Playskool Toy Review: Busy Basics - Busy Ball Popper

Playskool: Busy Basics - Busy Ball Popper is the way to go. This is probably one of the best presents my son has ever received. He plays with this toy all day long. He watches the balls pop all the way in the air and down the slide into the tube. He does this over and over again. He loves the different colors of the 5 balls. The colors are purple, red, yellow, green, and blue. The shades vary in color. The plunger that he has to push is dark red. He loves to listen to the music while the balls are popping in the air. It is especially fun when you just put brand new batteries in it. Watch Out! The balls pop so high they can take an eye out. Another thing my son loves to do is just push the plunger and feel the cool air that comes out of the toy. The one thing that keeps happening though is that he like to put any toy or any object that can fit down the hole. I can't tell you how many times my husband and I have had to take the toy apart and try to break loose the object he shoved in there. Sometimes I don't even know how he gets things in there.

Problems with this toy for me is that the blue slide always pops off. I have a hard time trying to put it back together. I can get really frustrated too. The yellow tube is a little bit easier to install because it has a slide and lock feature. The batteries are another issue for me. This toy takes 4 D Batteries which are not included. It can get very expensive if your child uses this toy as much as my son does. I find myself buying new batteries once a month. It is almost like the toy uses all of its battery power when you first put them in. Then as you play with the toy the batteries start to die down and the toy loses its power. Another thing my son likes to do is throw the balls. It is like two toys in one. I have already purchased this item as a gift for one of my son's friends and he loves it too. It is the first toy that his friends start playing with when they come over to the house.

The recommended age for this toy is nine months up to four years old. My son has been playing with it since he was about a year and a half and hasn't stopped since. The toy plays 8 different songs while the balls are going down the slide into the tube and back up again.

You can purchase the Playskool: Busy Basics - Busy Ball Popper at Toys R Us for $21.99. You can also purchase a similar one at Target for $19.99 called the Playskool Air-tivity Ball Popper. It looks the same to me except they changed the colors. Amazon.com is selling it for the lowest price I could find $18.88. They are all good prices for such a wonderful toy. Your child will appreciate and have hours of fun playing with it.