Is the mini kick scooter worth it?

[HonoluluMom]

I'm thinking of what to get for DD's 3rd birthday and thought a scooter would be nice.

Is the mini kick scooter, currently $84 on Amazon worth it?

http://www.amazon.com/Kickboard-USA-7640108560995-mini-Scooter/dp/B000ES178C

Or, will a $39 Radio Flyer scooter be sufficient?

http://www.amazon.com/Radio-Flyer-1st-Scooter-Red/dp/B000OWAZYU/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1338938231&sr=1-1

FWIW, DD has a tricycle, but doesn't want or like to pedal it since I can push her with the push bar.

Thanks!

[essnce629]

DS2 just got the Mini Kick scooter for his 3rd birthday two weeks ago and LOVES it! He rides it all over the house just to go from point A to point B and is doing really well on it outside. It's his most favorite gift by far and he sleeps with it right next to his bed! I only paid $49.99 for it though on the Zulily daily deal site. Definitely recommended though! If you search for "mini kick" on the reviews for the Radio Flyer Scooter you'll see that several people returned theirs for the Mini Kick instead. It steers great!

Oh, and DS2 has a Kettler trike as well (it was DS1's) and rarely uses it.

[acmom]

I don't have any experience with the mini kick, but we have that Radio Flyer one and I think it would get limited use. My DD got it at 2 and it was a good "first" scooter to get the idea of the scooter motion, but you can't get it going very fast and can be hard to steer. She used it some between 2 and 3, but has gotten very little use the past year or so. She uses her plasma car and Schwinn roadster trike much more bc they are faster and more fun. I would go with the other option for that age.

[infomama]

We have two maxi kicks and they rock. I even ran over one with my car by accident and broke something on it. they paid to have it shipped back to them, fixed it and sent it back to me free of charge. Customer for life.

[mnosky1]

Yes - my DD took right too it. Other riding toys that had gotten online praise such as the Kettler trike, plasma car, strider bike have been so-do at best in our house but this has been great. My then 3 year old loved that she could ride just like her 8 year old sis and didn't miss the crazy princess or Minnie mouse scooters she saw at TRU and couldn't ride at all in store. Friends have one for their son and said he didn't do well on the standard scooter but picked this one up right away and their boys are very athletic.

[roseyloxs]

Yes. Love it. Just bought the maxi-kick so we could hand down the mini-kick to dd. Both are awesome and blow the radio flyer out of the water. The radio flyer is really cute but it doesn't grow with the child at all. The mini-kick can be used confidently by younger toddlers but then moves plenty fast for cocky preschoolers (something the radio flyer does not).

[Charlie]

Yes! We got ours off Woot a few years ago so paid about half price, but after having it awhile I do think even at full price, it would be worth every penny. My very coordinated DS1 always falls if he gets on one of the other scooters but does great on the mini kick.

[Neatfreak]

I'd also say yes. DD2 received the Radio Flyer one for her 2nd b-day, and she had a lot of fun, but for her 4th, we gave her the Maxi Kick - same deal as the Mini, but the handle bar extends. The maneuverability of the Kick is way better!

[elbenn]

We have a maxi-kick and love it. You might consider the maxi-kick because at its lowest it is the same height as the mini-kick.

[lizzywednesday]

Worth every penny.

DD absolutely LOVES hers and two other families on our street have the mini kick as well ... one little boy and another little girl.

DD hasn't got the motion down just yet, but once she sees the other kids doing it, she just might.

Also, I just bought some bike streamers to "decorate" DD's handlebars and she wants to play with her scooter constantly these days. We just need a new helmet and she'll be set.

[Neatfreak]

We have a maxi-kick and love it. You might consider the maxi-kick because at its lowest it is the same height as the mini-kick.

Yes - that is exactly why we picked out a Maxi instead!

[Dream]

Good thread, I have a question, would an almost 15 month old be able to ride the Radio flyer scooter?

My old DD is almost 4 but just started riding a tricycle pedaling on her own, she's not so adventurous. But DD2 at 14 months is trying to get on her big sis tricycle and they fight over it. So I was planning on getting DD2 a Radio Flyer cycle but after seeing this thread I'm wondering whether DD2 might be able to get the hang of the Radio Flyer and I can get DD1 a mini kick?

Any thought?

[acmom]

Good thread, I have a question, would an almost 15 month old be able to ride the Radio flyer scooter?

My old DD is almost 4 but just started riding a tricycle pedaling on her own, she's not so adventurous. But DD2 at 14 months is trying to get on her big sis tricycle and they fight over it. So I was planning on getting DD2 a Radio Flyer cycle but after seeing this thread I'm wondering whether DD2 might be able to get the hang of the Radio Flyer and I can get DD1 a mini kick?

Any thought?

My DS started getting on our Radio Flyer at about that age - he would stand on it with 2 feet and I would push him. He didn't start getting the hang of the actual scooter motion with one foot on the ground until this spring when he was closer to 2.

[Katigre]

I would skip the mini scooters personally. DD got a regular RAzr scooter (two wheeled) for her 3rd birthday and has done great with it - she learned how to balance after a few weeks, etc... It will last her until she's over 10 years old and she likes being able ot keep up with her older brother. Plus it's a lot less expensive than the others posted (just $25ish) and she can use it like learning on a balance bike (b/c IMO if a 3 year old can use a balance bike then they can also use a regular scooter as the principle is the same).

