My 2 year old is a fanatic when it comes to anything on wheels, so of course he's turning into quite the little Thomas the Tank Engine aficionado. When we was young enough that we were concerned about getting him the smaller Thomas toys, we got him the larger, chunkier Thomas & Friends Sound Push-Along Thomas, and it has been my son's nearly-constant companion ever since.

Product Description:

The toy is essentially a simple little Thomas the Tank Engine toy. It is made of a hard, shiny plastic and measures roughly 6 inches long, 2 inches wide, and 3 inches tall (making it larger than your standard Thomas toys and a great size for toddlers). There are 6 wheels, and the back 2 have a softer, more-grippy plastic around the tread to give the engine some traction. It's a kid-powered rolling toy - the batteries don't make it roll nor is it one of those pull-back-to-wind-it-up types. It's just a simple little kid-powered rolling toy.

There is a little switch at the very back of the toy that controls the sounds. When you initially switch it to one of the sound modes the train's whistle will blow twice, but after that the sounds only play when the wheels are rolling. The first setting plays various train chugging-along sounds, complete with brakes squealing and steam hissing when the rolling comes to a stop. There are 2 different chugging sounds -- a fast one for when your child is rolling the engine at a brisk pace and a slower one for when they are rolling Thomas a bit more leisurely. The second sound setting plays a recording of a few measures of the Thomas and Friends theme song in a continuous loop so long as the wheels are moving.

The manufacturer recommends the Sounds Push Along Thomas for children ages 2 and up. It requires 3 LR44 button cell batteries (included).

Our Thoughts & Experiences:

As much as my son adores his wooden Thomas sets (and he certainly does adore them), this chunky plastic Thomas gets the most lovin' from my little guy. Even though the toy is a hard plastic my son sleeps with him at night and plays with him first thing every morning (we typically wake up every day to the sounds of the theme song as my son rolls Thomas around in his bed). Plus, this Thomas is big enough that he doesn't get lost quite as often as my son's beloved wooden Thomas engines.

There is no volume control, but I find that the volume is at quite a reasonable level. If noisy toys bother you then this probably isn't a toy you'll want in your house, but the theme song is rather cute so it typically doesn't get on our nerves too much. The squealing of the brakes on the other sound setting can get a bit tedious, but my son prefers the music setting so it never stays on the engine-sounds setting for too long in our house. The button that switches between the sound-modes is easy to move and my son never had any trouble doing it himself.

Speaking of the train's sounds, unfortunately the batteries don't last terribly long in our house. As I said, my son absolutely adores this toy and it doesn't leave his side for long, so we do have to replace the batteries on occasion. We really need to start stocking button cell batteries in our home, since dear ole Thomas takes 3 of 'em. Luckily my son still enjoys this Thomas toy even when the batteries are dead, so we don't always rush out to replace them immediately. When the batteries start to die it is rather annoying - when you turn on one of the sound settings it will just play the first snippit of the train whistle over and over and over again until you turn it off. My 2 year old thinks this sound is pretty funny and will run around the house with it playing that annoying little half-whistle in an endless loop.

Thomas certainly does seem to be quite sturdy. He's been dropped down the stairs, stepped on, and generally played with none-too-gently by a rambunctious 2 year old, but the only sign of wear and tear is a little bit of black paint worn off the very top of the engineer's compartment. I'd say it has held up extremely well under the circumstances.

Quickie Summary:
Pros:
+) Cute, chunky, large-ish Thomas for the little ones
+) Has 2 different sound/music settings and an off switch
+) The rolling is kid-powered
+) Quite sturdy
Cons:
-) My son wears out the batteries way too quickly, but he's a fanatic so your mileage may vary

Final Thoughts:

I very glad that we have a toy that my son enjoys so much. My son snuggles with it as though it was a stuffed animal, and can entertain himself for quite a while just by rolling it around the floor. It is a cheap, simple toy that my son absolutely adores!


Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 5.99