Customer Reviews

Melissa & Doug Magnetic Number Maze

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was racking my brain for another Christmas present for my toddler (she's 2-yrs, almost 8 months)...and I saw this magnetic puzzle game. We've always loved Melissa & Doug products, and I thought this seemed a great value, and a good educational opportunity for her.

It is, indeed, very cute & well-made. The magnetic wand controls the balls well IF it is held flat against the acrylic cover plate. Another important requirement is that the board be laid down completely flat (as in, NOT held on the child's lap) or the balls just roll right out of the number areas. (This was a frustration expressed somewhere by someone, I believe). It has the potential to be good counting practice, IF a child is at that level.

All this to say that this is a fun toy, but is not exactly fitting for my toddler. She can play around with it, making the little balls move around, enjoying doing that for a short time, but I would say that it doesn't really become a great educational toy until the child is around 3-1/2 to 4 years old and really starts to grasp counting. My older daughter (just turned 6) can play with it and fully appreciate the learning potential: hand-eye coordination & counting (though she's definitely beyond learning how to count at this age, it's fun for her to manipulate the correct number of balls to their corresponding number area).

I generally love Melissa and Doug toys and would have to convinced to find something 'bad' with any of the products. However, this product has a lot of potential - but falls short of being what it could. As others have stated, it has to be absolutely flat (no car trips). It is a fairly weak magnet. Also, I think there should be one large 'basket' on the puzzle to hold all the apples to move them from over to the individual baskets. It is hard also for kids to actually count the apples separately in the 10 baskets -- they move around and are close together - so they give up counting - and head to another puzzle. A few design modifications could make this puzzle a winner too!!

I bought this and saved it for a car trip last summer. I got it out when things started to get hairy and it saved the day. My 4 year old loved it. When we got to our destination we took it inside with us and the adults took turns doing it. I think they had even more fun than my son.

I thought this looked like a great little toy for my son who just turned 3. When we received it I found it to be very well made, durable and cute in design, but sadly, it doesn't hold much interest for my son.

... and collects dust. I have mixed feelings about this toy. My son got very interested at first and loved the different animals, but had difficulty moving the "apples" around because the magnet pen is just not strong enough. The design is very cute and I love the bright colors. It also seems like a very durable toy; it survived several long car trips without any damage.

I love most of the Melissa & Doug toys and puzzles but this one was not a hit with my 5-year old. It is hard to move the cherries with the magnetic pen and kids get frustrated. He has more fun playing with the Melissa & Doug fishing game with the magnetic fishing pole than this one.

I was dissappointed to find wood dust and plastic scratches marring the plastic surfaces of the maze. It is usable but has a hazy appearance. Good concept. My 5 yo plays with it occassionally but rarely in the way they intended.

This was a present for my 20 month old grandson. Thought the idea of a counting toy to be very clever. He used the magnet wand with a little help to move the ball from one area to another. He realized that the magnet was the same as Thomas trains and put the magnet to the cuplers of the engines. His 5 year old brother understood that you moved the balls to have the correct number in each numbered area. Great to see the boys learning!

It's hard to keep the little balls attached to the magnet pen. You have to hold the pen straight up to get it to work. Wish the magnets were stronger, especially for the use of children.

I haven't had the toy very long, but am wondering how much the plastic covering will get scratched with time and use?

Keep the board flat on the table/floor or the balls move around on their own.

But, I still think it's a great educational toy once you get the hang of it. With little kids, it'll take a little longer, but they eventually get it.

This magnetic game is a classic must have for the play room. Our family enjoys many quality toys and games from Melissa & Doug, so I didn't hesitate to purchase this product.

My only complaint is the magnetic pen. It drops the balls very easily which frustrates my kids a bit. Since I have seen better designed magnetic pens, I only gave this toy four stars. Other than that, it is a finely crafted maze game.