Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium; Wonder Why I Didn't Buy This SOONER?!
Written: Mar 19 '04 (Updated Jan 11 '05)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Durability: |
 |
|
|
Pros: Holds baby's attention with lights/sound/motion; adjustable volume; three modes of play; attaches securely to crib.
Cons: Sometimes five minutes just isn't enough; must press button on front of toy to start.
The Bottom Line: This toy makes baby happy, therefore making Mommy happy. What else can you ask for in a toy?
|
|
|
| krissingene's Full Review: Fisher Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium |
Newborns just aren't very interactive - we knew this from the very beginning and therefore, while shopping for all the baby must-haves during my pregnancy, overlooked one very important group of items: TOYS. That is, the flashy-light moving-parts noise-making genre of toys that will actually catch and hold a small baby's attention for longer than five seconds - the kind that a new parent simply must have if she ever wants to scarf down a sandwich or use the bathroom in peace again.
Perhaps I'm a bit slow on the uptake, but it took me four weeks to realize that if we didn't do something soon, I would never have more than one arm free at a time until our daughter starts walking. I'm not sure just where the idea came from, but the answer to my problems just popped into my head one night as I sat in my now-permanently-indented spot on the couch with baby: the Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium. I'm sure I've seen it advertised countless times in parenting magazines and previously managed to ignore it (except to note that it was so similar to our Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Aquarium Bouncer) but all of a sudden it seemed like a good idea - such a good idea that I grabbed the phone and called my husband in the middle of conducting his weekly youth group meeting and demanded that he not come home without this toy.
He didn't.
Caring, considerate and smart man that he is, he stopped by K-Mart and found the last remaining Ocean Wonders Aquarium on the shelf - and only complained for a few minutes about handing over $27 (plus the cost of the four D batteries it uses). After all, he is already irreversibly wrapped around his daughter's tiny little finger, and if it makes her happy, it makes him happy. But...will this thing make her happy?
A Closer Look
Of course, all of Rachael's toys are Mommy's toys first at this point, so I was able to leisurely explore the bells and whistles before relinquishing the aquarium to her. The aquarium itself is a rectangular white box with a clear acrylic viewing screen in the front. At about 10 1/2" long and 9" tall, it's plenty big enough to be noticeable in a standard crib, but still small enough that we're able to use ours in a cradle in our bedroom. The aquarium's weight was what first got my attention, though - at about 2 1/2 pounds (plus those heavy batteries), it seemed awfully heavy to be hanging in limbo over my precious newborn's head all the time. It was only after examining the mounting straps (more on those later) that I felt safe enough to use this toy.
Inside the 'aquarium' live two fish, a starfish and a clam, all of which move when the toy is set in the proper mode. Soft lights alternate from the bottom of the tank, lighting one third of the tank at a time, and the bubbling effect also originates at the bottom of the tank. Underneath the clear screen are a yellow and purple ball (which baby can spin to make the clam open its mouth), a large blue button that must be pressed to start the music/lights/bubbles/etc, and a red lever that baby can push to make the starfish spin in circles.
The controls are located at the top back of the tank and positioned so that they are not visible from the front (more aesthetically pleasing for baby, perhaps?) There are three parental controls - one of which, thankfully, is a volume control. Unlike the Ocean Wonders bouncer, which has only 'high' and 'low' volume, this aquarium has a dial that allows you to adjust the volume to any level at all. A toggle switch allows you to manually flip between the songs and sounds the toy plays, and the mode setting switch controls the toy's three modes of play.
Music, Lights and Bubbles
The most engaging and, for my baby, preferred mode of play is the music-lights-bubbles mode, which basically turns everything on at once. The fishies swim around, the water bubbles, the lights flash from the bottom of the aquarium and the music or sounds play. (This toy features three soft, new-age like songs and three nature sounds - ocean waves, falling raindrops and babbling brook.) In this mode, the unit plays for five minutes before turning itself off to preserve battery life. That's fine in and of itself, but five minutes? That's not enough time for me to tame my crazy Don King-like hair - I need more time! So I find myself more often than not running back to the cradle to turn the thing back on, buying myself another precious few minutes...
