price:$1.17
Melissa and Doug
Usually ships in 24 hours Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (sound block review) 『First of all, the product does not include the battery and it is hard to put the battery in. After all the effort, it refuses to give even the slightest hint of a sound. Not sure if it is a design flaw or we just happened to have a bad product. 』
(Cute idea but not fun for more than a couple minutes) 『My daughter loves animal puzzles so I thought this would be a cute different toy. The idea is good, and I'm not sorry that I bought the toy but: it's a little harder for my daughter than I thought. She is a pro at actual puzzles but this was hard for her. She had a hard time putting the two halves together in the right direction. The other thing is that they aren't painted as other melissa and doug puzzles are, they are just tacky stickers that can peel right off.』
(Quack-A-Doodle-Moo) 『Love it! Big blocks. Heavy, Sturdy, easy to handle for the toddler. Fun, Cute sounds!
I basically bought it for myself, but the kids like it too!!』
(Great..) 『This really is a simple cause and effect puzzle and kids love it, they learn animal sounds and to match .』
(Learning from this toy in so many ways) 『I bought this toy for my niece when she was about 16 months old. She loved it. The pictures, the sounds. Three months later, she's grown with the blocks. Before, she lacked the dexterity to orient them in three dimensions so make the animals match up. Now, she can handle three dimensional movement, no problem, and her challenge is to get the front and back to match up in the right directions. She knows what animals they are , knows how to make the sound of all of them (woof woof!), and when a pig or a cow shows up in another book, that she can go over, get the blocks and arrange them to make the sound. She. Loves. Them. Melissa and doug - two thumbs way up.』 『A classic favorite! Animals "sound off" when the two wooden cubes are properly placed in the wooden tray. Find the halves that match and listen to six different realistic farm animal sounds. Develops visual perception and fine motor skills.』
Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (Not made in China!!!) 『Not all Haba toys are not made in China. There stuffed animals are made in China. Blocks and other wooden toys are not. My 10-month old son recieved this set for Christmas. He and three-year-old brother love the ball in this set. I don't know why but they do. My younger son also enjoys the little figure and likes to carry him around. He is also fastinated by the block with a bell in it. The pieces are very well made and the colors are bright. This is an extremly cute little starter set of blocks.』
(Fabulous first blocks) 『I bought these blocks for my granddaughter, who is 6 months old. She absolutely loves them! She is too young to stack them, but is fascinated by the colors and shapes. I will buy more of these for gifts and will definitely buy more Haba toys for our little darling!』
(Imagination-inspiring toy for all ages) 『We were given these blocks for a new baby, but my 2 1/2 year old and I just spent an hour working with them while he made up stories about things the clown was doing. They are well-made, and each one so unique to lend itself to lots of creativity! I noticed my son was so content and calm working with these, they are much better than some of the electronic toys that over-stimulate kids and steal their opportunity to imagine. I'd highly recommend these!』
(Adorable!) 『I ordered these as a Christmas present for my 7 month old and when they arrived today I let him "Try" them out. He was very interested in them and laughed. They are small but very cute! I hope that they hold up!!』
(Fascinating) 『I bought this for my five month old son to get him started with blocks. To sum up this set with one word, I'd have to use CAPTIVATING. The ball seems to move around by its own force and my son can't take his eyes off it. The ball is also stackable and will easily balance itself on the spiral cylinder. I like to take the green donut and place the spiral cylinder in the middle of it. When I roll it toward my baby, he likes to punch the middle out. Suprisingly, the ball is also stackable and will easily balance itself on the spiral cylinder. I think the HABA character is really cute, but, when my son is faced with a choice, his favorite is the car. He took least notice of the mirror block and the HABA character, but everything else held his attention. This set is so much fun because there is not only alot of details on the blocks for a baby to discover (as far as sound, look, and feeling), but there many creative ways to use these besides stacking them. Endless amount of fun to imagine and then re-imagine. We're definately fans!』 『Children never get bored with these blocks as each one has its own thrill. Some have bells and beads, others visually stimulating. Used as building blocks or as anything you imagine! Contains: 2 square blocks, 1 buggy, 1 little figure, 1 dice, 1 wooden cylinder, 1 ball, and 1 ring. Ages 1 and up.』
Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (A toddler pleaser) 『My two and a half year old has been playing with this toy over three days now and he just loves it. As he has figured out how to play with it on his own he has gained a sense of accomplishment and it is good for fine motor skills as well as learning consequences (if the gears don't mesh, they don't turn, etc.). It is brightly colored, the sound can be annoying but no more annoying than most other toys. I highly recommend this toy.』
