Electronics For Kids

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Everyone loves electronics, specially kinds – young and old, and today electronics are even less pricey than they were 5, 10 or even 15 years ago. There is likewise a dandier selection of electronic toys and gizmos to keep kids pleasantly occupied from a young age and up. What are galore of the hot electronic appliances for kids this season? Keep reading to find out!

By far the number one electronic gadget that most kids are looking for are iPods from Apple. Whether you buy them an iPod Touch, an iPod Classic, iPod Nano or iPod Shuffle – they are going to be the hot gadget this year.

If your kids already have an iPod (really how a lot of kids don’t have one of these gadgets) then you may want to look at the galore accessaries available. One of the more frequent accessaries are docking stations for the iPod Touch. This allows you to put your iTouch into the connector and play music through the docking station speakers. There are a great deal of types of docking stations available, some even include clocks and alarm functions so that it may be employed as an alarm clock.

If you have a kid that is a book worm, and a little older than you ought to consider the Kindle e-book reader from Amazon. Featuring free 3G+WiFi or WiFi alone the Kindle is lightweight and features a 6″ display. It often times gets 5 star ratings from reviewers and buyers and will be on some buying goods lists this year.

Other popular items are digital cameras. Today you may buy cameras for beneath $100.00 which include a heap of dissimilar features and grant the budding photographer in your family to express their originative (or silly) side.

Another outstanding item to consider would be Nintendo DSi, or DSi XL portable game machines. With Nintendo having dropped the prices on these devices, they likewise make idealisti gifts for kids. There are hundreds of games available, from action to role playing and even instructional titles to aid minds grow. The newer Nintendo game machines likewise feature cameras, so the game machine may do more than play games.

This instructional kit is loaded with more than 300 projects to build. For example, kids may learn how transistors and capacitors function, and how to make time-delay circuits. In addition, this version includes circuits showing how oscillators and photo sensors work. Projects implicate an AM Radio, Burglar Alarm, Radio Announcer and more. Contains over 60 parts. Requires 4 “AA” batteries, not included.

ReviewGive your child an exciting, hands-on introduction to electronics with Elenco Electronics Snap Circuits SC-300. This kit holds over 60 color-coded, real circuit elements that snap together to formulate working electronic circuits and devices. Recommended for children 8 and older, this set offers 305 do-it-yourself projects that will give your child an entertaining, concrete education on how electronics work.

Snap Circuits SC-300
At a Glance:

Most helpful customer reviews

469 of 476 people found the following review helpful.
THIS TOY IS DA-BOMB!!!
By S. Singh
Anyone with even the slightest electronic background will appreciate the value of this toy. As a kid I remember the long frustrating hours of deciphering components from circuit diagrams and soldering them to create projects that were way too much effort. The limited success with these projects, I believe, is the reason I gave up my hobby.

As a parent of a six-year old, I have been trying to introduce him to all facets of science and this is a wonderful tool. He immediately created a circuit – a combination light/fan circuit – in parallel and in serial – and he understood the difference between them. It was just amazing. He always appreciates what we get him, but he fell in love with this toy instantly. He was engrossed for the next hour experimenting with the various components.

There are about 60 components which create a total of 300 projects. Count on there being about 125-150 basic projects (I have not conducted a detail count!) with the remaining coming from tweaks in these 125-150 basic projects. However, I do not want to discount the value of these tweaks…they are designed to teach the value of electronic components and instigate independent thinking. This is definitely a “Learning” Toy. With the limited emphasis on science in our schools, the approx. [item price] is worth the investment.

For people who cannot envision how these snap into place (I couldn’t!), the “snap” is from “snap-button”. The component is soldered onto a large piece of plastic which have snap-buttons on it. These snap-buttons snap onto a large plastic grid or onto other components. Simple concept – Snap-On and Snap-Off!!

All the components have their respective symbols stamped on them which aids in early familiarization. The pieces are also individually numbered so that there is no confusion in identifying the right component. The Manual is all-color and very easy to follow, however, some might prefer more detailed explanations.

