Setting Up Mic.o.mic isn’t a brand I’d heard of before we were sent some to review. H though had obviously seen them in a shop somewhere before, as he kept trying to tell us where he had seen it before. Mic.o.mic Build & Play toys are made from a good quality plastic and are assembled using a clip and pin system. If you think they have that solid, reliable German look about them, then you’re right they are made in Germany.
Mic.o.mic is very easy to understand and the instructions were clear to follow. We were up and running immediately.
In Play
H (5.5 years) is quite dexterous for a boy his age and found it easy, generally speaking, to put the models together. The small boat was put together pretty quickly with very minimal assistance from me. I was able to get on with small jobs in the same room while he got on with building it. When I had to help it was only with the trickiest bits and H knew exactly what he wanted Mummy to do to the boat.
We also tried out the medium motor scooter and sidecar. Like the boat this was recommended for 5+, but was a bit trickier to do. H needed more help with this one and against it was help with getting trickier bits on, rather than understanding what needed doing. Getting the wheels on required quite a lot of strength and I think most children will need help. Note to parents: make sure you are putting the correct wheel on the appropriate axle as they are difficult to remove if you get them wrong (speaks the voice of experience).
You can take them apart and rebuild them if you want. The plastic is quite robust so this is a realistic option. The boat survived a play session with a preschooler and a session in the bath (it does float) without mishap.
What stopped play?
The boat was a complete success and H was soon looking through the mic.o.mic catalogue to decide what he’d like to make next. However, we had a few minor problems with the scooter and found that a few bits seemed to come off quite easily (like the luggage at the back).
Overall Henry and I both like mic.o.mic. It’s a good quality construction toy that can be played with when you have assembled your vehicle (it does this better than Lego which often seems to come apart on us). It’s not really a toy that you can experiment with to create different designs though.
I found Bob did not have the strength at 6 1/2 to push the pegs in, knew the concept of that to do but physically couldnt. Great toys and brilliant for so-ordination and dexterity.
Elaine Livingstone recently posted..Project 366 227/366
H could do most of them, but some needed help or needed to use the tool. Liked your review – was good to see other kids using it.
Do the parts get easier to assemble once they have been used a few times?
I wouldn’t say that they got easier in the sense of needing to be ‘worn in’ so to speak, but H got better at handling them with practice.
Thanks for the review. It’s really annoying when the parts keep coming off.