Gearhead Mom

Monday, January 26, 2009

Post Holiday Round-up: Lame or Game? GeoTrax GeoAir Mega Set

Posted by Jenny M. @ 9:09 AM

First in a series of Post-Holiday Round-up:  Lame or Game? is the chronicle of one gift with promise that didn’t deliver. 
As far as holiday disappointments go, let’s begin with the GeoTrax GeoAir Mega Set, which my mom bought for her Grandparents’ Cache of Cool Stuff.  This toy looks undeniably cool in the box, in the store.  One has only to begin assembly to realize that while it may be cool for kids, it could cause parents to overheat. 

First of all, it is, in fact, MEGA.  Its footprint is such that it’s not likely you’re going to keep this baby assembled in your house unless you have a wing dedicated to GeoTrax.  And because the assembly process (which involves referring continually to both the instructions AND the picture on the front of the box) is maddening, this toy’s practicality loses major points.  After taking the plane’s tracks apart several times (yes, this “plane” functions more like a monorail), I finally got the loops right and the junction between plane and train figured out (Don’t you dare scoff at me:  the plane loops over an air traffic tower, over a barn and bridge, and then travels upside down inside the barn and under the bridge—you get that right the first time!). 
My five-year-old daughter was excited to launch the aircraft with the hand-held remote.  It was fairly easy for her to snap on the plane and “drive” it with the remote.  She had the technique down in no time and loved “freezing” the plane when it was upside down on the track.  And I will admit, it’s pretty fun to watch that plane make its way (at one speed, natch) around the loops and under the bridge, etc.  What my daughter didn’t love was when the airplane “froze” on its own.  Namely, on parts of the track where it twisted into a loop and the seams between tracks created a barrier.  That dilemma was more than a little annoying, since the airplane made a grating noise each time it got stuck.  And then my daughter made her own frustrated grating sound that required one of us to go over and free the dang plane to stop both irritating noises.  My mom and I tried a number of fix-its, including bending those tracks the opposite way, and even reassembled various parts…but our conclusion is that there is an irreparable design flaw.  *Sigh*. 
Among the toy’s other faults:  When juxtaposed with the motorized plane, the train you have to push around the tracks to locomote looks…well, BOOORING.  There are not enough other interesting aspects of this toy to engage more than one or two kiddoes.  And YOU KNOW they are going to fight over the remote/plane.  Combined with the price tag, my verdict is:  SKIP IT. 
Next up in the Round-up:  learn about one motorized toy that made the cut. 

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