Customer Reviews

North States Superyard Play Yard, Classic XT

5 star:		(445)
4 star:		(191)
3 star:		(48)
2 star:		(24)
1 star:		(23)

 

 

I bought this as a playpen substitute. It's as advertised, so I don't have any complaint about the quality, but up close it looks even cheaper than it does in the photo. The person who said it looks like a dog kennel nailed it. So if you're looking for something that will go well with the decor in your living room, don't bother with this.

The way it looks doesn't bother me that much; what does bother me is that my son, by the age of 12 months, had learned how to push this thing around. It doesn't anchor to anything, so he started to shove it all over the living room, making it tip and generally creating chaos. My solution was to attach those removable non-marring 3M "Command" hooks to the wall and tie coated wire around them, then lash that wire to the play yard. It doesn't look beautiful, that's for sure, but it works; the play yard doesn't budge any more. If your little one is walking, you too will have to jury-rig a solution to their tendency to push the yard around and even lift it if they're strong enough.

I also recommend you get those colorful interlocking foam tiles to put under the play yard; it makes the play area a bit safer. Amazon sells the "Edushape" brand, but you can get various brands just about anywhere.

All in all, it's not an elegant solution, but weary parents who need a break will love it with all its flaws.

I purchased two of these gates for my twins with hopes of connecting them together forming a rectangle around their existing play mat. This product certainly could not perform that function. My 10m/os tipped it over immediately. Then we tried the gates as advertised, individually as hexagons, and they still were able to move them.

The worst part was trying to return them. They were placed in one order, but Amazon shipped them as two. When requesting a 'call tag' to retrieve them, they only picked up one box. The other remained on my front porch. Multiple emails and calls finally rid me of the other gate and I received my refund.

I ended up buying two Kidco Playdens PD10. They connected together in the 8' X 4' configuration I needed (I called Kidco first to make sure), there is two swinging entries, it is very sturdy, it is taller than the Superyard, and they can not climb it. This solution costs more, but was really my only option.

For children of the age where they are challenging their standing and climbing skills, I would keep moving when looking at this product.

When our 2nd kiddo started getting mobile, I knew it was time to kid-proof the great room. Problem is, our great room is just that - great, as in large. The doorways are wide, the floor space is large, and our very curious 9-month-old was eager to explore every nook and cranny. Our older daughter wasn't quite as curious at this stage, plus we were living in a different house at that time, so we were faced with a new challenge of creating a safe play area for the baby.

One day I had the idea of getting a play yard for the great room, instead of covering/blocking every single potential "hazard" (the entertainment cabinet, the CD tower, etc.). I ventured to Babies R Us and found this play yard and the extension kit (2 extra panels) and bought it. I set it up at home and have been happy with it ever since.

For awhile, I used it in its totally enclosed state, but the baby didn't like being separated from the rest of us. I tinkered with it and came up with a way to keep her out of trouble, while still allowing her access to us - right now, it's in a large arc shape with one end butting up against the couch, the other end butting up against a chair. She has plenty of room to play (I keep her toys in there with her) but she can't get out or get to any "dangerous" stuff in the great room.

As for looks, yeah, our great room isn't company-ready right now. But we have a 4 year old and a 10-month-old in the house, so the house isn't pristine anyway (my house is CLEAN, just not always NEAT...ha ha). I figure it's temporary, until she's old enough to know to not touch certain things. Besides, we don't have company, except for family, so the unattractive-ness of the play yard isn't an issue here. Even so, I'd gladly overlook the ugliness of it just for the convenience and benefits it provides.

When the time comes that we no longer have to use this for the kiddo, I'll probably hang onto it, either to offer up to friends/relatives someday, or to keep as a puppy play yard for the future.

This product does what it says it does. It is a perfect play yard for our toddlers AND our puppy. We bought THREE! It's very sturdy, durable, easy to clean, and ours has lasted four years now.

Our toddler plays for hours in it and all his toys are in there, it's great. We bought an extra for outside so we can sit outside at dusk on the deck with him. When we got our puppy six months ago, we saw it makes a perfect pen for the new puppy! We have a small crate setup inside it, and a small litterbox to housetrain him. It worked great! Fantastic!

As for the reviewer who looked at it and returned it - I don't know what idiot would think it's beautiful, but why would you expect something like this to look beautiful?!?! Duh. It's a play yard. AND best part is, you can buy the extension kit. We bought two extension kits. This thing is practically unbreakable. My only complaint is that it takes a lot of strength, maybe only a man, to snap the ends together. It's very hard to snap together or get apart. But once together, we leave it up for months.

We got it around Christms. Used it for the Christmas tree (at the time, children ages 5, 3, and 10 month old twins). Since then, we leave it in the den (collapsed, according style) and move it to wherever is needed (like the huge opening between our den and kitchen that no other affordable child gate can cover).

What I don't like:
-It feels like I'm forcing the joints to open/close to adjust.
-With little movement it held up fine, but it now has a crack in it near one of the hinges(probably due to opening and closing it too quickly once?).
-It's a little difficult to connect the ends together.
-Moves when pushed (even by a scrawny 10 month old) unless ends are anchored in corners of something.

What I do like:
-Enough room: My friends and I had four 12 month olds in it at the park the other day with toys and snacks.
-Good for outside. Good for large/oddly shaped openings.

I recommend it for:
light use (not put up and taken down a lot) and outdoor places.

Might recommend it for:
heavy use (up and down a lot - like we do). It's 'good enough', but expect some wear and 'tear' (and then watch little fingers if it does)!

I would NOT recommend it for:
destructive children or strong children (or pets), this is NOT the gate for you! Too easy to move or crack.

