Creative Baby i-Mat: My Animal World {Review & Giveaway}

Say what you will about children and technology, but there is no way to deny the benefits that have come from the large surge in kid-friendly devices, gadgets and apps over the last five years.

The abundance of ways for children to learn colors, practice writing, excel at counting, learn to read, etc, etc, has allowed the next generation to pick up skills even younger than before... often without even realizing that they are learning due to the fun of the game, the colorful graphics or the familiar characters.

With that said, however, we all know that the internet is a dangerous place for kids and that there are plenty of apps available that, to put it nicely, shouldn't have been created in the first place.

So what's a parent to do? Is there a way to combine entertainment, education, safety and complete child-appropriateness into one product that can be used and loved by all ages?

There is, and it's available now from Creative Baby Inc. in the form of the soft, colorful, delightful i-Mat: My Animal World.

Developed for babies as young as 18 months old, Creative Baby's i-Mat is made of four interlocking soft sections that are activated when used with its Voice Pen. A simple point to an animal with the pen results in an animal sound, word, music or a foreign language translation for the younger crowd and a search-and-find game for slightly older children.

On top of that, the i-Mat itself is phthalate-, lead- and heavy metal-free, and no electronics mean no worries for wiping the mat clean. So if you're looking for a way to protect your child from bumps and bruises on your hardwood floor, you can rest assured that they can hang out on this colorful, interactive mat with sounds and games at the same time!

Could this get any more unique and creative? I was eager to find out!

Although the actual assembly for the i-Mat took around 30 seconds (simply attach the four puzzle pieces together), I found that it took me much longer due to how much fun I had looking at all of the adorable animals!

I love that Creative Baby used illustrations that are cute but that aren't overly cutesy, making them look like cartoons. Instead, each one looks clearly as the animal and is found in a habitat that resembles where it actually lives.

After installing two batteries in the Voice Pen (not included), putting the set to use was a snap!

In the upper right corner of the i-Mat itself, simply touch the pen to the On/Off image and then choose the language that you would like to use — English, Spanish or Chinese.

Then it's ready to go!

Although Big Sister E and Little Sister B are a bit too old for just touching the animals to hear their names and sounds, they both still enjoyed moving around the i-Mat to try each one out... and got a big kick out of the jazzy music that plays for the animals that don't typically make a recognized sound (e.g. butterfly, camel, penguin).

As a bonus, however, they have had no problem switching the i-Mat to Spanish or Chinese to start learning the animal names in other languages — which is something that I definitely wouldn't be able to teach them on my own!

For slightly more of a challenge, however, the i-Mat: My Animal World includes two interactive games.

• Game 1: Where is the {animal}?


• Game 2: What animal makes {sound}? or What animal is {color}? or What animal {movement, such as flies}?

Although a few of the options in Game 2 made Big Sister E stop and think, she still found that overall the i-Mat was slightly too young for her. Little Sister B, on the other hand, was also able to answer most all of the questions in both games (if the child answers incorrectly three times, it moves on to the next question) and has loved seeing what it will ask her next!

Along with my big kids, we have also tried out the Creative Baby i-Mat: My Animal World with a few younger children as well and have found that they have enjoyed it just as much.

Ranging in age from 18 months to 2½, our younger testers' eyes lit up when they saw the colorful animals and realized just how soft and fun it was to move around on the i-Mat. Plus, as they used the Voice Pen more and more, it was easy to see them learning the names and sounds of the animals, particularly those that are more unique and they might not have previously known (e.g. seal, dragonfly).

I loved seeing them get delighted when they found the animal that they were looking for, giggle and laugh as they made the sounds along with the i-Mat (the gorilla was a big hit!), dance around when the music played, and even hear themselves speak by using the sound recorder on the Voice Pen. It was definitely a hit!

The main issue that we encountered was discovering that the location of the power button and the record button on the Voice Pen are in the same location where a child holds the pen while using it. Therefore, each one of the toddlers who tried this out proceeded to press the buttons multiple times (accidentally as well as on purpose), causing the pen to turn off or the recording beeps to occur over and over.

I would love to see these buttons moved to a less-used location or else the option of "locking" them to avoid being continually pressed!

All in all, we found that the i-Mat: My Animal World has proven to be extremely innovative, educational and entertaining and that children of all ages give it two thumbs up — I can't recall seeing a product at all similar to this that can provide such a multitude of possibilities for learning and fun!

Sold as a set, the thick and durable i-Mat and Voice Pen retail for $79.99. The Voice Pen can also be purchased separately (which would allow several children to play on the i-Mat at the same time) for $59.99 and more themed adventures (i-Mat Under The Sea and, coming soon, i-Mat My Alphabet) can be purchased from $24.99 to $29.99.

As new pads are introduced, parents can connect the Voice Pen to any computer with internet access (with the included USB cable), and download the new sound file from Creative Baby's website to the i-Mat Voice Pen, which has a 2 GB memory. Who doesn't love a product that can continue to grow and expand with their child?

To find out much more about Creative Baby and their ingenious products (there is a great video on their homepage that really shows off the i-Mat, check it out!!), visit their website at CreativeBabyInc.com and connect with them on Facebook and Twitter. Plus, for a limited time, Creative Baby is offering free shipping for all preorders on their website so now is a great time to get started on holiday shopping!

And, thanks to their generosity, one person will soon be able to provide a world of animal fun and learning to a child in their life as well, because...

One lucky person will win an i-Mat: My Animal World and Voice Pen from Creative Baby!

Entry-Form

A big thank you to Creative Baby for providing an i-Mat and Voice Pen for me to review as well as for one lucky giveaway winner. The opinions shared are my own and honest and if you really need to see more, click here to see how I roll.