At first, I wasn't sure that he needed a play gym. Then I couldn't decide which one to buy because there was a huge range in price and what if he didn't like it. I happened to be in Toys R Us with a gift card when this was on sale, so I decided why not? I went home, immediately assembled it for him, and put him on the mat while activating the star at the top. He saw it and smiled!
This gym has a star which has lights and plays music. There are about 4-5 songs that it plays and they are classical pieces. We have constantly used this gym and the songs are not annoying at all. You can set this on continuous mode or on motion mode which will activate the music and lights when the gym is moved a bit.
It has a mirror, plastic book, duck and cardinal which squeak, ladybug rattle, and circular rattle. Also, you can use the rings to adjust the height of each toy and placement. We have also added some other toys that he likes and he can pull on.
He gets so excited when playing with this toy by smiling, babbling and wildly moving his arms and legs. I was shocked the first time I heard him activate the music, but now he does it quite often. At 6 weeks, we had to play with him and now at 12 weeks, we can place him down on the mat and listen from a distance.
The little pillow that comes with this is ok. Our son used it at first, but liked to maneuver off of it and roll over. Now, we don't use it at all, but you could use it to prop a baby up for some of that "tummy time".
All-in-all, I feel that this was a good purchase because we have definately used this everyday and he has grown with it. Plus, he really seems to enjoy playing in it from that very first smile to this morning's conversation with his dear duck.