If your toddlers are anything like mine, they will do just about anything to get their messy hands on your precious cell phone or Blackberry. The little ones seem to always want to play with Mom and Dad’s button laden, noise making, flashy things. Our cell phones were probably the most sought after (expensive) gadget our kids want.

After trying to distract the kids with various toy cell phones and old real cell phones; I had an inspiration while looking at the retro toy section of my local Target. Merlin was the answer. Most of us probably played this simple, talking game when we were young.

For those you who don’t know about the magic of Merlin; is a bright red, hand held toy that can play a variety of games. The games range from pretty basic, like blackjack and tick tac toe to totally convoluted like magic square. To this day I still don’t know how to play the later. Merlin also makes tons of noises and the play buttons flash constantly.

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Remember Teddy Ruxpin or Robotics? For those of you in the under thirty crowd; these were basic robotic toys that were interactive. Teddy Ruxpin was a bear that had a cassette player in his back. He would move his mouth and arms slightly as he read you a story. Robotics were kind of like tinker toys meets Legos. They came with motors that could be attached to pieces and you could make things like a dinosaur or a crane. The latter was truly a toy I played with for hours on end.

Recently there has been a surge in “robo” toys; Roboraptor, Robosapien, and Robo Pet to name a few. With the continued advances in artificial intelligence, robotics, and miniaturization there are sure to be more and more. The next big ‘robo” toy is coming out late this summer and it promises to blow away past and current robotic toys. It is Robosapien Media from Wow Wee.

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A few years ago you couldn’t drive through your neighborhood without seeing a kid riding on a Razor Scooter. Sharper Image introduced these to the world and they took off. Now Sharper Image is now selling a new kind of “carving machine” that looks to marry traditional skateboards with the Razor Scooter.

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There are a few things that (stereotypically) every little girl wants; to marry a prince, to care for a baby doll, and to have a pony. Now every little girl can have her very own pony to love and care for. Hasbro has just released what may be the “IT” toy for little girls in 2007. It is the Butterscotch Interactive Plush Pony from their Fur Real Friends line.

Hasbro’s Butterscotch is about the same size as a miniature pony, which is just over three feet tall. Butterscotch is totally interactive. She does all the cute things a little girl’s vision of a pony would do like whinny, neigh, and blow a puff or air out of her nose. She also blinks, swishes her tail, and eats her plastic carrot. Butterscotch responds to voice by moving her head and ears. She is even strong enough for your little girl to sit on and go for make-believe rides. Butterscotch does not walk however so there is no danger of your daughter taking her over a flight of stairs.

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When I was growing up there were tons of learning toys out there that were either boring or extremely dangerous or both.  I remember a chemistry set that I got to use unsupervised that could probably have made battery acid if I mixed the right chemicals together.  I also had a very boring and complicated electrical circuit set where if you were lucky you could make the light turn on or buzzing noise that (I think) was supposed to be a doorbell.  This was all provided that you did shock the hell out of your fingers and give up in the process.

Now there is the from Elenco.  With American kids woefully lacking in sciences, there need to be more toys that inspire a love for engineering and chemistry.  It looks like Elenco has solved that issue, the one about kids getting interested in science anyway.  The Snap Circuits SC-300 is basically a circuit board with 300 different electrical projects your kids can make.  The pieces look very colorful and sturdy and most importantly, un-intimidating.  There is noting worse than a learning toy that looks like just that, a learning toy.

With the Snap Circuits SC-300 you and your kids can create things like a lamp & fan, musical doorbell, laser gun, police car symphony, reflection detector, spinning rings, pencil alarm, race game and yes even a lie detector.  The Snap Circuits SC-300 has even won the National Parenting Center-Seal of Approval.  At less than $60 it seems like a bargain for all the time you and the kids can spend time creating projects.  You can pick it up at Amazon.com

Every kid or grownup has had the dream to be a hero but not many would actually attempt to fight off the supernatural forces of Dr. Octopuss or the Joker in real life. What parent wouldn’t expect their kids to take things upon themselves, to be brave enough to tackle any situation? How would you foster courageous and honest feelings in your kids? How would you motivate them?

We have found the answer in the form of a toy called Mazu Kan: Two Player Invisible Fighting Game. One has to agree that latest movies, like the Star Wars, have impacted everyone’s lives especially the younger generations. Mazu Kan is based upon the same terminology which introduces a virtual fighting/training stimulation. This two player stimulation game is played by wearing two button straps around both hands and the central shield like unit on your chest. The fun starts when the player squeezes the palm buttons which cause vibrations in the central unit generating the feelings as if you have punched the opponent.

