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Leapster Explorer from LeapFrog

December 8, 2010 By

The Leapster Explorer is the latest and greatest handheld gaming system from LeapFrog, aimed at kids ages 4-9. It’s durable, easy to use, and my five year old daughter plays hers almost every day. Not only that, it’s educational, too. With over 40 games featuring Toy Story, Disney Princesses, Dora the Explorer, and more, Leapster games cover a wide variety of  areas, like math, problem solving, English, geography, and language.

Games for the Leapster Explorer are available on cartridges as well as in Leaplets (game apps, videos and ebooks).The Leapster can detect the learning level of your child in each game, and adjust the difficulty accordingly. Once you connect your Leapster Explorer for the first time, an account is made on www.leapfrog.com, where you can track your child’s progress as they learn. I recommend purchasing a set of rechargeable AA batteries or the Recharging Station, as regular batteries will wear out quickly, at least if your child plays with their Leapster Explorer as much as my daughter plays with hers :)

The Leapster Explorer has a suggested retail price of $69.99 and includes a free Leaplet download, a USB cable, previews and trailers for current and upcoming Explorer titles and Pet Pad, a digital pet that kids can design, play with, and care for.

Filed Under: Electronics, Holiday Gift Guide 2010, Kids Tagged With: ,

Holiday Gift Idea – Blue Eyeball 2.0 USB Webcam

October 12, 2010 By

Easy to install and easy to use, the Blue Microphones Eyeball 2.0 HD Audio and Video Webcam with Microphone from Blue Microphones is a revolutionary new webcam with HD-quality audio and 2-megapixel video. Installation is as easy as plugging a USB cable into the Eyeball and then into your laptop or monitor. A box pops up for setup, you agree to some terms and conditions, and you are ready to go!

The Eyeball 2.0 is perfect for Skype chats. I tested it out by calling my friend Dawn, and the sound quality was very good. The video camera is touchy about lighting, when I tested it out with my husband sitting on our living room couch in front of our picture window, the backlighting made him hard to see. It’s probably better to use it in a brightly lit room. Despite that, the camera tracking was good, not too jerky.

Works with: Skype, iChat, Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger, Google Talk

I’m naming this a 2010 MomReviews Holiday Gift Suggestion because I know how much people love to chat, and it’s so much for fun to be able to see and hear the person you are chatting with. My daughter asked if we could keep Grandma on chat so she could talk to her all day long!

Great gift for: Parents, Grandparents, College Kids, Aunts and Uncles, Godparents, Special Family Friends

Purchasing Info: The Eyeball 2.0 USB Webcam is available from major online retailers like Amazon.com, CompUSA.com, TigerDirect.com, and at Circuit City. Check the dealer locator page for exact locations. Retail price $79.99, Amazon.com price $35.65 plus free super saver shipping.

Filed Under: Electronics, Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Tagged With: , , ,

All your printing needs are easier with Epson WorkForce 600

November 21, 2008 By

I cannot tell you how sad my old printer was. I think it was made sometime in the 1990s, and when it printed something, it made a noise that said “put me out of my misery already”.  So when Jennifer from The Mom Salon asked me if I’d like to review an Epson WorkForce 600, to keep, I just about fell off the couch.  The WorkForce 600 is like five things in one- it can print, copy, scan, print photos, and send faxes. Totally awesome!

The printer can be hooked up using regular power cords and cables, or connected to a home or business network, or set up for wireless access. My husband hooked ours up to our home network, and it was really fast and easy. He said, and I quote, “the driver even installed on the server without issue”. Which is Server Engineer speak for IT WAS FAST AND EASY. He also installed the included software on our server so that the printer could be accessed from any of the computers connected to our network.

The price on the Epson WorkForce 600 is a very reasonable $199.99. I’m sure you could do some browsing and find it for less, even. And it comes with all of this:

  • Epson WorkForce 600 All-in-One
  • One 97 Extra High-capacity Black Ink cartridges (T097120)
  • One 69 Cyan Ink cartridge (T069220)
  • One 69 Magenta Ink cartridge (T069320)
  • One 69 Yellow Ink cartridge (T069420)
  • Documentation
  • CD-ROM containing drivers and software (Windows® and Macintosh®)
  • Telephone cord
  • Ethernet cable (CAT-5)
  • Power cable
  • USB cable not included

I haven’t had a chance to do any color text or photo printing yet, it’s on my ginormous list of things to do, but as soon as I do, I’ll post it so you can see how it looks. The printer supports pretty much every type of paper including matte, glossy, and scrapbook, so you could really make some cool holiday stuff like photos of your kids, greeting cards, even calendars. If you need a new printer or just want to upgrade to one that is lightening fast yet uses less power and ink than old printers, check out the Epson WorkForce 600!

this review made possible by One2One Network.

Filed Under: Electronics, Technology Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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