Disclaimer: We were sent these Kid K’Nex, K’Nex and K’Nex Architecture products to review free of charge, but words and pictures are mine. This post contains affiliate links, see more information here.
K’Nex (now owned by Basic Fun Toys) is a construction system which has been around since the early 90s. Made of rods and connectors which click together, it’s a classic STEM toy which encourages children to create 3D models and use their imaginations to engineer working systems.
We were sent three different types of K’Nex; Kid K’Nex, K’Nex and K’Nex Architecture, to review.
These kits are aimed at children of different ages and have different sized pieces (see below) so I thought I’d see what they preferred playing with.
Which type of K’Nex is best for a 5 and 7 year old?
Kid K’Nex
Kid K’Nex is great; it is made specifically for younger children aged 3 and over and the kits contain larger, softer, colourful plastic pieces which are easy to slot together.
We have reviewed several of the kits – Rockin’ Robots and Oodles of Pals – in the past (see the full review here) and were sent a new 55-piece ‘Zoo Friends’ kit which has an RRP of £19.99.
The pieces all work together to make even bigger and more elaborate creations and I’m happy to report that both kids (aged 5 and 7) have spent hours so far playing and building.
K’Nex Core
For slightly older children of 5+, the normal K’Nex is made of harder plastic, and the individual pieces are smaller than the Kid K’Nex. They snap together with a click and come apart easily so that you can make a whole range of models.
This 130 piece set is a bargain with an RRP of £10. It comes with all the pieces – including connectors, rods, spacers and wheels, and instructions to create ten different models including a bike, a chopper, a cat, quadcopter, a tow truck and a frog.
It isn’t hard to assemble and the instructions are easy to follow. It makes recognisable models and of course, can be used with other core K’Nex kits to make more elaborate, imaginative models!
The pieces are smaller, so you can store it away easier, however there aren’t any long or bendy parts included in the kit, like there are in the Kid K’Nex. I think overall, my five year old actually preferred this kit and he was better at following the instructions than his sister.
K’Nex Architecture: London Eye
When this one arrived, I admit that I was a little nervous. The 1861-piece kit which has an RRP of £59.99 is designed for kids of nine years and up, and mine are quite a lot younger than that. They definitely wouldn’t be able to do this without help!
This K’Nex Architecture kit comes with a 40-page instruction booklet which helps you transform almost 2000 K’Nex rods, connectors and spacers into a battery operated, fully rotating model of the London Eye.
However, luckily I do have one big kid in the house in the form of my husband, who with a little help from the children, put together the London Eye K’Nex kit over five evenings. When finished, it looked pretty impressive!
It was quite complex and a bit of a labour of love, but he got there in the end; although I have to say I think that the kids enjoyed it much more than he did! The bits are quite fiddly, and separating them into plastic tubs was essential.
It is not designed to be played with (especially by young kids!) as it it is quite delicate, and if you poke it too much the pieces may come apart. The motor, which requires two AA batteries (not included) makes the wheel rotate.
We found that this was a bit iffy and didn’t always work as expected; you can see what I mean in the video below!
The resulting model is massive at over 2ft (60cm) tall and wide. This means it’s quite tricky to store in one piece, unless you have a shelf to display it on!
There is no way that we would have been able to make this one without my husband taking over (well, I probably could have, had I been so inclined…) however it is very impressive and if your child is the type that can concentrate and likes a project which they can spend time working, on they may well like this kit.
How much and where to buy
You can purchase the K’Nex Architecture London Eye from John Lewis, and the 10-in-one kit from Argos.
The K’Nex kits are all available to buy from Amazon.