Did you know that Reed Memorial Library now has adult Launchpads for loan? (And no, we’re not talking about Launchpad from DuckTales!)

Perhaps you’ve seen our variety of Launchpads for children, but now we have five Launchpads for adults, located with the new audiobooks by our magazine room.

If you aren’t familiar with Launchpads…

Launchpads from Playaway are preloaded tablets that provide activities about a certain topic. For example, one of our adult Launchpads has several games downloaded on it, and another one has three digital graphic novels. Launchpads are handheld technology devices with touch screens that offer activities or entertainment about a specific topic.

What types of Launchpads do we have to offer?

We have five different Launchpads available for adults.

Learn Spanish: This one has several apps that help you learn Spanish, including the alphabet, numbers, and phrases.

Learn English Phrases: Similarly, this one has many apps that help with English words, pronunciations, and phrases.

Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files: This contains three digital graphic novels about Chicago’s wizard-for-hire!

The Great Unwind: Game lovers rejoice! This one comes with a wide variety of different games.

Think Test!: This Launchpad has a medley of brain games for adults.

Find these five Launchpads on our catalog here.

Why check out a Launchpad?

These tablets are a great way to learn a new language, test your mind, enjoy an e-book, or unwind with some fun games with no ads to interrupt your experience.

Launchpads will allow patrons to access the collection in a new way. My hope is that it will help patrons get more comfortable with technology and tablets in general by using our Launchpads. They also help to bridge a gap in the collection. For example, The Great Unwind Launchpad has games on it that are similar to the games we can download on our smartphones. Not all of our patrons have smart phones and this could be a way for them to have access to those same kinds of apps without having to upgrade their phones.

Additionally, with the language learning Launchpads, hopefully this is a way that patrons can learn new languages without having to find a CD player for the language audiobooks that we have.

Anne, Adult Services Librarian

How does a Launchpad work?

The inside of the Launchpad case includes instructions for how to use it.

You can also click this link to Playaway’s website for instructions.

When you turn on a Launchpad, the screen will say “Reset” or display a user account icon. If it’s your first time using it, choose “Reset.” Then you’ll be able to customize some options to your preference, such as the background color, the size of the apps, and a few other features. The Launchpad will also point out the main buttons on the screen with explanations. From there, you are free to explore each app! A Launchpad will keep all of your settings the same until you choose “Reset.”

Launchpads do not connect to the internet and there are no ads to interrupt your experience. They come with a USB cord for charging, but it doesn’t have a USB wall adapter, so you’ll have to either plug it into your computer to charge or supply your own adapter. Visit Playaway’s web page on Launchpads for more information.

Our Launchpads can be borrowed for 2 weeks and renewed up to 2 times, so long as there are no holds on it.

We hope you enjoy exploring these!

Also, make sure to check out our Launchpads for children, located near the children’s magazines and aquarium!