(perfect) 『Love this toy. Great durability. Only requires one battery! I love seeing my boys using their minds and creativity.』
(Must have!) 『This is absolutely the best toy we own! My autistic 2 year old sons are playing with it constantly. I have to put it away occasionally, so they can play with other toys too. As soon as I bring it back, they rush to it and fight for gears. I also bought an amusement park addition and now 2 sets of refrigerator gears. If you only buy one toy for your toddler, this is it!!!』
(Not as fun as it looks/ Weak motor) 『Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R2DJ44NEQ0PAKTMy problem with this toy is the weak motor used for turning the gears (and, yes, I put in new batteries). It can only handle a few gears at a time- if you try to put all of them on at once it won't turn (see video). And it turns so slowly that my 4 year old son lost interest almost immediately. He spent a little time putting the gears together in combinations and turning them manually but has hardly played with this toy at all. I feel it was not worth the money and would not recommend it.』
(Great, more cheap plastic and batteries in the house) 『There are lots of positivie reviews about this toy, which you can refer to for the things that may be appealing about it. Here are the I don't like about it:
1. It's cheap plastic. 2. It's makes annoying noises. 3. There is no place within the toy to store all the gears and pieces that come with it, so they end up easily separated and strewn around and los easily.
UPDATE: (2 and a half months later): This toy was a gift to our toddler from his grandparents. The good news is that he enjoyed it while it worked, which was about 2 and a half months. It makes annoying noise, reauires batteries, and is more cheap plastic that we didn't need. My advice is avoid this toy (and other like it) and go for something like Quadrilla Marble Railway (basic set) - it is a availble on Amazon and will last years longer than this cheap thing.』 『With its ingenious design, the Gearation Activity Set lets preschoolers assemble clicking, whirring, googly-eyed machines allby themselves. Eleven colorful plastic gears adhere magnetically to a 14-by-16-inch easel, so kids are free to arrange them in any order they can dream up. The gear in the center powers the whole contraption. The various gears (each measuring from 1 to 3 inches across) all do something different, whether it's making a noise or just turning a brightly colored arm, and kids can control the gear speeds with fat, easy-to-grab switches. And since all the parts are cleverly connected by magnets, you don't have to worry about the motor burning out. Age: 36 months and up』 『With its ingenious design, the Gearation Activity Set lets preschoolers assemble clicking, whirring, googly-eyed machines all by themselves. Eleven colorful plastic gears adhere magnetically to a 14-by-16-inch easel, so kids are free to arrange them in any order they can dream up. The gear in the center powers the whole contraption. The various gears (each measuring from 1 to 3 inches across) all do something different, whether it's making a noise or just turning a brightly colored arm, and kids can control the gear speeds with fat, easy-to-grab switches. And since all the parts are cleverly connected by magnets, you don't have to worry about the motor burning out.--Paul Hughes』
price:$6.58
International Playthings
Usually ships in 24 hours Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (Buy something else!) 『I went against my instincts and ordered this for my 9-year-old daughter's "Santa" present. I should have listened to some of the other reviews and bought something else. Anything else would have been better. She really wanted a fun marble track that would allow her to build in all kinds of configurations. This was flimsy and could barely be assembled at all without falling over. Really poor design and construction. I rarely take the time to review items, although I always read them before I buy, but this was SO BAD I felt I had to write a review. I will say I received great customer service from Amazon and received a full refund of the purchase price and shipping without any hassle. That was the only good part of the experience.』
(The kids LOVE IT!!!) 『I bought this toy for our 7 year old daughter, but my 10 year old daughter loves it as well.』
(Fun, fun, fun) 『My daughter had this last year for Christmas and she loves it! It's for sure a big hit for kids of different ages. Highly recommended!』
(save your money) 『I bought this for my five kids because we have the origional marble run and have enjoyed playing with it for many years. Unfortunately, we lost many of the pieces so I thought I would do an upgrade of the toy by purchasing the newer version. I wish I had just bought the origional again because this one was a waste of money. Fifty dollars! I can't put the darn thing together. It's unstable and made of soft flimsy plastic. Don't waste your money on this version.』
(I enjoy putting these runs more than my son enjoys playing them) 『There aren't many reviews for these runs. The ones from Imaginarium had average reviews, mostly due to its questionable quality, so this was rolling the dice a bit on this run.
