Citiblocs Review

Over the summer holidays the Tiny Toy Reviewers' Grandma bought them a box of Citiblocs for days when the weather wasn't so great, (so given the weather in July and August the Citiblocs got a lot of use!). The product we have is the Citiblocs 300 piece set and this is what we think of it...

What are Citiblocs?

Citiblocs are high quality wooden construction blocks. Each pine block is an identical size and shape, and they are supposedly perfectly weighted for optimum balance - so there is no glue involved in the construction of the fancy, intricate models you see on the box! The Citiblocs come with a building guide full of pictures to inspire you, although it is down to your skills and creativity to figure out how to recreate them because there are no instructions, (the booklet does tell you how many blocks were used in the model though).

What is good about Citiblocs?

Initially I wondered how much you could do with 300 identical rectangular blocks but the building guide really shows you that the only limit is your imagination. The Citiblocs 300 piece set is enough to make anything you want, from a large sailboat to a steam train crossing a bridge.

The blocks really are perfectly weighted to be easy to use. The concept is a bit like building with a deck of cards because you do have to have quite a steady hand and some idea of balance, only the blocks are much more stable and less likely to come crashing down. Both Tiny Toy Reviewers love the Citiblocs. The youngest (age 3) quickly got the idea of how to build a four sided tower and this is his favourite activity, but he also likes laying them out flat on the floor to create roads for his toy cars. The eldest (age 6) has been a bit more ambitious and has managed a simple boat based on the ideas in the building guide.

What I really like about the Citiblocs is that the toys have a broad appeal and should have good longevity. They are far more sophisticated than regular building blocks and I'm sure even a teenager will be happy to sit down and create some very complicated models. Parents certainly won't be able to resist flicking through the building guide and trying some of the trickier designs. There have been some tussles between Mr Toy Reviewer and the boys over who gets to use the last few blocks.

If you like toys with an educational slant, the Citiblocs fulfil this criteria. Building a complex model requires focus, concentration and hand to eye coordination, and the blocks also encourage creativity, problem solving and innovation. They can benefit any child, not just one destined for a career in architecture or engineering.

Any negatives?

Not really a big negative but putting the blocks away does take some time if you use the original box. You can't just chuck them all back in because they won't fit! With practise and teamwork we can put them away in under 5 minutes now.

Verdict

Citiblocs are the sort of toy you can buy your child at 3 and then find they never outgrow them. They have educational value but are also lots of fun since they can be used for both construction play and supplementing other toys, (making roads, creating walls, making a station and shed for toy trains - endless possibilities). A great value buy.