toys

CNET Live - Episode 69

Kim Bratcher from Wild Planet Toys stops by to show off some great new gadgets for your young ones...or maybe just for you.

Watch the show on CNET TV.

Things we Crave

Samsung airport charging stations and the airport power locater

Logitech Squeezebox Boom

Product Spotlight

Sony Ericsson W760i.

Download of the week

Advanced Windows Care 2

Quick Tip

Uninstall software faster

Best of the Web

Internet Explorer 8

Your calls

Remote Buddy expands the capabilities of your remote to control different functions of your Mac.

Griffin Firewave adds surround sound capability to your iMac, or other Firewire-based device.… Read more

Wind turbine blows Speed Racer around the track

Toys are truly a reflection of the time in which they are sold. This new car set from Tamiya has only been around for a short while, and it's already temporarily out of stock. (No worries; Tamiya America says it plans to get more in.)

Instead of a crank or bite-size fuel cell to make your little Speed Racer run, this $67 model kit comes with its own miniature wind turbine.

You don't have to live in Colorado for the wind turbine to work. Specially shaped blades and different gears allow the turbine to turn from the slightest … Read more

Featured Freeware: RegToy

Power-packed beyond Registry tweaks, RegToy focuses on Registry edits to optimize your computer performance--but novices shouldn't expect much hand-holding. Though the tweak options are carefully labeled, users must know the consequences of altering them, as the few onscreen notes don't provide adequate assistance. You can restore the Registry settings to the Windows default, but that's an emergency final resort, as it will undo many changes made by you and other programs. RegToy also includes a poorly explained feature for saving and loading settings.

Other features include a file renamer, a file shredder, a start-up manager, an uninstall … Read more

New TV show: Temptation gadget island

You thought it was bad getting tossed aside for another woman? Try getting rejected for an MP3 player.

A new dating series based on the notion that "boys love their toys" will pit girls against gadgets in an attempt to answer that age-old question: hottie or hot HDTV? In a twist on the reality TV staple For Love or Money, Playboy TV's Gadget or the Girl will make contestants choose between a weekend getaway with a girl of their choice or a surprise high-tech toy.

The gear will range from a 60-inch plasma TV to an arcade … Read more

Bluetooth-enabled teddy bear befriends sick kids

Brazilian industrial designer Bruno Oro de Abreu wrote in to tell us about Dilus, an electronic teddy bear that's far more than a cuddly toy. It's a socialization tool.

The Bluetooth-enabled concept bear has a holographic display that kids can use to surf the Internet, play games, attend remote classes, and make friends with other Dilus-toting youngsters. It can display 2D and 3D images and has a customizable polymer body that can be changed according to design preference. Oh, and it's cute.

The 23-year-old designer, who is working on Dilus as a graduation project, says the smart … Read more

Robot crabs coming to an office near you

This August, you may be dodging something other than Frisbees at the beach or your boss at the office.

Innovation First is releasing the Hexbug Crab, the latest in its line of Hexbug microrobotic toys that sell for about $9.99.

While the minirobot is geared toward kids, it's easy to see the Hexbug Crab gaining a place alongside office stress balls in cubicles across the country.

Like other Hexbugs, the Hexbug Crab can be left to roam around and respond to its environment. Think of it as a little pet that doesn't need to be fed.

"… Read more

Remote-controlled tire boggles the mind

Here's a perfect Father's Day gift if your dad's a fan of unicycles and other single-wheeled vehicles: a remote-controlled tire.

That's right, just the tire--no vehicle whatsoever. The creation of TOSY, a Vietnam-based toy and robot maker, the "R-Tyre" is billed as the "the first radio controlled tire in the world," according to Dvice. And as dubious as we are of "world's first" claims, we're inclined to believe this one.

Endless questions come to mind about this gadget--not the least of which is "Why?"--but there'… Read more

Touring Disney World the unconventional way

EPCOT CENTER, Fla.--Ah, lawyers.

I was sitting inside a small dome, antsy to get going on the special Segway tour of this famous theme park that I had arranged. But before they would let me or any of the others on the tour head out and ride around on our gyroscopic human transporters, we had to sit through more than half an hour of tedious, but entirely practical, training.

As our instructors told us how to get on and how to get off, how to speed up and how to slow down and so many other crucial things, I … Read more

Top chef for tots

Although it isn't technically an appliance or a kitchen gadget, I felt that it was incumbent upon me to sound off about the MagiCook Kitchen by Little Tikes, a toy set that comes with several food look-a-likes that are embedded with RFID tags.

Radio-frequency identification is a way for an electronic receiver to identify items with radio waves. This means that the toy can sense when Junior pops something into the oven, and will respond with phrases in up to three languages that are appropriate to the meal of the moment.

Why is this kind of thing important? Well, … Read more