LeapFrog 80-61612E LeapReader Learn to Read 10-Book Pack, Mega Bundle

I purchased the Leapreader when my little boy was just 3 and it has been just brilliant. I wasn't sure if it would just be a novelty that would soon lose interest but I liked the concept of using real books rather than a Leappad tablet. At 3 1/2 he was able to use the audiobook function in the car on long journeys and with a bit of guidance quickly learned to touch the pictures of his favourite characters (Disney Pixar Cars book) to hear the sounds. The books entertained him for months. The only issue we had was that he pressed too hard and scratched the pages so I stuck some Sugru on the end of the pen then removed it once his skills improved. I agree with other reviewers that the software isn't great - struggled to install it, it only worked on our Windows 7 machine, and it's very slow to use. Also books can be difficult to source, they can be very expensive in some cases and my boy only uses the Leapreader occasionally by himself.That being said, despite the expense I absolutely love the Leapreader. The 5 stars are for being the best resource for starting to teach him basic reading skills now he's a year older. I bought the Learn To Read vowel book sets and we sit together and he tries to sound out simple 3 letter words then we use the pen to see if he's correct and to explore the sounds. Some of the books also make him laugh and he likes the puzzles at the end. I'm so glad I bought the Leapreader and have no regrets.Update: At 6 years old he can actually read all his Leapreader books but still enjoys using them with the pen when he wakes up very early to keep himself entertained in the early hours. The puzzles in the back of the vowel reading books are his favourites. His letter and number formation is a bit sloppy still so I am using the writing books with Mr Pencil to help him improve. He also really enjoys the audiobooks with his headphones on - they are a great introduction to longer story CDs that he isn't ready for yet but will be in the future. It is still a fantastic resource for us.

Getting this is only the start but it has proven to be a great investment.The books and other kit that you use the pen with is actually fairly good value. The books are a lot more than just the story in the book. The pen is reading microscopic patterns hidden in the pages. Lots of the pictures in the book pages produce a responce from the pen. From sound effects to telling you facts about whatever you have just pointed to. The books are actually quite packed with information and activities.The flash cards for reading writing and numbers have been great to help my 3 year old learn and make it fun.You have to use a piece off software to load a file for each book or learning set. If you are interested, the software for the pen also downloads usage data from the pen when charging. This lets you know what your child has been reading and if they have been playing the games built into each book, how many questions they are getting right.This means that they can use the books on their own but you get to see how they are progressing as well. I don't use that too much as my child is only 3 but itt's a nice feature and I may use it more in the future as we are learing to read and write more.

*Please note this review is very long*I purchased the Leapreader pen about two years ago. Infuriatingly as other reviewers have commented I too had a faulty pen that would not connect or download any of the many books I had purchased to go with it. Leapfrog were useless and in the end it went in the bin and I had a very unhappy little boy and a bunch of useless books.However, I recently came across it again before Christmas on Amazon at the price of £19.99 and decided I'd bite the bullet and give it one last go.Originally I had issues with connection and the Leapfrog connect software being slow and temperamental but after removing my Antivirus software which was what I believe to be causing conflicting issues with the Leapfrog software I managed to download the books on to the pen with no issues at all. I must say I am very impressed with the quality of the functions of the pens and the amount you can do with them. Children can have the whole story read to them, highlight single words at a time to be spoken to them so they can see how they are pronounced and can play games. As well as the books you can also download music and fun facts from the Leapfrog app store. Since I had my last Leapreader pen they've brought out different activity packs such as the human body, solar system and animal packs which are absolutely Fab! Was well worth the hassle and the wait as I now have a worth while reading tool to help my 6 year old who struggles with reading and writing and finds it's very hard to engage in anything remotely educational.

Comes well presented to give as a gift with a story book included. It’s a little tricky to set up- we only have iPhone/iPad at home so had to download the software on Granny’s computer instead which meant the little one couldn’t play with it straight away. I’m not bad with technology but it was a bit of a pain to set up the first time on the computer but once set up it works a treat - it’s like magic how it knows all of the words in each book, I’m really impressed.The memory isn’t great on the pen though so I think maybe after 7ish books it will be full so don’t buy loads at the start, see how you go.Great little learning toy though that can easily be added to and isn’t just something that will be used and put aside Also perfect gift idea - eg when people ask for gift ideas at xmas etc

Bought this for my sons 5th birthday because he has the other LeapPads and already, after only two days, he loves it. Especially the fact that it is the pen that speaks to him.Bought the interactive Human Body Works and Solar System to go with it and, again, they are really good. Simple games can be played but it's also quite detailed.Only slight gripe is that the voice on the pen in US American and a little quiet. Using the book in a separate room is fine but when there are other things going on it's a little hard to hear what is being said.