Great app
A very good app, has my 5 year old captivated.
Reading Rainbow Rocks!
Thank you for this app. Was my favourite kids show even before I had kids! We use it every night.
Don’t be SCAMMED
Dear Fellow Parents please be very careful when considering this app. I was super excited after we downloaded it and had chosen our five books. We decided to purchase the six month subscription only to find it didn’t work. My first step was to call iTunes to troubleshoot thinking my iPad was having issues. They worked with me and decided it was a developer issue. Their advise was to contact the app administrators. The only way I could find to do this was by email, which I did. I waited 48 hours with no response. I emailed a few more times and after no answer decided to start looking for a phone number. On their website it lists an address. After some research I found that this address is not an office building, but rather a single level building full of PO Boxes the “suite 209” they refer to in their address is actually their PO Box number.
At this point I called Apple again. After an hour on the phone they agreed that there is NO PHONE NUMBER for this company and that it is suspicious. They, of course were amazing, and returned my money. They also advised I come and leave a review for this app. So, BEWARE EVEN APPLE SUPPORT SAYS IT IS SHADY THAT THIS COMPANY HAS UNREACHABLE CUSTOMER SERVICE.
At this point I called Apple again. After an hour on the phone they agreed that there is NO PHONE NUMBER for this company and that it is suspicious. They, of course were amazing, and returned my money. They also advised I come and leave a review for this app. So, BEWARE EVEN APPLE SUPPORT SAYS IT IS SHADY THAT THIS COMPANY HAS UNREACHABLE CUSTOMER SERVICE.
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CountryRaven
The Reading Rainbow app requires a subscription. I buy the six month subscription for about 5 bucks a month. It does feel steep, but I've had the app since early in its release and I have really appreciated the service for my five-year old. They have expanded it greatly over time. The partnership with National Geographic for Kids was an especially great addition. There is a wide array of both fiction and non-fiction books. These are real books by popular authors, not rehashed public domain stories. Kids can have the books read to them, or can read them on their own. There are simple, interactive animations in many of the books. There are also short videos to stream from Reading Rainbow episodes. My five-year old is a fan. While I still prefer putting real books in my kids hands, Reading Rainbow is a traveling library that is great for trips away, car rides, and those nights when I need a little help through the three-book bed-time routine. It is also great when I see him open the app on his own and browse the library to choose his own books and videos.
Kids do earn stickers for reading books. My kid loves the stickers, but I feel this part of the app is pretty poorly implemented and does not utilize the medium creatively enough. In the end, though, it isn't about the stickers, it is about reading and learning.
Kids do earn stickers for reading books. My kid loves the stickers, but I feel this part of the app is pretty poorly implemented and does not utilize the medium creatively enough. In the end, though, it isn't about the stickers, it is about reading and learning.
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Great fun
Great range and presentation. Needs a zoom function and somewhere to put the extra stickers like another island.
Fantastic App!
This is a wonderful app. It's just a shame you can't download an English version as its a bit too American for my little one. Otherwise I would definitely subscribe!
An amazing app
The quality of the videos, book selection, ease of use... Just stellar! At $5 per month on the 6 month purchase, it's a real bargain! The only thing needed is to allow each of your kids to have their own back pack. Levar, great job!
An awesome reading app, with a few rough edges
This app is something the iPad has been waiting for: a lending library for children's books. This means your child can "check out" books to read, and then "return" them when they want new ones, without you having to buy a whole new app each time, and for a monthly subscription price roughly equal to two books.
While the app has some great features ("islands" that divide books by subject, a virtual "backpack" and "library card", for instance), it does drop the ball in a few places.
For one, right now it only supports one child, meaning if you have two or more kids reading from one iPad, only one gets to pick their favorite subjects, and get their personalized library card.
Another issue, though minor, is a lack of "follow-bouncing-ball" style words. While the narration is excellent, and the books show which page the narrator is reading, nothing shows the children which exact word is being pronounced. This is fine for pre-readers, but for kids just starting to read books themselves, it's a bit of a let-down.
Other than those fairly minor points, this is a must-have app for every parent who buys children's books in the app store.
While the app has some great features ("islands" that divide books by subject, a virtual "backpack" and "library card", for instance), it does drop the ball in a few places.
For one, right now it only supports one child, meaning if you have two or more kids reading from one iPad, only one gets to pick their favorite subjects, and get their personalized library card.
Another issue, though minor, is a lack of "follow-bouncing-ball" style words. While the narration is excellent, and the books show which page the narrator is reading, nothing shows the children which exact word is being pronounced. This is fine for pre-readers, but for kids just starting to read books themselves, it's a bit of a let-down.
Other than those fairly minor points, this is a must-have app for every parent who buys children's books in the app store.
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So far really impressive.
I am 20 years older than the target market. I'm checking the app out because I'm a fan of LeVar Burton and the original tv series.
So far I really like how it's done. There are several interactive kid books apps, but this one has a good amount of content and it's organized well in a fun interactive way -- with themed islands in the sky you can travel to with your balloon. Of course, the app also has LeVar Burton, including education videos with him on location. Looks like he had tonnes of fun making the app too. And Yeah, it does lack the complete original theme song... I'm guessing the rights were owned by PBS or something.
I'd definitely recommend this app for kids.
A couple technical points:
-The app is crashing when I try to watch videos. Maybe the streaming server is overloaded right now with requests. That bug can be fixed.
- The icon needs work. You shouldnt put the app name or title text in the icon itself. The app name is always going to be under it, or beside it, anyways. The balloon is cool, but ambiguous in that picture. Also should incorporate a book some how. Honestly, branding and recognizability is really important -- I'd consider even putting LeVar's photo/head in the icon if it can be done well.
So far I really like how it's done. There are several interactive kid books apps, but this one has a good amount of content and it's organized well in a fun interactive way -- with themed islands in the sky you can travel to with your balloon. Of course, the app also has LeVar Burton, including education videos with him on location. Looks like he had tonnes of fun making the app too. And Yeah, it does lack the complete original theme song... I'm guessing the rights were owned by PBS or something.
I'd definitely recommend this app for kids.
A couple technical points:
-The app is crashing when I try to watch videos. Maybe the streaming server is overloaded right now with requests. That bug can be fixed.
- The icon needs work. You shouldnt put the app name or title text in the icon itself. The app name is always going to be under it, or beside it, anyways. The balloon is cool, but ambiguous in that picture. Also should incorporate a book some how. Honestly, branding and recognizability is really important -- I'd consider even putting LeVar's photo/head in the icon if it can be done well.
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