Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Not surprised that a company as well respected as Leap Frog made this wonderful toy. Many times, toys like this with a sound element sound garbled and tinny. The sound on this toy is crystal clear, just with just the right variable volume. The buttons are the right size for little fingers to easily manipulate them, and the sounds are bright, happy, and engaging.
I like that there are 3 different modes with this toy, engaging various different skills (motor skills, letter/picture recognition, following simple directions, etc.). It is so fun the little ones will not even realize it is educational.
I also like that the toy is light weight, yet sturdy. It is easy for little ones to hold, and will withstand the inevitable drops that will occur.
All in all, another A+ toy from Leap Frog.
Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>
Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program This is another winner from LeapFrog. Already adept with an iPad, my 2-year-old daughter had no trouble learning how to use the LeapFrog Touch Magic Bus. She particularly likes to listen to the songs and play with the piano keys. Ingeniously, when the songs are playing, all of the piano keys are keyed to make sounds from the same chord family as the song that is playing, so the piano sounds actually complement the song being played and do not create any dissonances. This makes my 2-year-old feel like she's actually contributing to the song, and that's fun for her. My only complaint is that I would love for this toy to have more songs (there are only three songs).
As for the letters, it is nice to have a toy that has good sound quality and that enunciates the letters (and the sounds for each letter) well. This is particularly important for young children who are still learning to speak. My daughter doesn't have as much fun with the letters as with the songs, but I think she is learning from this aspect of the toy.
Finally, there is a game mode that says things like, "Find the letter K." This is a great mode for slightly older children who already know their letters well. I think this game mode will make this toy appropriate and fun for a wide range of ages. All in all, this is a great toy with lots of learning potential.
Best Deals for LeapFrog Touch Magic Learning Bus
This is a very light, colorful, musical toy which is great for car rides. However, I have to deduct a star for educational value (even though I think LeapFrog is great), because my 2 year old frequently thinks she is pressing one letter, but gets another letter's soundbyte (because it's very easy to set off a letter sound if your sleeve touches the device while you're reaching for a higher letter). Maybe for an older kid this wouldn't be an issue though. The music is catchy and it's great the way you can play along with the piano and your accompaniment always sounds great. The illustrations are a little creepy and not the usual Leapfrog Scout/Violet/Leap. I like it that there is a learning option, a game option, or a music option. It's challenging to hear the sound and find the corresponding icon and sometimes I don't know what the correct answer is myself. Lots of interesting non-standard selections (not the same old choices) and the sound quality is great. I think at this fifteen buck price, it's a good deal. My 26 month old showed a TON of interest in the store with it...then when we got it home, not so much...and now at 27 months, she's all into it all of a sudden. I think a slightly older child would get more out of the games but I thnk even a much younger kid would have fun just playing around with cause and effect and pushing buttons).
Honest reviews on LeapFrog Touch Magic Learning Bus
The colors are truly vibrant and the sound quality is good (albeit somewhat on the loud side), with three music songs which are catchy (and not annoying). My two year old hasn't shown the same attention to this as she has to other LeapFrog products (perhaps because she prefers the animated screen devices), although she really enjoys the piano section (which is great because they've set it up so that any note that you press during one of the musical songs matches the song in a pleasing harmony, so there is no way to sound bad)! There is an exploration/learning mode where your child can press any of the many touch points and here the letter name, sound, or the name/sound of an item or a "play" mode which asks you to find a certain item (sometimes by sound as in "touch the picture which makes the sound ___" (which is a little tricky even for me!!). The illustrations are a little creepy looking and not the usual LeapFrog characters. My main fault with this is that it is easy to press the wrong button as my 2 year old's sleeve hits the device so from an educational standpoint, I see her getting confused when she thinks she is pressing the letter "B", but it's making the sound for "R" which her hand has ever so slightly grazed as she's reaching for the B. If you can get this on sale, I still recommend it as there are many different options here and perhaps and older child wouldn't have that issue. I also think a much younger child (9 months) would enjoy this just to explore cause and effect with pressing buttons. It is very very light (so much lighter than you would expect), making it nice to have on a child's lap in the car and easy to transport (although it's on the large side).
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for LeapFrog Touch Magic Learning Bus
Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Today's youngsters are expected to have a basic set of skills and knowledge before entering first grade, or even kindergarten. Letters, letter sounds, numbers, shapes,colors, and a basic vocabulary should all be part of the young learner's repertoire. The Touch Magic Learning Bus gives little learners a head start on letters, letter sounds, and listening skills.
In a fun format the little one learns to recognize letters and the sounds they make. He or she also learns to recognize initial letter sounds of words representative of the letters. Some of the word/letter matches are untraditional like: mararena for M, wave for W, lime for L, and otter for O. Since I'm a vacuum cleaner fanatic, my favorite combo is vacuum for V.
A youngster touching any of the letters is treated to the spoken letter, its sound, and the name of the representative picture. There is a quiz mode during which kids are asked to identify specific letters or objects. There's also a mode that allows the user to play music, listen to songs, and even add instrumentation to the songs.
Learning Bus is large enough to display all the letters and sample object pictures, a six key keyboard and five musical animals. At the same time it's light enough for small hands to hold and manipulate. I like that all of the edges are rounded for safety.
This Indonesian-made learning tool is a worthwhile purchase, though I do have several quibbles. The clarity of the spoken words on the unit could be better; instead it can be a little muffled at times. In quiz mode, little ones are asked to identify individual letters or objects. I wish the mode would also ask users to identify specific letter sounds. For example the voice could make the "b" sound and ask the user to find the letter that makes that sound. It would add another dimension to the toy. Maybe I'm expecting too much for an instrument that's designed for those 2 and up.
As much as I hate to admit it, Learning Bus has far more educational value and interest longevity than a Mr. Potato Head will ever have.
