Dana is annoyed that the Fisher Price toy she bought for her baby promised her that batteries were included. They were in the box all right, but they were dead. In fact the manual Fisher Price enclosed with the toy suggests you immediately replace the included batteries with new ones.

Yesterday, I bought a Fisher-Price toy for my baby (specifically, the ‘Laugh and Learn Fun with Friends Musical Table’) at Babies r Us. The box clearly says ‘Batteries Included’, with a picture of a battery in case there is any doubt. I checked this in the store because I knew we were low on batteries at home and didn’t know if I needed to buy more right then and there. I get the toy home, open the box, and the toy doesn’t work at all. When I open the manual, it says ‘For best performance, we recommend replacing the batteries that came with this toy with three, new alkaline “AA” batteries’. So Fisher Price sold this toy with DEAD batteries, and tells you in the manual (not the outside package) that you’ll need to replace them.

The only way this might make some sense is if the toy had been out on display and people were playing with it in the store, draining the batteries there. But it wasn’t out on display or easily accessible, it was under a large stack of similar toys and I had to dig it out.

Anyway, I found this super misleading and really hope it isn’t a trend because I was planning on buying a lot of Fisher Price stuff over the next couple years.

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.