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LeapFrog Leapster 2 Learning Game System - Green | 
| Brand: LeapFrog
Category: Toy
List Price: $69.99
Buy New: $46.99
as of 3/12/2010 05:26 CST details
You Save: $23.00 (33%)
New (43) Collectible (2) from $38.00
Seller: ParamountBooks
Rating:  141 reviews
Sales Rank: 28
Color: Green
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Age: 4 - 8 years
Battery: 4 AA
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.6
Dimensions (in): 2.5 x 10.3 x 13
Warranty: 3 months warranty
MPN: 21155
Model: 21155
UPC: 708431211551
EAN: 0708431211551
ASIN: B00134TC10
Release Date: July 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | The preschool gaming handheld that connects to the LeapFrog® Learning Path, an online experience that lets you see what your child is learning. | | • | Play and learn school skills on the go or connect online for extra activities and rewards. | | • | Library of over 30 exciting learning games featuring characters kids love. | | • | Included and additional games teach skills in a range of subjects, such as language arts, reading, mathematics and science. | | • | Parents can connect online to the LeapFrog® Learning Path to see what their child is learning. Kids connect online for extra activities and rewards. |
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| Accessories:
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
With this smart handheld system, children learn valuable school skills through a variety of animated games and activities. Kids use the interactive touch screen and stylus throughout 30 educational games featuring characters they love. The Leapster2 System also offers several options for creative play. Little learners can easily connect online for extra activities and rewards. And best of all, parents can use the Leapster2 to connect to the LeapFrog Learning Path, an online, interactive tool in which parents can get updates and see firsthand what their children are learning. Leapster2 System comes with built-in starter games; additional software sold separately. Requires 4 "AA" batteries, not included. Measures 13"W x 10.5"H.
Amazon.com Review
Put innovative creativity and fun at your kids' fingertips -- and watch them learn in the process -- with the The LeapFrog Leapster 2 Learning Game System. This battery-operated handheld game system goes where your children go, and brings plenty of learning fun along. It comes with two pre-installed educational games, and many more are available: purchase an optional SD card separately for access to additional online games and to take advantage of other online features; or you can purchase game cartridges to add to your Leapster 2 repository. The included games have skill levels suitable for children ages 4 to 8. 
Children will love playing the educational games. View larger. | 
Insert different game cartridges (sold separately) for endless fun. View larger. |  | What We Think
Fun Factor: 
Durability: 
(what this means)
The Good: Battery-powered console goes where your child goes, offers versatile, educational fun.
The Bad: An SD card, which must be purchased separately, is required to take advantage of some Leapster 2 features.
In a Nutshell: Handheld game console offers fun, educational games that accommodate your child's learning curve. | At a Glance
Ages: 4 to 8
Requires: Four AA batteries
|  | | The console has a comfortable, curved shape, although it may be a tad large and heavy for smaller hands. It features a full-color touch screen and sound that's a far cry better than the beeps of old-school handheld consoles. (Parents will appreciate the volume control and a jack for headphones!) Control and manipulate the console with the included stylus and with the videogame-style D pad and other buttons. We found the initial set-up to be relatively easy: install the four required AA batteries, and navigate through the self-explanatory screens to create user profiles for up to 3 children (which come in handy for accessing online features). After this quick set-up, a menu screen will appear, where you can choose to play the pre-loaded games, go online, or insert a game cartridge. Fun and Learning
Leapster 2 games are designed to grow with your child ages 4 through 8. The console is pre-loaded with two games: The "Dragons to the Rescue! Learning Game," is a "video game" type activity with four different levels, the first helping kids identify letters and numbers, the most advanced giving them spelling and multiplication practice, all while navigating a dragon past monstrous storm clouds and scrambling to collect magic crystals. The "Creativity Castle Art Studio" is a rather low-tech art program. Players can select a background scene to "color" using the stylus and "decorate" with fun animated stamps. While it does foster creativity, this program is somewhat clumsy -- your Paint program on your PC does a much better job. But "Dragons" was fun enough to keep even an adult tester enjoyably diverted. Unfortunately, an SD card is required for taking advantage of some of what the Leapster 2 has to offer -- which is a drawback, because it must be purchased separately. For example, without the SD card (which offers more memory) you cannot save artwork.
