KIDO’Z Offers Ample Protection For Web Browsing Children

KIDO'Z is a web browser that has been designed with children in mind. Easy to use and safe with parental controls to help families get the most out of their web browsing.
Mixed Feelings About The Internet
I hate the internet. I love the internet. There are times I feel like the Greek mythological god, Janus, with two faces looking in opposite directions.
Yet, that’s exactly how I view surfing the internet: it can be a wonderful tool to bring together people from all over the world as well as offering a much more level playing field for participants seeking to add their voices to the discussion. But, the internet has a darker, unseemly side, one which can be challenging enough for unsuspecting adults and downright dangerous for youngsters.
Downloading A Children’s Web Browser
For the past several weeks I have been following some of the blog comments and reviews related to a new children’s web browser, KIDO’Z, and decided to download it (along with the required and free Adobe Air that powers the browser) to test for myself.
My wife and I have two young boys and have been supervising their web activity very closely. Lately, as our sons have been doing more school-related research, we realized that we were nearing a crossroads: add annoying and constraining web filters or come up with another plan. I’m happy to report that KIDO’Z (pronounced kiddos) successfully meets the latter.
Operating under the tagline, “Safe, easy and fun internet for kids,” KIDO’Z is proving to be all that and more. I must admit that I didn’t do much of the initial testing myself because no sooner had I downloaded the web browser and set up the account, my oldest son got on our family computer and my wife took over to observe what he was doing.
So Very Easy To Use
Both of my sons and my wife were immediately impressed by KIDO’Z starting with its big and colorful welcome screen to its easy to use interface with big button pictures of sites they like (such as Thomas the Tank Engine) and on to more games than they could have ever imagined. Even some of their favorite shows such as Tom ‘n Jerry are included allowing them to safely view family friendly cartoons too.
No typing is necessary for children to access what they want through KIDO’Z. Pointing and clicking a mouse works just fine and, if you have touch screen technology, you can find your way around with that set up too.
Free To Use And Free Of Ads
KIDO’Z is absolutely free with no annoying ads popping up and getting in the way. A premium feature is in the works and will roll out within the next few months, but with full parental control over KIDO’Z and lots of nifty features included, the standard package is very impressive.
Yes, you can add your own sites to KIDO’Z which can be ideal if your children need access to sites not yet vetted by the moderators who work to ensure that all content items are safe for children. You can even share your finds with other KIDO’Z users which is a great way to make sure that fresh content is regularly added.
KIDO’Z was designed for children ages 3-7, but our boys are slightly older and still like what it has to offer. Eventually, they’ll be using something like Quintura when their researching needs change, but for now the younger members of our household are satisfied with KIDO’Z and all that it has to offer them.
See Also — Wolfram Alpha: The Only Search Engine You Need?
Photo courtesy of KIDO’Z.

By Mig, May 29, 2009 @ 6:22 am
I am very glad that your kids enjoy this, Matt! I have it installed on my PC and can hardly wait to use it with my children
By Matthew C. Keegan, May 29, 2009 @ 6:25 am
It certainly comes in handy, Mig. I no longer have to split time with my wife standing over the shoulders of our kids as they navigate the internet. Plus, when we find sites that we want to include, it is a simple thing to add what we want on KIDOZ. I think that this browser will be hit with tens of millions of families worldwide — it is available in 17 languages!
By Genesis, May 29, 2009 @ 7:31 am
I`ve been letting my 3 year old use it and he`s a total computer nut now, lol. The good thing is I can leave him hanging out with Thomas on the desktop while I work on the laptop and I don`t need to worry about nasty stuff popping up (he`s still a slightly random clicker!) by accident.
By Matthew C. Keegan, May 29, 2009 @ 7:36 am
Genesis, it isn’t great not to have to worry what our kids are watching online? My wife and I no longer have to flip a coin to decide who is going to watch the kids surf the ‘net. Seriously, like your son I want our boys to be able to enjoy all the good stuff that the internet has to offer without some cyber creep butting in.
By Yakov, May 29, 2009 @ 8:42 am
Thank you for including Quintura for Kids (http://www.quinturakids.com) into your review!
You can embed it onto your blog.
By Matthew C. Keegan, May 29, 2009 @ 8:48 am
You are welcome, Yakov. I haven’t used Quintura yet but I am getting some positive feedback about this application which means I will eventually investigate further and offer my review.
By Andrew, May 30, 2009 @ 4:16 am
Great stuff Matt, My little boy is getting a netbook for his 5th birthday – this will be going on the computer as soon as I get it out of it’s box to be configured.
By Matthew C. Keegan, May 30, 2009 @ 5:01 am
Andrew, best wishes with the Netbook. I hope that it works out for you — my wife wants one so I’ll be checking around to see what others are saying about theirs to see if it is worthwhile. Happy and safe surfacing to your son!
By Steve, June 2, 2009 @ 5:42 am
The features are absolutely superb! Thanks for Kido’z… children will really feel happy to use this browser!!
By Diety, June 10, 2009 @ 8:03 am
Oh my God, this is amazing! Thank you so much
Our kids have been bugging us to let them go online to play some games daily, but with all the work etc. we never really had the time to monitor them. I’ve been reading all about the dangers that are lurking in the dark corners of the web and was feeling very insecure letting them out of my sight even for a second, when they were using the family computer.
Thanks again.
We’ll test this browser and if it’s half as good as you describe, we’re happy. You can’t imagine how much