5 ways to turn your old iPad into a kid-friendly smart home gadget - CNET

You can turn your old iPad into a smart home hub that works like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. 

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With a new iPad Mini expected this fall, are you thinking about retiring your old iPad? That older Apple tablet may have a few years on it but still works fine. Should you sell it and put the cash toward the latest and greatest for iPad? Or could you repurpose it as a smart gadget for your kids that they could continue to use after you buy the new iPad? (If you do decide to sell, we have a handy guide on the best places to sell your old equipment.) 

Here's how to give an old Apple tablet new life if you're thinking about retiring your old iPad. 

We also have ideas for what you can do with your old Android phone too (you can even turn it into a security camera). And here's some ideas for your kids heading back to school.

Turn your iPad into a night light and sound machine

If your kids are starting to sleep on their own and you want to create a serene sleep haven for them, your old iPad is up to the task. With an app like Baby Night Lite, you can set up a night light for the kids' room with a variety of small animals and colors along with a sound machine that comes with a variety of songs and white noise and ambient background sounds. And you can set a timer and create a playlist of peaceful, soothing music or lullabies. For older kids who are beyond lullabies and dancing sheep, an app like Night Light Lite lets you pick from a variety of sounds, such as beach waves and running water, and night light colors to help them get to sleep. 

Make your iPad an extra gaming console

Sony's PS5 or the Nintendo Switch might be on your kids' shortlist for holiday gifts, but for fun and variety, it's hard to beat an iPad paired with Apple Arcade games, such as NBA 2K21 Arcade Edition or The Oregon Trail. And if you have more kids in the home than gaming devices, converting that old iPad into a gaming device may be just the ticket.  

Plus, the iPad gives your kids a bigger screen to play multiplayer games. And you can even add a PlayStation or Xbox wireless controller to the iPad for your kids to play without hogging the TV or your phone.

Convert your iPad into kid-friendly smart home hub 

You don't need to buy Apple's HomePod or HomePod Mini to put an Apple smarter speaker in your kids' room.

You can turn your old iPad into a smart home hub that lets your kids play music, turn on and off the lights and even control the temperature in their room with the tablet. 

To turn your iPad into a smart home hub for your kids' room:

1. On your iPad, go to Settings.

2. Scroll down, tap Home and then toggle on Use this iPad as a Home Hub.

If you want to give your kids control just over the smart-home devices in their room and not everywhere in the house, you can set limits on what they have access to in the Home app.

You can download learning apps for your kid to use your old tablet as an educational tool. 

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Use your iPad as a learning tool 

With the new school year here, if your kids are going to start hogging the home computer for their schoolwork, turning an iPad into a dedicated education tool may be the perfect use for your older Apple tablet. You can even pair it up with a keyboard and a mouse to make the iPad feel more like a computer.

If you're worried about your kid becoming distracted with messages, games, alerts and social media, you can use Apple's parental controls to set limits and what they can and can't do on the device.

To get a running start on the school year, here are a few apps that can help your kids study, keep track of their day and take notes. 

Use your iPad as a baby monitor 

Most baby monitor devices make it easy to check on your little one from your phone or computer. But they aren't cheap. Turning your old iPad into a baby monitor can be a more affordable way to keep track of your baby. 

Baby-monitor apps like the Cloud Baby Monitor can let you check in on your kid. You can also get motion and noise alerts, just like popular baby monitors -- the Owlet Smart Sock Plus is a popular one. Note that if you're looking for a monitor that keeps an eye on your baby's oxygen levels, temperature and sleep quality, the iPad may not be the best choice. 

If you're still leaning toward getting a new iPad, here's our guide for the best iPads available right now and the big differences between them And here's what we know the next big Apple event if you're shopping for more gadgets. Or if you're thinking about keeping the old iPad, here's what the iOS 15 has in store. 

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