In the meantime, without the SD card, you can still purchase game cartridges, as well as download new games, or take advantage of the online "Learning Path". (This online program allows you to register and upload your children's Leapster 2 profiles to show you their learning activities and their progress.) And you still can plug your console -- with the included USB cable -- into your PC for your children to view and print "rewards" for completing different game levels (for Dragons to the Rescue, they're certificates of achievement) or to print pictures to color with actual crayons (to encourage some "old-fashioned" creativity!) You must first install the Leapster 2 software on your computer, which comes on the included CD-ROM. What's in the Box
Leapster 2 Game System, USB cable, CD-ROM
PC Requirements
All Leapster games work with all Leapster systems.
PC Requirements
Windows XP or Windows Vista operating system
Pentium III 500 MHz processor
Monitor resolution of at least 1024 X 768
Available USB port
256 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended)
300 MB free disk space
Internet connection
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6 or higher
CD reader
Mac Requirements
Mac OS X 10.4+
PPC G4 or any Intel-based Apple computer
Monitor resolution of at least 1024 X 768
Available USB port
256 MB of RAM (512 MB recommended)
300 MB free disk space
Internet connection
Safari application
CD reader
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 141
 My kids LOVE IT!!!! March 9, 2010
M. Gonzales (Lake Jackson, TX)
My son is 3.5 years old and he LOVES IT!!!! I highly recommend it to anyone!! It's educational and lets me see how well he is doing with different games. My 14 month old tries to "play" too!!! Definately worth buying!!
 Pathetic! March 7, 2010
Mark S...
I never write reviews of products, this is my very first good or bad, and I have nothing good to say about this toy.
This toy is absolutely pathetic. I will NEVER buy anything from this company again. I have spent almost my entire Sunday trying to get the toy connected over their website, and it just plain doesn't work. Why? Because they are just to darn cheap to spend money to host their site on a decent server so that the online tools ACTUALLY WORK!! They lure you in with this great marketing ploy of an online community to do all these fantastic things, and yet, their software is just HORRIBLE!
On top of that, they include absolutely NO INSTRUCTIONS in the package. They force you to their website, which, if I haven't mentioned DOESN'T WORK!!
PATHETIC - PATHETIC - PATHETIC!
The only reason I gave it one star is because the cartridges they make you buy to get the toy to work did occupy my 4 year old for an hour or so.
I can't say enough about how disappointed I am with this company. My daughter was SO EXCITED to get this, and after wasting my entire day I had to break her heart and tell her it just doesn't work. Just visit their website, it takes FOREVER to load. Don't break your kids heart with this piece of junk. BUY SOMETHING ELSE!
One of the ALL-TIME BEST toys! March 3, 2010
Swiss (Virginia)
I love books! And usually my favorite toys are the simple, old fashion toys and toys that require imagination or pretend play (blocks, cups that nest into eachother, dolls, play kitchen) That being said I love the leapster 2! This is one of the best toys EVER! We bought a Leapster 2 for our oldest daughter when she was 4yrs old. Her then 2yr old sister played it as much or more, so a year later we have bought this one to have two in the house. My now 3yr old plays it alot!!! We have to limit her time on it. But I love to have something that is educational that holds her interest for so long. She will play it all through the grocery store, we take it on car trips, or anytime I know there will be a wait! I highly recommend the recharging station to go with it.
I must admitt, I've never connected either to the computer, which I know I should and hope to, but can't comment on that part!
