Customer Reviews

Leapfrog LeapPad Learning System with Microphone and 2 Books

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I don't know why this one is cheaper than the others, I was told from a LeapFrog representative that it is the "cadillac" of LeapPads. He said it is brand new and promotionally priced.
The LeapPad options are as follows:
"Little Touch LeapPad" is for children ages 6 months to 3 years.
"My First LeapPad" is for younger children ages 3 to 5 and can not grow with the child.
"LeapPad" is for ages 4 through 10. It grows with child accepting "Quantum" books.
"LeapPad Plus Writing" is the same as LeapPad, but the pen can switch to a writing mode and you actually write in the books and then erase them to do it again. You don't have to use the writing books, you can just use it as a regular LeapPad.
"LeapPad Plus Microphone" is the same as LeapPad, but it can record and playback child's voice. You can use microphone-enhanced books for this feature, but you don't need to.
"LeapPad Plus Writing and Microphone" is the same as LeapPad, but it incorporates the writing tool and microphone if desired.
"Quantum Pad" is for ages 8 through 11.

Our first foray into LeapFrog was when our oldest turned three. She both loved and learned from the My First LeapPad (ages 3 to 5) we got her. So when she turned four, my mother bought her the full-fledged LeapPad Learning System that you see here. According to the box in which it came, it is suppose to be age appropriate for kids 4 and up.

Compared to the My First LeapPad, my daughter finds this version for older kids more difficult to manage. Not so much the activities and learning activities, but rather the larger sized activity pad, activity books that are not as durable, cartridges that are more difficult for a four year-old-to handle, and basically a host of other small things.

So while my four-year-old will use this system when my wife and I (or other adult relatives) are around, on her own she prefers the My First LeapPad that she finds much more manageable as a four year old.

That being said, I still give it four stars because some of my daughter's friends, who are a year or two older than her, love this this system and handle it just fine. Also, month-by-month my daughter is starting to handle this system a lot better.

Anyway, if your child is over and four and you don't have the version for younger kids, it would probably be worth it to start them on this system. If you child is only three, however, get the My First LeapPad. And if you have the version for younger kids and are thinking up upgrading to this version, wait until your child has outgrown the first one.

I just purchased this Leap Pad for my 4 year old son. We have 2 other leap pad systems, the My first leap pad and the original leap pad system. When I previously bought those systems for my son he was'nt ready to learn to write. Now however, he is old enough for this system and after a lot of attempts to get him to practice letters and practice writing his name I could'nt get him to really pay attention to me to write his letters, he would get bored and be ready to quit trying. I then decided on getting the Leap Pad System Plus Writing.
When I went to purchase it, I saw the Leap Pad Plus Writing Plus Microphone System that also included 2 books. I could'nt find a price, so I picked it up and put it in the cart to see how much it cost, to my great surprise it was the same amount of money as the Leap Plus Writing. (I don't think any other store carries the Leap Pad Writing and Microphone system except Toys R Us) So I was even more pleased that it had an additional feature of the microphone.
When I got home and opened it up for my son to start writing and playing with it, I was really surprised at how easy it was for him to hold the pencil stylus and he quickly traced the letters on the pages almost flawlessly! He loved it, he loved how the letters made sounds, for instance the letter I will say I-I-I-ICKY as you trace over it. He laughs each time a letter talks as he is tracing over them. Then we began playing with the microphone feature I never dreamed how much enjoyment he'd get out of this feature! It is a huge plus to have the microphone! One of the starter books that came with it has several pages that you can use the microphone on it, there is one page that you make a car sound and it uses your voice to sound like its starting the car on the page. Its really funny to get the sounds on the page with my son's voice. He laughs and giggles and it keeps him occupied for at least an hour at a time! Learning letters and learning to write has never been more fun until we bought this system. It is a WONDERFUL system and I can't say enough good things about it. If you are thinking of getting a leap pad for your child, go with the writing and microphone. If you think your child is not old enough yet for the writing feature, just take out the lead in the pencil. Another really great thing about the leap pad writing system, if you purchase any of the leap pad writing books they come with a new pencil with lead.
Another thing about this system, its more compact than the original leap pad, its very sturdy and it also comes with an eraser storage pocket and an eraser for the writing books. I figured the pencil would have an eraser on the end of it, but they don't instead they made a big eraser, easier for smaller kids to erase off their pages to re use them or to correct thier mistakes and a handy storage pocket to keep your eraser handy at all times.
Another thing I noticed about the system is the pencil stylus stays put once its snapped in the system, the other leap pads we have the stylus is hard to get to stay. They made this leap pad very durable and I agree with another reviewer- this is the "cadallic of all leap pads!"
This system is worth every penny I paid for it. My 4 year old is already mastering writing words and has learned to spell several new words because of this system. I am so pleased with this leap pad, I would highly reccommend it!!!

