Cape Town - “Are we there yet?” is a constant refrain heard by generations of South African parents on long road trips to holiday destinations year in and year out.
“I’m boooo-red” is another familiar refrain, heard from children at home for the holidays and hoping someone will be persuaded to do something interesting with them. While our parents may have had the options of turning up the radio/tape, telling us to go play outside, or just tuning out the whining, today’s technology offers a few more options.
Google Play Books, Games, Movies and Music are available in South Africa (the only country in Africa to offer all four) and offer a host of entertainment options for adults and children. Just sign in to play.google.com using your Google credentials (your Gmail account details) and you’re ready to go.
Get set for your holiday roadtrip by downloading the Google Play Music app to your phone or tablet, then compile a playlist on play.google.com or use one of those recommended by the concierge service - save for offline listening and you’ll have music to make the miles fly by.
To keep the kids amused, download Google Play Movies to your device of choice and buy or rent a couple of movies (rentals are available for 30 days or 48 hours after you start watching) on play.google.com. If you’re going to be out of connectivity range (like when you’re on an airplane with no wifi or in the Karoo with no 3G), simply save to your device for offline viewing. Movies can also be watched via Android TV.
Games are a firm favourite to while away holiday hours, and the Google Play Games store has a broad selection. Either go to games in Google Play in your browser or the App store on your device and take your pick.
Once the kids are occupied, you can settle down to some well-deserved holiday reading. Google Play Books offers a wide selection of local and international authors for purchase and for free.
Go to Google Play Books in your browser, and browse to your heart’s content. Download the Google Play Books app on your device and anything you purchase will automatically be available for leisurely perusal.
Adapted from a press release for IOL