I'm curious about this. Is it just because the text and buttons are bigger on the Note II? Or is it because their granddaughter/grandson only responds on Facebook, so an over-sized touch device is the only way to stay in touch with them?
Yes and it's much of the same reason we like smartphones. Videos, music, and pictures! And the big screen because of poor vision and clumsy fingers. It's hard to click and browse stuff with a tiny screen.