Fisher-Price Dora the Explorer: My Talking Backpack Review

Kids love toys that are interactive, make noise, and/or have flashing lights. They also love toys that are based on some of their favorite television shows. One of my two- year olds favorite shows is Dora the Explorer and her infatuation with this education program led us to purchase the Fisher Price Dora the Explorer Talking Backpack, a toy based on one of the characters from the show.

Toy Commentary:

Dora the Explorer is an educational cartoon program and it ranks as my two- year old daughter's favorite cartoon. Not only is the show educational in a general way, it also includes Spanish words and phrases to help children learn a different language. These facts make Dora the Explorer different from most other children's programs and place it in a class all its own.

My little girl has owned this for several months now and as much as she loves Dora the Explorer, she is only lukewarm on this product. A few simple examinations make it easy to see why. For one, there are no lights or any other visual stimulation. The toy makes the sayings in the Backpack voice- just like on the television show- but there are too few of them. The only one that gets my girl's attention is when Backpack sings the "Backpack" song, which is taken directly from the show. The other sayings that Backpack says on this toy are nice for helping learn Spanish words, but there aren't enough of them to matter very much.

Yet another small complaint I must make is with the four accessories. There is a camera, telescope, compass, and map. There are some small images of Dora and other television show crew members on the camera and compass, but the telescope is plain. Also, none of these four accessories actually "does" anything. The telescope is nothing more than an empty tube made from plastic. I think a little more imagination would have made these accessories much better.

One positive point that comes to mind is the storage space inside the Backpack. This toy isn't really that large, but it features an open space that can be used for carrying other things from place to place. My little girl has emptied out the accessories and tossed them aside. In their place, she uses the inside of Backpack to store crayons and other small objects. She likes to press Backpack's mouth and listen to the sayings more than anything, so she decided it made sense to eliminate the things she doesn't like, replace them with things she does like, and enjoy the sayings by pressing the mouth.

Bottom Line Viewpoint:

Overall, Fisher Price Dora the Explorer Talking Backpack is a moderately enjoyable toy that has potential to be something much greater. From what I know, there are two different versions of this backpack and the other one has different accessories. It might be a little more fun than this version, depending on the accessories. But even with better accessories, this toy would still have a few shortcomings. When you add everything together, you end up with a toy that is decent, but nothing great. Young fans of Dora the Explorer will like it, but even they will have a few reservations about it, making the Dora the Explorer Talking Backpack and average toy overall.