The Safe Alternative To Rainbow Fireworks! (Radica Games Mood Beams)

Member Name: MizzMolko

Product:	Radica Games Mood Beams
Date:	28/03/09 (444 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cute, colourful, quirky and certainly an unusual gift idea !

Disadvantages: Could be costly, not poseable and Epilepsy sufferers beware !

Sometimes, I go out and buy things purely for the sake of buying something; maybe the psychologists amongst us will be able to define it as something other than just being a woman. The day I purchased my first Mood Beam would have to be categorized as one of those days.

I was in York at the time, one of the quaintest cities in the country, and decided to go a shopping, which certainly isn't an unusual occurrence for me. Heading into Borders, a store that is traditionally known as a bookshop, when I laid eyes on these cuties I knew that I had to have one! I've always been a sucker for the obscenely adorable, even when it comes to little gadgets, so after minutes of agonizing over which one to name as my new pet, I picked Curious (who you'll meet later on) and told the latest addition that she would be perfect and paid at the counter. My decision to buy a Mood Beam wasn't influenced in the slightest by the stores then promotional offer of a free mini bar of Black and Green's chocolate although, to be fair, that was a welcomed added bonus.

WHAT ARE MOOD BEAMS?
Mood Beams are sweet, 9cm's tall, plastic characters that change colour at the press of a button. They interact with their surroundings and noises and, if put into the right 'mood' (again, with the button) they can change colour spontaneously. Obviously, one on its own - although delightful - isn't half as impressive as a gang of them so when my friend bought me another one from a later series for Christmas last year, I was so pleased that Curious was to have herself a friend!

There is a difference between each Mood Beam though, which is the creatures primary colour, and which one they frequently alternate between. These colours will be discussed a little later on but, for example, Curious switches between purple, fading into pink and then back to lilac and a deeper purple. However, these colours - known as the heartbeats - depend on which setting the Mood Beams are on, a feature I'll elaborate on in a moment.

WHO ARE THE MOOD BEAMS?
So far, there have been three series made, with each set having a total of four characters to collect. They each have their own personality which is represented through the colour in which they change into and between as well as there facial expressions. Their facial expressions don't change however so they are pretty predictable - for example, Smiley isn't going to become Grumpy or Shy an Extrovert! That makes them pretty good for children as they can begin to start reading expressions in some shape or form although I don't think these were ever intended to be an educational device!

Series one - Released in approximately 2005, series one doesn't perhaps include characters that you'd expect. Consisting of Shy, Surprised, Curious and Silly, these seem to be moods that I would consider to be a little more advanced (if you are of course thinking of the kiddie winkles). However, although all Mood Beams across each series are white before the colour parade begins, once it does, here are the primary and secondary colours for each one:

Shy - Red to Orange.
Surprised - Yellow to Green.
Curious - Purple to Red.
Silly - Green to Blue.

Admittingly, I did only get Curious because she matched my bedroom colours but in this collection, I think they played it fairly safe with the colours, making them appropriate for both boys and girls.

Series two - Following the release of the first set the previous year, Series two took a slightly different direction; although I am yet to own one from this series, the colours do appear to be more pastel like and less striking than the first offering.

Chillin' - Orange to Red.
Puzzled - Blue to Purple.
Love Struck - Red to Purple.
Smiley - Yellow to Orange.

I think these are my least favourite set because of their colourings seeming a little mild. There expressions look to be a bit watery as well and doesn't quite capture the innocence of the first series.

Series three - The set that I really do want to collect all of them from! This collection of Mood Beams are by far the oddest but most adorable of the three sets and were released at the end of 2007 and reverted back to a much deeper, neon like colour scheme as opposed to the lighter shades of Series two.

Gloomy - Yellow to Green.
Peppy - Red to Orange.
Chipper - Green to Blue.
Dizzy - Blue to Purple.

I think that the colour connotations were a bit confused when it came to Gloomy; I know it wouldn't be psychedelic but I think that black and red or black and purple would have been a much better combination for that character. Peppy - my second Mood Beam - is perhaps my all time favourite; he looks like a little smiling alien who is quirky and he certainly stands out from the rest of the creatures in every collection.

DIFFERENT AMBIENT COLOUR LEVELS
As well as their primary and heartbeat colours, the Mood Beams also feature five other light settings, some of which alter their colour at set intervals and others where background sounds and music play a great role. They start of with the heartbeat colour, which is pretty enough, in itself, before moving through each function in this order:

Rainbow Mix - alternating between all of the colours, no matter what their primary or secondary colours are, the Rainbow Mix is perhaps my favourite of all the Mood Beam settings. It runs automatically through red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple before starting up again. I have to say that this looks stunning in the dark; it's mesmerizing, like those relaxation CD's, especially when they are a little out of sync with each other.

