Fisher-Price bike helps iPad-addicted toddlers get exercise

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Fisher-Price-Smart-Cycle
The Smart Cycle comes with games that require peddle power.
Photo: Fisher-Price

CES2017 Many of today’s toddlers are addicted to tablets, which means they like to sit around for hours on end playing games and watching videos. Fisher-Price wants to make this activity a little less sedentary with the Think & Learn Smart Cycle.

Unveiled at CES 2017 in Las Vegas this week, it’s a stationary bike for kids with a built-in tablet stand that lets them cram in some much-needed exercise while their little minds remain focused on other things.

Back in 2015, researchers at the University of Iowa discovered that by age 2, around 90 percent of children have a moderate ability to use a tablet. Fisher-Price has found that preschoolers watch around 19 hours of video every week, and spend around 20 hours using electronic devices.

That’s a lot of time spent doing very little, and it’s unhealthy — no matter what your age. If you want to make your kids more active without robbing them of their precious tablet time, Fisher-Price has the answer.

Its new Smart Cycle connects to a tablet via Bluetooth and combines with four educational apps (more are on the way) focused on literacy, STEM learning, math, and social studies. Each game works alongside the bike and requires kids to peddle as they play.

The apps are priced at $5 apiece, but one — Smart Cycle Mission to Tech City — comes bundled with the bike, which is priced at $150. They’re compatible with Android, iOS and Amazon’s Fire tablets, as well as Apple TV and Android TV.

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