Would I pay $25 for this? No. And I doubt my mom paid that much (maybe $10 to $12). But as my title says, I'm glad my mom has it at her house.Fun: My son grips this really well and totes it around with him at Grandma's house. The little antenna thing was always in his mouth. Perfect teether.Educational Value: It lights up and sings songs; not much to learn there. It's "smartest" use is simply that it's a toy kids can mimic adult behaviors with.Durable: I have no idea how long my mom has had hers (oldest grandchild is 7) but it looks like it's been around for a while, and still works great.If I were to stumble across this at a garage sale or thrift store I'd buy it, or if it was on a great sale. My 10-month old really enjoyed it, but it isn't such a must have that I'll spend much on it. If you do buy it, you'll quickly get used to "hi baby" "bye baby", but the sound is pretty soft so it's not annoying.