This is a Snap Circuits SC-300 review. The toy, manufactured by Elenco Electronics is the ideal toy for any parents wishing to introduce science and electronics to their child. While I do think that this toy is probably better suited for boys, my two daughters have really enjoyed the whole experience, and are clearly much better at understanding how electricity works. I found out about this toy when I was looking around on amazon for educational toys for my daughter’s birthday. This toy was ranked very highly and had a position inside the top 20 best selling toys last time I looked, but seeing as the list changes every day this ranking is very fluid.
This toy has won quite a few awards including the National Parenting Center – Seal of Approval, The Dr. Toy 100 Best Children’s products and the Dr. Toy Best Educational products award. Whether you think that this toy is really worth buying just on the fact that it comes with these awards is up to you, I personally made sure to check the customer reviews, both good and bad before I actually bought it.
The recommended age for this toy is 8 years and above, although I definitely think that there is room for this toy to be played with by children under that age. My younger daughter was turning 7 years old when we got this, and she was already at the stage where she was able to put together some of the basic circuits. One great thing about this toy is the fact that it allows kids to build on the things they have learned in previous projects. The ordering of the projects is in difficulty order, they will begin by putting together simple things like an electric light and switch project which allows shows them how electricity is turned on and off with a switch. Then later they can build things like a fire fan symphony and a water detection alarm.
The box comes with the following parts. It of course has the plastic “snap-grid”, 32 electric components and 2 project manuals. The number of projects listed with the product is 305, but you will find that there are actually only somewhere in the vicinity of 130 – 140 “base” projects, and the rest of the projects that you can do are “extensions” of the base projects.
Overall, I would have to say that this buying this toy has been an excellent experience and the amount of time that my kids have spent experimenting and playing with this toy, more than justifies the price. Thanks very much for reading this review of the Snap Circuits SC300 set.
The Blokus Classics Game is a brilliant game for all the family, and because the rules are so simple, you really can get the whole family into this game and entertained for hours at a time. Blokus has won many rewards and is apparently the most awarded game of the 21st century, it won the 2003 game of the year and it has also won an award from Mensa for promoting healthy brain activity. If all of these awards are not enough to convince you of the quality of this game, please continue reading the rest of this review.
This game very quickly became one of our family favorites and because of the simple nature of the game it is very easy for my younger daughter, who is still only 6 years old to join in the fun. This is actually the first game that we have had that she has been able to join properly. Learning the rules takes just a few minutes, but it takes a good long time to master the placing of the tiles, and because there are so many different possibilities every single game that you play is different even if you are playing against the same players time and time again.
The objective of each game is to get rid of all your tiles as best you can. When you place a piece on the board, it must not be adjacent (or “next to”) any of your previously placed tiles, but it must be touching the corner of a previously placed tile. If you look at the picture you can see what I mean.
The only negative that I would mention for this game is the fact that the board is ideally suited for 4 players, and when you play with just 2 or 3 players it pretty much always just ends up as “whoever plays first wins”, which does ruin the game. One way that someone online has found to solve this, and I can attest to the effectiveness, is to take a black marker and draw a line 1 square in from the outer edge of the board, effectively making the 20 x 20 board an 18 x 18 board. The 18 x 18 is the best size for a 3 player game, and if you want to play with just 2 players you can draw another line one more square in, and this will give you the ideal board for 2 players at 16 x 16 squares.
There are also a few other game types that you can play including “Draft Blokus” where you can play 2 different colors. There is also then “Reverse Blokus” where the objective is reversed and you must place as few blocks on the board as you can. Then there is “Solitaire Blokus” where you play on your own with the objective of placing all of your pieces in one sitting.
Thanks for looking over this cheap Blokus Classics Game review.
Quirkle is one of those games that is very easy to pick up, but once you are hooked on it, you can easily lose hours playing it. I bought this game last year for my two kids, myself and my wife to play. This is an ideal game for us all to play as a family because my wife is Japanese and her English is not native level. When we play games that involve ordering words and things like that in English it can get a little bit too much for her. This on the other hand is the ideal game not just for her, but also for my children, who also would struggle to play a word ordering game properly.
