#games world

Update: Zuru Prism and Fidget Fingers Series 2 Cube

I went back to Toyworld and bought the red and green Zuru Prisms, shown above on the orange/white Zuru Fidget Cube and the red/black Fidget Fingers Series 2 cube. As you can see, they do fit some of the knock-off cubes, although if the difference in size is more than a few millimetres, it may be difficult to make the Zuru Prisms fit. I had to stretch the green one to fit it over the bulkier sides and it took a lot of pulling to get it to sit evenly - it didn’t naturally slide into place the way the blue and red ones did over the Zuru cubes.

Unlike the blue Prism, there’s no splits in the red or green Prisms, so it doesn’t seem to be a trend. I really do love the colours, especially the green one on the Series 2 cube!

However, I was fidgeting with the telephone cord on the green Prism yesterday and managed to work two kinks into the cord. I don’t know how I did it (I wasn’t watching my hands) and I can’t undo it. As the kind of person who gets upset about this sort of thing, I want people to know that there is a risk of kinking the cord under quiet/mild fidgeting (like stretching and coiling). It doesn’t change the function of the Prism any, but it’s there and I’m obsessive enough to be bothered by it. I’d recommend being careful when fidgeting with the cord attachment if this sort of thing annoys or distresses.

The Prism, I’ve noticed, makes a lot of difference to the loud plastic banging/clattering noise the cubes make when they’re dropped or accidentally pushed over. (Both of which I do a lot.) It doesn’t silence the switches or buttons any, but for people prone to dropping and knocking, the clattering is much quieter and less intrusive. For the lighter, more clattery knock-offs like the Series 2, the difference is remarkable. Quite aside from the attachment capability and the nice texture of the Prism, I’d recommend getting one for this reason alone. Even the knock-off Prisms that don’t have the attachment (although one can just use a dog clip or phone charm strap connected to one of the Prism sides) should help - some of the ones on this eBay listing look quite thick!

My original knock-off cube is a few millimetres larger than the Zuru cubes, so I’ve bought one of the knock-off Prisms ($1.30 AUD after dollar conversion with free shipping) to test it out and compare it to the Zuru Prisms.

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Fidget Fingers Series 2 Cube - Games World, $10 AUD

I went to a large shopping centre in Werribee (Pacific Werribee) and they had a Games World store with lots of different kinds of wooden puzzles and other fidget things. (No Tangles. I didn’t see a Tangle all day, aside from my own. Even the Toyworld in Werribee didn’t have Tangles.) They did have the unique fidget cube knock-off, however...

It has six sides, like the Antsy Labs cubes and knock-offs, but the switches are very different. It feels like a knock-off, too: it’s as light as my fidget pad, lighter than my knock-off cube. I think this would benefit from a Prism to make it less bangy when knocked over, as it makes a loud clacking noise the Prism’d Zuru cube does not, but it doesn’t matter too much because you cannot use this cube around other people. It’s the noisiest, clickiest, most obnoxious cube I’ve ever heard. As someone with the autism/SPD/migraine fun combo, I’d be in semi-verbal meltdown.

The Push side is two red rectangular buttons. When one is pushed, the other rises. They’re a little louder than the switch on the Zuru and fake fidget cubes, and like the switch can be used more quietly if you put a finger or thumb on each button. I can see this working for people who love pushing buttons.

The Scroll side is a red notched mouse wheel set in the cube. This. This I like. A mini scroll wheel that’s more portable than a mouse and has more texture than the roller ball on the fidget cube? Yes, please. It’s tolerably quiet, although not silent.

The Slide side is a series of three red switches in grooves that slide back and forth. They move easily and are the second quietest side on the cube. I like this function, too.

The Dial side is pretty identical to the Fidget Cube’s spin wheel. The crimped edges give it more texture and it doesn’t make a lot of noise. Like my pink/white Zuru cube, though, it doesn’t turn well. My orange/white Zuru cube and the fidget pad do this so much better.

The Click side is ... underwhelming. It’s a long, raised red tube-shaped button and you click it. That’s it. I don’t know why it’s so big. It’s louder than the loud buttons on the button side of the Fidget Cube, too. Since this is very little different to the Push side, I really have no idea why it’s there.

The Flick side is The Noise Hell Side, otherwise known as a flick button. I want to like this, as it’s more like a real light-switch, and the rounded switch on the fidget pad is one of the better features on it. But the click is so loud and snappy. You know someone snapping their fingers right outside your ear? It’s that but worse. So sharp. Testing it a few times just to write this paragraph has made my head ring. I am on edge from the noise and one mishap away from screaming at someone or going into keyboard-throwing meltdown.

[Edit: after a day of shopping, this pushed me over the edge into “huddling under my electric blanket for four hours because I can’t sit up” migraine.]

People, if you have any kind of hyperacausis or SPD-related sound sensitivity or just don’t like obnoxious noises, don’t play with the Flick side. And please, please don’t use the Flick side in public where others can hear it, if they haven’t consented to hearing this sound. Please.

