Tablet Comparison: Samsung Galaxy Tab E Lite Kids vs LeapFrog Epic

The Samsung Galaxy Tab E Lite Kids is a 7″ tablet designed for children whilst the LeapFrog Epic is an educational tablet designed for children, so how do the two compare? Each tablet has a 7″ touchscreen display with a resolution of 1024×600 pixels. Both tablets follow the standard design of a normal tablet with a protective bumper intended to reduce the chance of damage if the tablet is dropped.

Both tablets are Android tablets and both run on 4.4 KitKat although the Epic runs on a variant of it. The Samsung tablet has access to Google Play and the full Android ecosystem of content; the Epic cannot install Google Play but can have the Amazon Appstore installed on it by a parent, and also has access to LeapFrog’s App Centre of educator approved apps.

The Samsung comes with 8 gigabytes (GB) of internal memory whilst the Epic comes with double this, at 16 GB. Each tablet has a memory card slot which will take memory cards of up to 32 GB in size. Both tablets a rear facing 2.0 megapixel (MP) camera but the Epic also comes with a front facing camera as well, also with a 2.0 MP resolution. Each has a single speaker, a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microphone. Both tablets also have a quad core processor. Each tablet also comes with WiFi and Bluetooth.

Both tablets come with parental controls; on the Samsung these are linked with the subscription-based Samsung Kids service. Out of the box, the Epic can only view LeapFrog approved web content and sites, a very limited amount, although parents can add more content approved by them to this list. The parental controls are probably stronger on the Epic than the Samsung, but this is typical of LeapFrog products.

The Epic’s primary use is that of an educational tablet whilst the Samsung is rather more flexible. The Samsung can be used for educational purposes, as there is content available for doing so, but the Epic is superior in this area. Similarly, the Epic can also be used for entertainment, but this is easier on the Samsung. Both tablets can be used as general purpose tablets by adults.

The tablets are similar in a number of ways, with the Epic beating the Samsung in internal memory and with having a second, front-facing camera. Although the Epic is much more flexible than previous LeapFrog offerings, it is still primarily intended to be used as an educational tablet, and this is reflected in its design. The LeapFrog tablet does tend to be substantially cheaper than the Samsung Galaxy Tab E Lite Kids.