Aug 30, 2012

VTech MobiGo 2 Review



MobiGo 2, an educational handheld system for children 3-8 years old, includes a new motion sensor and microphone providing new ways to play games and control movements. Through MobiGo 2, kids will learn basic skills such as math, vocabulary, spelling, reading, logic, and drawing.




Several years ago I bought my oldest son (now 9) the original VTech handheld game, VSmile Pocket.  It was a huge hit!  We still have it, and it still works, though the screen has lost some brightness.  But it has been well used.  I wasn't sure how much different the MobiGo 2 would really be, but  it really was far more higher tech.  The MobiGo 2 has motion detections, touch screen AND a full QWERTY keyboard.

With many other gaming units, smart phones and tablets in the house, we have a LOT of game choices.  But no other option has the full keyboard.  I wasn't sure if this would be interesting to a four year old. But he loved it.  

The MobiGo 2 comes with:
  1. Art Master, which is where Bryan spent hours coloring using the touch screen.  As much as I love a good piece of artwork for the refrigerator, sometimes the quantity of papers created by a single little artist can be overwhelming. (Multiply that by three and I can practically hear the trees crying.)  So I am a big fan of digital art.  If they create something they love they can still save it. Or they can color the same design again and again without the mess. 
  2. Hamster Highway, which is a racing game that uses the motion sensors.  I love this game for the patience it requires. Bryan initially got frustrated and attempted to tell me it "didn't work" but after his big brother stepped in and proved to him that it worked and help show him how to do it he was able to slow down and work on it.  As the baby of the family, he can use all the practice he can get and using patience!
  3. Shooting Gallery, which is a typing game where you need to make a word by 'shooting' the correct letters by finding them on the keyboard.  There are two levels of this game and neither is particularly difficult but its a great tool for learning the QWERTY keyboard. (Something I'm told is not really taught very much in school anymore.)

Additional downloadable games are available for about $2.99 each and game cartridges average about $20.  With a retail price of about $59 for the MobiGo 2, I think this is a fabulous unit.  It's easy to use. Literally a four year old took and only needed help finding the letters to type his name at start up and was off and playing.  It's durable.  If the VSmile Pocket has made it more than 6 years, the MobiGo 2 feels even tougher so I expect it would do the same. 


Look MobiGo 2 is the official educational toy of Super Heros!*

*He's not a real super hero, he just plays one on my blog.








 
I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for VTech. I received product samples to facilitate my review.

2 comments:

  1. Looks so fun! Gavin would love it if I said a Power Ranger plays it :)

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    Replies
    1. lol hey now, be careful I was very careful not to mention a specific 'hero' since I don't want to get sued for claiming anything was endorsed by any certain super power! :)

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