The quality of the product is quite good. The pieces are made of plastic and of decent quality. I would rather have wood runs, but these would obviously be way more expensive.
You can go wild with these pieces. There are 6 run types, but they are of 2 lenghts only, making it very easy to combine them. (See picture attached). There are only 2 exit points, but you can go crazy with as many entry points you want.
Once assembled, the run is fairly stable. I assemble these on my rug and there's no problem at all. There are tons of pieces, so you need to make sure each piece is well connected so that it doesn't wobble.
Another great advantage is the price. I didn't want to go crazy and spend a lot of money for a product I wasn't sure about the quality.
Overall, I love putting these runs for my kids. Probably more than they like playing it.』 『Get the action off and rolling by watching marbles wind and race their way through a myriad of sloping spirals, interlocking chutes, straightaways, spinning wheels and fancy funnels that you create. Kids and families will enjoy the challenge of building this 220-piece Super Marble Run.』
Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (great value) 『I bought this on Amazon because it was even cheaper than picking it up in the store. I loved playing with Lego's as a kid and think they are just as "educational" as many other toys that are specifically marketed that way. Great value for a fun toy.』
(lego pirate ship) 『my daughter just loved this lego pirate ship she is 4 1/2 , her and her dad built this together, wonderful toy to help develop eye hand coordination and following picture instructions』
(Nice and simple for my younger son.) 『Lego pirate ship is a small, easy to build lego kit that comes with some fun features like the diamonds in the treasure chest. It is a nice addition to my younger sons budding collection.』
(Small, small pieces) 『This is a good looking and fun toy but the pieces are really, really small. I anticipate that many will get lost without really good supervision. I bought it for my almost-three-year-old because he's in a total pirate stage, but he is too young to play with it by himself. Once it got put together, he played with it and loved it, but I cringed when he wanted to take it apart because it took me a good amount of time to get the thing put together! As soon as it comes apart, he wants it put together. Great toy, good looking and good price, but definitely for the older age!』
(Lego) 『Just little bit more blocks to your collection of LEGO. The ship is hard to put together but finally it came as a nice toy for all who love pirates. Try it by your own. 』 『Build a pirate adventure! Avast, me hearties! With easy instructions for a pirate scene complete with treasure chest, ship and shark, plus lots of extra building ideas, you can build almost any pirate adventure you can imagine! Pirate Building Set is ideal for young and inexperienced builders. This Lego Individual Bricks and Building Accessories set has 150 pieces and includes mini figure and special elements. Recommended for ages 4 to 7.』
price:$5.02
LEGO
Usually ships in 24 hours 『The baby farm animals need a lot of looking after. The little farm girl loves taking care of the baby calf, sheep and pony while the playful cat keeps an eye on everything. Includes one DUPLO fi gure and three DUPLO animals.』
Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (Can't Play with it!) 『My 6 and 8 year old boys each got one for Christmas. Like other reviews, they put one together after much work only to discover it is too fragile to play with. Keeps breaking apart. It is very cool and they had alot of fun building it. But for the price it would be nice if it stayed together. The second one they left it in the box and don't want to bother. Guess we will return it so they can buy something else.』
(awesome command center) 『My 8 year-old son loves this toy, but at first it was very frustrating because the top piece is a very poor design by lego. After I super glued the the top piece, it has been one of his favorite lego sets ever. I highly recommend this toy but make sure you use glue or it will keep falling apart.』
(FUN AT 3!) 『I'M SORTA SURPRISED BY THE POOR REVIEWS GIVEN BY SOME OF THE OTHER PURCHASERS. MY HUSBAND BUILT THIS FOR OUR SON WHO IS JUST 3.5 YEARS OLD, AND EVEN AS A PRESCHOOLER HE'S ABLE TO PLAY WITH IT EVERY SINGLE DAY SINCE CHRISTMAS. YES, IT'S NOT AS DURABLE AS SOME OTHER TOYS (LIKE MAYBE FROM FISHER PRICE OR LITTLE TIKES)... BUT, IT LEGOS! IT'S MADE OUT OF A BAJILLION TINY PIECES. I JUST EXPECTED THAT WE'D BE RE-BUILDING AND RE-DESIGNING IT AS WE WENT ALONG. AND, IT TEACHES OUR SON NOT TO GET FRUSTRATED OVER SUCH THING. IF SOMETHING COMES UNDONE... WE GO WITH THE FLOW AND FIX IT, OR COME UP WITH OUR OWN NEW AND IMPROVED DESING. THAT'S THE BEAUTY~!
AND THE NUMEROUS FEATURES; COOL FUNCTIONING PROJECTION SCREEN, STORAGE COMPARTMENT FOR NUMEROUS SMALLER VEHICLES, ESCAPE JAIL, COMPUTER SCREENS IN THE COCKPIT... ALL VERY AMAZING AND WELL-DESIGNED. THERE IS SO MUCH FOR THE IMAGINATION TO DO HERE... MY SON IS ALWAYS COMING UP WITH NEW ADVENTURES FOR THE AGENTS!』
(A Mission for my stepson's christmas) 『My stepson received this LEGO Command Center for a Christmas present from Santa. He is 8 yrs. old and is a die hard for LEGO Missions. A week after Christmas he had this mission 80% assembled and resembling the picture. He was tremendously pleased with the craftsmanship and quality of this product.』
(A Crushing Disappointment!!!) 『My 9 1/2 year old son is a master at building his Lego sets. He truly loves it and obsesses over them until they are done. He has built this truck over and over in the past week, page by page, by the book, only to have it completely fall apart shortly before he is finished. He became so frustrated tonight he ended up sobbing for 20 straight minutes and then went to bed. He was so excited by this set (which lists for $89 on the Lego site) and is terribly disappointed in it. By the reviews here and on Lego, at least it may be some consolation to tell him it isn't something he is doing wrong, but extremely poor design on the part of Lego. Shame on you Lego for putting this on the shelves, at that price, when it can't be successfully built or played with by it's target age group.』 『Warning! Dr. Inferno's henchmen have set out to rescue him from the Command Center's jail. It's up to you to prevent his escape. There's a heated battle expected to take place, so you'll need to use all of your available resources -- the intel center, weapons bay, tool shop, jet boat, plane and two cars. 1,154 pieces.』 『Capture the evil Dr. Inferno and keep tabs on his henchmen with Lego Agents Set 8635. Tons of secret spy technology is packed inside the Mobile Command Center truck to ensure that each mission becomes a unique, imaginative adventure. This building set contains small parts and complex instructions, so it is recommended for ages 8 to 14. And like all advanced Lego sets, it also holds the potential to keep creative adults entertained for hours.
