LeapReader

Update in 2020:I ***would*** like to purchase one of these for each of my niece/nephews as this has best learning toy we've found so far. This is especially since all parents of little kids right now are looking for screen free activities to engage their kids during COVID lockdown!!!Unfortunately, leapfrog is no longer supporting products for this pen. So you can't easily purchase the books/activities that go with the leapreader. So frustrating! I know they have a new "pen" called LeapStart Go, but my impression from briefly looking at reviews of that product suggest it's just not the same. The leap reader is completely screen free and encourages a lot of interaction with books (even for kids as small as 3.5 years old).==========old review=============We have used leapreaders in our house for approx three years now. The oldest one I had finally gave out b/c the optical scanner malfunctioned. Even so, I think it's a great value and I purchased new ones for both kids. (And really, I cannot blame the company, my kid was NOT particularly careful with his LR).******Why do I love it? It's a great way to keep young kids entertained without the use of a screen!!!******You can download audiobooks and music via their stand alone computer based app. My older kid (approx 5 yrs) listened to a geronimo stilton mouse mystery on constant repeat during our last car trip and it kept him very engaged. (we had to beg him to listen to a stink and a junie B jones story to give us a break sometimes). My younger kid (approx 3) listened to a laurie berkener song on constant repeat during that same car trip.Of course, it is not just a mini MP3 player for kids. The interactive books you purchase are GREAT, it's not just about having the pen "read the book" for your kids. Each page of the books is interactive, so when your child touches an image there will be a corresponding sound or dialogue. It really brings books to life for them. Furthermore, there are great games/activities in some of the sets, we particularly like the body board "book" that includes a fun song about brushing your teeth and a game naming different parts of the body. Pretty much every book has an activity associated with it - for instance the beginning reader books have activities that help them with phonetics.PLEASE EVERYONE LET LEAPFROG KNOW THAT THEY ARE BEING SHORT SIGHTED. I believe the company is focusing their efforts on tablets, which makes sense market-share-wise. But they could also provide the leapreader as a choice for discerning parents that are looking for screen substitutes. Right now I've decided to stockpile leapreader supplies in case they get harder to find in the future. Keep supporting the leapreader please!!!!!! Our family LOVES them! I want to be able to give them as gifts for nieces and nephews, but it's hard to do when I'm not sure about the future of the product! (you know, since some of them are still infants).

While the leap pen is not the most recent in the generation of leapfrog products, I absolutely love it in my classroom and bought it over some of the more recent offerings. I've had it all, from an original leappad to a tag pen, which was then replaced with this when it broke. It has great battery life and could store all of the early reader books plus the large floor maps. It's super easy to use the desktop app to add the books you own, and they are also easily found secondhand. There's a fantastic available library on this, especially their phonics program. Super recommend!

I purchased the LeapReader from Amazon as a gift for my 4 year old daughter. I desired a product she could use for learning on her own while I taught her older sister (we homeschool). I wanted something that got her away from electronic screens. I was familiar with LeapFrog's tag system, but we never had one so I cannot compare products.We are in love with the LeapReader. My 4 year old happily carries around her pen listening to the preloaded learning songs and is starting to sing along. For the first few days she happily played with the sample book. What comes with this system package is the pen (partially charged), usb cord for charging and downloading content, and a sample book which consists of 1 page of 8-10 books LeapFrog offers for the LeapReader. I'll be honest this was a disappointment to me because I was expecting a full book to read through. For those looking to purchase this as a gift, I would recommend purchasing an additional book so the child has something else to read in full.I have since purchased additional books here from amazon and we are enjoying go through them together. It has been a breeze to add new content to the LeapReader pen. Simply touch a page of the new book you purchased (you can do multiple books at a time), then plug the pen into the computer. The content you have 'requested' will automatically begin to download. I also purchased an audio book directly from the LeapReader content screen and was able to use paypal which made the process very smooth.The speaker on the pen is clear, feels stable and high quality, and has been easy for my 4 year old to navigate through books, audio books, music, and trivia (which she hasn't done yet).I highly recommend this product. While the LeapFrog tablet may be tempting, think about how great it can be for kids to interact with a non screen electronic and physical books.