Stardoll

 Review

Common Sense Media says

Dress-up doll fun with safe features for younger users.
greenON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
yellowPAUSE: Know your child; some content
may not be right for some kids.
redOFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
not for kidsNOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age.

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Quality
 
Sometimes media can be age appropriate but a real waste of time. Our star rating assesses the media's overall quality.

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Parents say

Kids say

What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Stardoll is a fashion-oriented site with some protections in place for users who are under 13. They automatically receive a "Kid Safe" membership, which gives them access to doll-related games and features plus other members' profile albums. However, they can't write content on the site, access other users' written content, or communicate with other members. Users of all ages frequent this popular dress-up site, so kids and teens need to be extra careful about friending and chatting with people they meet on the site.

  • Users are encouraged to be creative in designing their room and clothing, but there's an underlying message around shopping and consumerism. Some designers use the site to practice creative writing. Users can find support for certain issues on the message boards.
  • Not applicable.
  • Many of the dolls are dressed in fairly skimpy bras and panties. Some message board topics veer into mature territory, but users under 13 cannot access this content.
  • Language filters won't let you post blog entries and other items containing swear words; human moderators also review the site's community sections daily. However, some variations -- like "biiiitchhh" -- can slip through.
  • This site is oriented around fashion and shopping. Membership and most games are free. However, users can also purchase site currency -- called Stardollars -- for additional clothing or room decorations, and users are encouraged to buy and sell their own virtual designs. There's also a paid membership level that gives users additional options. Product logos (KMart, Elle magazine, Vons) and pop culture entities (like Twilight, Justin Beiber, Hannah Montana) are peppered throughout the site in blog posts and on certain pages.
  • Comments and blog posts are public, although they appear under your username. It's easy to make friends with others on the site and exchange private messages, though users under 13 have restricted access and posting abilities.

Is it any good?

 

STARDOLL -- formerly Paper Doll Heaven -- lets users create fashion-based dress-up dolls and play games. You can make your own doll or choose one based on a celebrity.The site's clubs -- message-board like forums -- range from tame fan clubs to some questionable content (for example, although many of the posts in a club about first kisses are innocent, some mention body parts and sex). However, the site's emphasis on self-expression through fashion and writing is a plus; and although Stardoll's subscription service ranges from $6.95 for one month to $4.95 a month for a year, there are plenty of dolls you can dress-up using the free registration option. (In fact, you don't need to register at all to access many of them.) Users can also blog and access some of the site's creative design tools for free. Kids and teens might eventually beg to be upgraded to a paid subscription -- but there's plenty to do on Stardoll without shelling out a penny.

Online interaction: Registered users can join fan clubs based on celebrities, animals, and other topics and can also friend other members and email, chat with them, and post on their guestbook. Users can buy and sell their own virtual designs. Most comments are supportive, but some users have complained about dishonesty between users.


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What families can talk about

  • Families can talk abot why a site would not allow users who are under 13 to chat with other users or post comments on someone's wall? How do you know if you should accept a friend request that you receive
    from a stranger? What kind of comments or questions should you be
    concerned about? What are some ways to stay safe online?

  • What's the difference between fashion and marketing? What are some sneaky ways advertisers are targeting users on this site?


This review was written by Erin Brereton
Kid, 13 years old
March 27, 2011
 
NO.
So I used to be addicted to Stardoll. And now I never do it anymore. And lemme tell you why. Peer pressure is HUGE on it. Everyone is pessured to look like the 'Covergirl' and join certain 'clubs.' When I was on about 7 months ago, the three big clubs were FashionClub, AnimalLovers, and OriginalClub, (FC, AL, OC) And they all competed for Covergirl, the most members, everything. And there was a cheat to say bad words. It was something like ;andshy - that may not be totally correct but to say a swear word you'd go roc;andshyket and it would come out 'rocket.' (I picked a random word.) So people would curse all the time! A lot of the stuff was inappropriate, people would post pictures, give out emails, and even have online boyfriends. Overall, it's like middle school or high school- peer pressure and bad people. There's also bullying and hacking. I would not recommend this site. The only perk is dressing up the dolls is fun. But take it from someone who loved Stardoll- don't do it.

