TONKA Chuck and Friends Talkers product reviews

After getting a chance to play with all 3 of these cute little vehicles, I noticed my 17 month old seemed to reach for the blue tow truck the most. Although he seemed to enjoy the others as well, I noticed that the button on the tow truck were easier for him to push, whereas the dump truck's cargo bed interferred with it's button, and the fire engine's button was a lot harder to push down.
These are very sturdy, little trucks, as was proven by my son deciding they made a great noise when sent crashing off the coffee table onto the floor several times in a row. With flashing lights, bright colours, and the ability to "talk" (although the "randomness" of this feature seemed faulty... it keeps repeating the same saying several times in a row on many occasions!! Maybe these things should come with a set of ear plugs for the parents??), they are the perfect toy to keep a toddler entertained for ages, and just the right size for taking along on trips to keep them occupied while out and about too. Although we don't have a sandpit, they also strike me as the perfect sandpit toy to help a youngster move the sand about... although sand may kill the talking ability (hmm, that may not be such a bad side effect after all!! LOL!).
Tonka have always been known for their tough, kid proof vehicles that are ideal for both indoor and outdoor play... "Chuck and friends" prove that is still very much the case!!

It's not often I enjoy trying to objectively assess a toddlers' toy myself, but in this case it was a real pleasure. It's a good size for little hands, and amazingly durable. The bodywork is made from a soft and pliable plastic that is gum- and tooth-friendly, and with some sections painted there is even a variety of texture for little fingers to explore.

The sound effects of "Chuck" were cute, with a series of catchphrases and engine noises, which really captured the attention of my youngest lad. Typical boy, he dived on a toy truck as though it was candy, and proceeded to drive it around the room like a maniac. He got *seriously* upset when it came time to pack it away and go to bed, so it has become a bit of a favourite (whenever he sees it).

Ovall, this is a very cool toy, though I would have liked to have seen it in a lower price bracket more in line with the features. Without a motor of any kind, it requires a lot more hands-on interaction. Though this is, as far as I am concerned, a great bonus, it's not all that attention-grabbing for the toddlers unless someone else provides the action.

My younger family members are active little tykes and often love to come over to stay at Uncle's during the weekends because I apparently have a collection of some of the coolest toys. (They love me doing these reviews!) Of course the smallest of them doesn't understand what all the fuss is about and they just dive in and explore anything they don't recognise. On a recent visit, they spotted one of these. Because of a childhood love of fire engines, I chose this one to review, Boomer the Fire Truck.
To get through the good bits, this rapidly proved itself to be supremely kid-safe, as one of the wee ones promptly did what babies do best, and give it the double-whammy gumming-of-death and drool-of-doom tests, both of which it passed with flying colours. It didn't break or suffer any harm from being chomped on or drowned in spittle, which quite impressed all the adults sitting around gasbagging and watching tiny terrors at play.
It is a free-wheeling vehicle, and as such has no motor or self-drive abilities, but can be pushed along at any speed. This meant that it took many a leap-of-faith off the coffee table onto the hardwood floors. Again, no detectable harm suffered from it's harsh meetings with a solid surface. Once more, impressive.
I did share concern with some of the other adults with one of the sequence of randomised voice clips though. In my opinion, no talking firetruck should EVER make a comment like "Hey, where's the fire? No need to rush!" It just sent the wrong message entirely. If there's a fire I WANT the truck to be keen to rush!
All in all, apart from one small bad choice by the voice-clip crew, this was one very popular, thus very effective, toy that way enjoyed by all of the little ones. Maybe a little pricy by some standards, but I would still be interested in buying a couple more for when the tamariki come around.