Readeo.com Rocks for Remote Reading to Your Children

A few decades ago we imagined we’d have invented teleportation by now. Well we’re not there yet, but we may have just gotten one step closer: a parent can now read his or her child a bedtime story even from the other side of the world. Readeo, a new web service, makes it possible to share story time with your kids regardless of the distance between you. That’s good news for today’s parents on the move.

Here’s how it works: select a children’s book from Readeo’s extensive online library, sorted by age-appropriateness, then you and your child can view the book and each other while you read aloud over Readeo’s real-time video chat. Turn the page on your computer and the page will turn on the child’s screen as well. It’s like Skype plus eBooks, combined in an elegant and totally user-friendly viewer. A membership costs $9.99 per month (only one of the two parties has to be a member to chat), then you get unlimited access to the Readeo online library and unlimited chatting time.

The front page of Readeo.com boasts “better than Skype.” Ever try reading a book to your child over Skype? You have to hold the book up to the camera, making it difficult for the child to read along. In contrast, Readeo offers clear, colorful children’s books right there on the computer screen. And sure, it’s great to see and talk to your kids when you are away, but sometimes young children don’t have the attention span for a long conversation.With Readeo, you and your child can participate in a fun activity together.

Of course free is still good, right!?  For free video conferencing, keep using Skype, as well as other video chat services such as Google Video Chat.  But, you also get what you pay for.  So, if you want the real deal for reading to your child remotely, you need Readeo.  There’s really no comparison.  Readeo clearly beats these other services for this specific activity.

We may not have teleporters (yet), but our kids are definitely going to grow up with a totally different understanding of the limitations of space and time. Nowadays, just because Mommy or Daddy is on a business trip doesn’t mean she/he can’t also be right there to read a story.