electronics Archives - Page 3 of 8 - Have Sippy Will Travel

Animal Crossing Amiibo Festival for the Wii U

January 26, 2016 by Samantha Leave a Comment

Disclosure- We received the below in order to facilitate this review. All opinions are out own and honest. For more, see “I Disclose”.

Animal Crossing has been a fan favorite series of games where players try to make their character as happy as possible through a regular routine. This includes helping friends, making friends, fishing, gardening, and even home designing. The most recent entry in the series is Amiibo Festival which is described by Director Aya Kyogoku, ” we just wanted Animal Crossing Amiibo [toys]”. We wanted the company to make Animal Crossing Amiibo, so that’s why we made a game that works with them.”

In this regard it is a success- there are eight character amiibos in the Animal Crossing line so far, they include Isabelle, KK, Tom Nook, Mabel, Digby, Lottie, Reese, and Cyrus. In addition to amiibo compatibility, you can also use the amiibo Animal Crossing cards as well to unlock more game modes and characters in the game.

This game is similar to Mario Party, but it has a much slower pace so little ones can keep up and follow the action on screen without getting lost in game play. What we really like about the game is you can save your “happy points” to your amiibo and use them to unlock more costumes. Also, if you happen to have designed your amiibo’s home using the Happy Home Designer for the Nintendo 3DS, your home design shows up in game as well.

My son loves this game because of the cute animal designs and the ability to carry over your game data from Happy Home Designer into this game. It has become one of his favorite games- it’s up there with Pokemon if you can believe that. There is precious little he enjoys more then animals, and in this game, it’s all about making them happy and being cute. What’s better then that?

Animal Crossing Amiibo Festival is available now for the Nintendo Wii U. It is sold everywhere games are sold for $59.99 and includes 2 amiibo Animal Crossing characters bundled with the game itself.

Filed Under: electronics, entertainment, gaming, kids, technology Tagged With: Nintendo, video games

Runbow and Yoshi Wooly World

January 18, 2016 by Samantha Leave a Comment

Runbow is a new game by 13AM Games that brings a fun interesting platforming party game to the WiiU. In Runbow each player is a different colored character, 9 in total, who each represent a color of the rainbow. Then the players have to mad dash for the finish line to see who can get there first. But this is no simple foot race, there are obstacles like moving platforms and lava to get in the way. This game is made for classic game players who love a challenge and are always trying to make that next jump and time it just right. As such it may not appeal to very young players who just can get the timing right as easily as those who have been playing platforming, 2D games for years. The best pat of this game is getting a few players together at once, with 2 it is fun, with more then that it gets frenetic and lots of fun. I can only imagine how fun this game would be with 9 players at once.

And on the opposite end of the spectrum is a classic platforming game with a softer more woolly quality. It is Yoshi’s Woolly World for the WiiU. This game starts one of the Mushroom Kingdom’s most well loved characters,Yoshi. This is his first Woolly adventure following in the footsteps of Kirby’s Epic Yarn. This game is the next step in the evolution of the yard medium. Each character and environment has a handmade touch that is a joy to see. From fraying yarn to the illusion of hand cut corners its great fun to play a game with this new setting. In the game Yoshi must reach the end each level while gathering as many collectibles as possible. For the beginners just finishing the level will be enough but for the more experienced players collectibles are key. Each level has its own charm bringing to live a new platforming experience. Also available are Amiibo extras where you can add a second Yoshi to the fun in the form of Samus, Woolly Yoshi or even Mario. to name a few.

Both these games are great platforming fun Runbow is available at the eShop for 14.99 while Yoshi’s Wooly World is available at retail locations now as well as the eShop for 49.99 for the game alone or win a special pack which includes a Wooly Yoshi for 59.99.

Filed Under: electronics, entertainment, gaming, technology Tagged With: kids games, Nintendo, video games

Tiggly Words- Great Word and Letter games for Kids

June 18, 2015 by Danielle 1 Comment

Disclosure: The Tiggly Words was provided for me in order to facilitate my review. All opinions are my own and honest. I am disclosing this in accordance to FTC Guidelines. Please see “Disclose” tab for more information.

With my daughters beginning school soon I am all about trying to find new ways for them to learn. I must say that with Tiggly Words my girls have enjoyed playing with letters and making words.

About Tiggly:

Tiggly develops learning systems, combining toys with specially developed apps which interact with the toys.

