Customer Reviews

IZ (Green)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have mixed feelings for this strange musical toy. If you've read the product copy, you know the deal: twist the ears, flick the "flicker", or press up/down/left/right on the unlabeled stomach to create and modify music and sound effects. This is all quite interesting, but I haven't decided yet if it is actually fun (but as I'm a bit older than the target demographic, my opinion on this may not matter).

What I like: It's a nice idea, looks cool, and you can plug your iPod/MP3 player into it. The music it creates sounds pretty good.

What's disappointing: The moving eyes are noisy and distract from the music. I wish there were more ways to modify the sound. If you have an iPod plugged in, all you can do is add sound effects.

I bought this as a present for an adult, thinking it would be a good alternative to the I-dog. It's not. I really should have read the recommended age group because I would suggest that IZ is definitely a child's toy.

He's cute (especially when he stands on one foot) and the "music" creation works as described, but it's just not sophisticated enough to keep anyone but a younger child entertained. (I-dog's not particularly sophisticated either, but it looks a lot more 'elegant' than IZ.)

Be warned that IZ is bigger than expected from the picture: about the size of a child's bear/doll (and perhaps that's the idea). His noises can also get fairly irritating after a while, and he is pretty difficult to turn off; the interface leaves a lot to be desired and you definitely need to read the instructions in advance if you want to know how to get the little blighter to shut up! :o)

On a similar design note, the battery casing is just rubbish. There was no need for such a badly designed battery housing. (Boo to the design team on that one!) So, be aware in advance that IZ doesn't come with batteries and, as well as four AA's, you'll need a cross-hair screwdriver that can fit into a small spaces to open the casing and get things started. A child will not be able to fit the batteries themselves.

He works OK as a speaker for an IPod or stereo output, and although as one reviewer reports he burps and makes other rude noises (to show his appreciation apparently) when you first plug him into a sound source, he will become silent (so you can actually just listen to tunes through him) if you just leave him alone, and don't tweak any parts of him.

All in all, a good toy for the young, but don't buy him thinking he's a cool present for a teenager or older, he's too childish for that I am afraid. Buy an I-dog, together with a chilli set, for the hip teenager instead, they'll appreciate that more.

I got a green one from Amazon as a gift and I love it. The language it speaks is funny and I like making it make all of the sounds. Thee is a lot to do with it, more sounds than i thought were in there keep surprising me. I have a iPod shuffle and now I listen to my music thru this. The light and eyes moving are fun too. You can twist the ears too, in case you were not sure.

The IZ is really cool! I like the colors! It is always entertaining me and it is so cute! I have a red one. I like the way it's body moves! This toy is awesome!

Funky and cool speaker toy. the sound is pretty good, and the noises it makes are a little rude, but funny too. My 11 year old really likes it a lot... especially when it just comes out with something out of the blue. It does make noises during the playback of her iPod, but if she wants to listen to the music without that noise she has plenty of options. We are happy with our purchase.

(I'm speaking as a mom with all boys..) I purchased IZ for my son of 7 who absolutely loves it! IZ's movements and noises are very comical but can drive a parent batty after a while. But in a kids view this is Great. My son can listen to his music on it by linking his CD walkman to it. (also works with MP3 or IPod)Or just listen to IZ's personal music making abilities, which your child can mix up and manipulate by making faster slower or different sounds etc. It is like a personal speaker and a fun friend. My two year old also enjoys IZ and that where the durability comes in. IZ is very surprisingly durable. I was even considering getting him one. Now as for the older set like age 13 (Forget it!!). My 13 year old thinks its ridiculous and the IDog was the way to go there. IDog is the bomb, cool, rad, or whatever these older kids say now a days.....lol Other than that IZ is awesome for the younger set!

This is a very creative little device. As you can see, it has a wide range of features packed in for a low price and it's guaranteed to create a smile.

However, the cost of it's cuteness is a rather non-intuitive user interface (UI) that you have to read the manual for and then it's still hard to remember. And I found within a week that the on/off switch had become tempermental.

Overall -- cute as a novelty item, but don't count on it to work very well.

Fun if you have a young male child that isnt into the music... it fart and burps and makes annoying noises during the music. not the toy for me but i think little boys would find it funny (but i do see it getting old quick)

I bought this for my 13-year-old stepson thinking it would be a cool toy. It turned out to just be annoying and he got bored with it in a day. It was way too expensive for what it really is, an annoying noise machine.

Very neat toy, although I think I liked it more than my 8 year old. My first one didn't come with directions, so we were a little confused on what buttons did what. The company sent us some directions after I called and it made it much easier. My favorite part was the lights in the "horn" that change colors. My daughter was only intrested in it for about 15 minutes though.