The game Quirkle was made by “mindware” and the gameplay is very straight forward, it can be explained even to a small child in just a few minutes. There are 108 tiles in the box. The tiles come in 6 different colors and 6 different shapes. The object of the game is to match the shapes to each other or match the colors to each other. So you can put a red square to a red diamond or a square of any color. As long as the color “or” shape is the same you are good to go. For every tile that you successfully place on the board you receive one point. During each go you have the option to either place a tile, or you may choose to give up your current turn in order to exchange one of the tiles in your hand for a tile from the pile.
Each player begins the round with 6 tiles, and must keep 6 tiles in their hand until all of the remaining tiles from the middle of the table have been used up. After they have all gone the winner of the game is the next person to successfully place all of their tiles on the table.
This game is ranked incredibly well on Amazon.com it has a ranking of #9 in the best sellers list. That might be enough to convince you that this game is worthy of some attention, but if not I should mention that this game has won numerous awards including the Mensa Best Mind Game Award 2007 and the Major Fun Award 2007. If that is not enough then you will just to take my word that this is one of the most engrossing yet simple to play games that me and my family have every played.
Thanks very much for taking the time to read this game review.
If you have been looking for a unique way to entertain the kids, and keep them away from the game consoles for just a little bit longer than usual, then Loopz from Mattel is definitely a good way to go. I recently bought this game for my kids and I can tell you that they love it. I don’t know how long it will last, but for the moment at least they are arguing over who gets to play first!
The game device has 4 circular rings in a 4 square pattern, as you can see in the picture above. Each ring has a motion sensor attached to it so it knows when your hand passes through it. The game comes with a large array of different games that you can play, but the main premise is that you listen/ watch a pattern of pulsing lights and music, memorize the pattern and then repeat it yourself with as few mistakes as you possibly can. The game continues until you make 3 mistakes. Mistakes count not only with the order of the noises and lights, but also with the timing that you use.
On the front of the machine there is a “home” button and an “on/off” button. You can use the home button to change the game or restart, and also for adjusting the volume level.
There are 7 different game types available for you to play. The first is called “Repeat the Beat” and is the simple basic premise of the game. Watch/ listen to a pattern and then “repeat” it. “Reflex Master” Has you trying to touch as many lights as you can before the time runs out. “Rhythm and Flow” has you trying to keep the music playing by touching the different lights before they turn off. Then there is the “Free style DJ” and “Music Studio” modes. In the Music Studio mode you can play the device like it was an instrument, there are lots of different sounds and each sound has 10 distinct notes. The last mode is the “versus mode” for getting everyone involved. The versus mode allows for the first player to build a tune for the second player to repeat. Same as with the one player mode; 3 mistakes and you are out.
I would thoroughly recommend this game to all families out there, you might get a little irritated when you keep losing to your kids, but it is really masses of fun for everyone.
Thanks very much for taking the time to read this Loopz review.
I recently bought this game to give my kids some well needed English practice. Our family lives in Japan, so I thought this would be a great fun way to introduce them to some new English words. It is also super cheap as well, so I thought that it couldn’t hurt, even if the game didn’t live up to the huge amount of hype that it seems to get on Amazon.com.
I used to really love playing scrabble with my parents when I was young, but I remember not liking it all when players would spend hours hunting down “suspicious words in the dictionary. Or simply taking 10 minutes plus for their go. With Bananagrams that is all gone, unlike with scrabble, players are not rewarded with the points on the letters, in fact there are no points on the letter pieces at all. In this game players are rewarded for speed and flexibility in making their own crosswords. The rules aren’t strict like they are with scrabble either, you can pull apart your own crossword or just change the odd letter if you like.
