Mannheim, Germany – Independent developer Jan Essig today is proud to announce the release and immediate availability of Playground 1 Lite 1.0 for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. Designed for children ages 2-6 years, Playground 1 Lite is a free-to-try version of the award-winning children’s app, Playground 1 – ‘Best of’ Edition and features six learning games including:

* Search Images: Children must identify the 5 errors in each of the 5 illustrations
* Pairs / Match Up: Children match the 4 pairs in each of the 8 illustrations
* Puzzles: There is a “Toddler” version with 4 puzzle pieces and a “Pro” version with 8 puzzle pieces that children can solve
* Catch: Children must catch 5 animals of the same kind
* Remember: Children must repeat a sequence with up to 3 steps
* Piano: Children can play piano keys to make each of the 8 animals sing the note played

Playground 1 Lite helps preschool and kindergarten children learn and practice a range of skills including hand-eye coordination, creativity, and memory in a safe and secure environment. Settings and external links are protected in a ‘Parents only’ area to prevent children from accessing external internet sites.

Feature Highlights:
* Simple easy-to-use interface
* Colorful and engaging illustrations
* Develops hand-eye coordination and motor skills
* Ability to limit playing time
* Protected settings and external links in a ‘Parents Only’ area
* Available in 16 languages
* Kid-friendly
* Compatible on all iOS devices

Playground 1 Lite also includes a timer so parents can limit their child’s playing time. Educational App Store, which awarded Playground 1 – ‘Best of’ Edition its highest commendation, says, “One of the features that we particularly liked was that Parents can set limits on the amount of time that children spend using the app. This is fantastic as it means that you can manage your child’s usage of his/her play time with the app. Additionally, if there are any parents out there who are wary of having their child use technology too frequently, this is a great tool to begin implementing healthy boundaries.” (Oct. 9, 2013)

“In April 2011, we bought ourselves an iPad 2.” explains Jan Essig, developer and illustrator of Playground 1. “At that time, there were only very few children’s apps that we really liked or would have been happy to give to our children. That was the catalyst that set me to work on my own children’s apps. I have designed all the playground apps in response to my children’s wishes, and we created them together. I do all the design, graphics, illustrations and programming myself. As a MOMs with Apps member, I follow the “Know what’s inside” best practices for kids’ apps.”

Language Support:
Playground 1 Lite directly supports English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Traditional Chinese and Turkish languages.

Device Requirements:
* iOS 4.3 or later
* iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch
* 65.4 MB

Pricing and Availability:
Playground 1 Lite is free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category. The full version can be purchased for $3.99 (USD). Playground 1 Lite is also available for Android. Promo codes are available for qualified reviewers. Please specify the website or blog you represent when making your request.

Jan Essig
Playground 1 Lite 1.0
Download from iTunes
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Based in Mannheim, Germany, Jan Essig is an independent developer and illustrator with a degree in Communication Design. Since 2003, he has freelanced as an independent illustrator, motion designer and programmer. Copyright (C) 2013 Jan Essig. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone and iPod are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.