EvenFlo SmartSteps Exersaucer Entertainer
by Evenflo
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List Price: Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of EvenFlo SmartSteps Exersaucer Entertainer
Customer Review: Great product, EXCELLENT customer service, a must for any baby!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I am on my 3rd Exersaucer from EvenFlo because it is the best one I have seen in 5 years. My 1st child had one, got rid of of not knowing we were gonna have another child...then got another when baby 2 came...and now we are on our 3rd.
It comes completely disassembled, but isn't that hard to put together with only a screwdriver being needed. The most important thing when putting it together is to make sure you don't overtighten the screws because that will cause the screws to come through the plastic later in use (I know this because I did it with the 1st one I owned). But other than that, simple!!
The toys on the saucer are the best ones I have seen on similar items...the right colors and patterns that attract and keep babies attention...and there are a lot of them! What I like best about the talking pieces on this saucer is the fact that they are much louder than other baby toys. This may not be a good thing for other parents, but I don't care if I miss a few words on the TV or something else as long as baby can actually hear what the toy is saying is more important to me. Often times, baby toys aren't loud enough for baby to hear...or they are too loud...this one is perfect (in my opinion), and also has a low/high/off setting. The only negative I have to say about this is how hard it is to clean because there are so many toys...lots of nooks and crannies for drool to seep into (and my baby is a drooler!!).
While this saucer is pretty large, it can fold to about 6 inches high (after simply removing the top toy arch). I find this option pretty much useless unless you are trying to pack it into your car...but it is foldable.
Lastly, mine arrived with 3 broken toys. Amazon is great and would have just sent me a new one and let me return this one, but I didn't feel like digging through a new box to get the new pieces out (then packaging it all back up to return to them) so I figured I would just call EvenFlo and discuss it with them. After being on the phone for only 5 minutes, they agreed to ship me the 3 new pieces and I don't have to ship the broken ones back...yeah!! Love Amazon, love EvenFlo, love the saucer!! :-)
Customer Review: Finally my hands are free!
Summary: 5 Stars
My baby is the type that needs to be held or she begins to whimper. I was against buying an entertainer because we have a small place and I was afraid I'd have no where to put it. I began to watch my 2.5 month old really like to bounce, sit up, and reach for stuff and thought, you know, maybe we can put the coffee table upstairs and make some room for one. I still had my doubts that it would buy me anything in the long run. I was dead wrong.
After reading reviews, I decided on this exersaucer because of the bright colors and activities. You can also bounce with this one too plus it's stationary so I don't have to worry about her ending up elsewhere in the house like the ones with rollers. Once we got it home, my husband put it together and did mention that it took some patience to assemble. We found it to be very sturdy and solid. My baby was almost 3 months by the time we bought it and put her in it. We surrounded her body with towels so she could sit upright. At 3 months old she already is bouncing in it, playing with the roller, and she just located the electronic music/abc/shape/counting book and had a blast pushing the buttons. At the age she is, I do not leave her unattended at all though because she can't sit up on her own just yet...but I highly recommend if you are going to pay this much money for an exersaucer, get it while they are about 2 months + ..don't wait until 6 months. I'd say it keeps her busy for a good 20 to 30 mins, it varies. That is pretty long for this age.
Another plus is that it folds up and has a carry handle to pack off to grandma's. Some people mentioned that the dye comes off on one of the toys, I haven't experienced that yet but I plan on making sure she doesn't have her best clothes on just in case it does happen when she figures out how to put them in her mouth. I can't imagine that they would use a dye that would be toxic to babies on a baby toy. Evenflo is a household name and is a good solid baby brand.
All in all, it's definitely worth 100 bucks and I consider myself a scrooge on our one income household! I bought everything else used...so this was our splurge toy.
Customer Review: Do not buy this thing!