The model I purchased was “Snap Circuit 300 with Computer Interface” an upgrade to the one available here. The interface package includes software and a cable which connects to the “line-in” jack of your PC. The other end of the cable has two alligator-clips which can connect to any two points in your circuit. The software turns your PC into an “oscilloscope” so that you can “see” the electrical activity between any two points in your circuit. I have yet to fully learn and appreciate the value of the oscilloscope.

For teenagers, there is a Snap Circuit 500. I believe it features more components and more complex circuits for about [item price].

WARNING: PLEASE READ UP ON BASIC ELECTRICITY AND EXPLAIN THE PRINCIPLES TO YOUR CHILD. MY SON CONNECTED THE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE POLES OF THE POWER SUPPLY FOR ONLY 5-7 SECONDS – THE BATTERY HEATED UP AND POPPED INTO HIS HAND. DID NOT BURN, BUT TAUGHT A VALUABLE LESSON – TO ME!! I SHOULD HAVE TAKEN THE TIME TO EXPLAIN BASIC ELECTRICITY TO HIM. THOSE 2 AA BATTERIES REALLY HEATED UP!!

IF YOU ARE GOING TO BUY ONLY ONE TOY THIS YEAR – YOU JUST FOUND IT!

107 of 108 people found the following review helpful.
Excellent Excellent Excellent
By Keith
My 5 year old son has an interest in how things work and likes to “experiment.” We go this as a first step toward learning about electricity, and it has not disappointed.

The projects range from fast simple ones (can get a light bulb and a switch going in a minute or so) to more elaborate more interesting ones (we actually built a working AM radio).

There are endless projects in the book with easy to follow directions on how to put them together.

The “snap” mechanism for connecting components is extremely clever — it eliminates the challenges of bad connections on wiring boards I grew up with. The snaps are a little hard for a 5 year old to push close, so I find myself helping on them — although the kit is aimed for somewhat older kids anyway.

Only “complaint” I have is that they could have put a couple educational points about how the circuit is working in the book near each circuit — to spell out the “learnings” of each project.

Overall though, this is definitely one of the best science kits of any type that I’ve seen, and absolutely worth the investment.

88 of 89 people found the following review helpful.
A toy like they used to make them–only better!
By Daniel L Edelen
What parent today doesn’t lament that they just don’t make toys like they used to? Toys break prematurely, they underdeliver on their promise of fun, and they simply don’t engage kids like the stuff we grew up with.

Not Snap Circuits!

I ordered this for my six-year-old son and we’ve loved every second of playing with this educational toy.

What makes it stand out?

1. Exceptionally good building instruction manuals. With clear directions in full-color, the two large manuals included with the SC-300 kit are perhaps the best manuals I’ve seen for anything I’ve ever purchased. They lay out all the projects possible with the kit and also the principles that govern how the projects work.

2. Rugged construction pieces. The electronics of the kit come attached to thick slabs of plastic which have spring-loaded button-snap connectors (as found on clothing) on the backside. Each piece is clearly marked, especially so for those electronics that attach in one specific current direction. The kit should last for a long time.

3. Clever construction system. The button-snap connectors are pure genius. Most of us parents know the electronic kits with spring terminals, but the snap system here outshines the kind we grew up with.

4. Three hundred projects in the SC-300 kit. Plenty of projects to keep the kids occupied on rainy summer days. I wish I’d had a kit this nice as a kid!

5. Good mix of electronics. A nice range of resistors, capacitors, ICs, and special function electronics, including photo sensors, speakers, sound sensors, motors, microphones, etc.

6. Superb value. Rarely can you buy a children’s toy and get the feeling you truly received what you paid for. This kit’s worth every dime–and then some.

About the only negative in this kit comes from knowing larger, even more complex Snap Circuit kits exist! You can never buy one large enough.

In short, if you’ve got a child interested in electronics, consider this a must-have. And even if your child’s not showing that interest yet, this kit might be all they need to discover their inner electrical engineer.

My son and I love Snap Circuits. You will, too.

See all 392 customer reviews…