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Barbie Girls MP3 Player Green

January 27th, 2010

Barbie Girls MP3 Player Green




It’s an MP3 player that’s sweet and sassy or all about cool chic. Mix the fashions, hair, and faces to match your mood!

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Not for Mac users….
My daughter’s have both been begging me for this toy/Mp3 player for at least 6 months. They play on the website, which you can do without a ‘Barbie Girl’, but of course if you actually buy one, it allows you a special access code that opens up a whole new world of online games. So, we finally bought 2 Barbie Girls, one for each of them. It was my oldest daughter’s b’day and they were so excited when they unwrapped their presents to find “Barbie Girls”!!! Unfortunately excitement quickly turned to disappointment when we tried to install and register it. We followed the instructions and nothing. I did a little ‘googling’ and found that they are not compatible with Mac computers! I was so disappointed for my girls who were so excited to finally have their own Barbie Girls. We are a ‘Mac’ family and do not have a PC. Now these Barbie Girls sit in their boxes in the hopes that Mattel will reply to my request for help. I’m sure there must be a way to make these usable, but no response yet from Mattel. I am really disappointed that there was NO mention of this incompatability to Mac’s when I placed my order. I still gave this game 5 stars because I know from those who have one that it is a fun thing to play with. I just hope my girls get a chance too.

4 Stars Perfect first MP3
I purchased this for Christmas for my little girl. We won’t be going online to Barbie World yet because I think she is too young but the player itself is great for the price. I think some reviewers need to be reminded this is not actually a “toy”. It is an electronic device so it’s durability will decrease if it is played with like a toy. It is not compatible with itunes or any other subscription service but you can burn a cd through your service then rip it onto the software provided for this MP3. Overall, it’s a great starter to teach responsibility and how MP3 players work. I’ve already loaded songs on it so I can’t wait for my daughter to open it Christmas morning!

4 Stars Perfectly Fine
I ordered this for my little sister on christmas. It came that same week! There was nothing wrong, no damages, and she still uses it so i can complain. It keeps her busy :) The last one she had was destroyed by our dog so i do not think these tiny things are very durable but thats somewhat obvious. I also wasnt sure how educational these were because as far as i know its some type of mp3 player they can play with online at a barbie website so i didnt give it many stars there. Other than that, it made her happy which makes me happy and shipped incredibly fast!

5 Stars Not just for kids, super easy to use
After my 19 year old daughter had asked for one of these, I felt that maybe it wasn’t just for children. I had wanted an mp3 player for a while, but I never thought I would be able to figure out how to load songs on it. I took a chance and bought this one since I found a really good price on it. A few minutes after I opened the package and had put it on the charger I was already putting songs on it. Technology easy enough for a grandma to learn by herself, and cute enough to make my inner child happy. I ordered 3 of the fashion packs, because it actually is fun to express myself by changing the way my mp3 player looks, and since I felt the earbuds looked a little funny on me (they have a little tab so you can put a charm or earring on each one) I splurged and added a set of Sony neckphones with super bass for a more comfortable listening experience. Even with the earbuds the sound quality of the playback is excellent for a “toy”.

5 Stars Great!
My six year old loves it. We have windows vista and didn’t have any problems playing the games on the computer. She loves shopping and dressing barbie on the computer. When my niece came over, also six years old, she would not put the mp3 player down. She loved it so much I got her one for her birthday. Her mother said she has it with her wherever she goes. It holds plenty of songs and is very easy to load the songs on to the player. I had no problems with this product which we have had since last Christmas.

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LeapFrog Sing Along Read Along

January 9th, 2010

LeapFrog Sing Along Read Along




Ready to add a fun twist to reading time? You can motivate little ones to read on their own with 12 engaging music videos on DVD and matching books. Each music video brings a story to life through lively animation, songs and words on-screen; and the 12 matching storybooks reinforce the learning experience. Books are great for take-along fun, too.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Great for beginning readers
I was a little hesitant to make this purchase, but I found it about half off at a local discount store and decided to give it a try. As described, it includes 12 short phonics based (with a FEW sight words(is, the, on, and, in, the, etc.))readers. There are 2 books for each vowel sound, an introductory book that introduces the characters, and a cumulative book wraps up the set. They’re a good quality paper, stitched bindings. I see some reviewers are watching the dvd and then tackling the books, and whatever works is great. We are reading the books first, and then as a reward, she’s “unlocked” (as her brothers do on Wii Fit) the corresponding video. Each of the 12 are listed on the menu, so we play only the ones she’s “unlocked”. She loves the music and dances around the living room. I agree it would be difficult to sit down to read with the books and dvd together. If it helps anyone, we’re about halfway through the yellow (kindergarten) Hooked on Phonics book, and this is right on target – sight words from cards we’re using, and she can sound out all of the words, but the video afterward adds an extra motivator.

