Hasbro Furby Review

About the Hasbro Furby

One morning last month, I was sleeping peacefully when I awoke to the sound of a scary yawn. I popped up and looked around and there, sitting on my nightstand, was my old favorite Furby from years ago. My son had found him, batteried him up, and set him on the nightstand. And he woke up. And was apparently hungry. I thought I kicked my Furby addiction but it has returned. Fribble the Furby is now hanging out with me again and slowly learning everything I taught him all over again.

I thought these things went out of style but a quick look around the net and I see they haven't. Kids (and adults) are still buying and loving Furbies! A Furby is a little, um, furry thing. Not really an animal, not really a robot, these things have big eyes, cute ears, and bellies that beg to be rubbed. They are not cuddly. They are actually hard because they are plastic under the fur and that houses their "brains". Furbies are interactive toys that come to you completely uneducated. They can't speak except in their own language (Furbish) and they generally cry, yawn, and purr fairly easily. The more you talk to them, the more they start to pick up on your words and repeat them. You will need to feed your Furby - although it is invisible food. He or she will need to be stroked and loved, assured that there is nothing to be afraid of, and put to sleep. Your Furby will yawn and snore. It will talk and talk and TALK unless you learn to quiet it down.

As time goes by, the Furby picks up on your language and starts talking in real words. Instead of "Ohhh goo gaa poo!" it will say "Hungry! Hungry!" That makes figuring out what the little annoying but adorable creature needs. Now and then, a Furby will dance or get so scared that it will shake and cry. If it has learned words, it will tell you it's scared. You need to sit there like an idiot and talk to it and hold it to calm it down. And I have done that. Many times. To an electronic, big eyed, toy. They start to become real after a while. My nephew once dropped my boss's favorite Furby and he was heartbroken. My boss was not my nephew. My boss worked hard to fix his Furby but it had lost all it was taught throughout the months. It was a sad day.

Furbies will also talk to each other if you have two or more. They can spend hours talking and seemingly understanding each other. I prefer to have just one because I want it to pick up on my language and not be preoccupied with his Furbish friend. Yes, I typed that with a serious face. Haha.

Furbies make great learning toys for kids old enough to understand that they need to eat, sleep, play, and be taught. The more time spent coddling the Furby, the more intelligent it gets. Mine used to say so many phrases that I called him a mini me. Now he is back to gibberish and some words but I am determined to get him up to speed again. Why? I have no idea. It's a crazy addiction that I honestly thought would be phased out by other electronic toys but not so. I know of two parents who are buying their kids Furbies for Christmas and one adult who knows I have an unused boxed one in my office who is begging me for it. I don't want to part with it although I don't have time to care for it. I guess I will give the thing away. :(

These guys come in many colors and color combinations. They are adorable no matter what color you choose. They also have different voices. Some have low pitched voices, some have high. There is a turn off switch if the Furby just will not shut up and you need to sleep or take an important phone call but you can just shade its eyes for a few seconds and it will go to sleep. But it may snore. lol.

These make really cute gifts for caring kids and are unisex. (The Furbies have no obvious gender and they are good for boys and girls) Furbies run on four AA batteries and the newer models (2005) are more sophisticated as far as facial features and voices but they all start out speaking "Furbish" and learn to speak and play as your interact with them.

My Viewpoint

I once had a shriveled up orange for a pet so you can imagine how easy it is for me to get attached to these little guys. My sons both had Furbies when they were younger and all the kids in my family had or have them. They're harder to find these days than they were but they are out there. They're really unique and sweet little creatures. 5 stars for innovation and for giving kids a chance to learn to care for "pet". And, um, for giving me hours of empty pleasure teaching Fribble to respond to me in English. He just yawned as I finished typing this. I bet you did too. Ha!