News about Toys:
Water Wars Water Pistol Game
Playing water pistols has just gotten more fun with the Water Wars Water Pistol Game. For those of you who grew up playing Laser Tag, you know just how fun that is, trying to zap your opponents from afar, with the vest and helmet they wear being legit targets. Since summer is here, how about playing a variation of Laser Tag with the Water Wars Water Pistol Game? Each $37 purchase will come with a couple of color changing vests, so you can tell whether your shots were accurate or not.
Ten Person Water Totter
If you happen to be part of a really, really large family, and each time during the holiday season your uncles, aunts, siblings, nephews and nieces will congregate at your home due to this activity being a family tradition, why not offer something different to keep the little ones entertained this time around with the Ten Person Water Totter instead of letting them sit through yet another round of watching your wedding video while you adults sit down and talk elsewhere?
Is it a Plane? Is it a Bird? NO! It’s the Tosy AFO!
Waboba USA is aiming to expand its already amazing family-friendly fun line with it’s launch of the Tosy® AFO™ (Aliens’ Flying Object) which is one flying disc type toy that looks like it’s going to fly off the shelves and fill the sky with hours of fun, during the day and well into the night!
Hide & Seek Plush Monkey
Hide & Seek used to involve a bunch of giggling children, and it works best if they are at a really, really large house. Well, it seems that the tables have turned with the tide of technology – just take a gander at the Hide & Seek Plush Monkey and tell us otherwise. This $34.95 purchase intends to be the perfect hide and seek companion for your little one.
Switchblade Boomerang gets your superhero career started
If you were to be a superhero, I am quite sure most of you would already pick latent abilities such as being a mutant or celestial being, instead of the Batman type who is just a masked crusader with plenty of money stashed away while aided by mad martial arts skills and a bunch of gadgets that would make James Bond turn green with envy. However, I don’t think that Batman’s arsenal of weapons are not complete until he has the Switchblade Boomerang.
Waboba Street Ball
The weather is getting better and better for some outdoor fun with your kids, so you might want to take into consideration purchases that are geared towards the outdoors instead of letting little Johnny get cooped up all day long in front of the video game console. Enter the Waboba Street Ball, where this £5.99 purchase looks very simple in its bright colors, but since it is covered in symmetrical ridges and troughs, there is virtually no way to predict where it will bounce upon contact with the floor.
Perplexus 3D Game Maze – Kill Time, Not your Kids
I need to take a trip to North Carolina in a few weeks, and from NYC, we’re talking just under 10 hours in the car. Keeping my kid entertained for a 20 minute trip to the mall is a little tough, 10 hours is going to be insane.There are only so many times “I spy with my little eye…” can keep ANY kid entertained and let’s face it by the 5th time I have to guess “is it an indicator light on the dashboard?” I just want to kill myself. To keep the “are we there yet” questions to a minimum, PlaSmart Inc. suggests that parents can keep their kids occupied and entertained while on the road with their new Perplexus 3D game maze challenge.
Children’s Water Ski Trainer
Have you read the Water Babies? For those of you who grew up during the last decade of the previous century, there is a chance that you might have come across that tome in your reading list, but the chances of that happening is pretty slim, I do admit. Guess you can more or less make a guesstimate of my age by me bringing up the Water Babies, but there is a reason to this method of madness – after all, I’m trying to talk about the Children’s Water Ski Trainer here.
DaGeDar Supercharged Battle Balls Started Rolling In Today…
Cepia LLC, the makers of everybody’s favorite ZhuZhu Pets, have taken the age old game of marbles and brought it into the new millenium. DaGeDar supercharged battle balls combine speed, skill, competition and encourage strategy all in a collectible racing game that lets kids set the rules. DaGeDar just launched in Phoenix but won’t be hitting a store near you until this summer.
Strandbeest now available on 3D printers
Some of you have never heard of the Strandbeest, which are creations of Theo Jansen. They are kinetic powered sculptures that appear to walk on their own. The last time we mentioned them was last year.
5″ Angry Birds Plush with Sound
Now this is one cash cow – or should I say, cash bird, that needs to be milked for all it is worth while still possible? I’m talking about the Angry Birds franchise, where you will now be able to carry those pesky avian friends in the comfort of your bosom while letting out their signature sound – sans the creaking of the catapult, of course.
Lego Audio Book Helmet can read to kids
Since the beginning of recorded audio, there has been books written to work in tandem with a record, cassette, CD, or digital file so that children can be read to.
Nerf Dart Tag 2 Player Set
The sun is shining brightly on the outside, and just what the heck are you doing sitting all cooped up in your living room, keeping your fingers crossed that the PlayStation Network connection would be restored so that you can get back to your game of Portal 2? Why not take a good look around you, and bring your kid (or little brother) outside to have some time of bonding and fun?
