In what is being termed as bad parenting or a sign of the times, the new Ipad baby seat has been launched to the public.

The Newborn-to-Toddler Apptivity Seat by Fisher Price is geared specifically toward babies and is an infant seat that comes with a iPad holder.

In addition to the iPad holder, it features bat-at toys on the removable bar and a mirror that reflects the baby’s image when the iPad is removed.

The description of the seat on the Fisher Price web site reads:

“Soothing, entertaining and technology all in one great grow-with-me seat for baby! Lock your iPad device inside the case to protect from dribbles and drool.”

The seat comes with free apps that include soothing sounds and patterns that Fisher-Price claim help develop eye-tracking skills.

The Newborn-to-Toddler Apptivity seat retails for about $80 in the U.S. (approx. N13,500).

A lot of mothers in the U.S. have began to complain about the iPad holder feature. For example Libby Conover, mom to two girls ages 4 and 3 said:

“Babies should be entertained by looking around and by their family or caretaker, not a screen.”

Another mother, Jennie Chambers, a mother to a two-and-a-half-year-old girl, said:

“I can see how it would just be so easy for overtired parents or lazy caregivers to abuse it, plopping child in seat and plugging in a video and hypnotizing baby for hours at a time.”

Kathleen Alfano, Ph.D. and senior director of child research at Fisher-Price, has defended the company. She told ABC News in a statement:

“We strive to provide thoughtful features and solutions for parents that we’ve identified through researching their needs.”

 

“We know the Apptivity Seat isn’t for everyone. We want to give parents options, which is why we have over a dozen infant seats from which they can choose.”

 

“If parents don’t want to use the iPad, they can remove the device and a mirror will be overhead, or they can remove the bar completely. The choice is theirs.”

(READ: Toddlers who use tablets or smartphones may develop long-term problems with their hands and fingers)

The American Academy of Paediatrics recently issued new guidelines that state that children should not be allowed more than two hours screen time a day, so starting to indoctrinate children from when they are infants, is a ‘shocking’ development.

Dr. Richard Besser, ABC News chief medical editor and a practicing pediatrician advises that:

“A child’s brain is going through incredible development and change during those early years. The best thing for a child is extensive interaction with people, hearing voices, seeing faces, physically touching toys. I worry that screens will replace these important human interactions.”

Nigerian parents what are your thoughts? Do you think the new ipad baby seat is simply a sign of the times or just bad parenting?