PRESS RELEASE
20th October 2015, London. EE, the UK’s most advanced digital communications company, today unveiled the Robin – the world’s first 4G connected tablet designed specifically for parents and their children.
Set to launch on the 23rd October, the Robin comes with all the shows and apps kids love including compelling content from Hopster TV as well as smart, easy-to-use parental-controls, so children can safely explore the internet wherever they are. The Robin also features an especially robust design and superfast 4G connectivity for use on the move or at home.
The Robin arrives at a time when mobile tablets are set to be top of many Christmas lists this year, with over a third, 36 percent, of parents considering purchasing a tablet for their child according to new research by ICM*.
Pre-loaded Content:
The Robin comes with over 40 pre-loaded games, educational apps and eBooks, including hits such as Fruit Ninja and Berry Rush. New content can easily be downloaded through Google Play, with every new piece of content requiring approval by the parent before children can access.
The Robin offers children exclusive, free and unlimited access to Hopster, a unique interactive TV streaming app that blends over a thousand episodes of high-quality kids’ shows with educational games based on the EYFS curriculum, all totally ad-free. Through Hopster, children can access the varied library, including family-friendly shows such as Postman Pat, Thomas & Friends, and Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom amongst others.
Online Safety:
Online security and content management is one of the most important considerations for parents when buying internet connected devices that will be used by children. The Robin from EE is equipped with the latest parental controls, so a child’s online experience can easily be managed to give parents total confidence in the content being viewed. It comes with the flexible Kurio operating system; a child-friendly interface layered over the Android operating system, specifically designed to keep children safe online whilst still giving them the freedom to enjoy their tablet.
The Robin features a variety of controls for parents, allowing them to simply manage everything from web filtering to app management and time control, and provides them with the ability to set-up bespoke user profiles. The web filtering service categorises and updates over 450 million websites daily, and prevents inappropriate content by managing ‘safe’ and ‘block’ lists. The app management system empowers parents to decide which apps are appropriate for their kids, enabling them to block whichever they choose. Time control also gives parents the option to limit how much time children can spend using non-educational apps, while keeping educational apps open to use as much as they want to encourage learning.
Design:
The Robin comes with a specially designed child-proof bumper and offers the perfect introductory tablet experience for children. Providing power and versatility, Robin features the Android 5.1 operating system, a quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, and 8GB internal memory – with additional storage space (up to 32GB) available via a Micro SD card slot. It boasts a 7-inch display that’s perfect for enjoying crisp, clear videos, playing games, or reviewing images captured on the device’s 2MP rear-facing camera.
The family-friendly Robin can also be used as a regular Android operated tablet with a simple click of a button. When in this mode, parents have full access to their data, such as emails, contacts and messages, as well as the World Wide Web.
When looking at tablet features for their children, over a quarter of parents said being able to access content from anywhere*, both at home and whilst out and about, is a vital requirement. Being the world’s first 4G-enabled children’s tablet, Robin users have superfast access the web, can watch live TV without the excessive buffering times, and play online games on the go.
Christopher Traggio, Director of Connected Products, EE said: “Parents know their children love using technology gadgets more than ever. The Robin from EE allows kids to enjoy that experience and benefit from e-learning too. What’s more, the Robin has been designed to provide parents with the peace of mind that their child is protected online with the UK’s biggest and fastest 4G network.”
Pricing & Availability:
The Robin will be available for consumers in select stores from 23rd October, and nationwide, online and through EE telesales from the 2nd November. The Robin is available on a range of Pay Monthly plans starting from £13 a month. The tablet is free for existing pay monthly EE customers (one off £29.99 cost if a non-EE pay monthly customer) on a £15 per month 24 month plan, which comes with 10GB of monthly data. All Pay Monthly Robin plans come with 24 months access to Hopster free-of-charge.
The Robin is also available for just £129.99 on pay as you go and comes with Hopster free for three months.
Damage cover is available for £4 a month and protects against cracks, smashes and spills with a next day replacement service.
For further information and for full pricing details, visit www.ee.co.uk/shop
Notes to editors:
* ICM poll of 1702 parents, October 2015
About EE
EE is the largest and most advanced digital communications company in Britain, delivering mobile and fixed communications services to consumers, businesses, government and the wholesale market. EE has approximately 14,000 employees and 553 retail stores, and serves more than 30 million customers across its mobile, fixed and wholesale businesses.
EE runs the UK's biggest and fastest mobile network, pioneering the UK's first superfast 4G mobile service in October 2012 and is the first European operator to surpass the 10million 4G customer landmark. EE's 4G coverage today reaches more than 90% of the UK population. EE’s 2G coverage reaches 99% of the population while 3G reaches 98%. EE's superfast fibre broadband service covers around 80% of the UK population, and ADSL broadband service covers 98.7% of the population.
In the last few years, EE has received extensive independent recognition including being ranked the UK's best overall network by RootMetrics®; Best Network at the 2014 and 2015 Mobile News Awards; Fastest Network at the 2013 and 2014 uSwitch Awards; Best Network at the 2014 and 2015 Mobile Choice Consumer Awards and the What Mobile Awards 2013 and 2014; Number One for Network Innovation at the 2013 Recombu Awards; Best Mobile Network at the 2014 Recombu Awards; Best Network for Business at the 2013 and 2014 Mobile Industry Awards; and Best Consumer Network at the 2014 Mobile Industry Awards
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