V-smile Vs. Leapster for 3 Yr Old?

Leapsters are great. My parents purchased them two years ago for my daughter and my nieces and nephew. The four of them are still playing with them every day.

Hi E.,

I don't know much about the V-Smile but we have the Leapster L-Max for our daughter and she loves it! We bought it last summer before she turned 4.....we were going to Spain and wanted something for her to do on the plane ride. It has been great....she still plays with it quite a bit and the games are fun. I think it would be perfect for a 3 year old....

both of my kids enjoy their leapsters. Have had them for a couple of years and they still travel on every road trip and are used at restaurants regularly. They seem virtually indestructible considering they have been dropped numerous times and no dents/broken pieces...still work great. One tip....spend the extra $$ to purchase the rechargeable battery pack that goes with it...it goes a LONG way and recharges in no time!!!

I really am a fan of both but for a smaller child I think the leapster is probably your best bet. The leapster is handheld and has a variety of educational themed games that is great for entertainment on the go. My 3 year niece takes hers everywhere!The V Smile is great but it really is geared for kids a little older. Good Luck!

We bought the Vsmile Pocket for my daughter a 3 years ago, and she LOVED it. She actually has the regular Vamile as well and still plays both. She really likes the fact that you can play the games on both systems. And they are "hers". (Unlike the play station,her older sister has, which some of those games were WAY to complex)
She just turned 7 and still plays them all the time. I have a home daycare and the 3 and 4 year olds love it as well. It helps them from learning the alphabet to spelling words, as well as from counting to addition and subtraction.
And the fact that there are different levels on each game, makes it where they actually "GROW" with the child. I think this was a great thing, just remember to buy rechargeable batteries. (for the long car rides)

Hi E.,
We have the V-smile and to be honest with you, I don't think my 2 1/2 year old will sit still long enough to understand that the buttons on the controlers go with the television. we've tried it a few times and not had much luck. I think at that age, hands on is much better when it comes to brain development. Every child may respond differently of course, but this was my experience. Hope this helps.
~C.

We have/had both. We like the leapster better. We had the vsmile console and handheld. Most of the time it didn't work :( When it did, it was ok, my girls weren't interested. We have the plug in leap frog keyboard (I forget the name at the moment). Now my girls enjoy the leapster and DS.

I LOVE the Leapster! It taught my son to read, add and subtract by the age of 4.

On the other hand, I also got one for my daughter and she was a fanatic game player like my son.

If he doesn't appear to be interested, don't waste your money. If he is interested I firmly believe the Leapster was incredible. Probably the best investment I made in my son's education.

E.,
My 3 year old nephew has a leapster. My brother and his wife chose it because he can grow with it and it can "grow" with him.
J.

My granddaughter has the leapster and loves it. She was 5 when she got it I believe. My son is 4 1/2 and he has the Vsmile Pocket. He love his game. He tried my granddaughters and liked it too but I believe it comes with a stylus to touch on the screen and I know him...he would bang on it with the stylus....which is why I haven't gotten him one yet. I'm waiting until he turns 5 or 6 to get him a new system. I think it all just depends on the child. I saw the suggestion of taking him in the store and having him try them out..which is a great idea.
I think both systems can be fun and educational....just depends on which works best for your child. My son has scratched the front of his vsmile pocket (the screen)...which made me very mad. So he's really rough on his stuff. But it still works great and we've had it for probably 2 years now. I think I got it when he was almost 3. Good Luck..and Happy Shopping

my kids had v tech and it was great love the variety of games and keeps them busy, some are more educational than others

Since I have not had a V-Smile except in the form of a "hook up" to the t.v. I cannot tell you how I feel about it. However, I bought a Leapster (not the L Max, which can hook up to the t.v.) for my 4 and 5 year old boys. They play it at least 1 hour a day and have learned a lot from it. I let them play it at quiet time or for long rides in the car. I think it's a great alternative to t.v. and I would recommend it to anyone. The games are a bit pricey, but sometimes Target and Walmart have sales on the games and I buy a couple for each of the boys.

We have the regular V-Smile and it is a piece of junk. I have exchanged it several times. I wrote to the company and they told me I wasn't using it correctly. I think I'm capable of plugging it or changing the batteries. Now I have all these games and a unit that doesn't always work.

My 3 1/2 year old has a Leapster. She loves it, but it did take her some time to be able to do it on her own. Be prepared to have to help a lot at first.

We have had the V-Smile for 3 or 4 years & it's wonderful! The games have options for different age ranges from so many of your child's favorite movies, and they are all very educational & FUN! The whole family loves to play them (that includes mom & dad!). They are great for long car rides, plane rides, or quiet times when you've had enough of the TV.

My children had Leapster, but to be honest they did not play with it that much. It is always exciting at first, but quickly ends up in a pile with all the other toys. My suggestion is Discovery Toys. Discovery Toys is very particular about their products. One of the requirements for their line is that 90% of the action has to come from your child only 10% from the toy, game, etc. We have gotten away from toys that make our children think and use their imagination. Plus your kids love it when you play a game with them and help them learn. Check them out http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/amystoys Smart kids toys! Lifetime guarantee as well.

Forget the electronics and get him a sand box--a real one, big, with loads of sand under a shade tree. Give him a bucket and shovel, some water and relax. He'll entertain himself for hours. Young children should run, jump, roll, dig, climb, skip, hop and connect with the natural world. There is much to say about children who sit passively playing electronics games, but I'll spare you.
Warmest regards,
B. Bedingfield (67)

Both my kids had the LeapPads when they were younger. I would highly recommend them. The V-Smile wasn't around then, so I don't know anything about that system.

They did't have either when mine was 3, but they did have the leadpad. He had so much fun with the games and reading that was on there, and developed reading and attention skills rather earily partily because of that. It was a huge help when ever we went on car rides as well since all the different things they had kept him very busy and entertained. I am partial to all the leapfrog products because of it.

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