Scout's Learning Lights Remote

Shaped like a chunky TV remote, this toy has 17 light-up buttons across role-play and learning modes, playing over 100 phrases, sounds and music clips, plus a French-language channel and light-up numbers for early counting.

Against the Lamaze Freddie the Firefly, which is aimed at very young infants for pure sensory play, and the Melissa & Doug Shape Sorting Clock, which needs a toddler old enough to handle small pieces safely, this remote sits in between — usable from 6 months and built around the imitative play babies already gravitate toward when they see adults holding a phone or remote.

It runs on 3 AAA batteries and, like most electronic toys, leans on repetitive phrases and sound effects that can wear thin for parents faster than for babies. The plastic build is durable but doesn't have the tactile, heirloom quality of a wooden toy.

It's a good fit for the 6-24 month range, particularly for babies already reaching for real remotes and phones, where the pretend-play angle does a lot of the engagement work.