The gameplay is as follows. The players begin a round by taking a certain number of tiles from the “bunch” which is what all of the remaining tiles as referred to as. Then when the players are ready, one player (doesn’t matter who) calls out “split!” at which all the players turn over their tiles, and must being sorting their tiles into a crossword form. Then the fastest player to sort out his pile into a crossword calls out “peel”. At this all the players must take one extra tile from the “bunch”. Once all of the tiles have been removed from the bunch, the first player to then finish re-sorting his or her crossword can shout out the word “bananas” and on successful inspection of his or her crossword will be declared the winner of the game.
The portability factor of this game is why I think it gets rated so very well over at Amazon, it is actually one of the most highly ranked toys on their best sellers list. You can keep all of the tiles in the little yellow “banana” pouch making it very easy to carry about. I myself have played this game on a flight back to the US just last year, it really did keep all the family engaged for a good couple of hours.
Thanks for reading this review, I hope that you are now that little bit closer to understanding what this toy is about.
As a huge gamer myself, I would like to take the opportunity to review the latest game that I bought “for my son” (honestly, it was for him). New Super Mario Bros. for Wii. This game is best Mario platformer that I have ever played, period. It takes all of the best aspects from the original 1983 NES classic Super Mario Bros., then some from Super Mario Bros. 3 and from the SNES game Super Mario World. But it has also included an offline multiplayer mode that is unrivalled in the gaming world at the moment in this reviewers opinion.
I will admit that while I bought this game for my son, I bought it with the intention of playing it with him (a lot). And that we do, at least 4 times a week (I try to keep the sessions to an hour or less, but as my can attest, I often fail). The fun factor is brilliant.
The new power ups that the game has include the propeller suit, which shoots you high up into the air, the new “ice flower”, which is the opposite of the old “fire flower” that you used to see in the previous games. The ice flower turns the enemies into ice statues that can be picked up and thrown to kill other enemies. Another power up includes th penguin suit which makes walking on icy surfaces no problem at all, and also allows you to swim… like a penguin.
You can opt to control the game with either the nunchuck attached to the controller, but I think the best way to control the game is the have the controller turned on its side so that it looks like an old NES controller. Activating power ups can also be achieved either by the old school “button push” or the new school “shake the pad up and down”. I find that shaking the pad is sometimes quite awkward to do during play, but is good fun never the less.
If I had to say something negative about this game it would be that for some strange reason Nintendo have neglected to include online play. With the potential for this to be such an awesome experience online as well as offline, it does leave me a little confused as to why Nintendo have left this out of the game. Perhaps they are leaving it for a future installment.
In conclusion I would have to say that this is my favorite game for the Wii by a good long way. Mario Galaxy was close, but the multiplayer with this game is too much fun. The longevity of the game is brilliant as well you will keep coming back to play it, time and time again. I thoroughly recommend this game.
Thanks for reading.
I recently bought this Razor E300 Electric Scooter for my brothers kid. He is just 9 years old, but he absolutely loves this thing. We have had the machine for just over 3 months now, and I felt it was time to give it the full review.
Razor the scooter’s manufacturer apparently only recommends this toy for use by children over the age of 12. I think that this is a little bit too high, and as long as the child is properly supervised by an adult they should be able to use the machine from as young as 8 or 9 years old. My nephew uses this in the park and has never fallen off it once. I am a little apprehensive about letting him use it on a concrete surface without kneepads and elbow pads (for obvious reasons).
The charge time is approximately 8 hours, so it can be charged fully if left charging over night. The run time of the machine is supposedly 45 minutes after being charged fully, but you can expect to see the low battery indicator come on before the 40 minute mark. I have read other reviews online that seem problems with the tightness of the chain. I am not sure about this exactly, I am not that mechanically minded myself. Apparently the tight chain was causing the motor excess strain and the batter was running out in less than 10 minutes. For more information on this, please check out the review section on the amzon.com product page for this Razor E300 Electric Scooter.
The deck of the scooter is extra wide and so you can comfortably stand with two feet next to each other on the deck. I have tried the scooter myself once or twice and even though I am 220 (ish) pounds the scooter could carry my weight with only a small amount of extra strain. After a full charge I got about 35 minutes of usage time out of it, while my nephew gets about 42 or 43 minutes. My nephew is only about 70 pounds though.
