Advantages: Weight, ergonomics, clarity, brightness, ease of use
Disadvantages: 8x mag

... SWAROVSKI EL 8 x 32 Some words of explanation... The name 'binocular' derives from the Latin bi (meaning two) and oculus (meaning eye) and describes a hand held optical device whose function is essentially to magnify distant images using an eyepiece and so allow them to be examined in detail. * Objective lens - this is the large lens at the far end of the binocular. * Ocular lens - the lens in the eyepiece. There are two main designs of binocular: * Porroprism: traditional, classic shape and design. * Roof-prism: recognized by its straight tube like appearance. Prism - a block of glass with triangular section having accurately polished edges, used to reflect light. Roof prism binoculars tend to have straight barrels. What do the figures mean? All binoculars have a set of two figures indicating... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Lots of makes
Disadvantages: The beads are very small and the case not very sturdy

...Beads We do like kits like this- well, Little Miss likes them; I'm never totally sure if I like them because the beads always seem to get everywhere! ~~What is it?~~ Basically, this is a bead set; lots of beads and a plastic tray with a lid. The box has illustrations of some girls showing off their latest bead makes, and the beads and plastic case can be clearly seen, so encouraging a "need" in anyone who enjoys this kind of thing! ~~What do I get?~~ • Assorted beads • Elastic cords • Hemp • Nylon cords • Plastic ear rings • Hooks • Plastic clasps • Instruction leaflet • Plastic tray with lid, separated into compartments. ~~Price and availability~~ I do believe that this is a Toys 'R' Us product, so if this is the case, then they will be available exclusively... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Tiny, easy to use, rechargable, plugs straight into your usb port
Disadvantages: You can only recharge it from your car or PC - so no good for hiking holidays!

...Condensed review: Totally amazing, tiny (size of a cigarette lighter), user friendly mp3 player, with 256 meg of storage space. Looks good, sounds great. Costs circa £156. Cool as a very cool thing on a cold day. 10/10! Price: £159.00 Spec: see below for detailed techie stuff. Detailed Review: Where do I begin? This is by far the most amazing piece of technology I have ever seen. The i-bead is a very tiny, very sexy MP3 player / FM Radio / Voice recorder (see below for spec info). I have been hankering after one since a friend mentioned it to me about a year ago when I was complaining that the music they play at my local gym is always appalling and I couldn’t find any music player to suit my activities. Walkmans are so eighties (and who uses tapes these days?!) and Discmans, no matter how expensive or flashy do still... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Keeps children occupied productive
Disadvantages: Fiddly can cause a mess

...) What are they?- Hamm beads are small beads which can be placed on a board (which may be already made into a shape or you can have a square one to create your own design.) They come in all types of colors and once the product is finished you simply iron over the top to keep the beads in shape. They can be then used as coasters stuck on paper to be used as a card or whatever else your child desires... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Light and durable
Disadvantages: no volume control

...Vetch Moosical Beads Yet another excellent toy from Vetch. My 2nd son had this bought him for Christmas when he was 4 months old and from day 1 he loves it. The toy is really light so now that he is 6 months old he can pick it up and chew the track. The toy is in a shape of a cow with 4 different brightly coloured tracks. As with most Vetch models there are 2 modes, 1 musical and the other talks. This one has a bird, cow, pig and the farmer as well as a nest, a bucket, a cart and a hat. All of the characters and items have 1 track each so when you move them to one end and push the button you will be told who the character is or what noise they make (depending on mode). This is all except the farmer, press this button and there are 4 different tunes on musical mode, on talking mode you are told 'Farmer' and 'Old Macdonald had... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Brightly coloured beads attractive to child, exciting sounds and flashing lights, education from an early age.
Disadvantages: The American accent is a bit off-putting.

...This brightly coloured activity toy is the centre of my daughter's world. From pressing the buttons to hear animal noises she has progressed to matching the beads and moving them along their own tracks. To see the day to day progress really is something. There are four buttons, each with two functions. On the "voice" function a female voice (unfortunately with an American accent) says the name of the animal and the musical function just makes the sound of each animal and plays a selection of farmyard related tunes. My daughter loves it. It gets thrown around a lot and has survived without a scratch. The batteries last months, even with constant use. Aflashing light on the head of the cow shaped base proves an incentive to press the buttons. (My daughter loves lights of all kinds!) I had my doubts at first, but my daughter thinks... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Makes you feel special
Disadvantages: Price Tag might put some off

...I've always had a bit of a fascination with jewellery and have always loved Swarovski jewellery, among others brands. I bought this watch last September and I love it so much I think everyone should have one! On my recent visit to Austria I had the good fortune to visit the Swarovski Crystal world. I've been to my local stores and to concessions in local department stores but nothing could have prepared me for the size of the shop in the Crystalworld. I fell in love with the "Phuket" watch and developed a slight obsession with owning it! I finally got the watch a couple of months later with vouchers and monetary presents I gratefully received for my 30th birthday. This watch isn't a "practical" watch, in the sense that it has many functions on it as, for example, diving watches would have. It is definitely what you would call... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: fun, creative, aid childs development, good quality, fair prices
Disadvantages: not something you want to knock over, can be a bit fiddly if you get small beads

...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hama Beads ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I remember years ago at an after school club being given these little bead things to make Christmas tree decorations. We were given circular shaped pegboards and told to put the beads on them in a Christmassy pattern. I made the face of Father Christmas and was really proud of my design. I remember then being amazed when they ironed the design for us and removed the design from the pegboard and it stayed in one piece! For years we used my Father Christmas face as a Christmas tree decoration and this Christmas as I hung it on the tree I said to my dad that I hadn't seen the kits used to make them in years and would love to have a go! A week later we were out Christmas shopping in Gamleys for my little brother and I saw a tub of the beads! I convinced my dad to get them... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Keeps your kids entertained so you can come on Ciao
Disadvantages: Hours spent picking the beads up off the floor.

...No this isn't a review on Mc Hammer lol, it's Hama bead time in our house. Ever wonder how I can spend so much time on Ciao when it's half term & I have four daugthers?? Well now you will discover my secret.... Four years ago my eldest daughter came back from a dinner date with a school friend of hers clutching a pretty heart shape made from little beads that were stuck together. She was really taken with this new craze & talked to me for what seemed like hours about these little plastic beads & what you can do with them. After much begging & pleading I took the girls into town to see what this craze was all about. On entering our local toy shop we were met by rows & rows of plastic bags containing pretty little plastic beads, such a choice of colours. Each bag containing 1000 beads rangeing in price from £1.50 - £2.00 a bag... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Teaches co-ordination, motoring skills, colours and allows artistic integrity
Disadvantages: Can cause World War 3 when a full board gets knocked over

...***What are Hama Beads?*** Hama Midi Beads are 5.0 mm in diameter and can be used in three different ways: you can iron them, press them or sew them together to make designs. The ironing system is the one I'm most familiar with. The beads are placed one by one on a pegboard and then ironed until they've fused together. This can be tricky, though more on that later!! In the case of the press system, the beads are placed on a pegboard made up of a special kind of pegs. These come with pegs either on one side only, or on both sides. You won't be able to remove the beads once you've placed them on the pegboard. You can also sew your beads together to make beautiful designs. Midi Beads are available in over 50 different colours, including glitter, glow in the dark, day glow and clear. There are in excess of 20 boards... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful