Pinoy in Singapore

Create your very own starry sky in your bedroom. Invite your friends and family for the star show, they will be amazed. This kit contains projection domes of both Southern and Northern Hemispheres night sky. Just punch small holes on them, assemble and make projection with the lamp provided. Detailed instructions and with star charts of both Hemispheres included. This is a fun science project for the whole family. For ages 8 and up.

Verdict: This christmas, we wanted to give something educational for all the kids that were on our giftlist.  I, myself have always wanted a night sky projection in my room.  We saw the Create a Night Sky Projection Kit by Kidz Labs in Carrefour selling for about S$14.   Disappoinment #1 came when I saw the same thing selling on those stalls along Orchard road for $11.  I think about it everynight when I put out the lights before I go to sleep.  Our room would be perfect for a Night Sky projection because it’s very dark when the lights are out.  So after a few days of containing myself, I finally opened the box at a quarter to 1 in the wee hours of the morning.  The instructions read that you need an adult to punch through holes, 1mm in diameter,of each and every star.  If the adult had more patience, you could punch smaller holes to connect the “big” stars so the projection would show the shapes of the constellation.  So I got out a nail and hammer and started punching out holes (including the smaller ones) until 2 AM in the morning.  I thought I was pretty quick and efficient at it too.  Then I had to build the dome by putting the cardboard sheets together with double sided tape that I had to cut out into the shape of the area I was putting together.   The assembly of the dome was much more difficult than punching holes coz the tape doesn’t do a good job and the cardboard tends to unstick.  Putting the top part of the dome in place has the same problems only much worse.  Finally, at 3 AM, I got it all assembled!  After much anticipation, I went back to my room placed the dome over the portable light that came with it and turned off the lights.  My immediate thoughts were “Nyek!”.    

While I was punching holes through, I wondered why the manufacturer didn’t just make cardboards with the holes already.  So I thought maybe this was part of the fun and both the adult and the kid would reap the rewards when they see the night sky projection. Good thing I wasn’t assembling it with a kid coz it would have ruined my fun factor credibility with an 8-yr old coz he/she would be totally unimpressed!  What more an older kid?!  It was a lousy night sky projection and wasn’t worth the effort and time of assembling it!

At least punching holes was kinda fun, the assembly wasn’t at all.  And even after my best effort, the dome was very precarious.  I had to handle it oh so gently of it would fall apart.   

Needless to say, I went to bed totally disappointed.  The only bright side I could see was it’s a good thing that I started with the Northern Hemisphere coz it had fewer stars otherwise I would have been more frustrated.   When I woke up the next morning, I found that the dome fell apart by itself. 

I can build a better version of this thing on my own for cheap.