Good choice for almost 3 yr old whose older brother has a DS? Our 2 year old is obsessed with his older brother's Nintendo DS! We tried to keep him off of it for as long as possible because in my opinion he's just too young. However, of course he wants to do and play with everything his older brother does, so he eventually got ahold of it and has figured it out quite well (scary!)! He is almost 3 but I refuse to get him a DS of his own. However, we live abroad and travel a lot, and I'm sick of the fighting over the DS! And, if he's going to play a game, I'd prefer it to be more educational. I'm tempted to get the Leapster 2 as it seems much more age appropriate, but am afraid it still might not measure up in his eyes to the DS. What do you think? Good choice for almost 3 yr old whose older brother has a DS? Our 2 year old is obsessed with his older brother's Nintendo DS! We tried to keep him off of it for as long as possible because in... » Read More Good choice for almost 3 yr old whose older brother has a DS? Our 2 year old is obsessed with his older brother's Nintendo DS! We tried to keep him off of it for as long as possible because in my opinion he's just too young. However, of course he wants to do and play with everything his older brother does, so he eventually got ahold of it and has figured it out quite well (scary!)! He is almost 3 but I refuse to get him a DS of his own. However, we live abroad and travel a lot, and I'm sick of the fighting over the DS! And, if he's going to play a game, I'd prefer it to be more educational. I'm tempted to get the Leapster 2 as it seems much more age appropriate, but am afraid it still might not measure up in his eyes to the DS. What do you think? « Show Less
1294872
My almost 3 year old loves his Leapster and the big thing about it is that it is "his own computer game". It still a little advanced for the age, but I have been amazed at what he can do on it. At the price these are going it is a cheap choice to keep your DS in tact.
1294873
My children who are now all a bit older, went through the same phase. They learned they needed to be X years old to have a DS. I believe the bar was set at age 5 or when they were responsible enough. Granted, the youngest tend to get things younger and younger, but still...it's nice for the oldest to be special. We went the Leapster route and my son was content for about a year....possibly a bit longer. The games were not as challenging as those for DS and he was very proud of HIS own special game system. They do make some games for the younger ones now, but why not be successful with a Leapster first and move up to a DS? You'll be glad you did! My children who are now all a bit older, went through the same phase. They learned they needed to be X years old to have a DS. I believe the bar was set at age 5 or when they were responsible enough. Granted, the youngest tend to get things younger and younger, but still...it's nice for the oldest to be special. We went the Leapster route and my son was content for about a year....possibly a bit longer. The games were not as challenging as those for DS and he was very proud of HIS own special game system. They do make some games for the younger ones now, but why not be successful with a... » Read More My children who are now all a bit older, went through the same phase. They learned they needed to be X years old to have a DS. I believe the bar was set at age 5 or when they were responsible enough. Granted, the youngest tend to get things younger and younger, but still...it's nice for the oldest to be special. We went the Leapster route and my son was content for about a year....possibly a bit longer. The games were not as challenging as those for DS and he was very proud of HIS own special game system. They do make some games for the younger ones now, but why not be successful with a Leapster first and move up to a DS? You'll be glad you did! « Show Less
1294874
My 3year old just got a Mobigo. She calls it her "DS." Seems to be good for her.
1294875
My three yr old daughter got a LEAPSTER for her 3rd Christmas. And she did quit well with it and has played the older games. She is now 4 and doing math. So I think they are very age apporiate IF used with learning games. It takes them awhile to figure it all out but she played what she could with the pre-k games. (coloring, shapes, take care of pets, etc.)
1294876
My daughter also got a Leapster 2 when she was 3. She took to it right away and loved it! There are a bunch of age appropriate games for it and they're educational. Not so with the DS (which she has now, and which makes me miss the Leapster). It has a nice bright color screen and a stylus, so your kid might like it very much.
1294877
I'm having the same problem! I am so sick and tired of the fighting over the ds but I'm not buying him a ds lol. We have an older gameboy advance and he won't play that so I not sure about getting the leapster, scared of wasting my money if he won't use it! Did you buy your little one the leapster if so does he enjoy it? I'm trying to figure out if I should get the leapster for my son for his 3rd birthday which is in a few weeks.
1294878
I'm kind of in the same boat. My six year old will be getting a DS for Christmas and I thought it would be nice for my 3 year old to have his own gaming system. I'm pretty sure they would fight over the DS if we didn't get him something of his own. Is a Leapster age appropriate for my 3 year old?
1294879
The Leapster is a good substitute. Both of our boys had Leapsters first and my oldest son still played with his until he got his DS on his 9th birthday (granted, he was getting a little old for it...). I have a 3 year old and she's still a little young for the Leapster, but she can use the drawing feature and will mess around with it. Definitely by age 4.
1339610
I would be careful with a 2 year old. How much longer before he turns 3? My children were 6 and 4 so my youngest is slightly older but not much. My youngest likes to jump off of EVERYTHING so he loves it!
2276759
I bought this when my little one was just over 2 years. It was intended for his older brother who was just over 4 years old. The 2 year old played with it more than his older brother and still does 1 1/2 years later. Depends on the kid but my 2 year old played with it quite a bit.