We LOVE our Leapster 2 February 21, 2010
Mrsduckpunk (Dannebrog, NE)
Got this Leapster 2 for my 3 year old son for Christmas. He loves it! He is already a video game junkie, so it is really nice to have something that is educational, too.
Very pleased! February 21, 2010
Aquarius
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
First, an informative message. If your Leapster suddenly appears to be broken... seems unresponsive to the pencil,... don't panic. Chances are it just needs to be recalibrated. This happened to us a few days ago. Our sons Leapster suddenly appeared defect, ... or at least it was completely unresponsive to the pencil. At first I didn't think of it, and was immediately concerned it just broke. Then I remembered it could just be that it needs to be re-calibrated. I have no idea why the item suddenly needs recalibration,... it just happens.
Thing is, when this happens, and your kid comes to you for help, telling you "It's not working !???",... the first thing that comes to mind is "Oh no! It's broken already!???". There is no signal, no message, telling you that it might need recalibration. This time, after turning the item off and on a few times to no avail, I remembered reading somewhere that it probably (and hopefully) only had to be recalibrated. And indeed, thankfully it was just that. See at the end of this review on how to recalibrate.
Now for the review.
We love the Leapster concept. A handheld system with educational games for young kids. By now, LeapFrog has a pretty extensive library of educational games. I've researched Nintendo DS to check as an alternative, but they have very few educational games. Even contacted their customer support and they were very responsive and very nice, but they have very few educational games. Apparently it's not a market Nintendo is interested in. In any case I find the DS way too expensive for a 5 year old anyway. The Leapster is better priced.
We find the games very educational. Currently we have 5 games: Thomas the Engine, Cars, Mr. Pencil, Backyardigans and Chicken Cook. The last one we downloaded from LeapFrog. (You get to download one game free from LeapFrog with the Leapster2). Our son loves them all. His favorite currently is probably Thomas, but he plays (and learns) a lot with them all. We're thinking of expanding the collection with the Dora one, and/or SpongeBob.
With the Leapster 2, you can connect online to the LearningPath of LeapFrog. This is a great functionality, if you have the time to explore it. We hope to connect every two weeks or so. You can also explore new games here, and you can see trailers of the games which is a great way to get a feeling of the game before buying a new one. By the way, the first time you connect online, will be a bit strange. The Leapster will need to synchronize, and this will take a quite a while. In our case it took almost one hour. But you see no message, informing you of this. So you really don't know what's going on. I actually restarted the process several time, after 10 minutes or so, since I was first unaware of this. While I was trying this, I was also checking the LeapFrog site, and there's where I learned that the first time can take up to an hour. So then I just left it alone, till it was done. Thankfully this is only the first time. The next times you connect it will be a breeze.
The game cartridges will work on any of LeapFrog's system. That is the original Leapster, the L-Max, or the most recent Leapster-2. The L-Max you can connect to a TV and play the games on the much larger TV screen. But we didn't really use this with our first L-Max. We tried it only once, just to try it out. It worked, but it just isn't practical. And our son didn't miss it either. He just wants to play with the unit where ever he can, and not be attached to the TV. The Leapster-2 cannot be hooked to the TV but it has the much better functionality to connect online, and go to the LearningPath and download games etc. It's the only one of the three that has this functionality. And new games are being developed to make use of this feature to connect online. I really love this possibility to connect online. So I definitely recommend the Leapser-2 instead of any of the other two. I don't understand why they keep selling the original Leapster and L-Max anyway. Seems to me they should just faze them out, and concentrate on further developing the Leapster-2 or games for it. Ah well.
As for durability, ... it's yet to soon to tell. We rated 4 stars for now on durability, but it's really too soon to tell. Previously we had a L-Max, and it broke after 3 month's. (Which is why I researched Nintendo as an alternative.) We did get a replacement from LeapFrog but it took a while, so in the meantime we got this Leapster2. Currently in use for just one month. We really hope this Leapster2 will be much durable then the previous L-Max. I have good hopes it will, but only time will tell. You can read my review on the L-Max.Leapster L-Max Learning Game System
Batteries.