Strobe - Note: these figures contain strobe lighting effects. If you have epilepsy or suffer from seizures, then it would perhaps be a good idea to close your eyes and skip this setting. Complete in a corn flower blue colour, the strobe light is the setting that I normally pass over when playing with these because it is the same thing over and over again. It would be good at a rave I guess because of its fast pace but other than that, not one to necessarily bother with.

Colour Dancing - I do think that this setting is a little misleading; it sounds like the creatures are actually about to get up and do a Tango! Alas, they don't as they aren't poseable, so instead they flash multicoloured lights to make up for this. It is adorable; I've never been as fascinated with the rainbow in all of its messed up glory as I have with these babies! It is funky and disco like because of its unpredictability. After you've watched it for about the fiftieth time, you might spot the pattern but until then, it is enjoyable to watch. However, it does contain the strobe effect from time to time, which may be a bit of a draw back to some buyers again.

Colour Hold - stuck in their primary colours, the Mood Beams are a little tired from all that energetic dancing. Ok, I made the last bit up; I don't really have the ability to interact with inanimate objects on that level...yet. However, this one's pretty cool, not quite as neat as the Rainbow or Dance options but one included as kind of a tranquil moment.

Beat Sensor - Placing the Mood Beams near music may result in some more crazy dancing! In their primary colour if you place them near speakers, they flash in time to the music! I tried it with Sweet's 'Ballroom Blitz' and after the intro until the breakdown in the middle, it just kept flashing. I figured that Mood Beams - contrary to popular belief - perhaps weren't fans of 70's Glam Rock so I tried them with The Beatles and their rooftop performance of 'Get Back' and they loved it! To be fair, who doesn't really love the Beatles?! I placed them to different speakers which would release different sounds; Curious got the keyboard and drum beat, Peppy the guitars. How lucky can two plastic toys get? Especially when they get 'All You Need Is Love' straight afterwards!

HOW TO ACTIVATE THE MOOD BEAMS
To watch these guys in action, there are two ways in which you can start your Mood Beams working through their light cycles. The first, and the one that I use the most, is where you actively press the button situated underneath the creature to start it going. Then, you press repeatedly in order to get the setting which you desire. Say you wanted to watch the Rainbow Mix than from its off state you press the button two times; once to turn it on and to skip the Heartbeat setting and the next to find the Rainbow.

Alternatively, you can give your Mood Beam a whack on the head which isn't actually very pleasant for them; I've often heard them whimper when I have used the method. They are quite sensitive and you can catch them accidentally though; once in a blue moon, when I do decide to clean my room, if you pop them down a bit too hard than it will wake them up and start them dancing once again.

However, this isn't too much of a problem; if you haven't done anything with your Mood Beam after ten minutes then he or she will switch off automatically to preserve some of their battery power. This applies to all of the modes, excluding the Beat Sensor which is accessed slightly differently to the others.

As the Beat Sensor is powered by sound, then you will need to hold the button down for approximately two seconds before they'll start working. If the Mood Beams don't hear any music for one minute, they will automatically go to sleep but can be woken up by a simple pat on the head! The time limit commands do work excellently well so they are a very reliable and safe product in that sense, and one of the creatures many advantages as you know the batteries won't be wasted.

WHO ARE THEY FOR?
I would say that Mood Beams are suitable for the young to the young adult. They do amuse Grandparents at Christmas, so could be used as a sedative if faced with such serious situations!

I think that they would also be a fabulous present for babies - not to insinuate that babies and old people are on the same mental level as one another, in spite of what Philip Larkin may have said in the past. As long as the babies don't play with the creatures because of the age limit issue, until they are at least four years old, they'd be able to enjoy them as much as the next person. The Mood Beams are a truly a mesmerizing package of colour and would be ideal, especially with the time setting, if you wanted something to relax your baby, toddler or young child at bed time, especially in the dark as the colours are very vivid and beautiful.

I was attracted to them in the first place, even before I purchased Curious, because I do love weird, quirky things like this. And anything that flashes - especially in bright, bold colours. They look great anywhere and people have often been amused when they first discover the Mood Beams because of the playful nature of them.

