Review: LeapFrog Tag Junior
Written on Jul 29, 2009 by Brian and filed under LeapFrog, Reviews
Perhaps the most popular electronic reading aid for older kids is the LeapFrog Tag Reading System. LeapFroghas used that same technology to reach an entirely new, and younger, audience with the Tag Junior. Kids who are just starting out with animal sounds, colors and other basics can wave the frog-ish Tag Junior over specially inked pages for a fun and interactive learning experience.
Tag Junior works just like its bigger brother, just with a more grabbable form factor and less accuracy required. The technology is the same concept though, books are designed for the reader with special ink that can be read by an optical sensor at the base of the Tag Junior. Depending on what part of the book gets tapped by the child, Tag Junior will respond accordingly. If the child places the reader on text for instance, Tag Junior will start reading that page. Placing the reader on animals and other objects on the page will yield different reactions that are contextual.
Out of the box, the reader comes with one cardboard book, If I Were. Without wasting much time, parents can add two AAA batteries and be off and running. There are several additional books out already and LeapFrog will be adding more. But each book’s audio has to be downloaded to Tag Junior before it will work. This process is accomplished through the LeapFrog Connect software, which is a great piece of software.
Download the Connect software and connect the Tag Junior via included USB cable to get started. Once a child’s profile is created the Junior can be associated to that profile and performance tracked and reported back to parents. This is also where parents will download additional books (up to 5 at a time) and device updates. The Junior also does something the bigger brother does not, it lets parents select their child’s name from a database of thousands. When the Junior powers on, it then greats your child by name, which is a nice touch and something they started with the Scout plush line.
In terms of usability, the chunky design is perfect for those in the target age range of 2-4. Even little guys can grip the reader and mash it on the pages with ease. There’s a lot going on too. Kids can tap on the words to hear the story, or sort of freestyle and hit objects on the page. The responses are fun and varried, sometimes kids will get a short tune, games, silly sounds or sound effects. There’s certainly enough there for kids in the 2-4 group, but we also found kids a little older having fun with the reader. This is also a great activity for an older brother or sister to work on with a youngster.
Once again LeapFrog has done a great job. Tag Junior is a well-made product that’s well worth the initial investment of $35. Additional books run about $10, but they’re hard cardboard and very durable. For the entertainment value kids will get out of the books when combined with the reader, the value works out to be pretty good. Parents will love being able to track learning progress via LeapFrog Connect too, the level of detail provided by LeapFrog is the best in the industry. Our only complaint is the limited memory capacity means that once you buy several books, you have to manage which audio files are on the reader. If only LeapFrog could add more memory or a memory card reader, we’d have very little to complain about. Even so, Tag Junior is a worthy buy, kids and parents will see plenty of value.
4.5 out of 5 stars – Editor’s Choice
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