Plug and play

The Shifu Plugo STEM Wiz Pack aims to introduce children as young as Pre-K to words, numbers and logic. Does it succeed where so many others have failed? Read on to find out

The Stem Wiz Pack is a collection of four interfaces from the Shifu Plugo range. This includes the Plugo Gamepad, Plugo Link, Plugo Letters and Plugo Count. In addition to this, you will need a smartphone or a tablet to play the actual games. While the smartphone works, it is built for a tablet which has a big advantage when it comes to engagement.

We tested the pack with an iPad and an Android smartphone. The program worked in both cases, an older Xiaomi MiPad however, refused to install the program. So, you might need a relatively newer device. My child, who is four years old, was very distracted and excited at the same time. It made it hard to get him to concentrate on the instructions. He was more than happy just using the various things rather than concentrate on what the program was trying to teach. 

It also isn’t a device you can just leave your kids with; you have to be around to explain the process and the games to the child. This enthusiasm faded in about a week and then the real work started with the device, where he was more open to learning and playing the games rather than just doing something randomly. 

That said, most of the devices faired only as well as their programs because without a good solid game the device had no utility. For every attached interface you have to wait for the tablet to download the corresponding programs, so make sure you start the process way before your kid comes to play. To make things easier I will address each product within the pack, individually.

Let’s start with Plugo Letters. Plugo Letters comes with a deck and lots of letters that can be used to form words. We selected the Pre-K setting so the right words would appear, there are nine games available to play for Letters. Each letter used in every game is spelt out phonetically which can help a child learn the proper sounds of the letters. Unfortunately, the pre-K setting is too hard for a small child and some of the game rules are too complicated as well. Zizlu Draws and Run Dotty Run are the standout games here that are easy for a small child to understand. Even in these two games, the words don’t go incrementally and it can randomly get harder to play with longer words. My child lost interest pretty quickly. This would work for slightly older students may be kids who have started with school. 

Plugo Link is all about logic and visual learning. It comes with a bunch of magnetic blocks that can stick to the board as well as each other. There are six games available to play for the Plugo Link. The games are simple to understand and they increase in difficulty logically. Who Am I, Loco Jojo and Hoppity Bob are the standout games. They offer a good mix of learning and fun, it was engaging even for a four-year-old and tapped in the creative side very well. From all the three kits available in the set, this one is the one that was most requested. The game was playable with trial and error and the dots concept was eventually learned. 

Plugo Count is a mixed bag some games are fun and easy, but others are too tough. There are no instructions and the game does not attempt teaching the basics of math. So rather than a teaching tool, this offers a mean to practice. There are a total of five games available for Count Little Dana’s Adventure was the most accessible. 

As a pack, the Shifu Plugo STEM kit is a great deal at Rs 5,000. I do believe it has great utility. The downside, it works best with a tablet and though it works with a smartphone the immersion levels are not the same. So, you will have to invest in a decent size tablet if you want to make the most of the kit. The build quality of the kit is pretty good, there are no sharp edges and it is appropriate for the age of 4+.

Would I still buy this for my child? I would, because the games that caught my son’s attention managed to keep him engaged and easily taught him concepts that would be otherwise difficult to explain. I think as the kid grows older the utility of the game will improve. 

What works
In Plugo Count, you can choose your child’s level of proficiency. So, in case your child doesn’t know addition or multiplication, you can turn those off. 

What doesn’t
In Plugo Link, the on-screen visual correspond to the dots on the gamepad, this was the hardest thing to communicate to a child.

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