Is the balance right between toddlers social interaction and technology engagement?

Having just returned from a holiday abroad, it struck me how many parents provide technology in the form of iPads and Tablets, to entertain their toddlers.

Whilst there is a time and a place for this, such as on a flight or journey, I was surprised to see toddlers sitting at the breakfast table watching a screen whilst munching on their Rice Crispies!  I also witnessed twin 3 year old boys, leaving the dinner table wearing padded earphones, walking through the restaurant still engaged with their iPads, not looking where they were going, totally oblivious to other people and their surroundings.

The world has changed and technology now plays a huge part in all of our day to day lives. There is a balance for us all between actual social interaction and technology engagement.

Do you have a concern that the younger generation of today, particularly toddlers, are in danger of missing out on actual development of relationships and world awareness due to the distractions of technology?  Daydreaming is your brain at its most productive … are young children given enough time to daydream or are they becoming overloaded with technology? If you are a grandparent, do you have to hold back your views or are you able to express what you think to your offspring?  Is technology in danger of damaging our toddlers social development or enhancing their learning?

What do you think?