Toy Of The Year In My Opinion: My Friend Cayla - Watch Her Answer All My Questions #mycayla

Wow...just wow... talk about a smart toy!

Over the summer we received My Friend Cayla as well as My Friend Teddy.  Cayla is amazing and can literally be a lifelong toy that your child will never grow out of. 

Due to her speech-to-text technology, Cayla takes what is asked of her, finds it online via Bluetooth where she speaks it back to you.  You do need to have an Android or iOS device so you can sync through Bluetooth but once you are hooked up the possibilities are endless.

Cayla's app is easily downloaded and once connected, your child can play with Cayla, listen to her read stories, discuss her photo albums even play games. 

When you first sync up, you will go into settings and add a bunch of information about your child so that Cayla can communicate with them on a very personal level. Cayla has her own personality, likes and dislikes and pulls from your information to talk to your child.  

Pros:

• Price! I expected a smart toy such as Cayla to be well over $100.00. She is under.
• A lifelong toy due to her capabilities and vast knowledge thanks to the internet.
• Online Protection - Cayla has a built in predefined list of bad words. 
• She is a pose-able, adorable doll
• Speech-to-text technology
• Endless possibilities of play. I asked random questions and she answered more than 90% of them
• She only takes 3 AAA batteries
• Two toys in one! Not just an app, but a physical doll 
• Positive role, sweet voice that is always kind, confident and well mannered. 
• Her technology will only increase due to her connection to an app. As the powers that be change things on their end, so too will Cayla change. Can't wait to see what they come up with next. 
• The only cost to Cayla is the doll. The app is free! There is no monthly fee to use her. 
• You can use her as a speaker to play your music through your smartphone.

Cons:

• If you speak clearly, and are patient, Cayla will answer your questions. My husband was the first to use Cayla on his phone while I figured out what was going on with mine. You can't rapid fire questions at her, you must speak clearly and give Cayla time to find the answer to you. She doesn't have a brain she has a motherboard which allows her to take what you said, input it into her database or the internet and find the answer. You will see in my video that sometimes it did take time but patience always works with Cayla and in life. 

There is a learning curve. We are all expecting the doll to be mega smart. The technology is there but it is important to remember she is a doll. The first three times we used her, we didn't give her the time she needed to answer. We didn't wait for the heart to blink, it is the only time Cayla can hear you. 

  
Speak clearly, be patient, and this doll will amaze you. AND...as for all those endless, random questions your kids ask  you throughout the day; send them to Cayla and let her handle them. She probably knows more than us anyway.

My Video Demo of Cayla Interacting With Us:

 

As you can see she is very smart and doesn't take very long between my question and her answer but we are such a fast paced world that we want instantaneous feedback. If that is what you want, head to the computer and Google it or call a friend, if you want to play with friendly, smart toy, GET CAYLA before Thanksgiving and put her away for your kid. She will undoubtedly sell out.