[tny915]

Well worth it! DD2's mini kick rolls MUCH more smoothly than DD1's Razor. It's much better quality.

[katydid1971]

Last year SIL got DD a Princess scooter (a lot like the Radio Flyer scooter) for her birthday. She always wanted to ride but would ride it maybe 10 or 20 yards and then get off and want me to carry it back to the house. We gave DD a mini kick for her birthday this year (I got last fall for $50 from zulily) and she rides around the block like three or four times (when I want to get off the scooter and tell her its time to quit). The difference in use the two get makes it totally worth the difference in price.
DS has a maxi kick and they are the same height when on the lowest setting but the whole scooter is small and easier for little ones to maneuver. I'm glad I got DD a mini kick but I think she would have been fine with the maxi but maybe wouldn't have taken to it as quickly.
I disagree about the scooter being the same as a balance bike. DS had a balance bike and was great on it, we got him a razor scooter and he didn't take to it at all. He maybe rode it down the drive way two or three times over a whole summer. The next year I got him the Maxi Kick and he took off on it. I use the razor scooter so it wasn't a waste. DS sometimes uses the razor and is very good on it now but he still prefers the maxi kick. Last summer the we had a problem of keeping the 4th grader next door off on DS's maxi kick. Its always a very popular toy with other kids.

ETA: Get on the email list for the maxi kick store, they often have coupons or certain colors discounted. I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't have a deal soon. Also liking them on facebook will get coupons too. http://www.kickboardusa.com/

[Dream]

So what's the difference between the mini and maxi?

[Neatfreak]

The height of the handle bar on the Mini is fixed, whereas the height is adjustable on the Maxi. The lowest setting on the Maxi is the same height as the Mini. When I compared them IRL a couple of weeks ago, the platform looked the same, to my eyes.

[Melaine]

I wish we had gotten the mini kicks instead of these (http://www.amazon.com/Radio-Flyer-Ez-Rider-Scooter/dp/B002AVU3SG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1339066209&sr=8-4). We went for the clearanced $20 ones and they are pretty good but when the girls have tested the mini kicks at a local store they think they are just the best things ever. They are SO lightweight and easy to manipulate. When DS is older I would get him a mini kick for sure.

[BeachBum]

We have a maxi-kick and love it. You might consider the maxi-kick because at its lowest it is the same height as the mini-kick.

It really is that great...and different than other scooters.

Yes!!!

[Melaine]

I wish we had gotten the mini kicks instead of these (http://www.amazon.com/Radio-Flyer-Ez-Rider-Scooter/dp/B002AVU3SG/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1339066209&sr=8-4). We went for the clearanced $20 ones and they are pretty good but when the girls have tested the mini kicks at a local store they think they are just the best things ever. They are SO lightweight and easy to manipulate. When DS is older I would get him a mini kick for sure.

[Dream]

Maxi Kick is $135 on amazon now, how low does it go if it ever does?

[elbenn]

Maxi Kick is $135 on amazon now, how low does it go if it ever does?

I got a Maxi Kick directly from Kickboard USA with a 30% coupon, so it was $105. I haven't seen them do 30% coupons for a long time, though, so $135 might be a good price.

[katydid1971]

The height of the handle bar on the Mini is fixed, whereas the height is adjustable on the Maxi. The lowest setting on the Maxi is the same height as the Mini. When I compared them IRL a couple of weeks ago, the platform looked the same, to my eyes.

Just measured DC's scooters.
Maxi 22" x 5.5"
Mini 19" x 4.5"

[katydid1971]

Maxi Kick is $135 on amazon now, how low does it go if it ever does?
That's the price at the website now too. I would wait a couple weeks and see if they do a 15% off code for summer. They did one last year.

[Dream]

MAYSAVINGS will get you $14 off if you order from kickboard site. And its free shipping.

I decided to go for the Mini but should I order at this price? It comes to $70.

[roseyloxs]

The height of the handle bar on the Mini is fixed, whereas the height is adjustable on the Maxi. The lowest setting on the Maxi is the same height as the Mini. When I compared them IRL a couple of weeks ago, the platform looked the same, to my eyes.

http://www.kickboardusa.com/images/usa-maxi-mini3.jpg

We have one of each and the platforms are not the same. The maxi's is larger but I believe it is the same height from the ground. The maxi also weighs about a lb more but its still pretty light overall at about 5lbs. The front wheels are bigger and the back wheel is a double wheel. My dh thinks his maxi goes over the cobblestone smoother then his mini did.

I am glad we have a mini for the toddler stage but I also have younger kids to pass it down to so its cost effective for us. If that's not a possibility for you then I would just get the maxi and be done.

[HonoluluMom]

MAYSAVINGS will get you $14 off if you order from kickboard site. And its free shipping.

I decided to go for the Mini but should I order at this price? It comes to $70.

Aaargh! I was ready to order the mini kick scooter with the coupon, but shipping to Hawaii is $30!

[Dream]

Received ours yesterday and DD loves it. I'm so glad I purchased it. Thanks!!