5 Stars Excellent
Our children (ages 3 and 4) love watching and singing along with this DVD. But even better, the cute stories have really motivated my 4 year old to read the books on her own. In a very short time we have seen a significant improvement in her reading thanks to this set. The little skits in between the songs/books on the DVD do a great job teaching vowel sounds. I highly recommend this set for any pre or beginning reader. It is a great educational product that the kids actually enjoy.

5 Stars Great for learning
My 4 year old loves to watch the DVD and it helps him learn how to blend letters into words. The books are wonderful because most of the words are simple words that he can sound out and there are not too many words per page. It is a great way to work on reading skills.

5 Stars Educational, fun and love the tunes!
I love LeapFrog! They come up with the most entertaining educational stuff! I have a two year old and four year old and they both equally love it! My daughter is really getting into reading and sounding words out, so this is perfect! Both my children and I love the tunes, it’s surprisingly entertaining for Mom too! I also really like the segments that go over phonics and sounding out words that were covered in the song/stories.

I think this system works best if you watch the DVD first, and read the books together later; as the speed of some of the songs/reading is quite fast for even me to keep up with (to follow along and actually go over w/ your child). I think it’s a great addition to the LeapFrog library of toys and videos. Hope the review helps!

5 Stars greatt first step at phonics
I love this product. I was looking for simple books that use only words that have the most common letter sounds. words that once your child learns the phonetic abc’s, they can start sounding out words. we loved the leapfrog letter and word factory and wanted to utilize what our child had learned from it. but even the most simple books out there (that I found) used more advanced letter sounds and combinations. this product has 12 books that use words that can be sounded out from the basic 26 letter sounds, with the exception of maybe 2 words. that in itself is great. then add to that, that they have a dvd and songs that go along with it. the words light up on the screen as they are being said. and there are tiny skits regarding the short vowel sounds also. very educational. yet, fun and nice simple but entertaining funny animation. some kids’ videos annoy me, but this one is fun. not as beautiful as say, word world. more simple, but just great. the songs are great. very short, very simple, but perfect for what they are trying to achieve. my only complaint would be that since it is a leap frog product, it would have been nice for them to use the same letter animation themes regarding why “I” says “i”, etc… and also buyers should be aware that the 12 books are tiny paper pamplets. oh, and they use lower case letters. but regardless, I am so happy that I found this product.

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Leapster Arcade Letterpillar

January 7th, 2010

Leapster Arcade Letterpillar




This hungry Letterpillar loves to eat letters. Watch him grow as he munches his way through a lively arcade game that reinforces important early reading and spelling skills. Teaches phonics, uppercase and lowercase letters and word building. For use with the Leapster Learning System or Leapster L-Max Learning Game System, each sold separately.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Great Beginner Game
My son received the Leapster system for his 4th birthday as a gift. It comes with this game. While this game isn’t the most challenging, my son enjoys it. I am not sure at what level the previous reviewers children are at, but my son doing very well at school. Maybe they are academically beyond him. He knows all of his letters, their sounds, and can read three letter words. He can also write out all of the letters in the alphabet, uppper and lower. So while this game isn’t extremely challenging, he still found it fun. I haven’t found controlling the letterpillar to be difficult at all, as a previous reviewer said. The arrow buttons on the control respond fine when controlling the letterpillar. I think this game was great as a “free” game with the system, because it allowed him to get used to using the controller. And my son isn’t electronically deprived. He uses our personal computer all of the time to play games. He also has a V-Smile with other games. We wanted this as a portable gaming system. Again, it was a good first, free game. I have nothing bad to say about it considering I didn’t have to pay for it.