I’d honestly recommend paying the $3-$5 AUD extra for a Zuru cube. It’s a heavier, quieter, higher-quality-feeling product (despite the fact that I do have one with flaws) that’s nicer to hold. It can also be used more easily around other disabled people, which is an important stim toy feature too often forgotten by makers who don’t seem to really understand stim toys. Yes, different ways to fidget is important, but they need to be useful and accessible with minimum sensory discomfort for the user and those around them.

Now that fidget toys are a Thing, I wonder just how many of the new ones offer ways to fidget without ever considering the sensory needs people who stim also often have - meaning that many autistics and folks with ADHD, SPD, migraines and fibro (among other diagnoses) can’t access toys that are actually meant for us. A stim toy made without thought for the needs of the disabled people who use it is even more erasure on top of the cursory references these newer toys are giving us (ND and disabled stimmers) and it concerns me.

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No worries, fellow Aussie anon. Thanks so much for the compliment!

For the non-matte/painted/printed Tangle Jr knock offs, I would recommend you to the listing where I bought my old-logo-style ones on eBay: $1.97 USD with free shipping. My review is here, but I will mention that while I didn’t feel that positively disposed at the time, having handled a few different knock-offs since has made me realise that, for knock-offs, they’re quite good. I have to say that there’s no guarantee you will get the same Tangles I got, but it might be worth a try.

Unfortunately, I don’t have much in the way of alternative listings. The other listings that had similar branded-looking photos sent me the really cheap-and-stiff Tangles. When I next need to buy more Tangles, I’ll try a few different listings and see what is sent me, but for now I’ve just the one listing. It’s a bit of a gamble buying on eBay, honestly. You might be better off checking out local toy shops for the branded Tangle Jrs - I know Mod Rainbow saw them at their local Coles for $4 AUD each. (I checked several and still haven’t found them. Sigh.) If you can get them at Toyworld prices, it might be worth the higher costs to have a higher-quality Tangle Jr.

As for “textured tangle”, I’m assuming that you mean the Tangle Jr Textured and not the Original Tangle. If you do mean the Original Textured, I know of no way of getting one here in Australia for under $30 AUD, never mind $15 AUD. I’ve got resources on this post, some of which offer international shipping, but it will be a pricey purchase (which is why I don’t own one).

The Tangle Jr Textured, however, is much easier to find locally.

Depending on where you are, I’d check out Toyworld, Mr Toys Toyworld, Kidstuff, Games World and Mind Games (Melbourne, Geelong, Tasmania, Brisbane and Gold Coast) stores to see if one is close to you. (All links go to store locators or that individual store’s website, in the case of the Mind Game stores.) All of these have been recommended by Aussie stimmers as stocking Tangles, their prices ranging from about $6-10 AUD each. The ones most commonly in stock, based on what I’ve seen in various stores, are the standard Tangle Jr and the Tangle Jr Textured, followed by the Metallics. The hardest to reliably find, at least in my experience, is the Tangle Jr Fuzzy!

Buying a Tangle Jr from a local store, while you have the hassle of transport costs, is like to be cheaper than buying online. Either the Tangles are a little lower priced (my local Toyworld prices all but the Textured Metallics at $6 AUD, but prices often vary between Toyworld stores) or the additional costs of bus fare/petrol/parking are less than those of internal shipping.

As a comparison to show everyone how Australia Post makes everything ridiculous, Sensory Oasis for Kids has the Tangle Jr Textured for $9.95 AUD, but since flat rate shipping is also $9.95 AUD, this is only affordable if you’re buying many things at once. (If you’re in Melbourne, though, it’s well worth the trip in person just to look at all the things!) The Therapy Store has them for $8.95 AUD, but the shipping is also $8.95 AUD (and not flat rate, either).

If you’re like me and time a run to Toyworld when I’m already going to town for something else, transport costs don’t add much to the Tangle. Buying online, however, is just absurd. In all honesty, I do not have an online source for Tangles I’d recommend to Aussies as affordable, not because the Tangles are hideously expensive but because of the shipping.

Seriously, anon, you shouldn’t have to pay $20 AUD for a Tangle Jr Textured. You shouldn’t even have to pay $15 AUD.

There are Tangle Jr Textured knock-offs: check out this eBay listing, $2.75 USD with free worldwide shipping. (I just purchased one because curiosity and the realisation that fake Tangles are becoming my fidget specialisation.) Please note that I have absolutely no idea as to the quality (the listing photo is that of a branded Tangle Jr Textured, but so far I’ve had one order resemble the listing photo) so, like everything on eBay, it is a risk, but for under $4 AUD delivered it might be worth it if you don’t have a local store. If the sale goes through and mine arrives, I’ll absolutely give everyone a comparative review.

I hope that helps you, anon!

Oh, wow! Thinking Putty in an offline store! Fabulous!

I had a look at Games World’s website, but it only lists stores in WA and Victoria in their store locator. Nor could I find a listing for thinking putty.

Here’s the store locator for Imagine If, because they have two storefronts Adelaide or SA stimmers might like to check out.

Thank you so much for your detailed descriptions of where to find things, Adelaide anon!

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