provides detailed reviews, articles and thoughtful discussions about every game available.
Turn To Those That Know
Seems obvious enough to me. Going to where people know there stuff is where you’ll get better service, better product and an overall better experience. The folks at GameStop are specially trained (and are game nerds to start with) and will have all of your answers. And they’re all friendly game nerds too.
Save Money By Utilizing GameStops Trade in Program
Get instant in-store credit for the old games and consumer electronics you bring in For current titles get up to 50% back in credit. Game systems earn between $80-$110 in credit. For trade-ins, the disc must be in working order, but the manual and case are not required. Nearly 20% of gifters plan to use trade-ins to help defer gift costs.
Head over to GameStop to find your closest location. And to Techlicious for all the latest techy advice.
