robbiehaf's Full Review: Fisher Price Kick N Play Bouncer
I purchased the Fisher Price Kick & Play from Toys 'R Us for $34.95 because it looked like one of the more mentally stimulating bouncer seats available. From the day we brought our daughter home from the hospital, it came in handy to get her to sleep with the vibrations. Now that she's 2 1/2 months old, she seems to enjoy the other features, too. Unfortunately, the quality is lacking.
The seat fabric is blue with bright footprints where her feet rest. A fabric restraint clips on either side (near the hips) to hold her in. Overall, the appearance is nice and the seat seems to be comfortable. The frame allows her own movements or mine to gently bounce her. In the beginning, since she was so small in that large seat, we folded a thick blanket in quarters, placed it on the seat, then folded the sides in towards her so she couldn't roll off. It worked like a charm.
We've found the vibration feature to be a lifesaver. The only way our daughter would sleep for the first month is in the Kick & Play. We had to buy a case of D batteries to keep it running, changing the battery about every 3 days since it was on almost all day, every day. I didn't mind, though; it was well worth it. The battery compartment is under the seat, but we were usually able to change it with her in it (this is a difficult task, but can be done).
The toy bar uses 3 AA batteries to provide music and lights. It is easily removable and was never used by us until she was about 1 1/2 months. The music and lights can be set to play the 10 songs and 8 lights continuously OR play 6 sound effects and the lights only when she kicks. The volume can be set to high or low. I never use the continuous setting, as it is too stimulating for her; instead, the kick-activated setting stops when she falls asleep. I've also never used the low volume setting, as it seems too quiet to get her attention.
Also on the toy bar are 3 hanging toys. She can barely reach them at 2 1/2 months, but she has just discovered the mirror and loves it. Though I feel these toys are necessary for mental stimulation, I have 1 complaint: they are not removable. I cannot take them down to wash AND up until now, they just got in the way.
The quality of this product is lacking. From the second week of use, there have been many times we've have to knock, bang, and even punch the vibrator motor to get it to come on. This can be annoying if she's in it, because we had to remove her from her restful state just to get the thing to operate.
When it came time to wash the seat cover, I read the washing instructions to ensure I laundered it correctly. As stated on the back, I put it in the dryer on low heat. What a mistake! Now the tag in the back is shrunken and shriveled, pulling the seat cover taught. Her head is forced over to one side, making for one uncomfortable-looking position to sleep in.
Though this product has many great features, the quality has made me wish I bought something else.
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