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Kid, 11 years old
April 30, 2011
 
It has.....a rival!
Stardoll may be good but it seems to be copying another site called I-Dressup!Stardoll is 1 year younger than I-Dressup.The new Stardoll isn't fame,fashion,and friends,it's money,membership,and,well,again money! Since it has membership now!Mostly the clothes in Stardoll are not for non VIPs!I-Dressup is free and their features are also included in Stardoll!

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Adult
April 10, 2011
 
If sex, money and greed is something you want your kids to learn, this site is perfect for them.
Okay, good things first. Kids love dressup dolls, and this site has lots of them. It also has plenty of free flash games - that don't really have any educational value, mostly time wasters. This site is rife with swearing, attempted hackings, greed and consumerism. There are language filters but they are easily passed. Things like LEZ ONLY, se%, come find a bf/gf, partay biiiitchezzz are all over the chats. There are predators everywhere attempting to hack other users by way of offering free items and makeovers in exchange for email addresses and passwords. One word, "GREED". The currency in this site is "stardollars" - which users can get 5 per day by voting, or they are purchased. There is heavy competition to be the most materialistic, and a very big push to be part of the "elite" crowd. Clothing in this crowd ranges from 50sd - 500sd. Customer service is pathetic, all this corporation cares about is raking in cash. I can't really see that there is anything on this site a parent would want their children to learn.

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Adult
February 15, 2011
 
Need to make sure your kids are not doing bad things.
This website is awesome for tweens. You need to look and make sure that your kids are not putting personal info (State CITY phone number) My only thing is that you can buy skippy things to wear and dress in. Just have fun and shop with you child and first tell them right away what they can and cant do.If they dont follow the rules tell them if you dont stop them next time you can be on for 5 days (or week). If they get on before 5 days ban the website. (Just advise)

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Teen, 17 years old
May 18, 2011
 
Okay, not the best website for little girls and boys
Stardoll is the kind of website thats fun to play if you put money into it, but most of my friends have free accounts and they still love it. The problem with Stardoll is that their are too many little girls who like having "slex" or "shmex" with boys. It makes Stardoll nasty and boring. Any ways like I was saying it is fun if you put a money in it. A $10 dollar card didn't work for me because I just kept running out of starcoins. Now I ended up buying 3 ($30), but I could have just bought a $25, saved some money and end up with the same amount of starcoins (the membership is a tiny bit shorter though). And guess what? I'm all out again! Oops forgot too mention something, stardollars are for superstars now only, non-superstars can only have starcoins which sucks a lot!!

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Parent of 5 year old
April 27, 2011
 
discount designer shoes discount shoe store discount shoes online discount womens shoes

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Kid, 11 years old
November 7, 2010
 
awesome
i luv this it is shake it up u know disney channel its awesome i luv it

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Teen, 15 years old
March 31, 2011
 
Stardoll Rocks!
I love Stardoll, as do 100 Million other people all over the world. In fact, my profile picture on Common Sense is my Stardoll! Stardoll gives girls (and guys) a chance to express themselves through fashion and designs. I think sometimes parents over-think websites like this. Stardoll is a positive place with many fun things to do.

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Teen, 15 years old
April 1, 2011
 
No.
Ehh i tried it once and was really bored with it. Very limited things to do. If you want a similar site with less design limits and no paying to play, try girlsense!

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Kid, 9 years old
April 14, 2011
 
for ten and up
i go on stardoll i just lied about my aged so i can learn about the site and give a review it has some sex and cuzing it can be bad in some ways

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This review was written by Erin Brereton
This review was written by Erin Brereton

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About our rating system
ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age.
PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids.
OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age.
Learning ratings
BEST: Really engaging, great learning approach.
GOOD: Pretty engaging, good learning approach.
FAIR: Somewhat engaging, OK learning approach.
NOT FOR LEARNING: Not recommended for learning.

 

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