Customer Reviews

Magneatos (72 Piece Set)

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

We got this for my son's 4th birthday, and he can't get enough. He loves to build towers, and all sorts of stuff. The only thing is, even with 72 pieces you run out quickly when you're trying to make a big structure.

Some people have complained about the magnets not being strong enough, and their structures falling over. This isn't the case provided that you cross brace your structures (i.e. put a piece diagonal across squares that you build) or build your structures using triangles. There's really no problem building towers that are very large, or very tall.

I bought this for my 3yr old son since he likes to build things and the regular magnetic sets are too small. We love this product. Since then I have purchased the curved magneatos also. This is a really neat set for little kids. My son loves to play with them. Granted he may get frustrated when they collapse after he has been working on it, but then he just starts over. The size of the pieces are perfect for him, (plus he can't put them in his mouth as toddlers are so prone to do). I would suggest these for any toddler

I got a set of these for my 2 1/2 year old grandson. His 4-year old sister almost started fighting with him to play with them.

Now that he has had them for a little more than a week, my daughter reports that he still spends hours building towers with them and then knocks the tower down, laughs and starts over again. Needless to say, she finds some of the parts in the oddest places after a "knock down".

Both of the kids seem really amazed by the way magnets will stick together on one end and repel each other with the other end.

I think this is a fantastic toy. Simple toys like this seem to be the most fun for kids and gives them a chance to use their imaginations.

I recommend this toy highly. (even my 26-year old son and I had fun with them.)

My two, four, and six year old use this toy on a daily basis. Other than art supplies and kitchen food, these are the only toys that are never out of our play rotation. They have built towers as tall as themselves (with a little help from their engineer-minded uncle), and now they can build fairly intricate constructions on their own using the tips they learned from adults.

The list of things they have made is pretty amazing: microphones, obstacle courses, magic wands, buildings, moats, towers, shapes, etc. They experiment to see how many sticks they can put together before they break apart, how many levels they can go up before it collapses. I can't think of a more durable, educational toy that we have purchased.

The size is large enough that my one year old nephew can safely play with no risk of ingestion. The magnets are sealed completely inside the balls and encased behind plastic rings in the sticks. This is a toy that will last for years and will encourage open-ended play limited only by your child's imagination.

Some other pluses: 1) the pieces are too big to sucked up a vacuum cleaner hose, so when they inevitably roll under the couch, you don't have to worry about clogging your vacuum hose, 2) the colors are unisex and 3) the sticks will stick to any magnetic surface -- you should see some of the interesting sculptures I've found on my frig.

All in all, a fantastic lo-fi toy that has lasted for years of heavy duty use in our house.

I bought this for my 4 and 6 year olds. Although there is a smaller version of this toy for older children, I've noticed that most kids like building big things. My kids love this toy and play with it regularly, as do both younger and older kids who come to visit -- and it's safe for them to play with around babies and toddlers. I bought a set for my 4 year old's preschool class, and her teachers report that it is very popular with all the kids. The only annoying thing is keeping track of the pieces -- the balls roll everywhere. Luckily, if you store it in the original box you can tell exactly how many balls are missing.

This toy is great fun as it allows a lot of creativity for different things to build. My 3 yr. old enjoys them as they are easy to use and connect very well.

My only downside, thus a rating of 4 vs. 5, is that they collapse easily if stacked up too high. This is due to the weight of the pieces causing the straight connector pieces to literally slide around/down the ball connector pieces (since there is not a single connection point that is fixed, but they can be connected to any point on the ball). So, this causes everything to collapse.

This can be frustrating for a young child (e.g. 3 yr old, etc.) since they don't understand why it falls so easily.

However, it's still a great product and I recommend it, as long as you are aware of this point.

Great toy to develop creativity and balance skills of the kids. I enjoy playing with this as much as my daughter do (may be more). I may buy another set as the princess improves her skills.

I purchased Magneatos because my 4 year old wanted a magnetic building set. He wanted Magnetix, but I have an infant who I worried might get a hold of one of the very small pieces. Magneatos turned out to be a good alternative. My son not only uses them to build but he has come up with other imaginative ways to play with the pieces. The only caution is that the pieces are so bulky that whatever structure you build will not be mobile. For that reason, my son seems to prefer legos and kinex for building.

Only gave it 4 starts because I do agree with some of the other posts that the magnet's aren't exactly strong enough to build a huge structure, however, I have managed to build an interesting looking 'glob' of mess using all of the items, so I think it depends on what kind of thing you build. Our 2 year old daughter got this on Christmas and she asks to play with it every day - and we actually enjoy playing with it too. Maybe for a 4 year old or older, this might not be worthy (with the magnet's being weak) but for a 2 year old, this product is great. She doesn't care if it falls apart - at this age, she tends to knock things over anyway! I think the concept is educating, she tries to figure out how to connect the 'sticks' with the 'balls' and has a great time. The size is perfect for her little hands and there is no chocking hazard (like other magnet toys) I recommend this highly as a great gift for a young toddler's imagination (and playful parents too!)

I purchased this for my 2 year old grandson. He had all of the other types of building blocks that were age appropriate, but is a little hyper and got frustrated because they fall easily when bumped. These use strong magnets and make it much more enjoyable for, especially, a child who does'nt have a long attention span. They are large enough for little hands to control, as well. It was one of his favorite toys at Christmas.