1981306
For any kid who is less than 4 yr old the attention span is just few minutes. If they find out they cannot play any game they lose interest in that right away. I would suggest get some cheap plug n plays for 3 yr olds and then get a more expensive one like VSMILE or LMAX or even GAMEBOY when they become 4 yr olds. Maybe by then you might find more variety to choose from
1914670
It is geared toward younger kids, the games would be too easy for an 8 year old. I think all of them max out at 8 for the age range, (many are 4-6 year old, and some are 5-8). The game system would probably interest them for a few hours or days max.
594815
My son is 5 an he still loves it. There are different games you can buy for different age groups if that helps.
879481
You probably already got one, but my concern would be the dropping. My 4 year old has dropped his leapster so many times and I wouldn't get him a DS for a few years because of it. If they could be responsible I think the DS would be cool. I will upgrade probably when he is around 7ish and maybe get one for his brother depending on if he can do it when he is 5 or just get another Leapster or pass brother's down.
2103086
I have a 3 1/2 yr old girl who loves her leapster!! She plays a few games (Diego & Dora also one of the Letter games for the LMax), but she mostly likes the game that comes installed in the game itself. I would say get him the game and let him learn. It IS leapster after all!! He'll love it!!
261441
My 3 year old nephew loves his - the games vary greatly in age appropriateness. My 7yr old niece still uses hers constantly. I had to get the little one a Leapster2 so they would stop fighting over it.
1778292
my son got his 1st ds at 6 and still loves it. I think a ds lite is fine i dont think you need a dsi. It did break at the hinge (his fault) so we bought him a second hand refurb one for 70.00 aud.i can tell you he takes very good care of the hinge now after being without it for a while. Rather than buying mario etc games that can be expensive buy some non trademark games or pre owned games. my son is a tech head and loves his play station 2 and wii but i think he would say he loves his ds best. having said all that i agree also with the itouch or ipad as most of the apps are free and there are loads of educational apps available on the net. my son got his 1st ds at 6 and still loves it. I think a ds lite is fine i dont think you need a dsi. It did break at the hinge (his fault) so we bought him a second hand refurb one for 70.00 aud.i can tell you he takes very good care of the hinge now after being without it for a while. Rather than buying mario etc games that can be expensive buy some non trademark games or pre owned games. my son is a tech head and loves his play station 2 and wii but i think he would say he loves his ds best. having said all that i agree also with the itouch or ipad as most of the apps are free and there... » Read More my son got his 1st ds at 6 and still loves it. I think a ds lite is fine i dont think you need a dsi. It did break at the hinge (his fault) so we bought him a second hand refurb one for 70.00 aud.i can tell you he takes very good care of the hinge now after being without it for a while. Rather than buying mario etc games that can be expensive buy some non trademark games or pre owned games. my son is a tech head and loves his play station 2 and wii but i think he would say he loves his ds best. having said all that i agree also with the itouch or ipad as most of the apps are free and there are loads of educational apps available on the net. « Show Less
1252627
I've found that it depends on the child. My 8 year old caught on fairly quickly and plays with us regularly. His friend, however, wasn't quite ready for the complexities of the game. So I'd suggest giving it a try and seeing if the child/ren can understand the game and find it enjoyable. (All of this is mainly speaking about the basic game rather than the expansion listed here.)
1483103
It depends on the child. The game is fun, the rules are fairly dimple but a pittle deep and may require a little bit of reading between the lines.Ive played it with a 9 year old and he had fun, but he didnt quite grasp the concept.Your boy will probably grow to love it.
1478218
The Nintendo DS and the Leapfrog Leapster are two different platforms with mainly two different uses. The Leapster is a learning system and all of the games are directed at developing a young childs mind through fun learning. I have a 5 y/o going on 6 that loves her Leapster. There are titles with characters that will keep your childs attention (i.e. Spongebob, Dora, Diego, Spiderman, etc) She has friends that have a DS but I feel she's getting much more out of the Leapster. The Nintendo DS is a game unit with far more entertaining games than learning. I think it would be better for you to look at the software rather than the platforms to make a wise decision on how your boys will use their systems and if it will satisfy your needs. You can look for video reviews on a number of sites prior to purchasing games to determine if it's a good buy.
2033575
I think your almost 5 year old would love it. It has play value beyond the age suggestion and would help spur your almost 5 year old into different types of imaginative play. My youngest great-nephew, who is 4, loves it. But his older brother, who is 7, loves it too and together they play happily for a few hours. If those 2 high energy boys can actually play together for a few hours, it makes me believe the toy has lots of play value. I hope this helps.
1399938
My son is 5 right now and is very into switch and go dinos! He got his first one at age 4. I could see older kids (6-7) not being as interested.
408477
I got the nabi2 for my son right before his 6th birthday and he's 7 now. I think it's great for his age range. His BFF also has it who is a few months older. I would say 5 maybe 4 & up. For younger they have Nabi Jr. & older they have the Nabi XD I believe it's called. Hope I helped! Oh & my son was dealing with learning struggles & this has programs that he was able to work with fine.
293323
It very well could be. The controls for the game aren't very complicated, but the premise of the game can be. I would recommend Pikmin for kids in the 7-12 range due to the problem solving aspects as well as the impending frustration from some of the tougher parts of the game. If she's a problem-solver and has good hand eye coordination, it might be worth a shot! Plus, you could always play it too and it is definitely a really fun game. I'm 28 and I love it.