Zing Zcurve Launcher
Love playing cowboys and Indians with your kids? Of course, you might have the edge in terms of holding a gun as a cowboy, but the Indian is more that ready to take on any challenge that comes his way, never mind the fact that he knows the land like the back of his hand and is a mean shot with his crossbow. Enter the Zing Zcurve Launcher, a £19.99 purchase that will bring some technology to the world of archery.
Thanks to Hasbro’s Thor merchandise, I am always hammered
Hasbro was nice enough to send me a bunch of Thor toys, and I couldn’t resist trying them on for size. I am also surprised that they fit.
This construction toy builds human-sized vehicles
Two days ago, I heard the name Wouter Scheublin for the first time. This guy might be the greatest inventor of our time. Not only has he created the Eight-legged Wooden Walking Table, but this construction toy concept.
The Inflatable Outdoor Color Dot Game
Just to let you know, this is the Inflatable Outdoor Color Dot Game, not a certain game from Hasbro that has the same name as a popular 1996 movie about Tornadoes.
Takara Tomy’s Manekko P-Chan talking parakeet toy
I’m not certain what Manekko P-Chan means, but according to Takara Tomy, it must mean something like “talking parakeet toy”.
I suppose that this could be a new way to Twitter, and I only say that because it looks like the Twitter logo. At least the blue one does. You can check out how it works on the video directly after the jump.
Crayola’s colored bubbles may be fun, but not very washable
In the movie Knocked Up, two men are watching kids play with bubbles, and they are marveled. Paul Ruud shares with Seth Rogen that “I wish I loved anything as much as my kids love bubbles”.
Sega Toys Tokyo Sky Tree Indoor Planetarium
There is nothing like a starry night, but if you can put the beauty of the celestial heavens indoors, there’s a way to do that.
We have reported on a lot of indoor Planetariums before, such as the Death Star Planetarium. This particular is the Homestar Aqua Tokyo Sky Tree, and like the Star Wars themed one, this shows more than just the stars.
Rainbow in my Room Projector
Last Christmas, I wrote about the solar-powered rainbow machine, a device that can create an artificial rainbow. For those that want this ersatz rainbow technology on the inside, you might want to look into this Rainbow in my Room Projector.
Redakai Trading Cards – New Cartoon, Cool Game
I’m sure most of us are all too familiar with Bakugan, the wildly successful Spin Master Ltd. property. Well, the company wants to wow us again by introducing us to a brand new boys action series, Redakai: Conquer The Kairu. A co-production between Spin Master and Zodiak Kids/Marathon Media, the televised series will debut on the Cartoon Network in the U.S. in the second half of 2011.
Pee & Poo – I Feel Flushed
Every now and then you come across something, something that begs to be shared, if only for the sheer novelty of it or, sometimes for what I like to call the “you gotta be kidding” factor, sometimes you want to share it because you can’t believe anything like it was actually made, marketed and is wildly successful, but rarely you come across something that is all those things, and I’m going to tell you about it, when I stop crying and scratching my head.
Rolobox turns any cardboard box into a vehicle
You know how kids like to play in large boxes? Someone has actually created a toy that not only encourages this, but makes a whole lot more fun.
This is the Rolobox, and it is essentially four wheels and a rope, designed to turn any big box into a wagon. It’s a wagon that will probably only work on specific indoor terrain like a tiled floor, but can still provide hours worth of fun for a toddler.
Fly like an eagle with Hammacher
Remember the R. Kelly hit song, “Fly like an eagle”? Well, with those living in the northern hemisphere swinging into spring, it makes perfect sense to start planning on how you are going to spend more time outdoors with your loved ones – be it a picnic or just playing catch. Well, Hammacher has a new toy for you to, er, toy around with, where we’re talking about the 9 1/2′ Remote Controlled Bald Eagle.
Dr. Freuds Therapy Ball – “Go to Your Happy Place”
It’s probably no surprise to anyone that I’m not quite right. Anyone that actually knows me, can certainly substantiate in a million ways just how, let’s call it “different” I am from say… oh, the rest of all mankind. That being said, they are my friends, and like me, because of, or maybe in spite of, whatever it is that my parents did to me as a child. Don’t get me wrong, they are the most wonderful loving parents, that being said, whatever the heck is wrong with me, is their fault.
STIGA Table Football
Foosball – or table football, if you prefer to be more formal, can now be purchased in a much more affordable manner thanks to the STIGA Table Football from Firebox. This unique piece of home furniture (if you can call it that) retails for £59.99 while improving on traditional foosball by offering a smaller playing area, not to mention the classic 4-3-3 formation being stripped down to a leaner six-a-side game. Hey, sounds a whole lot more like futsal now!
Chewbacca Talking 15″ Plush
Gotta love the tag line of this plush toy – “From a galaxy fur fur away…”. Well, everyone knows the George Lucas has more than enough money to spend over a few lifetimes, but that doesn’t mean the master sci-fi storyteller (some might beg to differ) thinks that he has enough dosh in the bank – otherwise, why would he come out and say that he will release all six Star Wars movies in 3D from 2012 onwards?