What We Think
Fun Factor:
Durability:
(what this means)
The Good:Mobile Command Center packed with spy technology
The Bad:Hinges can come apart during transport
In a Nutshell:Fun building set inspires action-packed imaginative play
At a Glance
Ages:8 to 14 Requires:(includes batteries)
Dr. Inferno is trapped in the jail. View larger.
With its hatches closed, the command center looks like an ordinary truck. View Larger.
Your Mission: Prevent Dr. Inferno's Escape In undercover mode, the mobile command center looks like a big gray and blue tractor trailer. But look closely and you'll find hatches that open up to reveal an interior packed with the latest spy technology and top-secret information. There's even a state-of-the-art prison cell designed to hold the evil Dr. Inferno, as well as a working mission brief projector that uses an LED light to display Inferno's image on the wall.
Seven included Lego figures, a jet plane, and two cars make it easy to set up epic battles between the command center's employees and Dr. Inferno's henchmen, who have arrived to set him free. The Spy Clops figure, along with Gold Tooth, and Agents Chase, Fuse, Charge, and Trace, are uniquely detailed and ready for action. Inside the center, a tool shop, loading crane, and hidden weapons bay packed with missiles and blasters are in place to keep them busy.
Crafting the Command Center With 20 bags containing 1,154 pieces and four books of instructions, the Mission 6: Mobile Command Center was the biggest construction project that our Lego tester had ever undertaken. In about eight hours he completed the assembly, took it for a test drive, and secured Dr. Inferno in the high-tech jail cell. Like with all Lego sets, the instructions include here provide colorful step-by-step images that make it easy for any diligent builder to create the detailed Command Center and it's accessory vehicles. Although, when our Command Center was finished, we did discover that one sticker was missing.
This set gets great fun-factor ratings, due in large part to the opening doors that hide all the spy technology, and the fact that this mobile base is on wheels and can go anywhere. Our tester also appreciated the way most of the smaller vehicles fit neatly inside the Command Center's compartments, the super-cool mission brief projector, and the moving crane. The detailed mini figures and the missiles hidden in the grill of the truck got the thumbs up, too. Overall, we found only one minor design flaw. When the Command Center is assembled and is pulled around by the truck cab, some of the hinges that hold the compartment doors in place come apart easily, causing play to pause while they are reattached.
Whether your child uses the Command Center by itself or as part of an existing Lego collection, it's sure to inspire hours of fun. We also appreciate the way that Lego systems never limit imaginative play. All the cool hardware that makes up the Mobile Command Center can be used to build any structure or vehicle your child can dream up. And time has shown that building projects are a great way to inspire cooperative play between friends and siblings, too.
What's in the Box 1,154 Lego pieces and four instruction booklets. 』
Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (Excelent toy for the family) 『I spend most of the Morning putting together this lego, I was fun for my son. very good toy!!!』 『LEGO Power Miners Cave Crusher
8708』
Core2Duoノートレビュー 's review (My son LOVES his bionicles!) 『Unlike the other wonderful lego products, bionicles are usually quickly put together, so he can start playing with them right away. He loves that. The only problem I have is trying to get him to take them apart so we can store them. THEY'RE EVERYWHERE! :)』
(LEGO Bionicles) 『Our 6 year old Grandson absolutely loves all LEGO building sets, but in particular Bionicles. As an observer, these hold up much better than the building sets with tiny figures and pieces. They do fall apart when in battle, but he enjoys them enough to put them back together again each time. And all LEGO sets have educational value if the child follows the directions and puts them together.』 『Green in color, Vastus belongs to the Jungle tribe
Snake armor on shoulders, snake inspired mask, snake venom spear
Detailed hands, spiky Thornax launcher
Be sure to visit www.BIONICLE.com for games, galleries and more
52 pieces』