Read our review of Magna–Tiles and the new Metropolis Set

Today's testers?

Grace (aged 5-and-a-half) and her mum Sara

The product?

We tested the new Magna-Tiles Metropolis 110-piece set, which comes with translucent shapes in 13 different styles, including rectangles, squares, triangles, and quarter circles. It also comes with a door, two sets of stairs, six windows, two wheeled chassis, an arch – plus a cool magnetic spinner tile that rotates 360 degrees.

We tried a second pack, too – the Magna-Tiles Stardust 15-piece set, which includes 4 mirrored squares, 7 glittered squares and 4 triangles. It's the perfect starter set and great gift idea. 

Special features?

Magna-Tiles can be linked together to build anything you choose – you're limited only by your imagination. Grace built a car, a house, complete with windows, stairs and tunnels, and a playground with a working roundabout.

We had her cousins staying over the holidays – aged 2, 6 and 9 – and they were all happy to join the fun. We found Magna-Tiles ideal for different age groups. Smaller children can build basic shapes, numbers, and letters, then move onto 3D shapes like flowers, boats, and hearts when they get older. The unique Metropolis pieces like stairs, wheels, and windows also allow kids to try more challenging structures – Magna-Tiles suggested Tower Bridge but Grace created Elsa's Frozen Ice Palace (of course!)

Is it easy to use?

The tiles attract on all sides and in all combinations, so the possibilities for building and creating are pretty much endless. You’ll also receive a guide that’s filled with inspiration and ideas to help you get started, plus templates to help younger ones.

We loved that both sets are compatible with other Magna-Tiles products too, so we could easily mix and match the tiles with no trouble.

What the parents thought?

There are tons of educational benefits, so that was a big win for us. Playing with the Magna-Tiles encouraged Grace to be patient and creative, and we could see that she was having to think about the science and engineering behind the different 3D structures as she was building.

The tiles are great for developing children's dexterity and fine motor skills, not to mention hand-eye coordination, independent play, colour recognition, and problem solving. And it kept our daughter away from the iPad for hours!

What Grace says?

The best thing about the tiles is you can make cars and really exciting things with them. I would definitely like to buy them for my best friend Ivy!

Need to know:

• Suitable for children aged 3+
• Compatible with other Magna-Tiles building sets, including Magna-Tiles Stardust 15-piece set, Magna-Tiles Clear Colours 32-piece set, and Magna-Tiles Clear Colours 100-piece set
• The Magna-Tiles collection is available now from toy retailers and online, RRP from £19.99 to £129.99
• We tested the Magna-Tiles Metropolis 110-piece set, RRP £129.99, and the Magna-Tiles Stardust 15-piece set, RRP £19.99.