5 Stars Great letter review!
Found the letterpillar a fine afternoon rainy day breath of fresh air for my girls. Like that the letterpillar gets ill if it eats numbers. :)

2 Stars It’s educational
We bought cartridge for our 3 year old. We were going on a airplane trip and thought it would keep his attention. He used it for only 5 minutes and wanted the creature creation cartridge. He may get more into this one when he gets older.

2 Stars Letterpillar – doesn’t stack up to other Leapster games
While my 3 yr old and 5 yr old play this game some, it doesn’t compare to the other cartridges we own. There is only one game on the cartridge. It is simple, and I’m not convinced it has much educational value, as do most of the other Leapster games we have. I recommend you buy the Draw & Write or the Letter Factory. My children fight / “take turns” over those two games and they are educational.

5 Stars Great letter teacher, phonics, etc. lots of fun
My grand daughter loves this and Running on Zero, one for letter skills, the other for math. Both are fun, and teach the child. They challenge your child to try harder, for a better score, even though there’s no grading involved (the way it should be)

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Melissa and Doug Magnetic Wooden Alphabet

December 20th, 2009

Melissa and Doug Magnetic Wooden Alphabet




Kids will love learning their letters with these wooden letters. Newly redesigned, themed set includes plenty of colorful, generously-sized wooden magnets. 52 pieces. Measurement 8″ x 1.5″ x 5.5″.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Quality magnetic letters
My 2 year old loves these colorful letters. He is past the stage of putting things in his mouth, so we haven’t had the issue that some other reviewers have had with the paper coming off. They stick very well and are of a good size. I highly recommend these over the ones I had as a kid–cheap, lightweight plastic letters with a tiny magnet in the back that popped out and didn’t properly hold the letters the right side up.

5 Stars Grandma Loves M&D Magnetic Wooden Alphabet
My sister takes care of her two grandsons often. At 2 and 3 years of age she had used the magnetic alphabet to teach the boys to spell their names.

The little goobers can recognize and spell their names. Bravo!

4 Stars D&M alphabet
Our 17th month loves these. However, he still is at age of placing objects in his mouth. The color on some letters is beginning to wear due to wetness. Size is good for his some hands. Definitely recommend.

1 Star THESE CONTAIN LEAD in the Magnets!
I thought these were SO COOL, then I had them tested at a local free lead testing for kids toys and they came back POSITIVE. Further research at Healthytoys dot org showed that the magnets contain a MEDIUM level of LEAD!!!. If you child is extra careful not to touch the magnet parts then I guess these are fine, but if your child is like mine and likes to touch the entire thing and then put his fingers in his mouth, these are too dangerous.

Healthytoys dot org lists lots of toys as both safe and unsafe, according to brand. It’s good to be careful these days.

2 Stars Not what I expected
It would have been nice to have been informed that these pieces are only a few inches long. I assumed by looking at the photos that these were about twice the size, so I was disappointed. My children only played with them once for a little bit and haven’t touched them ever since.

Arlen

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Boots Doras Monkey

December 15th, 2009

Boots Doras Monkey




Everyone meet Dora the Explorer?s best friend, Boots! Wearing his signature red boots, this little blue monkey is ready for fun with his pal Dora! Based on the popular character from Nick Jr!

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars 2yr old love boots
my daughter, 2 yrs old, loves it — small enough that she is able to carrier it with no problem. Great.

4 Stars Cute and Affordable
Very cute toy. My niece absolutely loves Dora and this stuffed animal completed her collection of dora, the backback, and now boots. The size is small but works perfectly well in a 2 year olds hands.

3 Stars Wow this was small
I did not think i was gonna get a huge toy, but this is small by 3 yr old standards. Truth is I only ordered it to get my original present a plastic pots and pans set over the $25 for super saver shipping. This toy was so small I was able to fit it in the free space of the packaging of the pots and pans. The other reviewers seem to think this is not a problem… which is why i bought it, but do not be fooled open your hand and it could comfortably fit in the space between your index finger and thumb.

4 Stars My son loves his boots
Great toy.

My son looked like boots when he saw boots.

Of course, like all of his toys, he eventually throws it aside.

3 Stars Very Cute, but small
Boots is much smaller than I thought! It is the size of a beanie baby!! Its cute and my 2 year old likes it.

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