Zoodles Internet Browser and Virtual Toybox for Kids

How early your kids should be allowed to use computer? Probably, everyone has its own answer to this question, as it depends on multiple factors, as kid personality and interests. But, no matter what answer do you choose, you probably would not give a kid access to the entire WWW with all the questionable content and virtual violence. It is also quite complicated to navigate for the newcomers, so the best way to introduce your kid to the Internet is creating special safe artificial environment, funny, easy to operate, and absolutely safe.

There are multiple solutions already available on the Web, both free and commercial. Today we will present you Zoodles Internet Browser and Virtual Toybox for Kids.

Zoodles.com is a simple, safe, and free web browser for young children, created by a team of educational professionals with your child's Internet safety in mind. Kids love the Zoodles browser because it offers them a virtual toybox full of educational, entertaining sites that are age and interest specific.

The graphics are pleasing and the navigation is simple, even for the youngest of children. The activities and videos housed within the browser come from sites that your child will immediately recognize: NickJr.com, PBSkids.org, Starfall.com, and PlayhouseDisney.com, to name a few. Some of the free features that make the Zoodles solution quite interesting and attractive is that there is no typing needed and no URL address bar is visible; only interactive thumbnail images for the child to click on. The Zoodles browser opens in full screen mode, taking away the temptation to open other programs on the desktop.

As in many cases with free utilities, Zoodles also has a catch. No, there is nothing wrong with freeware in terms of viruses or Trojans, and there is no need to fulfill some offers. The catch is in additional features available for the users, which are not free. With a premium membership, the Zoodles browser offers many features. For starters, ads will be removed by the Zoodles Ad Blocking feature, which enables your child to only have access to the content that has been pre-screened and pre-approved by the Zoodles educational team.

The parental features that come with the premium membership are incredible, and can all be found within the Zoodles Parent Dashboard. The Dashboard provides detailed reports of your child's activities and interests. Parents can control which games and activities are found within the child's toybox and also promote time on specific educational subjects. The Zoodles parental controls are available to all members during the free trial period; however, the cost to continue these controls is $7.95/month.

Access Zoodles website: http://www.zoodles.com/

Download is available after your free sign up for the site.

Zoodles is rated 3 of 5 on the RateItAll list of 31 freeware utilities included in Free Parental Control Software. Feel free to browse other entries, if current software does not satisfy your needs due to the features offered and age of your children.