We have always had a leappad console in our house ever since Elizabeth was old enough to use one. We got the Leappad Explorer and the Leapster GS and five games which can be used on both consoles.
We love Mr Pencil as it is fun for the kids but is also educational. In fact they are all educational in their own way which is something I have always liked about the Leapfrog games.
When we were sent the Leappad Ultra earlier this week I was very happy to see that we could use our current games with it too.
We love Mr Pencil as it is fun for the kids but is also educational. In fact they are all educational in their own way which is something I have always liked about the Leapfrog games.
When we were sent the Leappad Ultra earlier this week I was very happy to see that we could use our current games with it too.
Size comparison of the Leappad Explorer (left) and the Leappad Ultra (right)
The Leappad explorer has always had some bad points, the need for batteries, the battery covers falling off, the cheap plastic feel to the case. It has always felt like a toy and not like a decent piece of technology. The Leappad Ultra is so much better. It feels like a very well protected tablet, the screen is bigger and had better resolution and colour depth, the wifi is brilliant and allows you to download games without connecting it to your computer which always drove me mad. The rechargeable battery pack has to be the best bit though. Alison has already used it so much that it has been charged three times.
We were sent the Leappad Ultra with a Doc McStuffin game and a £15 voucher for the app store, I added in a £15 voucher that I had from a recent event goody bag and logged onto the app store through the Leappad Ultra to see the different types of apps available. The app store includes apps from £2, with lots for apps available for £3.50, £5, £7.50, £15 and £20. There are 10 apps included on the Leappad Ultra and an 11th app that you can download from a choice of three. When looking around at the apps I wanted to choose a variety of different app types and this was really easy to do as the site makes it obvious what sort of app each one is. There are also trailers for some of the apps in the app store which help you choose which apps to buy.
Games – There are lots of games and apps available and the playability varies between each game. There are lots of licensed games and earning games. Using lots of different skills and brilliant graphics. The games can include actions such as tilting the Leappad Ultra, touching the screen and using the d pad.
Ultra book – The ultra book is a story with a difference. With different reading levels (1,2 and 3) the same story is told at difficulty levels that grow with the child. There are also different reading modes which either read entire to you book, read each page at a time or to let the child read themselves. Other menu settings allow you to choose a page to start at, select a game from the story or record your voice as you read the story. The stories have songs, animations, interactions, games and learning included. Interactions include tapping inanimate objects such as bushes, trees and animals, sounding out words and shaking the Leappad at certain points in the story.
We were sent the Leappad Ultra with a Doc McStuffin game and a £15 voucher for the app store, I added in a £15 voucher that I had from a recent event goody bag and logged onto the app store through the Leappad Ultra to see the different types of apps available. The app store includes apps from £2, with lots for apps available for £3.50, £5, £7.50, £15 and £20. There are 10 apps included on the Leappad Ultra and an 11th app that you can download from a choice of three. When looking around at the apps I wanted to choose a variety of different app types and this was really easy to do as the site makes it obvious what sort of app each one is. There are also trailers for some of the apps in the app store which help you choose which apps to buy.
Games – There are lots of games and apps available and the playability varies between each game. There are lots of licensed games and earning games. Using lots of different skills and brilliant graphics. The games can include actions such as tilting the Leappad Ultra, touching the screen and using the d pad.
Ultra book – The ultra book is a story with a difference. With different reading levels (1,2 and 3) the same story is told at difficulty levels that grow with the child. There are also different reading modes which either read entire to you book, read each page at a time or to let the child read themselves. Other menu settings allow you to choose a page to start at, select a game from the story or record your voice as you read the story. The stories have songs, animations, interactions, games and learning included. Interactions include tapping inanimate objects such as bushes, trees and animals, sounding out words and shaking the Leappad at certain points in the story.
Creativity – There were lots of different creative apps available but I chose the Disney art studio. The Disney art studio uses mickey to show how to draw the different friends, you trace the shapes one at a time (its quite forgiving and allows you to do your own thing) and then the shapes for the character. It was really good fun drawing Goofy by following the lines one at a time and seeing him emerge from my drawing. After you have drawn a character you will be able to go to the animation studio and make that character come alive by drawing key frames from a sequence and watch them become animated, you can control the speed and direction of the animations.
Flash cards – There were a few packs of flash cards to choose from and I chose the Letter Factory flash cards. When you enter all of the directions are explained to you by Leap the frog.
Press the Aa to learn about letters and sounds by opening up the letter cards. Each letter card shows you the capital and small letter and tells you the sounds, names and an associated object with a song. When in this mode you can click on the book to see the whole alphabet.
Press the light bulb to take the Letter challenge to show what the child already knows. With uppercase, lowercase, matching letters together and letter sounds.
Press the medal to show which badges you have earned in this app.
