Bob the Builder Talking Toy Telephone

$29.99, Smart Toy

Teaches: counting, memory

CTR Review

This is a plastic telephone with light-up plastic keys, each featuring one character from the Bob the Builder show. If you pick the handset up, it phone asks "Who says what?". By pressing a key (which lights on touch), children hear the voice of each character. There are three modes of play, selected with a slider switch. Learn It says each number as the key is pressed, and plays a short tune. Follow It is a Simon Says-like game, which tops out at five correct answers, and Find It plays each character's slogan. Without prior familiarity to the show, the toy has reduced value. There is no volume control, and the headache factor is rather high because the toy offers prompts at random intervals if it is not used.