Fridge Words Magnetic Word Builder

by LeapFrog

Product Features

• Build over 325 words with magnetic letters that teach and sing!
• Includes letters A through Z, plus three additional letters so kids can spell words like MOM.
• Features three ways to play: Load a Letter, Word Builder and Word Hunt learning modes.
• Lights follow letters to reinforce the learning.
• Helps develop rhyming skills and teaches word building for three-letter words. Help reading skills rise and shine with this magnetic letter set!

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.4 x 11.2 x 12.1 inches ; 1.3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0002SC7CE
• Item model number: 20320
• Our recommended age: 4 - 7 years
• Manufacturer recommended age: 4 - 8 years
• Batteries: 2 AA batteries required.
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #538 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games)
  • #35 in Toys & Games > Preschool > Pre-Kindergarten Toys > Electronic > Electronic Learning Toys & Systems
  • #41 in Toys & Games > Preschool > Pre-Kindergarten Toys > Learning
  • #42 in Toys & Games > Learning & Education > Electronics
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (247 customer reviews)

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Learn to build over 325 words through three different levels of play including Load a Letter, Word Play and Word Building. Using the included 29 letters your child's reading skills can take flight. All pieces attach securely to any magnetic surface. -Includes 3 modes of play. Recommended age range 3+ years old

Product Description

With LeapFrog's Word Whammer Fridge Phonics, you can create over 325 three-letter words with magnetic letters that sing and teach. These interactive, magnetic letters are based on the LeapFrog Talking Words Factory video. What's a Word Whammer' It's a machine that teaches kids letter names, letter sounds and how letter sounds blend together to make words. It features three modes of play. In Letter Hunt, children learn letter names and sounds through fun songs. With Word Builder, children explore letter combinations and create over 325 words. In Word Hunt, children can spell three-letter words, then replace letters to make rhyming words. Lights follow each letter during play to reinforce the learning. Includes letters A through Z, plus six additional letters (E, O, D, G, M and P), so kids can spell words like MOM and DAD. Letters and magnetic letter reader attach securely to the refrigerator. Volume control and 2 "AA" batteries (included).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

170 of 177 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Tinny sound, but still worth it, February 19, 2005

By 

Teresa Linton "tlinton" (Woodbridge, Va United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fridge Words Magnetic Word Builder (Baby Product)

I was delighted to find out the magnets from the Fridge Phonics Magnetic Letter set also work with this! So if you have both, you can spell out double lettered words (such as "dad" and "mom" (and it is programmed to read those words, as well!)

The only problems we've been having with it are related to the tinny sound. The Fridge Phonics Magnetic Letter set sounded nice, but the Word Whammer sound quality is poorer. I know I had a hard time telling "Find the 'F'" from "Find the 'S'". Lucky for us adults, if we know what word it wants us to spell, we know which letter, but it confounds the kids.

If it weren't for the sound quality the toy would be *perfect*. It is really well designed, and very effective at keeping the kid's interest long enough for them not to realize they're learning while they're having fun. If you don't mind needing to translate what the machine said every so often, I highly recommend this.

60 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Works now after one hour of surgery... experience of an electrical engineer..., December 30, 2005

By 

A. Feng (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fridge Words Magnetic Word Builder (Baby Product)

Got it as a Christmas gift for our daughter (21 months) who is learning her letters. Great idea... but it didn't work. At least for one of the letters (the far left one). When you put a letter (any letter) in the spot, it says "A"... even when it's not A! (not good for a toddler learning her letters)

I looked at it more closely, and found that some of the tabs on that one spot were half-pressed down (there are six per spot, which is how the system recognizes each letter). That would explain the error... except that when I put a three-letter word in (like CAT), it recognizes it from that point on. Weird.

So after reading all these posts about this happening to other people, and those who opened it up and cleaned it, I decided to try it myself. (a little background: I was schooled as an electrical engineer) For those of you who don't want to read the gory details, nineteen screws, two different screwdrivers, one pair of pliers, and one hour later, it's now working.

If you get one that works out of the box, great. But based on the other reviews, if you get one that doesn't work (which seems like the odds are pretty good that it won't) and you don't have experience with small parts and electronics, you're probably best off getting your money back to avoid the hassles.

**Now, for those who want to know the gory details of fixing this little issue:
- First, in order to open the housing, you have to loosen twelve philips screws to get the two parts of the housing together. Not too bad; this can be done with an ordinary screwdriver.
- Next, in order to fix the issue of the stuck tabs, you need to separate the electronics plate from the housing. In total, there were eight small screws (you need a No.1 or smaller precision screwdriver) to loosen to completely get the plate off. Because I only had one that was a problem, I got away with loosening only five of the small screws. This freed up the assembly where the magnetic letters go.
- Once you get that assembly out, you need to separate the tab section from the magnetic section. Each of the assemblies has two small screws connecting the two parts, which needs to be undone. You can put aside the magnetic section
- Now you have the tab section. This section is composed of three main parts: the actual green tabs (six), a rubber gasket-type cover that they sit on, and the electronics backing which is pressure-activated based on which tabs are depressed. Once I looked at it, I realized that the problem with my device was that the rubber cover was stuck, which is why some tabs were depressed. (Therefore, swabbing it with alcohol would not have solved the problem). Once I worked it loose, I could reassemble the parts. Note that this can be very laborious if you don't have a pair of pliers and/or haven't worked with small parts before, as the tabs sit precariously on the rubber gasket!
- Once I reassembled everything, it worked fine... but it took about an hour to do (and a very patient wife!)

85 of 91 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars LEAP FROG RULES!!, August 9, 2005

By 

M. SOLANO "j.xavier's mom" (Yonkers, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fridge Words Magnetic Word Builder (Baby Product)

I bought this for my three year old son on Sunday. It's only Tuesday and he is spelling words on his own without a problem. I recommend that you purchase the Fridge Phonics Alphabet Letters FIRST like I did, so they can learn their letters well. Once they master the entire alphabet, they can graduate to the Word Wammer. I only showed him how to play once, and he went on from there. It's amazing! Leap Frog is the best! Hopefully they will come up with fridge numbers soon!!