We use Duracell rechargeable batteries with this item. Although LeapFrog does not recommend using 3rd party rechargeable batteries. But I really don't understand why. They do have their own recharging stationm LeapFrog® Leapster®2 Recharging Station with rechargeable batteries for about $30, which I'm sure will also save you tons of money. But at first we weren't aware LeapFrog does not recommend 3rd party rechargeable batteries. Neither, that they sell their own rechargeable system. So we just got a Duracell rechargeable with corresponding batteries, for about $14 Duracell Value Charger With 4AA Pre Charged Rechargeable Nimh Batteries, CEF14DX4N. Have been using them for a while, also with the previous L-Max, and they work very well. Saved us tons of money on batteries! Very happy with it. Then one time I read by chance on the LeapFrog side that they don't recommend using 3rd party rechargeables. I was surprised, so I checked with them why. They replied something about 3rd party rechargeable batteries not being standard format, and some batteries being charged more then others ect ect.... Which to me made no sense. Duracell or Energizer, or any other main battery brand, not being standard??? I don't buy that. Just to be on the save side, I then checked with them if using 3rd party rechargeable batteries would harm or damage the unit in any way. They replied using 3rd party rechargeable will NOT harm or damage the unit in any way. So,.... I don't get it. Been using Duracell rechargeable batteries for quite a while now, and the unit works excellent with it. It seems they even last longer than normal batteries. By the way LeapFrog sells normal Duracell batteries on their side. Which makes me wonder even more about there point of 3rd party batteries not being standard.
Actually, now I think of it, if LeapFrog recommends not to use 3rd party rechargeable batteries, they should just sell their systems TOGETHER with their rechargeable system. Why have customers waste their money on normal batteries!?? This way they will help their customers save money on batteries from day one! Money that customers could use to buy additional games from them! Believe me, the 1st 2 or 3 weeks, you will be wasting money on normal batteries, till you realize you better get rechargeable batteries quick, before you go broke!!!
In any case, whether you use 3rd party, or LeapFrog's rechargeable system, you will save lots of money on batteries. And you probably will be very happy, no matter which one you get. So do yourself a favor and do get yourself either one of them.
The bottom line: First thing. Our son loves it. Plays and learns a lot with it.
Second, we do love the Leapster concept. We love the system, easy to use, good screen. We love the games, being both fun to play and educational. I guess the pricing of system and games is `ok'. It would be nice if they could go lower, but chances are that quality will then start to suffer. I do like the fact that they have a decent customer support. They respond rather fast. And finally I love the possibility to connect online. We just hope it will be durable and last for a good long time.
How to recalibrate:
The process to recalibrate is simple. You should find it on the LeapFrog website, but here is what I did:
1. turn off the item.
2. press and hold the `Hint' button, while the item is off.
3. press the on/off button to turn the item back on, while holding the `hint' button, (don't release the `hint' button)
4. the item will now turn on, and you will see a menu screen, with a couple of options.
5. touch with the pencil on the option "recalibrate"
(yes, the pencil should just work at this point)
6. you will get an empty screen, and a little small red circle with cross-hair will appear at one of the corners. Touch with the pencil at the center of the circle. The circle will disappear and another circle will appear at the next corner. Continue to touch each circle at the center. The last circle will appear in the middle of the screen. Touch it also at the center.
7. That's it. Turn off the system, and back on.
It should be back to normal.
Or go to the LeapFrog website, go to the support section and look for "Why doesn't my Leapster2 respond to the stylus pen?" in the FAQ.
You will find the instructions with pictures.
LeapFrog has a great website, with a support section, where you can find a pretty extensive list of all kinds of frequently asked questions with corresponding answers. If you don't find what you're looking for, you can send submit a question to them. You don't need to first go through all the listed questions, you can just write your question and submit it to them. They will respond by the next (work)day.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 141
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