"This is a great idea but it may not be until the 'Grab it 2' before all the kinks are out of it. "

---from the review

-----------------

Sidebar :

-----------------

No sidebar comments for this review. Yet...

-----------------

Feel free to contribute. As always, review submissions are accepted!

------------------

Grab It! 

(also referred to as: The Grab It Crane Game)

Order Link unavailable at this time (see review!)

Review by Steve

Here's a typical case of a good idea marred by being "rushed" to store shelves before it could be fully tested. But hey; what a cute idea, huh? A table top arcade-style crane game...for any home party table! Birthday parties could have a crane game station to entertain guests. Kids could have fun "winning" small candies instead of grabbing them by the bushel from the candy jar. What an amusing idea this is. Unfortunately; "cute idea" is all The Grab-It! Crane Game seems to offer.

You may have noticed how hard it is to find this toy at all. I'm with you, pal. A friend alerted me to this amusing little thing when visiting a small gift shop. A separate consumer had pre-ordered the only one in stock. The race was on to get one too, with at least five kids in our immediate family, and when it comes to arcades, they all love the "crane game"...! Trouble is: Neither Toys R Us, nor K.B. Toys, nor F.A.O. had even a single link for this item. This should've been my first warning sign, but I was obsessed. Let this review be a testament to a similarly obsessed parent/friend/relative, that things are never as good as they sound, even if, again, seriously; this was one cute idea.

Not that this is one big flame war. Let me start the main body of this review by admitting; this toy actually works. It's pretty amazing that a small plastic "crane game" could work it all, and as long as you can deal with the various limitations (and we'll get to those next), the device works perfectly. What's more; its a working "piggy bank" of sorts, with each play requiring a coin (The unit comes free with a bag of "funny money" plastic coins, for littler tykes). In addition; although the game has a frustrating time limit similar to an arcade, the music that plays is carnival-style and fun, and if you win, a round of applause is heard. As I often say at this point: so far, so good...For now anyway.

Now come the "cons." As I said; this toy really works, if you accept its limitations. For one thing both the top opening for inserting prizes, and the winning prize "chute," are terribly small. This negates any reasonable sized "beanie" or similar prize, but it also limits the types of candy you can put in as well. Even a small bag of M&M's won't fit in either the entrance or exit chutes, and if you simply "crumple" it so it does fit; be forewarned. This small opening is with reason; namely, the small crane.

Consider: how strong could a "crane" be that is smaller than the prize chute? About enough for a gumball, a Tootsie Roll, or a small rubber ball, but...not much stronger. The one-two punch of small chute and crane limits the prizes considerably. I wanted to put little beanie babies into it and the chute is too small. I wanted to put mini M&M bags into the toy but couldn't, because the crane is too small (and therefore can't pick up anything larger than a small candy). Mind you; the unit works good for candies and prizes just its size --just about any itty bitty prize from a typical 25-cent toy dispenser will work-- but seriously; if a crane game works best with only gumballs, why not buy a gumball machine?

Overall, this is another fine example of a good idea gone sour for the silliest of reasons. There is simply no reason this unit could not have been made into the definitive Christmas toy with just one more trip to the drawing board. What good is a crane game that dispenses only gum and Tootsie Rolls? Go to the arcade and see for yourself. Crane games filled with toys are barely filled due to overuse; crane games filled with candy are filled to the brim. Kids don't mind a challenge to win a small stuffed animal prize, but come on; who wants to work hard for a small roll of candy? Here's hoping that there is a "Grab-It 2" in the near future, that answers this dilemma. For now, steer clear of the so-called Grab-It, because what it grabs just isn't much. Sorry.

---Steve