Disney Junior Appisodes: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Road Rally
© 2013 Disney/ABC Television Group
Warning... once your child tries the free sample of this app -- which is the equivalent of 30 minutes of quality Saturday morning cartoons running on your iPad, she's likely to want another program. And that costs $4.99, available as an in-app purchase. There's no danger of an accidental purchase, however. The designers do a nice job to keep keep the store element away from children, using a math puzzle firewall. In other words, this is a free app that is safe to download. Called Disney Junior Appisodes for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, this collection of linear footage combines viewing with minimal interaction points, including faux voice recognition, where the app pretends to hear your voice, but what you say doesn't matter. It might hear, but it doesn't listen. Other interactive elements include asking you to shake the iPad to knock a coconut from a tree, and several multiple-choice decision points. In all cases, random answers count as well as those that are intentional. Where this app excels is the quality of the linear footage -- with excellent music, graphics and narration. We also liked the review component at the end of the the app. All in all this is well worth the download, providing you have the room on your iPad. Developed by Disney/ABC Television Group’s Digital Media team, this free app serves as the first of a series of animated adventures featuring Mickey and friends. Other chapters, sold at $5 each include Mickey and Donald Have a Farm Appisode and the Jake and Never Land Pirates Appisode. Visit www.appstore.com/disneyjuniorappisodes for more information. Note that this is a big download (430 MB in size).
$4.99, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch (430 MB)
Teaches: some classification, music
CTR Rating: 84%