Science Reviews

My son, who is three, has been really into animals and has several toys. This was maybe his favorite gift at Christmas. There are several big whales, dolphins, octopi, sea lions and much more. There are several large animals and few smaller ones. There are also some non-traditional animal toys. The Toys R Us description does not do this justice.

My 2 1/2 year old LOVES sharks, but because of this bucket he became familiar with other sea life. He quickly learned about dolphins, whales, octopus, and fish. This is such a great bucket!! It has such a good variety of sea life and all made out of heavy duty materials. They're great for the tub or for outside in the pool. I was so impressed at how quickly he learned the difference between a shark and a dolphin or a shark and a whale. If your little one is interested in any kind of sea life, then this bucket is perfect. And the price just can't be beat!!

This "toy" is extremely loud. Even on another floor of the house the pump is too loud to have on at night and if you turn it off, it has an alarm that goes off eventually so you have to unplug it. My opinion is -too much work for parent and not enough fun for kids.

This "toy" was a bit challenging at first, but after some trial and error, it is now working well. Some plants work better than others- have yet to find a flowering plant that survives longer than 1 week.... As far as the noise- ours is down to a gentle hum- what you would expect from a flowing water garden. (plenty quiet to keep in my childs room at night!!) The key is, is to always have enough water in the base - practically covering most of the pods. Also, make sure that the flow is set to minimum. The instructions are quite easy to follow- as long as they are followed, there won't be a problem! If your child is interested in caring for plants and an adult is willing to help out....then this is something to consider.

The tripod is not steady enough to be able to follow the planets because the tracking system is difficult to use without disturbing the view. I could use the 9mm eyepice to get 800/9 = 88 magnification but it I could not get a clear focused image of Mars (7 Sept 2005). I am a 43 year old engineer, I will have to try a better telescope.

And oh what a dissapointment for him. I couldn't see anything with it. I could see the stars better with my naked eye! I agree with the reviewer that said it's the kind of product that discourages children from taking an interest in astronomy. If Toys R Us is irresponsible enough to sell a product that is this poor, that's the last time I'm walking through their doors.

You will be hard pressed to find an off the shelf telescope of this quality and expandabilty at a similar price, FLAT OUT!I found mine in goodwill and was impressed by the quality. Obviously missing tripod and eyepices I bought it up. Returned home with my find, and using eyepices from a more "toy" like scope from another company went gazing. even with low quality optics patched, the image is very bright and sharp, good pulling power. 3 inch diameter by 3/4 inch thick mirror (you could spend 70$ for this by itself), adjustable on top of that. Adjustable secondary mirror on a a good "spider". Durable metal tube construction -w- flat black paint to reduce glare and abs plastic end caps. A focuser that accepts aftermarket optics in standardized sizes. They have my vote thumbs up! And the price is worth every penny.