Are you smarter than a 10 year old?

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
Pits the kids against the grown-ups for the ultimate bragging rights. As in the hit TV show, to claim victory simply answer school curriculum-based questions that the average ten-year-old knows. 8+ £19.99

Child's opinion
Rubbish. I played with this once, with other people, and never again. It’s too complicated.
Nathan, 10

Parent opinion
It took ages to set up, the rules are far too complicated, none of the fiddly plastic strands fitted together properly and the game was over too quickly. A complete waste of time. I would weep if this was all Santa gave me.

Expert rating
Good for sheer memorisation and testing.

In the Night Garden – Blanket Time Iggle piggle

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
Features four games that Igglepiggle will play with your child: Hide and Seek, Who’s There, Dance Along With Igglepiggle and Help Igglepiggle find his blanket. Sure to delight any little fans of the programme. 18 months+ £34.99

Child's opinion
It’s soft on the outside and hard on the inside, but I wish it was soft all the way through. Sometimes the voice says it has lost its blanket when it hasn’t. I was a bit disappointed, I thought it might walk.
Angus, 4

Parent opinion
My kids love In The Night Garden, but the toy itself is clunky, hard and unloveable; a bit disappointing and lets the programme down, especially as it’s quite expensive.

Expert rating
It’s not clear that the games could be played by an 18-month-old.

Transformers Movie Leader Optimus Primus

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
See armour slide to protect vital points! Flip down the Ion Blaster in robot mode to launch the projectile! And press the button in vehicle mode for electronic horn sounds and lights! 5+ £39.99

Child's opinion
I liked it at first, but then I got bored because I couldn’t transform it myself. I only played with it on my own.
Luke, 6

Parent opinion
My son couldn’t transform it – it took my husband 20 minutes – and so he quickly gave up playing with it.

Expert rating
Good for the imagination, can be played with a friend. Can be taken apart, but encourages violence.

Barbie Girls

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
This doll is an MP3 player that holds 512 megabytes of music and allows hip girls to customise how they want their Barbie Doll to look. Go online and in the Barbie Girls chat rooms make new friends, and talk about fashion and music. 6+ £49.99

Child's opinion
I thought it was really, really good. I loved the Barbie song. I tried to play with it with a friend, but it didn’t really work.
Frederica, 6

Parent opinion
Very antisocial and expensive. For the first time she was cut off from the rest of the family and I felt I had lost my daughter to technology.

Expert rating
Promotes some imagination as dolls and stuffed animals do, but limited flexibility or options, little social interaction, not a platform for play.

Roary R/C Car

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
Remote-controlled Roary comes with a steering wheel control so that you can steer Roary forwards, backwards, left or right! With sound and phrases. 3+ £24.99

Child's opinion
I played with it a lot with my brother, but it quickly lost its excitement.
Jo-Jo, 3

Parent opinion
This is too noisy and requires too many batteries. It’s not interactive enough and the remote control was also too complicated for his age.

Expert rating
Good idea – we like the steering wheel that gives the kids control. Might encourage social interaction as kids would have to share.

Puppy grows and knows your name

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
Your child can watch the little one grow from a small puppy to a dog over four days. Personalise the pup with your child’s name and favourite things. Once fully grown you can return the dog to puppy size. 3+ £44.99

Child's opinion
It’s nice, white and fluffy but I wouldn’t recommend it to my friends.
Rosa, 5

Parent opinion
It looks like a toy that she would quickly get bored with. I’d only recommend it to parents with very young children.

Expert rating
Encourages fantasy, growth idea is clever, but has limited flexibility.

Flytech Dragonfly

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
Dual-wing design, with no propellers. Hovers, glides, dives, and lands in much the same way as a real insect would. 8+ £34.87

Child's opinion
I was excited because it said it could fly indoors. I played it a lot with dad. Very good.
Bruno, 7

Parent opinion
I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s fun, but it doesn’t really fly – just drops slowly and needs recharging after half the advertised seven minutes.

Expert rating
Flexibility, imagination, science, strategic thinking, but not necessarily social.

Doctor Who Dalek Sec Hybrid Voice Changer Mask

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
Features speech and voice-changing effects. Button 1 activates Dalek question, followed by Dalek Sec Hybrid’s reply. Button 2 activates Dalek Voice Changer. 5+ £29.95

Child's opinion
Cool, but I only played with it once on my own. Uncomfortable on my head.
Arthur, 6

Parent opinion
Hideous. I wouldn’t buy this in a million years, not even if I was a Time Lord.

Expert rating
Interesting for short span, could encourage imagination but not flexible.

Baby Annabell New V4

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
A doll that reacts randomly to touch and sound and demands some basic social requirements, such as love, care and responsibility from her doll mummy. 3+ £39.99

Child's opinion
I love her but she cries more than my sister Dorothy (seven months). You have to give her a dummy but that doesn’t stop the crying – you have to constantly take it out and put it in.
Matilda, 3

Parent opinion
The booklet that comes with the doll, in the box, showing Baby Annabell in full regal gear, complete with crown and princess dress and many other expensive outfits started the “can I have that one too” whinge. It’s really not at all useful to make a very lucky child already want more, as early as the unwrapping stage.

Expert rating
Role-playing toy, flexible, platform for play, encourages social and emotional skills.

Say What?

Parents’ star rating

Experts’ star rating

Manufacturer's description
Scramble to unscramble more than 300 famous phrases, one word at a time. 8+ £24.99

Child's opinion
Fun and challenging. I played with it once on my own, three times with other people.
Willow, 9

Parent opinion
I generally avoid electronic games, but this impressed me more than most. Combines fun with tests of mental coordination. Poor instructions.

Expert rating
Social interaction, builds words and language skills, requires creativity.

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