Mozart Magic Cube

[JP4]

Does anyone have and like this toy? I'm thinking about first birthday toys for my 10 month old son. He likes music and starts rocking back and forth whenever one of his toys starts playing music. Is this a toy that is appropriate for a 1 year old? Should I spend more and get that big Neurosmith block instead?

[egoldber]

My DD has played with both. She likes the Mozart cube better, but a 1 year old is getting a little old for it. We have the Jumbo block, and personally, I wouldn't buy it again. She plays with it occasionally, but is definitely not a favorite.

Personally, I would go with more classic toys: megabloks, puzzles, board books, and pretend play items (kitchen sets, workshop sets, dolls, dress up clothes, etc.)

HTH,

[August Mom]

We have both. DS loves his Mozart Magic Cube. He's been playing with it since he was 4.5 months old. I will say that it gets less use now that he's older, so I'm not sure whether it would be a good 1st birthday gift or not. He really hasn't grasped the idea of adding and subtracting certain instruments to make different sounds. He just randomly hits buttons. As far as the Jumbo Music Block, we got it at Sam's Club for $35, so it cost the same as the Mozart Magic Cube for us. I like it for when DS started pulling up and standing. It's the right height and he doesn't hurt himself when he falls against it. He has been mildly interested in the activities on the cube. Lately, he has started pushing it around the room. As in Beth's house, this really isn't a favorite. Personally, I like the Mozart Magic Cube better. If you do get the Jumbo Music Block, I would recommend also getting an additional music cartridge. The one that is preloaded is a series of songs about shapes and those can grate on your nerves after awhile.

DS's favorite musical toy is the Leapfrog Leapstart Learning Table. It plays lots of different songs and sounds, as well as singing the ABCs, counting 1-10 and naming shapes and colors. It also teaches contrasting concepts like up/down, high/low, on/off, open/closed. It doesn't play classical music, though, if that's what you are looking for. It plays children's classics and some jazz sounds. http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp?product_id=1929793&cat=103136&type=5&dept=4171&path=0%3A4171%3A103113%3A103133%3A103136

Another toy you might consider, although your son may be a bit young for it (might be a better holiday present), are the Music Blocks by Neurosmith. At this point, he might just enjoy playing with the blocks, but later he could experiment with different arrangements of the blocks to make different tunes. http://www.neurosmith.com/pd_2mblocks.php

[JP4]

Thanks Beth. My problem is that this is my 4th son and we have tons of megabloks, board books and pretend toys. They are all great and many are still favorites of my 8 year old, but I'm looking for a musical toy for my baby. He even tries to dance to some of the FP toys and I think the music/sounds on most of those are annoying.

[mam615]

Dorothy loves the Mozart cube and the Leapstart Table that August Mom mentions. She just started using both at 9 months and seems thoroughly engrossed, but I guess things can change in 3 months!