Bought this for me...4 year old won't give it back
924547
I got this for me to try to set up a system kind of to use resistance bands and act as a rower or something (I have a small room to work out in and can't afford or store a big rower) but my son has taken this on as his own and loves to play and roll on it.  I guess I'll be buying another one if I see that it works for my rowing because I don't think he'll let me keep it.  This seems like a good idea too for kids to race around with on rainy days indoors if you have hardwood floors...might buy more for the nieces and nephews for down the shore....hmmm....seems pretty sturdy so far.  I'm about 160lbs...my son is only 45 lbs (soaking wet maybe...lol)
999
I work in a school with a "special" 4th grader who i developed a "points system" for.  This system allows him to earn small prizes for demonstrating desired behaviors. He is an auditory learner who has autistic tendencies, and plays similar toys them during breaks from/during class to help manage his ADHD.  He usually loves rubbery things that stretch and/or have "hairy" bits to pull on them so i was surprised when i offered it to him as a choice of reward and he passed over it quickly, saying it didn't interest him.  I even showed him how you can wear it as a bracelet and stretch the little "hairs", but still nothing.  It wasn't that expensive, but pricey enough that I was annoyed that I wasted my money. I'm not saying that every child will fell this way but he did.
919962
I put this on my 2.5 yo daughter's Christmas list because she loves taking pictures using our phones, and I thought she would love her own age-appropriate camera. However, this also comes with four games, and there is no way to disable them. She used the camera feature a couple of times, but now is only interested in the games. This was kept at her grandparents' house, and she started demanding to play with it as soon as she got there. She would go right to the games menu and play with it rather than interacting with anyone. We've had to put it away because we don't want her to have much screen time at this age and it was so disruptive. I would never have requested this toy if I knew it was really a hand-held gaming device for toddlers. Shame on VTech.
1682508
I bought this for my son for Christmas, which at the time he was only 14 months old.  The age says from 18 months.  The problem is he can't hold the button down to make it go so I have to walk around the train and hold the button for him.  We had a playgroup over and there were kids that were over 2 years old and they couldn't hold the button down either.  Overall my son loves it but its not age appropriate for him.

Also, this toy is cheaper at Toys-R-Us.  I got ours when it was on sale for $[...].  After Christmas they had them on sale half off for $[...].
1468886
My 2.5 year old refuses to poop on the potty. I bought this and a few other books. While my son enjoys the book, it wasn't any motivation for him to use the potty for #2. Then again neither were any books, treats, toys, all expenses paid vacations, unicorns, or ponies either...sigh.
750502
I have three kids under 4 and have never wanted anything like this before.  I always thought that I would hate having slobber around my neck, and that it would be uncomfortable.  Now that I am on my third I needed something.  He wants to be carried around all the time, but pushes me away to see what is going on around him.  I also hate that I always forget toys for him or his brothers take things form him.  I reluctantly ordered this thinking it would be another waste of money, but it's been great!!!  It keeps his attention while I'm holding him, it isn't slimy from slobber, & it does break away when needed.  Your hair doesn't get caught up in it.  It's a perfect toy without looking like a toy!  and the different size beads keep his attention.  I've actually been looking online & thinking about getting another one :)
1862832
I bought it for my 4 year old nephew.  He was a bit scared to use it, but was able to get it to work a few times.  Not sure if he has used it since the day I got it for him, but as an adult I was able to go backwards and forward to show him how to use it.  Maybe when he is a little older he will be able to use it without such apprehension. Item seemed sturdy so I hope he enjoys it in the future.
838053
I wanted to write this review to help avoid frustration for any other parents out there who are thinking about purchasing this toy. My son received this toy for his 4th birthday. (Our box says for ages 4 and up.) It's a great toy and he does a little building with them himself, but usually my husband and I end up building most of the creations for him, so it may be best for older children.

A couple things that I don't like about this product:

Our 118 piece set came with directions that show you what you can make with this set and then what you can make with the 200 piece set on the reverse side. My son had asked us to make something on the 200 piece set side and while trying to put it together, we thought we were missing several pieces. After actually reading the words at the top, instead of assuming they said the same thing as the other side, we realized that there was a set with more pieces, and we had all the pieces that came with our set. Unfortuately, my 4 year old doesn't understand why we can't build the things in those pictures. We've been able to modify a couple to get them close, but for others, we just don't have enough pieces and this causes much frustration for my son. They shouldn't even include the plans for building from the 200 piece set in this set.

The second thing I don't like about this toy is that while I'm building something, the nuts come loose on the screws I've already attached. This also causes frustration for my son because he can't actually play with it once it's built for long before the screws work themselves loose and the whole thing falls apart.

Lastly, there really only seems to be enough items to build one contraption, or possibly two small ones. My daughter always wants to join us in building, and there isn't enough for her to build her own contraption.