Glux – Because You Really Do Need It
I guess it all started with Play-Doh, then we had modeling clay, then came the ultimate moldable time killer, Silly Putty. I used to spend hours making it bounce, pressing it into the Sunday funnies and stretching out all the faces and then, well, that was about it. We have had a few interesting new compounds, but nothing that could kill a Sunday like Silly Putty. Until now…
This PC Tower case has a Lego texture
I don’t own a PC anymore, but if I did ever get a desktop, then I would just have to get the Coobeeo HELLO-Q PC Tower Case.
As you can see, this Tower Case has a building block front. I would imagine that it is compatible with Lego and Mega Blocks.
Computer Engineer Barbie – Does Barbie like Windows?
I have to admit that as a kid I was never a Barbie fan, and all that Ken business, I for one was glad when they broke-up. I always wondered why they never made “perfect divorce Barbie” She could have come with the Dream House, the Corvette and most of Ken’s stuff, including half his paycheck, but no, they made baby-sitter Barbie, ballerina Barbie and dog groomer Barbie, dolls I could never really get into, until now…
Fijit Friends – Robots for Girls
It’s no surprise that kids flock towards interactive toys. I remember when the closest thing I had to interactive toy was a my Rock Flowers doll, she would attach to the top of a little yellow record that every doll came with, and she would spin on top of your record player for as long as you left the darn thing on. I would dance with “Lilac” for hours. Forget interactive toys, my kid doesn’t even know what a record player is.
Sega Toys Spray Art Toy allows for 3D creations
Some of you might know about this “new” 3D fad that has been going around, and has even affected toys like the 3D Giant Chalk from Crayola.
Meet the Cubelets, Robotic and Modular Building Blocks
I think that we all know that construction toys like Lego are loved by adults as well as children, and they are quite educational.
Unlike the Nanodots, the Cubelets are a construction toy designed with children in mind, and they are here to teach kids a little something about building and programming. Each of the Cubelet blocks have some intelligence and functionality built right in.
Tie-NOT… Simple, Patented, Ingenious
I know it’s the dead of winter and it’s hard to remember what it’s like every summer, when the weather is beautiful and the sun is shining and you’re outside with the grill going and the kids are throwing around some water balloons and… MOMMY! Will you tie this for me? I can barely tie a water ballon, how can a 7 year old?
Treefies – Play the Game, Save the Planet
Every toy these days seems to have an on-line world where you can design a room, change outfits and plant a pumpkin, but I’m not sure anyone is learning anything. Virtual worlds have become part of doing business for toymakers, but what are our kids getting out of it?
The Spooner – WAY More Fun Than it Looks
Did you ever see something that didn’t look like much, didn’t seem like it could do much, and thought to yourself, who would buy one of these? And then, as if someone read your mind, they showed you what it could do, and you had so much fun in that 15 minutes that you knew that “thing” was a winner? I have.
Phineas and Ferb CD Boombox
If there is one show that I am surprised everyone doesn’t know about, it’s Phineas and Ferb.
I can understand why. It is an animated show on the Disney Channel, and, unless you have kids, you might not be watching the Disney Channel. Go ahead and hit the jump if you want to hear more about Phineas and Ferb.
Lazer Tag gets a huge upgrade with Light Strike
Some of you might remember the Worlds of Wonder game known as Lazer Tag, the game with toy laser guns zap sensors on your opponent’s chest.
Paper Jamz has some updates
We have reported on WowWee’s Paper Jamz guitars before, in fact, we have reported on it several times.
Mazooka, Marshmallow shooting bazooka
Years ago, I go these marshmallow shooters as a Christmas gift. They were just skinny PVC pipe, and I had to put a tiny marshmallow in one end and blow out the other. I hope my mother-in-law didn’t spend that much on them, because I don’t recall using it much.
Battleship Live takes the game in a questionable direction
Some of you might remember when we reported that the classic board game Monopoly was being given this electronic treatment with Monopoly Live. The updated game was the same as the classic game, but with this tower thing in the middle can roll the non-existent dice and keep track of all the money.
Cars 2 Toys look more advanced than the toys from the first movie
I have a three-year-old who absolutely loves the movie Cars, and somehow diecast replicas of the characters from the Pixar film have ended up in my house.
Nerf Swarmfire could end the Nerf Wars as we know it
We have reported on a lot of Nerf toys in the past like the Stampede ECS Blaster and the Nerf Raider. This Swarmfire is definitely like the weapon that Tony Stark told us about in Iron Man: “I say that the best weapon is the one you only use just once”.
Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure offers a new way to play
I remember back in the day when I was still a young ‘un, games were more often than not moments where imagination was required. Imagine cops and robbers or cowboys vs Indians – those classic physical games involved plenty of running around and screaming, and we needed no pixelated adventure to spur us on or remain addicted.