ANY SIGNIFICANT DRAW BACKS?
Other than the fact that epilepsy and seizure sufferers may not be able to enjoy the magic of Mood Beams, there is the fact that if you buy these off the internet, then you can't pick which one you get on most sites, which was one of the reasons why I went to purchase mine from a shop so I could actively choose my new pet! It might be a bit of a pain for some people; I originally picked Curious because she matched my bedroom in her purple and red colours but I think that's a bit of a shallow way of looking at it anyway, considering you can change the colours on the dance and rainbow features anyway.

There is one minor niggle that I myself have and that is the fact that the Mood Beams can't move; they are fixed in their one expression with the arm and legs carved into the plastic. I think that they would sell a little better if you could pose them, almost like a doll, so that they'd be more interesting to younger people. Oh and myself of course! It would definitely make future series of the creatures seem a little more adventurous and appealing to a much wider audience too and to keep previous collectors interested in the product.

BATTERIES AND MAINTANENCE
When the Mood Beams come to you neatly stored away in their box, you can do a test poke to make sure they are working alright. Then, once you have discovered that they are in working order and take them away from there womb (or plastic packaging as it is known as is most places), you'll need to hit the reset button to start your Mood Beam working and going through all of the different modes. I'd recommend doing this with either a needle, paperclip or if you have any long backings or hooks on your earrings, one of those.

Each creature comes with three AAA batteries already installed and I have to say that, although I've had Curious for about three years (man, where has the time gone?!), she is yet to be reenergized. I can't comment on how easy it is to replace the batteries because the occasion has never presented itself but I would recommend you purchase a very small screwdriver and steal a person with a steady pair of hands for this one because it looks very fiddly!

Openly admitting to being a bit clumsy, I have dropped my Mood Beams on many occasions and after crying for a few minutes, they seem to be ok; neither of them have suffered permanent damage in light of taking a bump on the head so they are quite a durable product for the klutzes world wide!

PRICE AND AVAILABILITY
I remember paying £9.99 for my first Mood Beam from the Borders book shop a couple of years ago. If you want to purchase a Mood Beam online however, I'd recommend the following shops, at the following prices:

Prezzybox.com: £9.95 (currently, they stock Series 2 & 3).
Firebox.com: £9.95 (they have only got Silly from Series 1, no Series 2 but all of Series 3, including an offer to purchase all four for £34.95).
Iwantoneofthose.com: £9.95 (the website has many different Mood Beams from across all three Series').
Amazon.co.uk: £7.99 (prices can range up to £9.95).
Theglowcompany.co.uk: £8.94 (Series 3 only; they pick a Mood Beam at random).

Personally, out of the above websites, I would recommend Amazon.co.uk and Prezzybox.com especially if you are considering buying one of those for an extra Christmas gift for someone at the last minute because Prezzybox has an excellent delivery service and Amazon offers a range of different and some speedier delivery options.

OVERALL
I do love my little Mood Beams - they make a cute addition to any bedroom and add a little sparkle, colour and fun along the way. They are very friendly looking so perfect for small children (although they are not really a toy) and would be a good aid, I'd imagine, for a restless baby...or a stressed out adult!

My only issue is that I think that collecting all of them may turn out to be a little costly; considering that they are all very similar, apart from their primary colour, shape, expression and name, besides that, if you put them on the Rainbow Mix colour settings, than they look the same anyway. I think the creators ought to consider making them poseable in the future, so that they'd be even better and more goofy looking. They are quite limited in that sense, which might deter people from buying them.

They are essentially a novelty gift and can't be expected to be anymore than a funny little curio. However, I am yet to meet anyone who hasn't at least been mildly amused by them and many do question exactly what they are the first time they meet my Mood Beams. People do seem to be genuinely delighted when they uncover the babies many talents...unless that is a sign of pity for me and just nod and smile like they mean it.

Epilepsy sufferers may not be able to watch some modes of the light change because of their condition. Having said that, I am not a sciencey, medical person so it would be perhaps best to consult a Doctor or a healthcare worker before buying someone who has the condition a Mood Beam.

Until there are a few minor changes however, which would essentially benefit the Mood Beams and make them even more enjoyable, I'll still have fun watching the pretty colours altering on Curious and Peppy, as they dance to their hearts content!

(Note: I was NOT on any form of illegal medication whilst writing this review - I am proud to call the Mood Beams my pets, even if they cannot eat, walk, growl and indeed make a mess everywhere like a living pet could. I will hear nothing said against them. Thank you.)

(Serious note: Previously displayed on Ciao.co.uk - all my own work!)

Summary: A mega cool gift idea for all ages!