Founded in 2012 and based in New York, Tiggly products build on 70 years of academic research highlighting that manipulating physical objects is essential to early childhood development.

Tiggly enables parents to bring this critical component of early learning to the “digital sandbox” today’s kids inhabit.

About Tiggly Words:

Learning

Long & Short Vowels
Phonics
Nouns & Verbs
Word Building

Thinking

Memory
Problem Solving
Spelling Patterns

Creating

Expanding Concepts
Asking “What If”
Story Telling

Tiggly words includes the 5 interactive vowel toys and a special code to get all 3 apps for free.

About the Apps:

Submarine Spelling: Joining Tiggly in underwater world of vowel exploration and new word discovery! You will meet a wide variety of hilarious characters that you can interact with. This app truly helps develop children’s understanding of simple words and short vowel sounds.

Tiggly Tales Word Buliding: This wonderful game allows you to use all the vowels you would like in a series of consonant, vowel, consonant (CVC) word combinations to create silly characters and actions.

Tiggly Doctor Vowels: This great game allows you to work on verbs. You are the doctor in this app and your patients have some crazy injuries. You will complete action verbs needed to perform a series of unusual operations.

My Thoughts:

I am an absolutely huge fan of all the Tiggly toys. My daughters love the shapes and the math just as much as they love the words. I have greatly enjoyed watching them play with their letters and words as they are having fun and learning. My youngest is a huge fan of the Doctor App, and my oldest likes things about each of the apps.

I would recommend Tiggly to anyone out there. These apps and toys are incredible. They get your child learning and enjoying themselves all at the same time. Kids love to play with tablets and I like to know that they are playing educational games.

I promise that you will not be disappointed in anyway. The apps are fun, I have found myself get carried away playing them with the girls for much longer than I have intended to do.

Note- this is for iPad only- it says it is compatible with other “leading android” devices, but it is not (tried on 5 different kinds, no luck on any of them).

Filed Under: education, electronics, kids, review Tagged With: Education apps, Education apps for toddlers, education games, Tiggly, Tiggly Apps, Tiggly Games, Tiggly Words, Toddler Apps, Toddler Games

Nintendo’s Box Boy and Affordable Space Adventure

April 16, 2015 by Samantha 5 Comments

There are a plethora of downloadable titles available for the 3DS and Wii U, most of which are good games, but to sift out the gems can be difficult and costly. I’m really liking the new and less expensive Affordable Space Adventure for the Wii U and BoxBoy! for the 3DS.
Affordable Space Adventure takes the player on a (surprise) space adventure aboard a space ship navigating an alien world. The ship is controlled with lots of switches and buttons which would be confusing for one player with a normal controller, but the Wii U’s Gamepad makes controls a breeze. Where this game really shines is in two player mode. Both players control one ship, each delegated certain responsibilities, from navigation, to engines, mass control and signal flares. This may sound confusing and convoluted, but actually it works quite well. Navigating to the next area is often a puzzle where players must work together and communicate well in order to proceed. This is great for my son and his daddy- this game gets the two of them to work together and talk out what they need in a reasonable way or the puzzle will be unsolved. This game is great fun and was developed by Swedish Indie developer Nifflas. The graphics are eye catching and colorful, yet dark and foreboding. Not only is the game fun to play but as a by stander not playing it is interesting to see the player dynamic between two players working together constantly.
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Filed Under: electronics, technology Tagged With: family video games, Nintendo, video games

New Tech for You and Yours

March 11, 2015 by Samantha 3 Comments

Not that we are all about the plugging in (in fact, quite the opposite) but there is a time and a place for everything. When you are looking to upgrade, here are some ideas that can make your next trip that much easier.

Tiggly develops interactive apps for toddlers and preschoolers, as it has been shown through research that manipulating physical objects helps develop key skills in early childhood development. Tiggly Counts is an award-winning math learning toy aimed at ages 18 months- 6 years old. The goals of Tiggly is to help children develop spatial reasoning, motor skills, language, and creativity. They have another product in this line available as well, Tiggly Shapes. When you buy the Tiggly Counts package, you receive the counting objects, that children use to interact with the 3 included apps Tiggly Cardtoons, Tiggly Addventure, and Tiggly Chef . Kids can use the apps with mom and dad to help, or on their own. They are pretty proud when they accomplish a task “all by themselves”, and the app and counting objects help them learn counting as well. Available for $30 on http://get.tiggly.com/counts, works with iPhone/iPad and androids.

