Christmas is over, and some of the holiday’s youngest celebrants wrapped more than dolls and Duplos. Santa gave some of them their very own tablet computers.

In some ways, it makes sense. The touchscreen on a tablet is intuitive for kids to use, and for years kids have been playing on their parents’ iPads and such. Now, many companies are creating tablets specially designed for the younger set: Electronic titans such as Samsung have joined more toy-oriented manufacturers such as LeapFrog and Vtech in designing portable computers for babies and toddlers.

Some experts worry about pushing tablet computers on users who aren’t old enough to tie their own shoes. Pediatricians say that kids who spend too much time in front of screens tend to have more behavioral problems than other kids. Although a lot of these tablets claim to have educational value, experts say there’s no evidence that toddlers who use these educational tools are any better off than those who don’t.

“The single most important thing for children is time with parents and caregivers,” says Dr. Dimitri Christakis, a pediatrician at Seattle Children’s Hospital. “Nothing is more important in terms of social development. If time with the tablet comes at the expense of that, that’s not good.” (Associated Press)

Paul Asay has covered religion for The Washington Post, Christianity Today, Beliefnet.com and The (Colorado Springs) Gazette. He writes about culture for Plugged In and wrote the Batman book God on the Streets of Gotham (Tyndale). He lives in Colorado Springs with wife Wendy and his two children. Follow him on Twitter.