If you can get past these little things, it's a fun toy. I'm actually looking to buy either the 200 piece set or another 118 piece set to solve the problem of not having enough pieces to build everything we'd like. I like that they've added "power" tools with it. I think this is a nice addition and will make this set even more fun to play with. It may even solve the screw problem.
2903385
My daughter is 3 1/2 and was very excited to receive this gift on Christmas.  She is an advanced little learner and can already navigate several other electronic devices well on her own.  Because this one was geared towards kids, I thought it would be more durable.  Rather than have her use our devices, we started her on the LeapPad books and games to help keep her entertained at her older brother's sporting events.  The first time we traveled with this she dropped it, and something smashed internally.  The LeapPad won't turn on.  If it is going to break so easily, why would it be suggested for 4-9 year olds?  So frustrating!
4844672
My husband and I found this toy for our four year old son,and were so excited about it. After swearing off aggressive toys for our son's birthday, we thought this would be the perfect learning addition to our kitchen. First, it spelled cow, then bus, then war. That's right. WAR. Of course my child asked, "What is War?"  I replied with, "Something so complex, even I can't explain it."  How irrisponsible is this on the part of the company??? As a parent, I don't feel this should come up as a lesson to teach my four-year old. After contacting the customer service department about my dismay, they showed no concern. Despite the fact that they can block explicit words, (and you know which words I'm talking about) they apparently chose not to omitt this word, and didn't express any concern that they should ommit WAR. They did offer to send us a "new word whammer or a toy of equal or lesser value", if I would pay to send the current toy back to them. I am so disappointed in this company that prides themself on creating positive tools for children, and extremely disappointed in their customer support.
2651172
My 4 years old son saw this kind of stuff from his friend and really enjoy it.  He ask me to order when he found it on amazon and keep asking me everyday when it will be arrive.  Unfortunately, when we get it this item doesn't work at all.  Not move.  My son very sad and I will not buy it again.
3815159
All he does is turn right.  Only the stop and music link works, all the other links just have him move in a circle, never changing direction.

We've tried turning it off and on, switched the links differently, but it still just turns right.

Was excited about this and my 4 year old like taking the pieces apart and putting it together and making it go, but it's not teaching him anything because the only thing that changes is when it stops and plays music, otherwise it just goes to the right.
2053369
It's big enough for my 3 and half yr.old to play in. I sometimes make him nap inside and he enjoys it.  Only down fall is it's not as sturdy, you'll need a pillow or two to hold from outside to let it stand firm.  I can not talk how hard it is to fold back into the box... Very very difficult to fold back into its place with one person.  I'm a single mom, so I get my help from my 3yr old.  We struggle for good 15-20 minutes trying to twist and fold this thing back in the box.
We took this once to his preschool and at the end of the day, they just left it open, cause they too gave up on putting this thing back in the box.  Teachers told me "5 different teachers tried and failed, let's see what mommy can do"... I wasn't going to sit there 12-20minutes trying to fit this back in the box with my 3yr.old. so I asked them to just push it in my trunk.
I bought this half price, I would've been upset if I had to pay full price and have to go through this trouble all the time.
3178308
Based on all the other reviews, I got this for my 5-year-old for Christmas.  It just doesn't have it for her.  The toy is durable, has cute packaging, seems like it would be fun.  She's just on the cusp of reading on her own so maybe it's just too frustrating at this stage.  I have bought Bananagrams (same company) for older kids and they love it.  I'm not giving up on this toy, but at the moment, it rates low on the fun factor so it sits on the shelf.
3106499
I purchased this for my 4 year old grand daughter.  I'm told that she loves it, however it is a bit complicated and therefore frustrating for her.  I think it's meant for an older child.  My daughter plans to hold on to it pull it out again when my grand daughter gets a little older.
711507
My 4 year old daughter cannot figure it out... that's not to say no 4 year old cannot, but mine certainly can't.

She can jump or move,
but not both at the same time. AND is asking me to help her...

Doesn't include D/C... but you can buy the 9 volt plug at any electronics store probably cheaper than directly from v-tech.

The graphics... Think pre-original Nintendo arcade game.

NEEDS MAJOR IMPROVEMENT.

The game should be more rudimentary for toddlers.
As for the sing-a-long... way too fast, even for me, especially between sentences... Needs to be slower to give time to learn the song and then faster... and needs more time between phrases.
The letter tracing game is pretty stupid. Kids don't even really know they are tracing letters. And the little writing pad is soo small.

 (I think I have any older version of the V-Smile since the picture I see here doesn't have a microphone or writing pad, or perhaps a different version.)
3828987
I purchased this for my 4 year old....she had a blast with it...it is very difficult to clean and store....after 3 uses the blower no longer works....and you can not return it to the store.  Called the company and they want me to cut the end off the blower and mail it to them....before they will send me a new one. We have a party this weekend and no Waterslide....that the kids that were invited are so looking for to playing on.  What a bummer.