LeapFrog Rolls Out Scout-Themed Learning Toys

Written on Feb 3, 2009 by Steve and filed under LeapFrog, News

Scout the puppy is one of LeapFrog’s most lovable characters, first seen on their ClickStart My First Computer product.  This time around, with four new products, Scout will provide learning experiences for kids from six months old to three years old.  There are the plush My Pal Scout and My Pal Violet, the AlphaPet Explorer, the Text & Learn, and the Scribble & Write.

Aimed at the youngest age group (six months and up), the green My Pal Scout and purple My Pal Violet are very similar to the Smart-e-Bear that we recently reviewed.  Parents can use a USB connection to personalize the pet with the child’s name, favorite color, and favorite food as well as additional content like songs.  The toy uses your child’s favorite things to customize dialog, activities, and songs.  The toy comes with 5 songs, but there are 30 additional songs that can be downloaded.  The My Pal Scout (and Violet) toys introduce learning skills, like first words, daily routines, and counting.

For kids who are starting to learn animal names and sounds (around 2 years old), there is the AlphaPet Explorer.  There are four modes, where accompanied by Scout, your child can work on phonics, letter recognition, and fine motor skills.

For the three-year-olds that want to text like mommy and daddy, there is LeapFrog’s Text & Learn, which made some news last week.  The Text & Learn is a PDA-shaped toy with a QWERTY keyboard that kids can use to practice spelling and basic computer skills.  Kids can “text” with Scout, check out his calendar and pseudo-browse in a browser mode.  The Text & Learn also teaches letter matching and shape recognition.

Finally, for kids who are starting with writing skills, there is the Scribble & Write handheld tablet.  This toy walks kids through tracing shapes on its LED screen starting with simple shapes and pictures.  As the child improves, they can graduate up to writing upper and lowercase letters.

All four new toys are part of the LeapFrog Learning Path, which lets parents track the child’s progress and achievements.  All four toys will be available at www.leapfrog.com and major retailers by the summer of 2009.  My Pal Scout/Violet and AlphaPet Explorer will have an MSRP of $19.99.  The Text & Learn device and Scribble & Write will have an MSRP of $21.99.

Update 6/9/09 – LeapFrog My Pal Scout Review Posted

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