LeapFrog LeapStart® Learning Table
by LeapFrog
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Our Price: $149.95 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $23.99 (click here) Category: Toy See more product details |
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Toys and Games Reviews of LeapFrog LeapStart® Learning Table
Customer Review: LeapStart Learning Table Compared to the Laugh and Learn Table from FisherPrice
Summary: 4 Stars
We purchased both a Fisher Price Laugh and Learn Table and a LeapStart Learning Table. The plan was to see which one our daughter (7 months at the time) liked best. We would keep the one she liked best at home and send the other to Grandma and Grandpa's house. Here is how the two compare.
1. The Fisher Price table is shorter than the LeapStart table and baby seems to be able to pull up on it at a younger age. Baby can also sit at the Fisher Price table easier because it is lower.
2. Both have stable legs and do not tip over when baby leans up against them or pushes on them. Both have legs that can be removed for floor play when baby can not stand. (We never used it this way because our daughter was early to stand.)
3. Both have a learning mode with ABC song and counting to 10 song and a musical mode.
4. In the musical mode the Laugh and Learn table plays tunes to familiar children's songs. It has a traditional feel to the music. The LeapStart table has music based on the different instruments on the table such as a banjo tune, a sax sound, etc. and it has a jazzier feel to the music.
5. The Laugh and Learn table has a food theme and looks like a set table. In the learning mode concepts such as color, shapes, texture, manners, shapes, open/shut, empty/full, peek-a-boo, and naming of common items such as apple, blueberries, banana, juice, etc. The LeapStart table has a musical theme with instruments such as a piano, maracas, sax, violin, and banjo. In the learning mode concepts include colors, shapes, high, low, on, off, hello, goodbye, etc.
6. On the Laugh and Learn table the parent has to change the mode. On the LeapStart table the child can change the mode by turning the page on the book in the center of the table.
7. The Laugh and Learn table has a bowl in the center that spins and can hold favorite objects. The LeapStart table has a small purple door that can hold favorite objects in the indentation underneath the door.
As a parent, I like the LeapStart table more. The music is parent friendly and even after repeated use, it does not annoy adults. I also like the different musical instruments and musical sounds that are introduced. That said, my daughter (now 9 months) likes the Laugh and Learn table better. She likes putting objects like small balls, Cheerios, and her pacifier in the bowl in the center. She also likes the peek-a-boo napkin with the peas underneath which says "Peek-a-boo. I see you." when she opens the door. It makes her laugh. Another favorite is the spoon rattle that can be removed from the table and the alphabet letters that float in the water sealed in the bowl that move around when the bowl spins. This is her favorite toy. She does play with the LeapStart table at her Grandparents house now, but her attention span is short with this toy. She can play with her Laugh and Learn table for long periods of time.
Customer Review: Top of the line activity table "leaps" above the rest!!
Summary: 5 Stars
My son just turned a year old and although he had a ton of learning toys, lap toys, and musical toys, I wanted to invest in a "stand-up" toy. I was sure I wanted an activity table--but which one?? There are so many to choose from!! After studying the tops of endless tables, I came to the conclusion that this was the best one--this was obvious, but was it worth the money? I could get other activity tables for less, even half the price, but they didn't seem as inviting and exciting. I hesitate on spending too much on one item at his age, but after lengthy consideration, I decided to purchase this activity table. I must say, that I never once regretted by decision because it is well worth every penny. Not only is it educational, it also provides tons of entertainment. It took about 30 seconds for me to assemble it, and the fun began right away.This table has 2 settings; words (letters/numbers) and music/song. There is a "book" in the middle of the table, and the page the book is on determines what mode it is in. When the page is turned, bright lights around the table light up and a mystical sound is heard which is sure to mesmerize your little one. This table has EVERYTHING--shapes, colors, the alphabet, numbers, a piano, several other musical instruments and noisemakers--and my son's favorite part--a small compartment to open and close and to keep busy putting small objects in and out of. There are so many different activities on this table that a child never seems to get bored, especially since each activity serves two functions. For instance, there are 3 shapes to push. In talk mode, it speaks "red square", "yellow triangle", etc. In song mode, different drums are heard when each is pressed. This is just one corner of the table--I couldn't possibly go into everything this table has to offer.
I take great comfort and knowing that when my child is playing with something and is so involved in it, that he is learning his abc's or how to count to ten or learning his colors or shapes at the same time. The look on his face as he dances to the music is priceless. I bought this item for my son's first birthday and it is still a huge hit to this day. My only regret is that I didn't buy it sooner. I recommend that as soon as your child starts pulling himself up, that you buy this toy. My child hasn't lost interest and I haven't needed to replace the batteries, oddly enough. The legs are sturdy and just the right size. It keeps my child busy for a long block of time, which, of course, is very nice for Mom!! You may pay a little more for this than the other activity tables, but you will not regret it. This is a quality item, with many educational and stimulating aspects, and I recommend it highly.
