Bright Starts Shake & Spin 5 Activity Balls include Rattle, Spinner, Clicking Sounds & more, Sensory Toy Baby Toys to Encourage Development, Easy Hold and Grasp, Ages 6 Months +

I bought these excellent balls for my younger daughter who is now four months old and I believe that they will last for many years. They are sturdy and safe without sharp edges and much too big to ever be considered a choking hazard (not even an adult would be able to put one of them in their mouth). Three of the balls have something inside them that either moves and/or makes a noise when the ball is shaken. The other two are colourful and textured and if you twist their segments they make a clicking sound. My younger daughter is very interested in them, especially the balls that have something inside them - fascinating for a child this age. She is obsessively trying to grab them and lift them to her mouth when sitting in her bumbo seat with a table. The two "twist balls" are not as interesting to her yet, but I think they will be when she is a bit older. My older daughter, who is four and a half years old, also likes them and enjoys using them when she plays with her little sister. She occasionally squirrels one or two of them away to her room to keep in her treasure chest.

The Bright Starts Activity balls came presented in a moulded plastic packaging through which the balls could clearly be seen inside. There was a cardboard slip inside which gave all the product information, this of course should be read thoroughly before use. The packaging was completely sealed around the edges meaning I needed a pair of scissors to open it up. There was nothing securing the balls to the plastic, so once cut open they all went rolling over the floor in different directions, much to my sons pleasure. The set contained 5 balls, each containing a different 'activity', each ball is plastic and measures approximately 6cm in diameter. * Ball 1: The first ball is transparent, except for two pieces of red and purple plastic at the top and bottom. Inside there is a very cute looking 3D ladybird character which moves and tumbles about when the ball is moved or shook, making a rattling sound. * Ball 2: The second ball is again transparent, this time with a blue and purple top and bottom. Inside there is circular green spinner with a few large holes cut into it, alongside around 15 minature balls of varying colours. I guess I would describe this one as a bit like a rattle, when shook the beads make a rattling sound. The ball can also be tipped side to side or upside down to feed the balls through the holes. * Ball 3: The third ball is the last of our transparent balls. Again there are two colourful plastic pieces of plastic at the top and bottom this time red and purple. Inside the ball is a 2D plastic spinner with a picture of a cute tiger on. This spinner spins when the ball is rolled. * Ball 4: The fourth ball made up of 7 vertical strips, this is a really bright colourful ball with each strip being a different colour - we have red, orange, purple, green and blue. 3 of the strips are smooth to touch but the others have different textures including horizontal lines, swirls and bobbles. There is a small gap between each of the strips and they can be twisted to produce a clicking sound. * Ball 5: The final ball is very similar to ball 4, however on this one there are only 5 vertical strips this time in purple, blue, green and orange. The orange strip in the centre is larger in size compared to the other strips on the ball, it features thick grooves for texture whilst the other strips have inverted spots, bobbles and horizontal strips. There are no gaps between the strips on this ball but they can be twisted about to make an identical clicking noise to ball 4. ===Age recommendation=== I purchased these balls for my son when he was around 5 months old, a month earlier than the manufacturers recommended 6 months. As far as I can tell there is no safety reason why these balls cannot be given to a baby under 6 months and my son certainly enjoyed looking at them and holding them. However, only when he was around 9 months did he begin to fully enjoy them and get the most out of them. Of course all babies and children develop at slightly different rates, if in doubt follow the manufacturers advice. ===Our Experience=== My son and I spend a lot of time sitting on his play mat playing with his toys and these activity balls are amongst his favourites, he will quite happily spend 10-15 minutes playing with them before becoming board and moving onto something else. We use the balls in a variety of different ways. My son enjoys simply holding the balls, feeling them and discovering their textures, colours and sounds. He can easily hold the balls in his hands and can pass them back and too rotating them as he stares at them intently. My son is not yet able to twist the segments on balls 4 and 5. The activity balls present an ideal opportunity for learning and I will often discuss the different colours and textures with him or the way in which the characters move or spin within the ball, at 9 months I doubt he really understands what I am going on about, but I feel its never to early to start learning these things. Another game we play is simply rolling the balls around on the floor, he has not developed the ability to roll the balls himself but is fascinated watching me do so. He enjoys me rolling the balls to him as he kicks them excitedly with his legs and feet watching them roll of again in different directions. My son is able to roll himself onto his front and is attempting to crawl, but has not yet quite mastered this skill, however I can imagine he will be chasing after these balls in a few weeks which will certainly add to the fun! A couple of the babies at baby yoga have just started to walk independently and they seem to have a great time tottering around after these activity balls as they roll around the room. Over the past few weeks my son has found a new game to play with the activity balls and he takes great pleasure in it, he has discovered throwing and banging. He likes to hold one ball in his hand and use it to bang into another ball next to him or failing that he just likes to chuck them and watch where they end up. Obviously, he is not able to throw them very hard, but I try and discourage it, he is only just discovering the word no but when I use it I am often met with a cheeky grin. ===Durability=== The balls have been well played with over the past 5 or so months and have remained in an excellent condition. They have been bumped, banged and thrown on a regular basis yet show absolutely no signs of splitting or chipping. I feel they are of an excellent quality, they are extremely durable and I can see them lasting quite sometime to come. ===Additional Information=== When I purchased these activity balls from Amazon, I noticed there were a few people asking if these were suitable for use in the bath, so I thought it was well worth covering this question here in my review. The product packaging quite clearly states that the balls are not suitable for use in water, therefore we have never tried using them in the bath. I can imagine that small amounts of water would be able to seep through parts of the plastic which would ultimately ruin them. ===Final Thoughts=== My son has a wide selection of different toys including plenty of expensive all singing all dancing ones, however these simple cheap activities balls are probably his favourite and most played with toy. He has great fun playing with them, they have a variety of uses plus they are educational too. I would certainly recommend Bright Starts activity balls for babies aged 6 months +.

