Children’s education is very important in our house, as it should be in every household. We have lots of educational items, including books and toys, covering a variety of subjects. One of the twins seems more academical than the other and just loves to learn, he is like a little sponge, especially anything to do with numbers, reading, the human body and more recently countries of the world. When the Oregon Scientific SmartGlobe Myth arrived for review he was delighted, and it sparked an interest in his brother too.
So what is the Oregon Scientific SmartGlobe Myth? It is more than just a rotating globe that shows the countries of the world, it is so much more! It is also STEM approved (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).
The Oregon Scientific SmartGlobe Myth is a 2 in 1 globe with 2 modes; Day and Night. It shows Earth by day, showing the countries and oceans and turns into a constellation globe at night, overlaying the constellations over the Earth.
Day Mode shows political boundaries, oceans, country names and capital cities. Night Mode shows an illuminated star map showing 88 constellations, turning the globe into an impressive room decoration and night light.
As a globe it is doing everything it needs to, but this one goes further! It also features 3D Augmented Reality (a smartphone or tablet is required to use this, the app can be downloaded for free from the Apple Store and Google Play), and features extra information such as landscape, animals, landmarks, weather dinosaurs and a quiz.
Along with the very education 3D Augmented Reality it also has Earth facts and 12 Constellation myths stories so that children can learn more about their world and universe. And if that wasn’t enough it also comes with Audio Stories which features 10 fairy tales; Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, 3 Little Pigs, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Bears, Jack and the Beanstalk, The Ugly Duckling, Princess and the Pea and The Gingerbread Man.
The globe measures 251 x 232 x 307mm, so is quite large. It is very detailed and finding the country names, capital cities and the constellations in night mode is easy and clear. It spins quite smoothly and freely on its axis.
To access the night light/constellation globe, stories and facts is very easy. On the base of the globe are the buttons to turn on/off and relevant buttons for what option you want; for example, if you wanted to hear a story at bedtime you just press the fairy tales button and use the arrow keys to cycle through the stories (there is also a pause button should it be required). The sound is very clear (although it is in an American accent).
The night light/constellation globe has 3 brightness levels; you press the brightness button 1, 2 or 3 times to cycle to the level of brightness required.
Overall, this is a great fun and educational learning tool. The boys love it as they are learning where other countries are, and this is helping them greatly. While they have no need for a night light, they do like putting it on at bedtime and seeing the constellations. They do also like listening to the facts and occasionally the stories (they prefer to read at bedtime, which is much better than having a story read to them).
My only small negative about this globe is the size of the app for the 3D Augmented Reality, it is very large at 765mb so will take a fair amount of space on your phone or tablet but it does contain lots of information, making the globe much more interactive and more educational as they can learn about things within the country they are looking at.
A very cool, great quality educational tool that would look great in any child’s bedroom and will help them learn more about the world we live in. A globe with an encyclopaedia (when using the augmented reality).
Requires 3xAA batteries. Can also be powered by USB (adapter not supplied).
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £39.99
Available to buy from Amazon here.
Disclosure: I received this item for free for the purposes of writing an honest and impartial review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This review uses an affiliate link which I may receive a small commission from if you purchase through the link.