Painting Lulu is part coloring book, part app. Kids can color in the activity book, then scan the page into their tablet using the included free Painting Lulu app. The art shows up an the screen, where they can keep coloring, retouching, and changing it up as they would like. They can also start with blank pages and go from there. The pages can easily be printed, saved, and shared with parents as well. It comes with the coloring book, app, and digital crayon (stylus) for $9.99 on www.paintinglulu.com. Works with apple and android devices.
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Filed Under: electronics, technology Tagged With: kids, review

Win Wonderful Bluetooth Speakers from Turcom

December 9, 2014 by Danielle 36 Comments

Disclosure: The Bluetooth speakers from Turcom mentioned below was provided for me in order to facilitate my review. All opinions are my own and honest. I am disclosing this in accordance to FTC Guidelines. Please see “Disclose” tab for more information.

Being out and about and having kids I am always trying to find a way to make sure that we can listen to music. I love that we all now have smartphones and that it is now easier than ever to have music right at our fingertips. With the girls, they want to listen to music just like I do. Once we get a new one we are always listening to it in the car and singing on the karaoke machine when we’re home. I find it hard to be able to have the music loud enough for the girls to hear as well and to be able to have it hands free and not attached with wires. The new bluetooth speakers from Turcom are amazing.

About Turcom:

Turcom Electronics has a company operated facility based in Souther California to distribute Turcom products to clients all over the domestic U.S. and internationally abroad. Turcom’s goal is to deliver high quality products featuring the latest technology at a fraction of the price of other major brands. Turcom Electronics is constantly searching for the latest technology available on the market to add to its unique blend of versatility, functionality, and value.

About Turcom Portable Mini Wireless Speaker: You can now take your music with you wherever you are going. It is perfect for home and office and portable enough that you can take it wherever you prefer.

- - Compatible with almost all Bluetooth-enabled devices

Win a GOLiFE Care Activity Tracker

December 3, 2014 by Danielle 25 Comments

Disclosure: The GOLiFE Care Activity Tracker fromPAPAGO! mentioned below was provided for me in order to facilitate my review. All opinions are my own and honest. I am disclosing this in accordance to FTC Guidelines. Please see “Disclose” tab for more information.

I have been really big into working out lately and I have really enjoyed ‘getting back into shape’. I had been looking at all the different activity trackers that are available for awhile. There are a wide variety of them out there and it’s hard to know how you can get the best bang for your buck :). I must admit that I have been completely impressed with my GOLiFE Care.

About Papago:

Vision: PAPAGO! Inc. has devoted itself to offering better services and driving technology for every consumer. Our goal of constantly innovating and communicating new ideas to the public are paying off.PAPAGO!Inc. keeps researching the latest driving technology, seeking breakthroughs and creating a different future.

They believe that working out is one of the best ways to express pressure and maintain a healthy body, and it is better to have friends who can share this interest with you.

About GOLiFE Care:

This wonderful activity tracker is a very helpful tool for those that are active. You will see that it has a wide variety of activities.

Record Fitness Data and Sleep Patterns– The GOLiFE Care can help you record the number of steps that you walk, the distance you walk, and how many calories you burn daily. It will also even tell you if you are getting enough sleep at night.
Never Miss a Call Again – It will send a vibrating alert when you receive an incoming call from your smart phone. This is very helpful when your phone is on silent mode or not right with you.
Stylish Design with a High-Resolution Screen – It is designed with a stylish brushed metal face and silicone band making it comfortable and versatile for everyday wear.

Tiggly Shapes are Great Educational Toys

November 23, 2014 by Danielle Leave a Comment

Disclosure: The Tiggly Shapes mentioned below were provided for me in order to facilitate my review. All opinions are my own and honest. I am disclosing this in accordance to FTC Guidelines. Please see “Disclose” tab for more information

My daugthers are at that age where they love to learn new things and explore the world around them. they were huge fans of the Tiggly Counts that we had used before that I was so excited to let them try out the Shapes as well.

About Tiggly Shapes:

These wonderful toys interact with 3 Free iPad apps – to enhance shape recognition and creativity!

Your child can now use the geometric shapes with the apps to help make their imaginations come alive.

These great educational toys help work on Shape Recognition, Creative Development, and Storytelling.

In addition to all of that, they help to Develop fine motor skills, spur creativity, and enhance spatial reasoning.