KidDesigns Barbie Cash Register

by Kid Designs

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds
• ASIN: B00000IT7I
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #236,400 in Toys & Games (See Top 100 in Toys & Games)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (73 customer reviews)

Product Description

Editorial Review

The Barbie Shop With Me Cash Register proves once again that Barbie is the coolest. Made durably and in Barb's trademark colors (pink, hot pink, purple, white, etc.), this is a sleek number that can be operated on the floor, bed, or tabletop. It features four realistic ways to buy noodles, yogurt, and toilet paper. Option 1: A "clerk"--either a child or Barbie--scans the bar codes of included price tags. Option 2: You can manually input the price of items. Option 3: Items may be scrolled down the register. Option 4, which is, by the way, your humble writer's favorite: Make up your own prices! Get "Barbie Discounts" when you use your savings debit card. The Barbie register comes with a slew of accessories, including 18 scannable price tags, play money, play credit/debit cards, a keypad, built-in microphone, and a 120-item shopping catalogue offering everything from Barbie-brand jeans to junk food. The machine features a high-tech hand-held scanner and LCD on the register, which shows a customer's subtotal, item number, unit price, and total. You get everything but a receipt. Hmmm.

A built-in microphone allows your child to make store announcements and call for price checks and item voids. This heightens the interaction this toy was built for, since Barbie's voice simulates the real shopping experience enough already. "Cash or charge?" she asks in a perky tone. Tip: If you don't pay up at once with your Barbie greenbacks or American Express-like credit card, you'll be harassed. We writers found ourselves fumbling through our own wallets, trolling for coupons. Barbie prompts the shopper throughout the entire process ("Seventeen dollars and twelve cents... No... seventeen dollars and TWELVE cents."). And parents--there's no volume control. If you just happen to sneak a play while your kid's eating lunch, well... everybody in the house will hear if your card is over the limit. Just kidding. But it's best to use Barbie's credit cards anyway. This kind of hectic shopping experience makes adults really appreciate the online shopping experience, but kids will love it so much they'll forget it's just a pretend play toy. Register comes with all accessories, manufacturer's warranty, a real grocery store coupon for a kid's treat, and the four required AA batteries. --Diane Beall

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

197 of 201 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Barbie Cash Register...A Toy For Any Age?, December 29, 1999

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: KidDesigns Barbie Cash Register (Toy)

My 4-year-old daughter received the Barbie Cash Register and she loved it. It is a bit technical for her, but she doesn't seem to get frustrated with the complexity of the toy. I think the age recommendation of 3 years and up is stretching it a bit if you intend to get the full appreciation for the toy. Even though it would probably be better suited for and understood by a 5-6 year old, a 3-4 year old can easily sit and push buttons at random and have a ball! The working microphone and "talking" Barbie features absolutely delighted my daughter. My 10-year-old played with it about as much as my as my 4-year-old. As a matter of fact, they had a great time playing with it together. They loved the pretend scannable item cards and credit cards, not to mention the pretend coins and paper money. The catalog that came with it was a nice touch. The catalog has additional items with numbers you can enter to purchase those items. It is a toy that not only provides hours of play time, but teaches math skills as well. No wonder it was one of the hottest selling toys... I highly recommend this toy.

167 of 172 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Barbie Too Demanding For Younger Children, December 26, 1999

By A Customer

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:1.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:2.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: KidDesigns Barbie Cash Register (Toy)

Barbie is very demanding and rigid in letting you play shop with her...Turn the register on and hear Barbie say,"Let's go shopping!Press a key", in a rapid voice. To begin, you MUST press a category key - any other key will not allow you to play futher. You will be given only two opportunities, then the toy shuts off. Hesitate more than 5 seconds, and you must restart the program! (I timed this, and it is actually LESS than 5 seconds!)

My 4 year daughter, however, was quickly frustrated (I was more frustrated than she!) with the demands she could not meet! (Fail to meet Barbie's instructions, and the system turns the register off.) The scan reader requires a firm downward swipe to read a card, again something that was difficult for younger children to achive.

This toy is fun only if your child is fairly proficent in reading and motor skills. After only a few minutes of attempting to play by the rules, my 4 year old only wanted to use the button activated PA system, because it is not regulated (shut-down) by system inputs.

Simply put, a good choice for ages 6 and up but not the 3 and up as recommended by the manufacturer. For 3 to 5 year old children, look for a less demanding toy, that allows more free-play and does not require reading skills.

156 of 161 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too advanced for non-reading child..., October 25, 2000

By A Customer

= Durability:3.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:2.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: KidDesigns Barbie Cash Register (Toy)

My 5-year-old just got this toy for her birthday. It has caused more headaches than fun for her. Although she can put in items by item number, she cannot read the items on the screen. It requires pushing different buttons for every different task which is confusing for my daughter who can't read the words on the keys. The scanner also requires an extremely PRECISE motion of running the "price tag" through in order to work. Even I can only get it to ring through half the time. Overall we are very disappointed. My daughter desperately wanted a cash register for her b'day, then saw this barbie one and thought all her dreams came true! She would have been better off with a regular plain old cash register.

In a year or so when she is reading I'm sure she will love it, but for now she quickly gets frustrated.