Press the Aa to learn about letters and sounds by opening up the letter cards. Each letter card shows you the capital and small letter and tells you the sounds, names and an associated object with a song. When in this mode you can click on the book to see the whole alphabet.
Press the light bulb to take the Letter challenge to show what the child already knows. With uppercase, lowercase, matching letters together and letter sounds.
Press the medal to show which badges you have earned in this app.
Video – There were loads of videos available with Sesame street, Angelina Ballerina, Bob the Builder, The Hive, Mike the Knight and more. I was spending ages looking for just the right video and then I saw Wallace and Gromit for £3.50. They had a few of the mini films and I ended up downloading Wallace and Gromit a grand day out.
Alison has loved it and watched it repeatedly which is brilliant. It is the full mini movie with brilliant sound effects and visuals.
Alison has loved it and watched it repeatedly which is brilliant. It is the full mini movie with brilliant sound effects and visuals.
ebooks – There were quite a few ebooks available and I bought a Jake and the Neverland pirates one for £3.50 it is a brilliant book with lots of interactions. There are two icons to press, to get the whole book read you press the gold play icon or to read the book page by page you press the book icon. As it reads it highlights each word which helps the children to follow the story. The book consists of interactive pages which lots to click on. On this page if you click on the monkey in the tree Izzy speaks about the monkey.if you tap coconuts or shells and it tells you how many and what colour. It can also ask questions, such as can you find one shell by itself. Some of the characters have more than one phrase when you tap them which really adds to the story. There are also sound effects to be heard by tapping the bushes and waves. To turn the page tap the arrow on the bottom right or drag the stylus across the screen.
There are other apps preloaded like the calendar, clock and camera. You will also find music apps such as audio books, learning songs and music. Pet apps which allow you to look after your own pet, choosing an animal type, colour and name and allowing you to play games and care for it. There is also a Pet chat app which you can use to talk to other pet owners. With this app you can only use set phrases and emoticons which makes it a safe form of communication.
Getting my hands on the Leappad Ultra and seeing the advancements and the games available has changed my mind about the suitability of these consoles for my children. Both of my girls have Ds consoles and android tablets which they enjoy for different reason but with this being almost a mix between the two with the licensed games and preloaded apps they seem to love this more. I love the fact that the Leappad Ultra now has Wifi (with parental settings) and a rechargeable battery, these two things have really made it something I would recommend. I also love the fact that it will shut itself down when not being played with, this has been a feature for a long time but well worth mentioning.
Ok so it is not all love hearts and roses but then nothing ever is. I would really like to see some free apps become available as you would even have to pay £3.50 each for the calendar and clock if these were not on your device. I know it has ten apps included but some of these we would not have purchased. Maybe a different free app available every month which would keep the kids playing as they get new apps to use. My other issue is the loading screen, that little green circle with the arrow in it is annoying and I was surprised to see it when just moving between menus in the parent area.
The Leappad Ultra is aimed at children 4 to 9. Alison turned four in September and loves it. If you have a three year old I would still recommend it because of some of the easier apps and the built in instructions for using them. I don’t normally rate the toys but I am so impressed with this that if I was marking this out of ten I would give it a nine and the only reason it lost points was because of the price of the apps and the loading screen.
Here are the girls both engrossed in the different Leappads, this is them every morning and afternoon for the last three days. The Leappads have even been going on the school run in the car. It has certainly been a hit in our house.
Getting my hands on the Leappad Ultra and seeing the advancements and the games available has changed my mind about the suitability of these consoles for my children. Both of my girls have Ds consoles and android tablets which they enjoy for different reason but with this being almost a mix between the two with the licensed games and preloaded apps they seem to love this more. I love the fact that the Leappad Ultra now has Wifi (with parental settings) and a rechargeable battery, these two things have really made it something I would recommend. I also love the fact that it will shut itself down when not being played with, this has been a feature for a long time but well worth mentioning.
Ok so it is not all love hearts and roses but then nothing ever is. I would really like to see some free apps become available as you would even have to pay £3.50 each for the calendar and clock if these were not on your device. I know it has ten apps included but some of these we would not have purchased. Maybe a different free app available every month which would keep the kids playing as they get new apps to use. My other issue is the loading screen, that little green circle with the arrow in it is annoying and I was surprised to see it when just moving between menus in the parent area.
The Leappad Ultra is aimed at children 4 to 9. Alison turned four in September and loves it. If you have a three year old I would still recommend it because of some of the easier apps and the built in instructions for using them. I don’t normally rate the toys but I am so impressed with this that if I was marking this out of ten I would give it a nine and the only reason it lost points was because of the price of the apps and the loading screen.
Here are the girls both engrossed in the different Leappads, this is them every morning and afternoon for the last three days. The Leappads have even been going on the school run in the car. It has certainly been a hit in our house.
