Original Hoberman Sphere--Rainbow (Toy)

This is such a unique toy. My kids have a lot of toys but nothing quite like this. They love experimenting with making the sphere bigger and smaller and bouncing it and trying to catch it before it collapses, etc. Endless opportunities with this toy to use your imagination and expand your mind. My kids are four years old, and they and their friends really enjoy it. Their friends have younger siblings who often come over to our house, too, and even they enjoy expanding and pondering the sphere. One of my young cats even enjoys rubbing his face on the sphere and climbing inside it while I carefully hold it open. Really cool toy.

   This toy would be awesome if it wasn't so cheaply made. I literally gave my nine year old this on her brithday (Sept 29) and less than 24 hours later on the 30 the thing no longer would collapse because a couple of the little protrusions that support the frame of this were no longer holding things in place. At a science fair at my daughter's school in the spring one of the booths had one of these and my daughter loved it, so I thought it would make a cool birthday gift. When she opened it after school on her birthday, she did love it, but sadly, the little bit she played with it wore it out, I guess. For the price, I think these things should be made a bit sturdier, but alas, thirty-five dollars and eighteen hours after the item was received, it had been reduced to nothing but a geometric sphere - I guess a person could suspend it from the ceiling or something, but its ability to collapse is part of its charm. I did not consult Amazon or the Hoberman company about the problems...Read more

This toy has the potential to inspire young children and lead them to careers & interests in engineering, mathematics, the physical sciences, etc. Once they're over their "ooohs" and "ahhhs" and start thinking of the design and simplistic yet complex design, watch out! The flood gates of curiosity open and they don't ever close!Personal Story: A few years ago, a neighbor's family and myself took a trip to the Liberty Science Center at Liberty State Park, New Jersey. In the main concourse of the center was a Hobermann Sphere of immense proportions.. if I recall, the collapsed sphere had a diameter of 12 feet and in its expanded form, occupied the entire concourse at an impressive 96 feet. The neighbor's 8-year old son was in awe the entire trip back, especially after his parents had bought him a miniature sphere from the museum gift shop.