Thames & KosmosSpy Labs Inc: Listening Toy Listen & Gain Top Secret Intel | Essential Tools and Tricks of The Trade from The Detective Gear Experts for Kid Investigators

This is a cool idea, and my kids have played with it a bunch. You basically point it toward a sound you want to amplify, and it does sound a bit louder in the earpiece. The string is definitely a weak point, but so far its still working, and we've had it a couple of months. My children really enjoy this entire "spy equipment" line of toys, and I'd definitely buy more.

this is a toy for sure

It's by all means not a high end device but one you get past the fact it's a cheap plastic toy then you should be OK that it may work for simple listening for big kids or adults. Not for funny young kids. It works to listen in on distance conversations and TV.

This is for kids and works for them to play it's little cheap flimsy and not for long range listening but close you can hear. It's a cute gadget

My son loves to play with this. All of these spy products from this brand he has liked so far. It is well-made and easy to use. It is for older kids as the cord to the earpiece is very long and not suitable for young kids. Overall, I would recommend this.

Despite being perfectly packaged and something kids would love, I'm not sure that the THAMES KOSMOS SPY LABS INC: LISTENING TOY FOR KID INVESTIGATORS will actually work for most children. The problem with this little spy gadget is that the only way you can hear amplified sound is through the earpiece. It's too large to fit in my ears, and it kept falling out. It would be even more difficult for a child. Unless you have it positioned exactly right, the sounds you hear are not amplified. As a pretend toy, I don't doubt kids will really like running around pretending to be a spy. As a functional toy, it misses the mark. It takes one AA battery; it's not included and has to be inserted by an adult. This is done by removing a screw from the back of the of the toy. You'll need both a screwdriver and an AA battery to get it up and running. You can expect pretty lackluster performance, but when it does work, you can hear things a little better. My experience is that it works only intermittently. The sound cuts out periodically, probably to protect a child from hearing loss. The trick will be getting the earpiece to stay in a kid's ear. As a toy for kids, it would be much better and more practical if it had headphones. Unfortunately, the earpiece is permanently attached to this spy device. There is no jack to swap it out for cheap headphones.

Obtained for my eight year old grandson. He played with it for a few hours because he found it very frustrating to play with. The sound is horrible and very distorted and unless the microphone is pointed just right it picks up nothing. Even as a toy it should work better than this does.

Doesn’t really work as it states. The good thing about this “toy” is it’s age appropriate, and does just enough to let the little ones think they are doing “Spy” things. I tested it myself before giving it to my little one, and I approve of this fact. Kinda cool, maybe a bit too costly in comparison.