Seven Years, Three Boys: The Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes Musical Toy Review
A 7-year test of the Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes musical toy across three kids. Durability, cleaning, and travel use, straight from real play.
The Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes musical toy is worth buying if you want one of the more durable baby einstein toys for travel and car rides. After 7 years across 3 kids, it still wipes clean, still lights up, and still plays all 10 melodies. Buy it, especially if your kid refuses pacifiers.
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How this review was made: written from my own video review of this product. Every opinion here is my own, from using it myself.
Quick Verdict
We’ve had this for at least 7 years, through 3 kids, and it still works. That’s not a feature on the box, that’s just what happened in my house. This is the baby einstein toys pick because it’s survived 7 years and 3 kids without failure.
Buy if you:
- have a baby who won’t take a pacifier
- need something that survives spit-up and crevice cleaning
- want a toy small enough for the car or stroller
- already have other Baby Einstein toys and want the travel-friendly one
Skip if you:
- need fresh batteries right out of the box (the demo batteries don’t last)
- want a bigger activity toy with more buttons and parts
- already own one of the larger Baby Einstein toys and don’t need a second
| Dimensions | 5.0″ H x 4.8″ W x 1.1″ L |
|---|---|
| Batteries | 2 AA (demo batteries included) |
| Melodies | 10 classical tracks, one button cycles through |
| Volume | Off, Low, High switch |
| Age Range | 3-36 months |
| Care | Wipe clean with damp cloth and mild soap |
A Toy That’s Outlasted Three Kids
I’ve had this Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes musical toy for at least 7 years at this point. My youngest is one, I’ve got a seven-year-old, and I’ve got a four-year-old, and all three have gone through this exact toy. That’s three kids on one piece of plastic, and it’s still working the way it did on day one. I can’t recommend this enough as a durability claim, it’s outlived three kids’ worth of chewing, dropping, and car rides.
What Nine Bucks Buys You in Baby Einstein Toys
At around ten dollars list, the Take Along Tunes sits at the cheap end of baby einstein toys, but it doesn’t act cheap. It’s 5 inches tall, 4.8 inches wide, barely over an inch thick, runs on 2 AA batteries, and cycles through 10 recreated classical melodies off one big button. There’s an off, low, and high volume switch, which matters more than it sounds like it should. The screen lights up in sync with the music, and the caterpillar handle is built specifically so small hands can grab and carry it. Compared to the bigger Baby Einstein toys we own, this one wins on portability. The others are great too, my kids still love them, but they don’t fit in a diaper bag or a cupholder the way this one does. See it on amazon and you’ll see the size difference against the other Baby Einstein toy lineup right in the photos.
Spit-Up, Car Rides, and the Real Cleaning Test
My second kid spit up constantly, and that turned into an accidental durability test for this toy. All we had to do was grab a disinfecting wipe and get into every crevice, there’s not a single small area you can’t reach with a wipe, which is rare for a toy with buttons and seams. That’s a real design point, not a marketing line, because I’ve owned other kids’ toys where the grooves trap gunk no wipe will touch. On the volume switch specifically, I like that it’s a clear, physical on and off, which matters when you don’t want to hear this thing going off in the playroom in the middle of the night. For travel, it’s been in the car and the stroller more times than I can count. My one year old won’t take a binky, never has, and this toy is basically his binky now. We hand it to him in the car and he’s set.
Is This the Baby Einstein Toy to Start With?
Yes, if you’re picking one from the lineup of baby einstein toys, this is the one I’d hand a friend first. The Baby Einstein brand has been a hit in my house, but the bigger toys stay home, they don’t fit in a cupholder or a diaper bag side pocket. This one has survived seven years, three kids, spit-up wipe-downs, and more car rides than I’ve counted, and it has never once failed to turn on. The other Baby Einstein toys we own are bigger and great in their own way, my kids still play with those too, but if my house caught fire and I grabbed one baby toy on the way out, it’s this one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Take Along Tunes need new batteries right away?
Yes, for regular use. It ships with 2 AA batteries meant for demo purposes only, so swap them for fresh ones before you hand it over for daily play, otherwise you’ll be replacing them sooner than expected.
Can toddlers past infancy still use this toy?
Yes. The stated range is 3 to 36 months, and in my house all three kids used it well into toddlerhood, not just as infants. My four-year-old and seven-year-old both went through a phase with it before passing it down.
How does this compare to the bigger Baby Einstein toys?
The bigger Baby Einstein toys are better as floor or activity-mat toys, more buttons, more stimulation, more to grab at. But they stay home. This one is 5 inches tall and barely an inch thick, so it lives in the diaper bag, fits a stroller cupholder, and wipes completely clean in under a minute. Different use case, not a straight upgrade.
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