Music and Lights
In this mode, the music (or sounds) continue to play and the lights flash at the bottom of the aquarium, but there are no bubbles or motion from the sea critters. Very calming and nice to look at, but it just doesn't hold baby's attention as well as the full-blown everything-running mode - perhaps better suited to help baby drift off to sleep than as a diversion during the day. The music and lights continue for ten minutes before the unit turns off; this is plenty long enough to knock me out for the evening, but has yet to put my daughter to sleep.
Music Only
Wanna take a guess as to what the third mode does? That's right - no swimmy fish, no bubbles, no lights, just music. Or nature noises. That's it. The music also plays for ten minutes in this mode, or would if I ever used it. Hey, I admitted that I just bought this toy to grab and keep my baby's attention, and the music on its own just doesn't do that...maybe when she's older.
Installation
Back to my safety concerns...no way would I risk this thing falling on my baby's head - it's heavy, and falling from any height at all would hurt anybody. But a closer look at the attachment straps convinced me that it's actually a pretty sturdy fit - this toy hangs on the crib using two thick vinyl straps that are no piece of cake to adjust. It took us about five minutes to get the horizontal tabs on the back of the aquarium through the vertical slots in the vinyl straps, convincing us that this toy wasn't about to go anywhere we didn't want it to. There is also a cord at the bottom of the aquarium to tie around a crib slat, anchoring the bottom of the toy securely against the crib as well (just be sure to tuck the ends of the cord away where baby can't get to them!)
Could Have Been Better...
First, just a few quick complaints about this toy. I've already mentioned that in my baby's preferred mode of play, the toy only runs for five minutes before turning itself off - just not long enough for me. Granted, baby can turn the toy back on by pushing the big blue button on the front of the aquarium, but younger infants just can't do that on their own. Therefore Mom or Dad must rush into the room, lean over the crib or cradle and push the button - which means baby sees you and sometimes decides that where you're going next is much more interesting than watching fish swim in circles. Even when turning the toy on for the first time, you must move the control to the desired mode and then reach over and press the blue button to get things going. Not a huge deal, just a minor annoyance.
My husband also pointed out that another crib toy we had purchased previously will respond to baby's cries with noises or flashing lights to distract the baby - while I can't blame Fisher-Price for not having this feature on this particular toy, it sure would be nice.
But What Does Baby Think?
In limited doses, my daughter seems to very much enjoy watching all the commotion inside her own private aquarium. For all my complaining about only having five minutes to get done whatever it is I need to do, having a toy that actually captures her attention and keeps her happy for any amount of time at all is a blessing during these early months.
Besides fostering a happier Mommy by minimizing stress during much-needed food and potty breaks, Fisher-Price maintains that this toy will be beneficial for baby in other ways. According to their website, the Ocean Wonders Aquarium helps social and emotional development by promoting relaxation and "enhancing baby's sense of security by providing comfort". Visual skills are stimulated by watching the moving fish, bubbles and lights, and the aquatic sounds and music help strengthen auditory skills. Pressing the lever, button and rolling the ball on the front of the aquarium will "enhance fine motor skills (and) foster hand-eye coordination". Gotta love those educational toys, right?
Anything Else You Need to Know?
Visit the Fisher-Price website at http://www.fisher-price.com (you can see and play with a working online model of this toy there!) or call Consumer Relations at 1-800-432-KIDS, 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. EST Monday through Friday. The company may be contacted in writing at:
Fisher-Price Consumer Relations
636 Girard Avenue
East Aurora, NY 14052
Also By Fisher-Price
Cradle Swing B0639 * Deluxe Take-Along Swing * Healthy Care Booster Seat * Kick 'N Play Piano * Laugh & Learn Learning Table * Link-a-doos On-the-Go Goldfish * Link-a-doos Teething Ring * Ocean Wonders Aquarium Bouncer * Peek-a-Blocks Barnyard Friends Blocks * PowerTouch Baby Learning System * Sesame Street Light-Up Pet Pals: Ernie * Sparkling Symphony Twinkle Dancer * Swim 'n Spin Fish Rattle
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 27
Type of Toy: Baby Toy
Age Range of Child: 0 to 12 Months
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
krissingene
|
 - Top 500 |
|
Member: Kristin
Location: Southern VA
Reviews written: 267
Trusted by: 120 members
About Me:
The strength of Motherhood is greater than Natural Laws. -Barbara Kingsolver
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.