Advantages: see op
Disadvantages: see op

...To begin with it is useful to define what it is that is being discussed, so to find out what a toy is and what intelligence is, seems the best place to start. The British Association of Toy Retailers (1995) says that a toy "is any product or material that is designed or clearly intended for use in play by children of less than 14 years of age, but excludes items such as toy steam engines and detailed models for adult collectors, folk dolls and cycles with a saddle above 635mm Collins English dictionary (1991) gives a simpler definition, toy - "something that is designed to be played with. ". Some definitions do not include the fact that the toy is designed and manufactured for the purpose of play and say that it is anything with which a child chooses to play, but for the purpose of this discussion it will be assumed that a toy... Read review

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Advantages: learning without knowing it
Disadvantages: none

...and singing rhymes. The same one time and time again. Will say the occasional word or two SUITABLE TOYS Push along toys, Trucks with bricks Shape sorters, Bricks Just exploring everything now he is more mobile Hammer peg bench 18 MONTHS Baby loves to climb. His balance is getting better. Will be able to sort toys by shape and size. Will be able to scoot with his feet Can build a small tower 4 bricks. Will be beginning to use more words. Loves to empty out cupboards Loves switches Loves music SSUITABLE TOYS Peg puzzles Sand pit in the garden. Or house. Hammer peg /shape bench. Little sit on scoot toy. Toy cars, vans, buses trains. Dolls pushchair Soft toys Baby books 2 YRS Running and jumping now is easier. Will amuse them for a little while. Rolling and beginning to throw a ball... Read review

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Advantages: Good sound effects, lots of accessories
Disadvantages: Quite heavy, expensive, nowhere to store accessories.

...My youngest daughter kept going on about the Barbie house where the toilet flushes and the doorbell rings, so for Christmas we got her the Barbie Totally Real House with Doll. *PACKAGING* The box had a flap which opened to reveal parts of the house, which is a good idea when you want to see what's inside the box. It even had a piece of velcro on the box to keep the flap closed. But when the box needs to be recycled anyway, it seems an unnecessary waste of card. Of course the box pictures all of the accessories included, with captions for the sound effects. *UNPACKING & ASSEMBLY* As with many toys these day, it took an age to unpack and assemble. Far too long to expect any child to wait on Christmas morning. But our daughter is fairly patient, and she did have other things to occupy her with, so this wasn't much of a problem... Read review

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Advantages: huge variety of toys available, good price, all current fads catered for
Disadvantages: extremely slow service

..., it was often £5 cheaper on some items than at Argos! There are quite a few things on sale, including some bargain bins with cheap or reduced items. One reason I went there was because I had been looking for the older Pokemon games for the Gameboy (yellow, red and blue) which still cost around £20 in Virgin, but only £15 in Toys R Us. You can certainly save money here. There is a large selection of things available for almost any price too – plenty for less than £5, such as stickers, books, cuddly toys, small dolls, stationery and stocking fillers. If you are feeling rich, there are table and chair sets for toddlers, toy kitchens, bikes and dolls’ prams. There is one of the widest sections of Barbie toys I have ever seen, which is any little girl’s delight, if she’s a fan. Besides the seemingly endless varieties... Read review

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Advantages: comes with a whole host of accssories
Disadvantages: none

...Barbie my scene super bling doll Kennady is a great doll and was very affordable too. I purchased this from toys r us in the beginning of december for £7.99 and it came with a free barbie secrets diary and bag, bargain i thought two presents for £7.99 when together the price should have been well over £20 my daughter thought father christmas had truelly praised her for her behaviour and doing well at school. The doll was dressed in a top and skirt wearing boots and came with lots of things,a second outfit a type of ra ra dress a pair of high heel shoes a handbag, lipstick ,mirror, mobile, mascara and a compact all fitted nicely into the bag a whole lot of stuff that many dolls dont come with and would cost a small fortune to purchase seperatley. All items are standard but should last if looked after easier said then done... Read review

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Advantages: Highly entertaining!
Disadvantages: Has to be watched repeatedly by the young un's!

