Fisher Price Gymtastics Monkey Chase -- This would be SO cool if it worked.
Written: Aug 02 '06
Product Rating:
Durability:
Pros: Only $15, good for beginning crawlers, the noises/sounds are cute and hold a baby's interest
Cons: Falls over a lot, doesn't rebound, outgrows its usefulness too fast
The Bottom Line: Fisher-Price's Gymtastics Monkey Chase could be SUCH a cool toy if it was tweaked a little bit more... for now, however, it's just another waste of money.
gatorgirlie's Full Review: Fisher-Price Baby Gymtastics Chase Monkey
The staggering amount of toys my son received when he was born (and the subsequent Christmas) is sincerely beyond the scope of human imagination. The plus was that we'd never have to buy a toy for Aidan ever, the negative was that we didn't need to buy toys for him anymore. My husband and I are big kids at heart, so we were a bit disappointed by this. One very thoughtful friend knew what would happen and offered to just give us cash, as long as we promised to purchase toys for him.
The Fisher-Price Gymtastics Monkey Chase was one of those toys -- my husband picked it out and demanded we buy it. I thought it looked cute, so I didn't protest too much.
I should have.
Product Information
So, what is the Fisher-Price Gymtastics Monkey Chase, you ask? Well, essentially, it is a blue plastic monkey on wheels. It is supposed to take off across the floor whenever your baby touches it, encouraging the baby to chase it endlessly. When the monkey is moving, the arms swing back and forth and it plays one of four tunes/monkey noises -- the sounds definitely attract your little one's attention. This sounds like a great concept. You encourage your child to crawl (and thus get exercise and strengthen his muscles) by providing him a cute blue thing to chase.
It requires 3 AA batteries and costs around $15. It is recommended for kids 6 months and up -- or essentially when the child is first learning how to shift along the floor.
So... does it work?
Well, yes... and no.
The Monkey works extremely well on both linoleum and carpet. The carpet really surprised me, seeing that many motorized toys can't scoot across the soft padding. I'm not sure it'll work on tile because of the grooves -- Monkey's wheels seem to catch on small dips. As soon as someone (even a cat) touches Monkey he takes off arms a'wavin and music a'blarin. Aidan's attention immediately shifts to Monkey, no matter what he was doing. This toy worked GREAT when Aidan was first learning how to move (when it would take him a few minutes to move a few feet). However, that phase only lasted for about a week or two. Now we're having problems.
What problems, you ask? First off, Monkey only moves a few feet ahead of Aidan. Aidan has mastered crawling and is surprisingly (at least to a 1st time mom) fast. Second, the Monkey is programmed to roll a few feet and turn around to face the infant (I guess to better encourage them to move). However, this means that when the baby touches Monkey again... Monkey rolls right into them and tips over. That effectively ends any fun Monkey Chase play.
Another major problem is that Monkey doesn't recoil from anything it touches (such as a wall or box), it just keeps driving into it. There are many electronic devices that will bounce off a wall if they run into it, but not Monkey. Monkey also has a tendency to tip over if it runs into a wall. Again, a Monkey on the floor effectively ends Monkey Chase time. Finally (this ties in with the previous one), Monkey isn't too stable.
I don't know about YOU, but my 8 month old doesn't understand the meaning of gentle. I keep trying to teach him, but honestly... I don't expect that from him yet. When he goes to touch Monkey he whacks it. What happens when you whack Monkey? That's right, he falls over. What happens when Monkey falls over? Playtime is over until Mommy comes to the rescue (which is a pain when it happens over and over again). The wheels seem spaced widely enough, but maybe the base isn't a good size. I'm not sure why it happens, all I know is that it's a pain. In addition, sometimes Monkey won't move... we're not sure why, he just won't.
So, basically this toy is now useless. He got a good two weeks (maybe) out of it (when it worked as advertised), but now it almost seems too young for him. Aidan would love to chase it around... but most of the time Monkey ends up on the floor with Aidan smacking it so he can hear the monkey noises that make him laugh (over and over and over again).
Overall Opinion
This could be a pretty good toy if a few things were fixed. I'd like to see it move longer distances and not do a full 180 degree turn. I'd like to see it more stable, so it doesn't fall over when a young one touches it, and I'd like to see a rebound mechanism added (so it rebounds from a wall or table leg). However, if wishes were money I'd be a millionaire. Fisher-Price's Gymtastics Monkey Chase doesn't have any of these things. We spent $15 on a toy that Aidan can't really play with anymore. That's not the best return on investment.
In addition, if you don't turn it off at night... your animals will play with it, waking you up at 3 am to loud music and monkey sounds. That's exactly what I need at 3 am.
Pros:
*It is only $15
*The sounds/noises really do keep a little one's interest
*Plastic is durable
*Volume control (two modes)
*Only uses 3 AA batteries, and doesn't eat them
*Moves at a touch
Cons:
*Falls over easily -- especially if it runs into a wall or your child smacks it too hard
*Doesn't roll that far from child... once your child is even a moderate crawler, it will be too easy for him to get
*Makes a 180 degree turn so it is facing your child, meaning that once your child touches it again Monkey will roll right into them and fall over
*Animals can easily activate it if you don't turn it off
*No rebound mechanism
*It outgrows its usefulness too quickly... why spend $15 on something your child might use for two weeks??
Final Word: Let me just give you an example of why this toy isn't worth it. This morning Aidan was playing with Monkey. He did one roll and turned to face Aidan, who was immediately on top of Monkey and knocked him over. Then Aidan began to bite Monkey's arm and smack it to play the music over and over again. I don't know about you, but that doesn't sound like Monkey Chase. That sounds like Mommy Kill. I wouldn't bother with this toy, the usefulness is only when your child is a beginning crawler... after that, it's worthless.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 14.99 Type of Toy: Other
Age Range of Child: 0 to 12 Months
A cute monkey character that delivers touchandcrawl play pattern for baby to encourage crawling. The monkey has wigglygiggly arms that sway around whi...More at Target
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