The dimensions of the scooter are as follows. Height: 42 inches, Width: 17 inches and Length: 41 inches. So quite a large scooter overall. As I mentioned about it can handle being used by a full adult no problem at all, although you will see the battery go down as it tries to cope with the extra weight. I would say that if you were to use this scooter on a windy day or on slopes, the performance will again take a hit. You will not likely see run times of over 40 minutes unless the weather is fine and you are keeping to flat ground.
Thanks for reading this Razor E300 Electric Scooter review.
One of the best toys for teenager has got to be a radio controlled helicopter. In the past a toy like this might have cost the earth to buy. I remember when I was young wishing for a toy like the best price Syma S107 RC Helicopter, only to be told that they were dangerous, or too expensive. Granted back then, any kind of RC helicopter would have set my parents back thousands of dollars no doubt. This RC Heli from Syma comes in at well under 50 dollars, so it’s not going to break anyones bank.
I’ll be honest, I bought this toy for myself, not for my children.. who are still too young to use it anyway. It really is the best gadget that I have bought in years. I had tried buying a few of the other mini helicopters like the mass produced ones you find in the shops, but I soon found out that they were of a shoddy construction and almost always only had the two channels, one for up and down and one for left and right. It did seem a little pointless having a chopper that you couldn’t go forward and backward with.
Moving the heli about does take a little getting used to in the beginning, but within a few trial runs and maybe a few crashes if you aren’t careful you should get the hang of it. The built-in gyroscope means that the chopper auto stabilizes and is that little bit easier to fly. The manufacturer recommends that it is only good for indoor use, but as long as it’s not too windy outside you can definitely take it for a spin round the garden. I took it for a walk last month and really tested the range. It is supposed to have a 30’ range, but the responsiveness seemed to go a little before that.
The Syma S107 RC helicopter comes in just two colors, red and yellow. Recommended for kids aged 14 and up, but I reckon as long as you keep an eye on them while they are playing with it, a kid as young as 9 or 10 could play with it no problem. The chopper is 7.5” long so you can have loads of fun trying to land it on shelves, and even building landing pads for it using books and cardboard boxes.
I thoroughly recommend this toy as one of the best time killers you can get for under 50 bucks. Thanks for reading.
The Settlers of Catan is the award winning game designed by Klaus Teuber. It is a “german style board” or “Eurogame” if you prefer. The main difference between the two is that American style games usually have more drama, conflict and luck, while German style games have more economic themes focusing on strategy over luck and usually keep all the players in the game until the end. This game makes an ideal family board game because of the fact that no player is knocked out. Even if it becomes clear that you cannot win, you can still try and achieve smaller goals within your range.
The gameplay of the Settlers of Catan is not too complicated, but for beginners, playing the game with the user manual or “almanac” on hand is probably a good idea (actually you will probably need the almanac even if you are not a beginning player. You play the game as a “settler” trying to set up a new colony on a new island named “Catan”. The objective is to build up settlements and then cities and then connect them with roads.
The map is made up of hexagonal squares or “hexes” or different land types. For each settlement and city that you set up you will get “victory points”, once you have collected 10 victory points you win the game.
You will earn resource cards each turn from the hexes that surround your settlements, then you spend those resource cards to build more settlements, cities and the like. Resources such as lumber, wool, ore, grain and brick are received each turn and you roll the dice to determine which of the hexes gives you resources. The “robber token” is a very interesting addition to the game as well and whichever hex the robber is placed on, does not produce resources.
This game falls into the category of “gateway game” which means that it is not as heavy in detail and strategy as a “gamers game” might be. Also the length of time required to play one game is less. The Settlers of Catan usually takes anywhere from 60 – 90 minutes to play. You can play the game with 3 or 4 players as it comes as standard, and with expansion sets the numbers can be from 2 to 5 or 6.
This is a fantastic board game with a randomness that you will only find in truly special games. It is easy to pick up, but it will take a long time to master. I hope that you have found some useful information on this toy from my review.
Thanks for reading.
