My daughter likes to copy everything mummy does, and even at a very young age (10 months!) she would open up the laptop and bang the keys as if she were typing. So for Christmas, we decided to buy her her own laptop, but obviously a toy one, as we knew she'd love it. We went to Toys R Us to find a pink toy laptop for her, and came across the Disney Princess Magic Wand laptop.

It was a very reasonable £29.99 and widely available from toy shops and Argos. The age suitability is 4+, but I think this is more to do with the child's ability to play the games rather than safety. My daughter was 12 months when we bought it, and she can even now play some of the games at 21 months! You should always supervise a young child using this though, just in case.

The laptop isn't huge but certainly not small, ideal for a child's lap. It has a dark pink base and a light pink lid. The lid is decorated with blue shoes, heart and a crown, and a picture of Cinderella. There is a dark pink carry handle which my daughter finds easy to use. The handle can be folded up or down. There is a plastic window above the crown and you can see the magic wand through it.

When you lift the lid, you can see that it is decorated on the inside with pictures of Cinderella and her friends - most of the characters from the film. There is a small screen which shows the games on.

The batteries are 3 x AA which are not supplied, they fit into the back of the laptop and secured with the usual plastic lid. This is easy for an adult to open but surprisingly tricky for little fingers! The main lid to the laptop does not click shut or have anything you need to do to close it - you simply push it down and the weight of the lid keeps it closed.

---BUTTONS AND FEATURES----

On the base of the laptop (not the lid part) is a full qwerty keyboard on love heart shaped blue keys, a speaker which is decorated with a raised blue bird, the magic wand (which clips into the base) which is blue and securely attached via a white cable.

There is a mouse in the shape of a blue shoe which is permanently attached to the base and designed to be moved by the child's finger. It is very easy to move.

The on/off switch is in the shape of a green key. Numbers 1-10 have their own star shaped keys. There are also 2 trumpet shaped keys - one is red for 'Adventure Mode' and one is green for 'enter'. There are two red decorative diamonds. There are also 3 other buttons - one to set the clock called 'clock fun', one 'answer' and the other 'emoticons', these buttons are purple.

There is a clear plastic diamond shaped slider at the bottom underneath all the other buttons. This is very easy to move, and you simply slide it across until you reach the game you want to play. The games have names and pictures, and you simply slide the slider over the corresponding picture.

When you turn the laptop on, Cinderella greets you and asks "shall we play a game?" when a game is chosen, a different voice reads out the name of the game and very simple, easy to understand instructions of how to play it.

---GAMES---

There are 10 games:

Lovely Letters
Missing Letter
Picture Match
Number Order
Magical Maths
Choose A Shoe
Dress Up
Pretty Puzzles
Charming Pairs
Music Time


Lovely letters: This is a game where you are given a grid of 6 letters and you match the capitals with the little versions. You can use the wand or mouse to choose a letter.

Missing Letter: You are shown a word, it is read out by the voice, and then you have to choose which letter is missing.

Picture Match: You are told a word and have to choose the picture of the word.

Number Order: Putting 3 numbers in numerical order.

Magical Maths: A simple equation and you have to choose the missing number.

Choose A Shoe: You are shown a shoe and then have to select the picture of the matching shoe.

Dress Up: Choose an outfit for Cinderella to wear to the ball.

Pretty Puzzles: Rearranging sections of a picture to form the whole picture.

Charming Pairs: A grid of cards are arranged face-down and you have to choose the ones that match.

Music Time: You are asked to select a song from number 1-10, they are all classical songs.



---THE LAPTOP---

The graphics are constant - in the gaps between games etc. there is always something happening, like Cinderella dancing with Prince Charming. However the graphics are very simple and not brilliant - but then again it is a toy! There is almost constant music which is upbeat, and a voice encourages you if you hesitate or get a wrong answer.

My daughter is 21 months and she can play Lovely Letters and the matching up games really well. When she was younger she just liked to type on it like mummy does. It is very well made, not flimsy, and the games are actually quite good. This would be great for a 3 or 4 year old to play on, or even for younger children just as a pretend laptop or to play the music etc.

It is wipe clean obviously, and easily cleaned. I honestly think this is a brilliant laptop at a brilliant price and I would definitely recommend it.

MY REVIEWS APPEAR ON CIAO AND DOOYOO UNDER USERNAME PINKPRINCESS24 / PINKPRINCESS244