Great value for money, great for developing coordination and manipulation skills. Each ball is a slightly different weight or movement (due to their construction or the objects inside which may move) so some will roll straight and others will not. A really well contructed set of toys which our son enjoyed exploring the textures of with two hands from a few months old, and is still playing with and chasing around at 12 months old. He is yet to master the twist but has now learned to make them click by rolling them along the floor so is still making new discoveries with them. I now buy for everyone we know who has a baby.

Sadly one of these was broken on arrival - nothing too bad, just the tiger wouldn't spin around in it. For the price it wasn't worth contacting Amazon as they are still good value for 5 plus one that works kind of. The are solidly built and make a nice clack sound when rolled together. The favorite one is the solid one with rings in it as it has different textures. Good product for a reasonable price. Recommended.

The Bright Starts Activity Balls are one of the best toys I have bought for young babies. My daughter had them from about six months old and still occasionally plays with them at the age of two. Two of the balls click when turned, one has a spinner inside, one has a little fish which rattles and the other is like a rain maker filled with beads. Of the five, three are smooth and two textured, and four of the five make noise. All are bright colours and appealing to little ones. They are brilliant as a sensory toy for little ones and my daughter absolutely loved them. I would recommend them.

I bought these for my 7 month old niece and she loves them. Although we haven't had them long, they've already been dropped from quite a height numerous times and haven't cracked or damaged in any way. She is able to hold them firmly in her hands with no problems She really enjoys the 2 rattley ones as they make a decent amount of noise. She enjoys the noise of the ones which you turn different sections of, however can not turn them herself yet. I personally don't see the joy of the one with the disc that turns around inside and my niece hasn't got much interest in it either. For the price, it's a great little toy and has kept my niece very happy over the past week or so.

Bolinhas bem bonitas e detalhadas, cada uma com um atrativo diferente para o bebê.

Ok

I had initially introduced these balls to my daughter when she was 2 months old, and she initially had no interest in them whatsoever. In the past month or so, she has come to love these balls and they are her favorite toys at the moment. They are easy to grasp with little hands, and develops great motor skills in babes who are learning to reach for toys, grab them, swat at them, throw them, chase after them, etc. Simple concept for a toy, but she prefers these balls over anything else on her playmat at this time.

Jouet super mignon mon fils de 7 mois adore les balles et un de mes jouet vieux Fisher Price en avait perdu les tarif des balles Fisher Price était hors de prix sur le site mais là la taille correspond parfaitement et en plus il y a deux deux qualité spéciale un peu plus sensoriel. Je recommande... c est un peu comme un hochet sensoriel, motricité fine... montessori... les balles et les mouvements circulaire facisne a tout âge... même mes grands adorent...

Quality is superb.Thank you Amazon.