OK so I have a few friends that call this a "CAGE" or "Puppy Pen" but when they come over they love putting their little ones in with my son and watching them play. I call it my "LIFE SAVER" and I'm sure in many ways it's my son's life saver too. He has learned a valuable session in what is his space and what is not. It's called boundaries and he's happy and secure knowing that he has them and so am I. At end purchasing an item like this is ALL about PARENTAL STYLE. I guess I'm a true centrist when it comes to parenting style; my wife and I wear our son, make his own organic baby food and he sleeps with us on occasion. But before he started crawling we knew that baby proofing the WHOLE house was not economical nor at end would it make it safe for him to wonder. SO I happily purchased a "CAGE" or what we lovingly call "P's Play Pen". I had a "play pen" when I was young and so did my wife. This was THE SMARTEST PURCHASE I've made in baby items.

Here is what we like about it: folds flat, is light weight, comes with a carrying strap, easy to clean, no sharp edges, has a sun shade (purchased separating), easy to put together, great resale value (see Craig's list), sturdy enough for my son to pull himself up to standing (he weighs about 20lbs), good size without the extension kit it can entertain three 6-7 month olds easily.

The things that we hope will improve in future; wow at first glance it's huge (I'd say about 4.5-5 feet in diameter, the sun shade only covers half the pen, there wasn't instructions on how to use the carrying strap, we eventually figured it out, the snapping sound when collapsing or putting it up can be loud. My wife thought she had broken it once. That's about it no disappointing issues. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!

This is my second superyard. The first one I bought many years ago when the superyard was made with protruding metal hinges which were somewhat hazardous and invited mouthing by little teethers. Aside from being a little stiff to fold (which might be because it is new) this model is a vast improvment over the old. It's a couple of inches taller and seems sturdier. Great for blocking off the Christmas tree or any other part of the house. Cruising babies love to go round and round the inside and you can hang a busy box or other toys on the side to amuse a crawling baby.

During football season, my friends and I take our superyards to tailgate and join them together to make a super superyard, so all the toddlers can safely play together. It's easy to clean using the pressure nozzle on the hose outdoors. Minor drawback is that it can be scooted across the floor or climbed out of by a determined toddler. Do I really need to say that any play yard should always be used only under adult supervision? Final comment - one of the most useful pieces of child-care equipment I've

ever owned. The only reason I gave it 4 stars insteat of 5 is because my experiences with North States' customer service has been poor.

I bought this item when my daughter was 9 months old. It was only good for few days. When she learned to stand, she also learned to climb it! Her toes fits perfectly on the holes. I put on her shoes, but then she had a strong grip and uses her hands and pull herself up or hangs on it. Manufacturer should redesign this item, by making its poles into horizontal like most gates, and not the diamond shape holes. This product is only good for infants learning to crawl, but not when they learn to stand... and figure out that they can climb it too! I would say this product is only appropriate for 0-9 months old; those who are learning to crawl; and those infants who cannot stand yet.

This play yard was great at first. I have a 14 month old and I got it for here when she was about 8 months. My daught was walkin at 8 months and as a work-from-home mom, sometimes it was tough to be on the phone and running around the house with her. She loved it, played with her toys and I would put a pillow in there so when she was sleepy, she can go to sleep. I would even be able to pop a video in and she would sit at watch and i felt comfortable leaving her in the room

DONWFALLS- she was able to push the playard down the hallway and get it stuck. She was also able to push it around to manipulate the shape and at one point was making it into a skinny little thing. Other down fall SHE CAN CLIMB OUT OF IT. Because of the little holes in it, she got her little toes in them and climbed out. I was sitting in my office and I heard little patter of feet coming down the hallway. I looked and there she was in my doorway smiling

With two babies learning to crawl and going every which way, I needed a solution, pronto! The Superyard XT was a lifesaver. Although it's not perfect, we found solutions to make it work for our twins.

Pros:
* Huge area for two babies plus an adult - We have the regular 6-sided superyard with one extension (2 panels), to make it eight sides. The dimensions are 80" x 80" if you use it as an octagon.
* Toy stations can be set up on each corner and toys attached to the sides, including any that would work on a crib. Rotate them frequently to keep your child interested
* A Tiny Love Classic Mobile works great with the Superyard as it's huge, safe to use until they are standing.
* It's big enough to give freedom to your child but small enough to fit in your home.
* 35" wide x 26" inch high panels are easy for an adult to step over. I wouldn't recommend it for a pregnant mom however.
* Easy to clean - can be use indoors or outdoors
* Adaptable panels are great for childproofing - we've used panels to keep kids away from windows and from large TVs, wedging ends between heavy furniture and securing them firmly.
* Extremely durable - we've had this for three years, used it for many playgroups, and several families have borrowed and used it. It still looks new.

Cons:
* It would be ideal if it had a child-proof gate - the sides are very hard to open and the playard becomes very unsteady once you do this.
* Your child will be able to slide it around if it's not secured. We bought inexpensive interlockable foam pads from BJs, placed the superyard over them, marked along the inside and cut them to size. It won't budge like this. For ease in reassembling later, mark the tiles from left to right and from top to bottom in order as it will be like a jigsaw if you take the tiles apart.
* To keep your child from pulling the foam tiles apart, place a large quilt over the foam mat, tuck the ends under and you're set to go. Amazon sells many inexpensive microsuede machine washable ones - make sure is more than 80" wide.
* Toddlers may be able to climb out if they're barefoot or wearing socks. Putting shoes on them solves the problem.
* This is hardly portable, no matter what it says. Once set up, it's there to stay. With eight sides, it's on the heavy side.

Look under product images or my profile, I have lots of pictures posted of how you can adapt the Superyard, cut the foam tiles, make lots of play stations inside it and turn your living room into your very own preschool. Just kidding, sort of.