The Princeton Review Pocket Prep Interactive Handheld Tutor for the SAT and ACT

Guide Rating -

The Bottom Line

While most students will continue to choose to buy The Princeton Review's books or courses instead of this handheld tutor, those who think this device will fit their learning approach and lifestyle are probably right. The handheld tutor is basically what you'd expect it to be - Princeton Review lessons, strategies, and practice problems stuffed into a small gadget. Many will find Pocket Prep difficult to use, but others will relish the portability and "wow factor." I'm not sure whether this is the best way to prep for the SAT and ACT, but I was pleasantly surprised by the design and thoroughness of this machine.

Pros

• Detailed materials cover every aspect of both tests
• Learning is made more interesting with a variety of different approaches
• Leverages The Princeton Review's excellent, time-tested research and strategies
• Small, lightweight, easy to carry around

Cons

• Handheld format may not be ideal for displaying complicated test problems
• Can be time consuming to navigate software
• Much more expensive than a similar guide in book form

Description

• About the size of a hand
• Runs on four AAA batteries
• Covers both the SAT and the ACT
• Contains extras such as a dictionary, calculator, and timer
• Auto shutoff

Guide Review - The Princeton Review Pocket Prep Interactive Handheld Tutor for the SAT and ACT

With Pocket Prep for the SAT and ACT, Franklin and The Princeton Review stuffed much of the content from their SAT and ACT books and classes into a device that can fit in the palm of your hand. This machine can give you The Princeton Review's proven strategies, deliver a number of full-length, timed practice tests, or run you through hundreds of vocabulary words or math review problems.

In addition to being smaller and more portable than hefty review guides for the SAT and ACT, Pocket Prep is also more fun. You can answer questions with the A-E buttons to the left of the screen, and enjoy the instant gratification of seeing whether you got the right answer. Practice tests have a timer that ticks away in the corner of the display. The verbal training mode lets you click on any word and instantly get a definition.

What's not great about Pocket Prep? While the handheld tutor is well designed, to me this just doesn't seem like the ideal way to prep for the SAT or ACT. The test itself is given on paper, and that seems like the best way to practice. I also found it somewhat unwieldy to shift pages between passages and related questions, or between math formulas and the questions for which they're required. Why use a machine when most of the same materials are available in a cheaper and easier-to-use book?

Of course, maybe I'm just a fuddy duddy. Just as teenagers can click away on tiny instant messaging phones and devices, they may find Pocket Prep to be a more fun way to study. And in the end, these materials are out there in a variety of formats - the challenge for parents is often not finding the most technically superior approach, but rather the one that appeals the most to a student with a limited attention span. For students who like gadgets and handheld devices, Pocket Prep may be the answer.