Cole's therapists use iPads. All the teachers in the school, especially Special Ed. teachers, have them and use them.
I thought loooong and hard about whether or not to buy one (over a year's worth of debating). But for right now, I will NOT.
For one, the cost. Neither my husband nor I even have one. It's hard to justify that kind of money when we have medical/therapy bills to pay off every other week. Two, let's face: when Cole has a meltdown, it's not an ordinary meltdown (as a mother of typical children and a non-typical child, it's quite easy to see the difference). In such meltdowns, he will forcefully throw things, kick things, etc. An iPad, even in an Otterbox, doesn't stand a chance (I know this because I've talked to several parents and teachers who've had the tablets broken by non-typical [new p.c. term for special needs] kids). If that were to happen, we'd be out a lot of money, and there's no way to replace it.
Right now we don't have a tablet at all. We've got a laptop and hubby and I both have iPhones. However, I've been researching the Leapfrog LeapPads for the past few months, and I went ahead and got Cole and Carson the LeapPad 2 (1 for each), and I found a special on Amazon for the LeapPad 1 for $35, so I bought one for Cooper. I'm excited for the boys to get them. They're quite sturdy, and they have a wide variety of apps and games. And Amazon has the $20 value app card for $14.99.