Summary: 1 Stars
I wanted to get the best exersaucer for my son, so I researched them for a week---- I spent hours on the computer trying to find one that was educational, fun and safe. I thought that this was it. Unfortunately, it had great reviews, and it was one of the most expensive which I mistook to mean "quality." First of all, it was a pain to put together. But once it was done, I thought it was worth it. Then, there are butterflies that attach to the springs, which of course a child is going to grab and play with. So the butterflies bent, and then the springs got stuck and the exersaucer could no longer bounce. So my husband had to break the butterflies off-- and even then, we thought "it's minor" and I still wasn't too upset. But then this morning, my son was playing in it, and I noticed he had something all over his cheeks. I went to look closer, and realized the stickers that are on the "book" had shredded from getting wet from him putting it in his mouth. I was outraged. I mean, why would they put stickers on things when they know that babies put everything in their mouth? Hopefully the glue that was on the stickers wasn't toxic! But even so, you don't want your child ingesting paper!! And as other people have said, the cell phone holder is very dangerous, as were the butterflies before we took them off-- all have potential to poke your child in the eye. I am very disappointed with Evenflo-- they did not have a child's best interest in mind when they made this, it seems they are just looking to make money at our children's expense. I tried to go to the evenflo webpage, but it hasn't connected for the past 2 hours. Hopefully I can get some kind of refund on this, otherwise I just threw away $100. Definitely do not buy this product!
*UPDATE* After talking to Evenflo, they will only give me "replacement" parts for up to 90 days.... which really isn't what I wanted. The new parts are going to be the same as the old parts, which aren't safe. It's a shame-- I will not be buying any more products from Evenflo, and I will make sure all of my friends and family spread the word as well.
Customer Review: Great entertainer especially for little boys!!
Summary: 4 Stars
This exersaucer is great for many reasons one being the boys(6 and 7 mths when they received) love it. For younger kids I suggest placing a rolled up blanket in between them(in front of tummy) and the front part so they can be supported. We did that for a while until they could stand and support themselves.
The adjustable height is esp. nice along with the bouncy feature and 360 rotation. Your kids will go crazy when they figure out they can jump up and down on this thing. It makes a rucus of noise but they have so much fun doing it.
Previous reviews mentioned it being too overwhelming and I can see that when babies are younger. But as they grow older the many features offers many opportunites to play for them and they wont get bored easily.
The thing I LOVE most other that they love playing in it is that the seat cover is removable and washable. It has been through at least 10 washes from getting food and other bodily fluids - so it quite durable and easy to snap back into place.
Cons for us:
Batteries were dead in about 3 days!!
The butterfly toy broke off!!! HAZARD warning to parents!! Kids were trying to pull it close to chew on it and it snapped right off.
In the beginning the kids were obsessed with the phone holder more than anything - really not a con but a bummer for us ;-)since it is not cheap.
There is one toy that sticks out vertically and can be pulled by kid and snap back towards their face -quite dangerous. This hasn't happened mainly bc I think it is partially hidden by the hanging toys.
It is an eyesore in our living room - really is obnoxious looking, but since kids love it we have no choice!!
It was a good investment overall for 2 very playful, active boys.
Now that they are older - they no longer want to stand inside of it but rather they use it to pull themselves upright and they stand there and play with all the toys.
Customer Review: Best One At The Time
Summary: 4 Stars
From about 5 months + our girls have loved this toy. Sure, it's big and bulky and they'll only use it a few months. But doesn't that go for all kids toys and equipment?! For this one at least it's more interactive for baby to help themselve to toys that can't roll away or fall away while they play and it works even for a baby who can't yet support themselves up.
I read the only negative review. First, all the toys were expected to be chewed on by baby, especially the purple flower rattle, my girls both knawed on that and we've never had the dye rub off. I'm not saying it couldn't be possible but perhaps in this case there was a problem in that toys making---I'd be sure to let the manufacturer know first and they often will issue a replacement part free of charge. We found that the catapiller musical bar (where the flower rattle is attached to) is quite loud when it plays---I don't mind loud kids toys or "noisemakers" as Grandma calls them lol but it was the loudest thing we had for baby and since they are subject to sit right there next to it (with only low or loud volume controls) I put a piece of tape over the speaker holes and now it appears to be a "medium" setting so that works.
The 4 butterflies that are stationery and just for looks, almost out of babies grasp, on each of the 4 corners make the toy LOOK busier than it is, like I said they don't really move and like the poor review stated they don't come out once installed so item will no longer fit in original box. Does that mean a store won't take it back??? I've never had a problem with a return that no longer fits in it's box---especially when you still have the box and you take it in citing malfunction (i.e. the dye bleeds off the toy, etc).
We picked this one because it looked the busiest of any other model at the store. It's cute and my kids have enjoyed it.