Customer Review: Great Introduction to Motor Skills and Music
Summary: 4 Stars
Having a [...] twins this toy has endured a lot of abuse. I originally bought this toy for my 3 year old when she was around 6 months old. Now it is being used by my [...] twins. This toy combines the wonder of music and captures the imagination of little chubby hands by rewarding any movement of parts with music and light effects. This toy has entertained all 3 of my children for sure. What attracted me to this toy was the music and the combination of different styles of music. This was the first toy and only toy I have found with a Jazz music element. Having children you get tired of hearing the same tunes over and over such as Twinkle Twinkle. With this toy the snippets of music are short enough that your child can still enjoy it and not long enough that the parent tires of the music. The rendition of ABC is catchy and not annoying!
The only downfalls are that the legs really don't support the table when a little one tries to stand and play. By the time your child can stand without support he/she has lost interest in the toy. I improvised a bit and took the legs off and my children love it just as much on the floor. The shapes in the corner (circle, square, triangle) don't really capture the interest of my kids much. In my opinion a little one has to push hard to get them work. One pops up while the other goes down but not enough for a child to notice. It rewards the action with music or words. Also, the book in the middle has a page to turn. It's great to watch your kids discover that when they turn the page it makes a noise. But, as they lean on the page and get their hands in the wrong spot it can trap a little chubby finger under the page as they turn it. (It only happened once to my son but that was because he was trying to crawl on the table and turn the page at the same time). For those with short arms like my daughter it's hard to reach things on the table but it helps them learn to move a bit more to reach things.
Overall this is a great toy and what is the best is that as your baby develops motor skills and cognitive abilities this toy continues to capture their attention. There seems to be an element to this table that continues to challenge and entertain your child as he grows up to about 14 mos.
Customer Review: Loves this table
Summary: 5 Stars
Based on the reviews here I felt this activity table would be too overstimulating for my often times sensitive (almost) 11 month old. However then we saw the table in the store and he loved it. We purchased it for him for his birthday, but let him play with it for a day to make sure he'd like it enough to warrent the price tag. He couldn't get enough of it!
Within minutes he'd learned to slide the trombone, push the lever for the cello and flip the lever for the bango. The little door that says "hello" and "bye-bye" fasinates him as well as the spinner with the beads. He has never really danced to music before, but after playing with this table for one day, he is now dancing to the music this and his other toys make. I think he noticed that the table was not in the mix of other toys the next morning and I'm sure he's wondering where it went.
Pros:
Unlike some other tables we tested, this one has some rubber grip on the feet to keep it from scooting on the carpet. It does scoot a little on the hardwood, though.
Two volume settings, and the louder isn't too loud.
Can still be utilized if the table is turned off completely, unlike some other tables we looked at. Great to keep baby occupied and save mommy's sanity.
Wide variety of music. I'm not sure exactly how many songs this plays, but I would guess at least 20.
Cons:
The sound the trombone makes is really a muted trumpet. Baby isn't going to know this, but it bugs me.
The hinge on the little door on the hidden compartment is flimsy and the door comes off easily. Maybe that's just on our table, though, because we got a display to save a little money.
There are limited places for baby to put his hands that don't have ativities associated with them. As such, my supported stander keeps flipping one thing but balancing himself on another activity, which overrides the first. Eventually he'll grow out of that "challenge" but it seems to frustrate him a bit now.
Overall this is a wonderful table and I'm glad I didn't make too hasty of a judgement of it before seeing it in the store. It's well worth the money. I think this will be a favorite for some time.
Customer Review: The best toy for musical snobs like me!
Summary: 5 Stars
OH MY GOODNESS how much do we love this toy!! We chose it for our 8-month-old -- who can't pull herself up yet but loves to stand with assistance -- based primarily on the reviews that praised its musical integrity, since we're pretty snooty about that too. Add us to the list!As much as we enjoy the Baby Einstein music videos and other toys that play nursery "standards," this is such a refreshing change to jazzy/bluesy little riffs. There are a piano, trombone, cello, banjo (?) and drums as well as ensemble sounds and a scat singer that sound pretty much like their acoustic counterparts. Flip the mode switch from music to learning, and these same sounds accompany the alphabet song, color and shape names, simple words like open/close, and a nifty little number ditty that isn't quite as cool as the old Sesame Street "12" song, but catchy just the same.
We just took it out of the box this morning at about a minute to nap time, and our baby proceeded to play with it for 30+ minutes nonstop! Didn't even sit down! All the activities are easy for her to figure out and operate, they're sized just right, and each one plays more than one thing.
I'm already anticipating how easy it will be to toss it in the trunk next weekend when we go visit the grandparents - pretty compact compared to an activity saucer! The legs have some degree of skid resistance on our carpet - haven't tried other surfaces yet, and I still wouldn't leave her at it unattended at this point. Once she's already standing by it, I don't see it tipping over, but even thought the height is right I don't think it's sturdy enough for her to pull up on safely as I had anticipated (it's top-heavy). But the legs detach easily so it can go directly on the floor when Mommy can't stay right beside Baby.
The only thing that doesn't "work" as I expected it to (and this isn't even a design flaw) is because of its size, Claire can reach across to all the activities without stepping around the table. I was hoping it might encourage her to move her feet a bit more, but that day will come soon enough.
We don't buy too many bigger-ticket toys, but every dollar for this one was well-spent.