Designed for little hands and fingers, Playaway View is a self-playing, pre-loaded portable video player the size and weight of a GPS navigation device. It weighs 5.4 ounces.
It features Sesame Street characters and other icons of the 3- to 7-year-old set.
Manufactured by the Ohio-based Findaway World, Playaway View is available through the 17 branches of the Baltimore County Public Library.
The Perry Hall and Woodlawn branches participated in a three-month national test of Playaway Views last year. Results from 2,500 check-outs "exceeded expectations," according to a statement issued by the county library.
"We would have been more cautious about ordering it without the test," said Jamie Watson, the system's collection development coordinator. "Because it was so popular, it made the decision a lot easier."
The device includes a 3.5-inch LCD screen with a shatter-resistant acrylic cover, a speaker with a headphone jack, and a rechargeable battery with an adapter (the device does carry a warning label because of the potential choking hazard the small adapter represents).
A four-hour charge allows eight unplugged hours of listening and watching. A video can be watched while charging is under way.
"It's empowering for a small child to figure out how to make a Playaway View play and stop," said Watson. "They get to take control of the experience. That's a good thing developmentally."
Playaway View has other virtues as well. It's a teacher that doesn't scold, a baby-sitter that doesn't while away time on a cell phone, a source of entertainment without a cable bill and a welcome distraction for kids during a long car ride.
Watson said her 5-year-old niece in Ohio validated the test results during Watson's visit home for Christmas when she showed the girl the "Sylvester and the Magic Pebble" Playaway View.
"She played it over and over again," Watson said, "and when I went home in February, the first thing she said to me was, 'Did you bring me one of those videos?' "
The library currently has 785 Playaway Views in the system. Most branches, including Towson and Cockeysville, have about 40, but the smallest branches, Lansdowne and Loch Raven, each have only 10.
A sampling of titles at the Towson branch reveals "Authur's Adventures," "Outdoor Fun with Elmo," "Hooray for Reading: Stories for Readers," "Games with Grover" and "Explore the Earth."
Playaway Views can be checked out for seven days free of charge, but a degree of diligence is required. The fine for a lost device is $100, plus $20 for the adapter.
They have become popular at the Towson library, according to branch manager Jen Haire.
"I gave one to a child the other day who needed something to do while his mother was using a computer," she said. "It happened to have been charged, so he just plopped down and turned it on."
The library system plans to add to the Playaway View collection each month, Haire said. "The library always is looking for services that are convenient now that people's lives are so busy. I anticipate there will be more demand.
"Parents can feel good about this device," she said. "It focuses on building literacy skills with a very entertaining format."