Guest Review: Robyn's DSi Review

First I would like to say I am honored to be a featured review. My name is Robyn, I’m a mother and business owner. My company, Abigail's Boutique Designs, has been reviewed here by the lovely Sadie and Jenelle.

On to the review. My son received the new Nintendo Dsi for Christmas & retiring his old ds lite to his sister. The new Dsi is very similar to the lite version but has some very nice upgrades. It has 2 cameras that are 3 mega pixels and the take a decent photo in good light. You can alter the pics with funny borders or distort the pics with 11 different lens options (one of my son's favorite features). It also has a sound recorder that you can do some fun stuff with.




The new start up menu includes system settings, game card, camera, sound, shop, download play, picto chat, and downloaded games. You do have to purchase points to use in the shop for games, music, ect. But once you purchase a browser you can surf the web. There is also a neat feature to upload your pics to facebook. You can play music on the Dsi but it will only work with AAC files so all the mp3 files you have will have to be converted with itunes or some other music editor.

A few other specs are : 
-no longer plays gameboy advance games 
-thinner making it more comfortable to grip
-replaceable battery
-removable storage device
-matte finish
-only works with Dsi charging cable


GOOD: Cost is about the same as a ds lite. Has more features to keep you busy. Great resale value. Since it has the Dsi shop you can download games straight to it so you don’t have to worry about the kids losing them.

BAD: Can only play downloaded games that are on the system so when its full you have to swap out games on cards. 

OVERALL: I would say if you're in the market for a portable game system this is a great option. However if you're upgrading a smaller child from the lite I don’t think it is worth shelling out another $169 for options that are somewhat difficult to maneuver.


Robyn is a mother and business owner and we are pleased to have her as one of our guest reviewers! Please check out her shop at this link, and let her know what you thought of her review by leaving comments below! :)

Just Dance 2: Sadie's Review

Some of you read my review on Just Dance for the Wii. If you haven't already, go check it out so you can easily compare the two games. :) Just Dance 2 has brand new songs from popular artists like the Pussycat Dolls and Ke$ha, as well as old favorites from Cher and Ike & Tina Turner! Just Dance 2 has over 40 songs to choose from, and I knew about half of them (just like with Just Dance). 


The little characters on the bottom of the screen did nothing but confuse us when dancing, and it was kind of hard to switch places (in duet mode) because we have such a small area to begin with, but we had a blast playing this game. 


The mix of new and old songs, fun dance moves, and "sweat" mode make this a game you will want to buy! I priced this game at my local game store and it was $50, but Amazon has it for $29! It is definitely going on my Christmas list. 


Now, more about the "sweat" mode. I love it! You choose the level you want to do, and then the game keeps track of your "sweat points" until you reach your goal! It is set up to where you work out with this game every day. Everyone knows how boring workout videos can be, so this is exactly what you need to switch it up a bit!


Good: Variety of songs, different dance modes and challenges, sweat mode, exciting graphics (you're center stage in the Pussycat Doll song), great price if purchased from Amazon. My 9 year old played the game and did well, so it's not too difficult either.


Bad: In duet mode, it gets a bit confusing. 


Overall: I give this game 5 out of 5 stars. It has everything you'd want in a workout video and video game combined! I definitely recommend it over Just Dance.


Stay tuned for Jenelle's upcoming review of Just Dance Kids!

Just Dance: Sadie's Review

I gotta tell ya, even though I really enjoyed playing this game, I got bored with it really fast! Out of 32 songs, I knew maybe half of them. Out of that half, I liked about 10 or so. Eye of the Tiger, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, and Womanizer - those songs were all played a million times while we had this game! Others, like Louie Louie and Fame, were not played at all.

Dance Off mode is awesome, but you need a lot of room to be able to dance next to each other. It was a tight squeeze for us.

This game got our whole family up and moving. My 9 year old just about mastered the game, and my girlfriend and I competed with each other and had a blast. As far as the 5 year old and 4 year old, they enjoyed it but couldn't actually keep up. They had just as much fun watching us, though. It's one of those games that everyone enjoys.

I think it would be really neat if they'd come out with a game where you can download your own music, and dance to it. Not sure if that will be possible any time in the near future, but I bet somebody is already working on it! Then the game would never get boring because you could switch the songs out after you've played them a little while.

Just Dance 2 was recently released, and we will be renting this game instead of buying it. Just Dance is just one of those games that you can love for a few weeks and then it will just sit on the shelf and collect dust. If you rent it and love it, then you can still buy it. :) There are 40+ songs on Just Dance 2, including hits by Ke$ha, Rhianna, and the Ting Tings. When viewing the song list, I knew about half of the songs just like with the first game. I'm excited to try it, but will not be rushing out to spend $50+ on a game I will most likely get bored with in a week or two.

GOOD: This game has a variety of songs. You can dance to New Kids on the Block, Britney Spears, MC Hammer, and more all on one game. I love variety! Dance off Mode was challenging, and the game definitely encourages you to move. You only have to use the controllers, instead of having to drag out the balance board and/or dance pad. Now that Just Dance 2 came out, Just Dance is only about $30 which is pretty good for a wii game. The song doesn't cut off if you miss too many beats (like with Guitar Hero and similar games), which is also nice.

BAD: After about a week, I started to get bored. I tried different modes and songs, and it kept me going for another week or two, but I think this is more of a "rental" game unless you have friends over frequently that would like to play (though you'd be great at it and they'd just be learning so I'm not sure how challenging that would be).

Overall: I will give this game 3 stars out of 5, because it is affordable.. it is fun.. and it does have variety.