...boy called Andy, at the beginning you see the special relationship between Andy and his favourite toy Woody the cowboy doll, and how the relationship gets turned on it's head upon the arrival of a new toy Buzz Lightyear space ranger. From that moment Woodys jealousy and Buzz's lack of knowledge ( he thinks he is a real space ranger, not a toy!), gets them into very hot water. They end up outside of the house with no way to get back to the safety of the toy room and with the imminent move of house that is taking place in a couple of days the two lead characters need to get back to be packed! This is a wonderful film that is child and adult friendly alike, with wonderful characters and great voice over's from the likes of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, this was always destined to be a hit! Toy Story 2 - The second of these films explains... Read review

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Advantages: Superbly Stimulating -- TOYSSSSS
Disadvantages: NONE... maybe prices lol

...that work on the microscope, one needs some time away with a nice set of jacks. 7. Tape recorders and cassette recorders -- loved these toys...recording everything around me , recording birds singing and sometimes people, just having fun, recording my silly voice singing. etc. 8. Hopscotch and Pottisie ? spelling? These are sidewalk chalk drawn games. You draw the boxes and the object is to travel through each of the boxes without touching the lines. If you touch the lines you are OUT and the next person goes. 9. Magnets .. okay , there goes the scientist in me again . 9a. lol, I have a few more so I need more then ten slots for these toy things. Barbie.. the doll that every girl used to want...and perhaps today ..they want it too. Check barbie on the web http://barbie.everythinggirl.com/ 10. Ahhhh... Read review

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Advantages: They kept me occupied for a good long time (Happy days)
Disadvantages: They show my age and I haven't got them anymore

...1. Dolls pram...... I had a scaled down version of a real pram (Triang I think). It was white metal with real solid white rubber wheels with a brake, a blue spotted hood and a rain cover that fixed on with press studs. The press studs were impossible for a child to undo and the hood folded down with a metal arm which was evil for small fingers. I didn't have many dolls but my brother and I used to load it with teddies and push it about pretending we were football managers and it was the team coach. It was also excellent on the path as you could lean forward and take your feet off the ground and zoom along. 2. Dominos........... We had a set of Domino's. They were black, heavy, shiney , smooth bakelite I think . They came in a White box with a lid. We would take them out and build little tiny houses with them or use them... Read review

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Advantages: Can help your child develop as they have fun
Disadvantages: Can be expensive, some even more so than standard toys.

...them to understand rules for mealtimes, while a baby doll and few accessories will help them understand simple routines, for example washing. In all of these though it's essential that you join in and talk to them as you play. ~~~If it's cheap does it save me money?~~~ No it doesn't. With special needs children, they are often at the same developmental stage for a very long time, and therefore need their toys to last longer. Even with average children, cheap toys don't last very long and are often a false economy. Therefore I only buy toys from shops where I know the toys are good quality, most notably the ELC. ~~~The Best Toy~~~ The best and most versatile toy for any child is YOU. Yes that's right, you are the most important toy your child will ever know. You are the one who can sing their favourite songs, pull funny faces... Read review

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Advantages: Unbeatable Prices, Bright Colours, Strong Designs
Disadvantages: Limited Ranges in Each Age Group, Quickly Adds Up

...-The-Pooh piano to be an impulse buy that people would typically make along with their food shopping; especially as this same product can be purchased from my local Woolies for 14.99. I rather consider it to be an unnecessary temptation to make me spend a lot more money than I need to on my weekly shop. Similarly they offer a restricted range in children's toys of own brand products. You can pick up the cute children's game "Quackers" for just 5.97; a great and inexpensive way to treat the kids to an evening or two of fun. They have dolls and cars including a limited range of accessories starting from just 49p each. But the major drawback to inexpensive children's toys in my mind is that if they kids are bugging you while you're desperately trying to get your shopping done - you're more likely to give in if it's just a couple of quid. A couple... Read review

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