My 3 year old daughter received this as a gift. It's the same as the LeapPad, except that it has the added writing feature and microphone feature. The writing pen is the same as the LeapPad, except that you can twist the stylus to allow real pencil lead to come out, and then you can write on certain LeapPad Plus Writing books. The downside of this is that after they write on the book, you have to erase it! But you can also opt NOT to use the pencil lead. (You don't need it for the large majority of books). I simply took the stylus out and let my 3 year old play without it. For those who already own the LeapPad Plus Writing system, you can buy a separate microphone attachment. But this system has both already.

I would say that 3 years old is the youngest age that I would try this system, and probably 4 years old is better. My daughter knows all the letters and their sounds already, but she still enjoys the simpler books, like the Princess Book, over the more academic books, like the Phonics program books.

It's a pricey toy, and I still think that reading old-fashioned books is more important. But for a certain subset of kids, having the electronic features makes it more interesting. If you're trying to save money, then just get the systems without the writing or microphone features. You will still get a lot of benefit.

The younger kids, like ages 3 and 4, will still need parental supervision, although they seem to learn how to use it quickly. My 3 year old knows how to insert the cartridge, press ON, and tap on the "GO" sign on every page.

We're very happy with this item, and I would buy it again!

We bought the LeapPad Plus Writing and Microphone for our 4-year-old's birthday. We had read other reviews and thought it would be a great purchase. We were wrong! Here are the many ineffective, poorly designed problems with this. First, and most irritating, it comes with flimsy, paperback books that are impossible for a child to use the provided eraser to erase everything they write with the actual lead pencil. It ends up with a mess and the cheap paperback book tears easily from the rings when you try to erase not to mention the lack of durability after erasing the same page several times. Secondly, and almost as irritating, when you turn the page you are supposed to push the "Go" circle with the pencil yet it inevitably starts giving instructions for a different page since the alignment is rarely on track. The microphone has yet to work correctly and the instructions don't explain what we should be doing. We thought he could use it on the plane but the volume wouldn't turn up enough to even hear it. The cartridges are all the same color so it's hard to find the right one that goes with each book. And, of course, there was no money back guarantee so we could return it once we bought it...so we're stuck with this ineffective, cheap (although not that "cheap")learning device. Please don't make the same mistake we made by having high expectations of this product.

LeapFrog products have disappointed us in the past, so it took a lot of research on my part to consider a LeapPad for my son. Overall, I'm satisfied with the quality of this toy, but question the overall educational value of the LeapPad books. It amuses my son for hours a week, and when traveling, which we do frequently, it's a godsend. William took to the LeapPad immediately, and was able to operate the features of the books with little assistance. He's not yet 4, but instinctively follows along even though he may be working a Kindergarten book.

LeapFrog has very few books that are microphone enhanced (only 7 so far), and the stores don't seem to stock them. My husband was able to find one at Staples of all places, but he didn't happen to notice it was for 1st graders. My son was so thrilled, we opened it anyway. Initially I thought the microphone feature was ridiculous. I couldn't understand why a parent would want to hear their little one chatter back to a noisy machine. Part of the purpose of this toy, is to encourage quiet time, and learning. Right? Well, this feature has proven to be entertaining, and actually has the potential to be educational especially when working on phonics. A pair of headphones really comes in handy when listening to your child play the microphone enhanced books. I definitely recommend a set!

The writing aspects of the toy encourage me for the future. We have 2 writing books, in addition to the writing book that came with the unit, and they have gotten a lot of use already. When in writing mode, it's one on one interaction between parent and child. These books work without the pencil insert, and sometime William opts to work them that way. Unlike some of the regular LeapPad books, the writing books are educational in my view. The Kindergarten books show children how to trace letters & numbers, work mazes, draw shapes, and so forth. I question the age recommendations on the books though, as my child has already mastered the Pre-Kindergarten book, and understands a good portion of the Kindergarten book. LeapFrog has recently added more writing books to their library, so they are not as limited as the microphone books. My biggest problem with the writing feature is that erasing crinkles the pages, and the lead leaves grooves behind. It might have been better had LeapFrog designed this product with a dry erase type of insert, and coated the pages with plastic. That probably would increase the cost of the books, but how many tracing letters & numbers books do you need?

This brings up another problem I have with the LeapPad in general. The books are expensive. If one pays the suggested retail price for this product, and adds just 2 books, that's big bucks! I personally don't think the books are worth the suggested retail price, so I bought a bunch at 50% off, and plan to stock up when the next sale comes along.

We have encountered cord malfunctions too. The first time it was user abuse. My son bit the stylus pen, and must have damaged the cable. William is a lefty, and even though the cord is long at 16", it must annoy him, because it's installed on the right side giving right handed folks more room to work. I recently discovered the replacement pen is malfunctioning too. I went ahead and order 2 more pens at $5.00 each. Toy stores carry replacement pens, but they don't sale the stylus pen yet, so we have to wait 2-weeks for another. Because of this, the LeapPad is a somewhat supervised activity. I definitely don't trust my son with the Magic Pencil yet, and since I've already paid $15.00 on replacement pens, I can't quite image how much more I'll be pouring out on additional books, and batteries. I've replaced the batteries once, which isn't bad considering he played with his LeapPad for hours upon hours during our recent trip to New England. In addition, I don't trust him to remember to put both the book and cartridge back in his backpack when he's done. Thus, for the meantime, I control those aspects of the toy.

The LeapPad Plus Writing & Microphone Learning System works with the entire LeapPad library, except for the My First LeapPad books. LeapFrog selects the maximum age recommendation of this product to be 8-years old, so that it will confuse consumers into purchasing the Quantum LeapPad four-years later. This platform is compatible with the Quantum library, so there's no need to buy another LeapPad. This irrates me a bit, but overall I am satisfied with this toy, and my son loves it.

I recently purchased this for my grandson's 6th birthday. He absolutely loves it and his mother says he is doing well with it. It is the perfect tool for a child his age. He has had some difficulty with his letters and this is a real help. It makes learning a fun activity rather than a chore.

LeapFrog does it again! I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that they keep coming out with the best educational toys. My 5 year old daughter loves hers! She won't put it down, she wants to play with it first thing in the morning and it's the last thing she sees at night (besides me:) What a wonderful toy, and I feel good about it because it's educational and she loves it because it's fun! You can't lose:)

I purchased this for my niece and she loves it. It will keep children busy for hours and has the added benefit of teaching children at the same time.

The only downfall I have found is Leapfrog does not have very many Leappad Plus Writing books to go with this product. I have only been able to find 3 for the 1st grade range and there aren't any with Spongebob or other cartoon characters.

Great product!

We originally bought this for our son when he was 18 months. At that time, we would not let him use it himself, or he'd rip the books. Plus he didn't really know how to manipulate the pen. When he was about 2 1/2, he really got the hang of it. Now that he's 3, he loves it. One of his favorite books is "Hit It Maestro!" He loves the classical music. He manages the books geared towards 4-6 year olds and can handle the games. His 18 month sister likes to sit with him and watch him work the books, so we're figuring she'll be ready even earlier than he.

I just found out a bonus today. We currently live in Germany and have the American system. According to LeapFrog's website, we can only use American cartridges. WRONG! I bought a German system and German books so we could practice our basic German more, together. For giggles, before I opened the German system, I tried a German book and cartridge with our American system and it worked perfectly! I'm returning the German system and buying more German books tomorrow. That gave it an extra star in my book. I can now stock up on the German books for when we return to the States and not worry about a system. I'm even looking at picking up some French books from the French Amazon while we're here now.

The only complaint I have with it, is it sometimes glitches and doesn't read cartridges. You blow on them in case of dust and particles, but it still glitches. Yet when I try again 20 minutes later, it's fine. So there must be a short somewhere. Oh well, 99% of the time it works wonderfully.