What’s super cool is that the palm buttons create vibrations in your opponent’s chest unit. Yeah… it’s true. Once you start hitting opponent in the air, the opponent’s chest unit will vibrate if he/she doesn’t block it by simple hand fold signaling. That’s where you are considered to have scored a successful hit.

Players can shuffle between basic and advanced modes and play with more moves and hits. Hitting on walls will also get your chest unit to vibrate. Using advanced the mode a player can use more moves to hit and score against their opponent. Some of the moves a player can gain are punch, a power punch, block, power block, double power punch and block, Force field, Heal and overheat features.

The maximum distance that the players can try their moves is approx 30 feet’s at a frequency of 433 MHz with each unit having 3 AA batteries. $29.99 gets you the entire package from ThinkGeek.com, with two complete fighting suits, instructions, and your child’s path to superhero fame and glory.

It is interesting to see other companies capitalize on the “Pirates of the Caribbean” sensation. A company called Wiz Kids has come up with a (sort of) collectable card game called “Pirates Constructible Strategy Game.” This is a neat looking game. It is a mix between Magic the Gathering’s collectable card game and a little known (out of print) game by an English company, Games Workshop, called Man ‘O War.

Overall it is a game where you play with ships that are put together with thick card. The ships are 3 dimensional with sails and masts. Each ship has unique moves, attacks, and special abilities. The game is played on any flat surface such as a table or floor. The object is get as much treasure as possible or simply blow all of your opponents out of the water.

Players use their ships to shuttle treasure back to their home island and to carry out attacks against one another. The upside to Pirates is the simplicity. There are also limitless play possibilities since every time you play the board can be different. Lastly, there are a ton of booster packs available with extra ships, islands, and special characters. You can pickup a starter pack from any major toy and/or game retailer for about $15.

Fisher-Price is just about to offer their Rainforest Jumperoo. It is basically a jumper for the little ones sit in while you get a few moments to yourself. The Rainforest Jumperoo has the standard bells and whistles like lights and musical toys with a few improvements over current jumpers.

First of all this one has a washable seat. How many times have you found yourself scrubbing the seat of your children’s activity seat only have it still stink or stained. The Rainforest Jumperoo has a seat that can be removed and thrown into the washer and dryer. This is huge since all kinds of liquids and dirt tent to find their way into toys like this.

The other element that makes this jumper stand out from the field is the raised toys that are attached. Most jumpers I have owned only offer toys in the immediate area for junior to play with. With the Rain Forest design there are two hanging leaves with toy for your child to grab and play with. Lastly this jumper can be folded up and stored away for travel or when company comes over and you need the floor for grownups.

Check it out here.

This week Mattel will launch BarbieGirls.com, which is “designed to be a safe place for girls to play and interact online.” BarbieGirls.com is an online community where girls can “… [have the] creative power to customize their own virtual character, design their own “room,” shop at the mall, play games, hang out and chat live with other girls.” The motivation behind BarbieGirls.com site is based on the 65 million hits Barbie.com receives each month. It is a virtual no brainier to try to drive the MySpace.com crowd to a safer friendlier place.

This site seems to be an amalgamation of MySpace.com, Yahoo’s Avatars, and a place to spend money. While all of these services already exist, they are lacking the massive name recognition of the world’s number 1 doll, Barbie. The site will no doubt be a huge success since there are few web sites out there that are designed and marketed strictly to young girls; but I see it as next to impossible to keep the bad people out.

You can see the full Web site on April 26 of this year.

Original Press Release

A rather innovative Japanese Web site, SF Paper Craft Company, has published an array of Star Wars ships and vehicles that can be made entirely with paper, scissors, tape and a ton of patience. The designs include Tie Fighters, AT-AT Walkers, and even a Star Destroyer. What I really like about these do it your self ships is that the markings for the Rebellion and Empire are already on the cutouts.; no adhering stickers for two hours. There are other sci-fi vehicles, for those not in tune with the force, from Star Trek and Back to the Future.

To get started; you just go to their site, click on the shi-fi ship of your choice and up comes the Adobe Acrobat file. From there you just print, cut, and tape. Viola your very own desktop Tie Fighter. The best part About this interstellar origami is that if you make mistake you can simply print off a new one.