LeapFrog Alphabet Pal® Caterpillar (Colors May Vary)
From LeapFrog
Customer Reviews
Loud and irritating
My son recieved this as a gift for his first birthday. My first reaction to seeing it was along the lines of "oh crap, his first annoying, loud, electronic toy", which proved to be true. But my son likes it okay, mostly because he loves hearing the ABC tune.
It's cute, and with all the abuse it's taken even in just a couple of months it's held up - it's been dropped, stepped on, and generally banged around. I have mixed feelings about its phonics value, since it has only one pronunciation per vowel. I also have an issue with some of the censoring. While I certainly don't want my kid's toys saying something inappropriate, I think they went too far. So far I have found that you cannot make any words that end in "as", "az", "ax", "uk", or "uc". My biggest complaint is the volume. This toy is way too loud, even on its lower setting. If my husband or I accidentally trigger this toy at night, it can wake my son up down the hall, through a closed door. But this toy is meant to be played with at close range. I don't know why it even has a louder setting. This is one of my pet peeves about many of the toys out there.
If we hadn't recieved this as a birthday gift, I would not buy it.
Cute...but annoying
I really like the LeapFrog products, we have quite a few. But this caterpillar has an annoying voice. My son likes it for a few minutes, then even he gets sick of it and turns it off. I like the concept, but the voice could be better. And I don't understand why it plays Christmas music for some of the letters. The legs easy to push, and the pronunciations are great too. My son really likes the way he "walks", wobbling back and forth. We also bought one for our nephew who isn't talking. His mom says it has helped him with sounds and words, so that makes me feel better!
Get a different ABC toy
My son seems to enjoy this toy okay but it drives me crazy. He did not use it when learning his ABCs; he preferred a toy with buttons easier to push and larger letters. But he picks this one up every now and then. It has a music mode that plays short songs but if you even barely touch another button it changes to a different song. The string is too short to pull; I am not sure of the purpose of it. I would get rid of this toy if my son didn't play with it at times. Overall I think it is annoying and would recommend getting a different ABC toy.
Features
- Press one of his 26 feet and listen as your caterpillar Alphabet Pal says the letter, makes the sound or says the color printed on that foot
- Four learning modes teach letter names, letter sounds, colors and music
- Press the button on Alphabet Pal’s back for a special musical surprise! Pull Alphabet Pal’s string to hear the ABC song!
- Develops gross motor, language, auditory, and cognitive skills
- Alphabet Pal provides children a fun opportunity for imaginative, self-directed play
