mattel

We're back from San Diego Comic-Con 2012 with a wrap-up show of everything we saw at the show. This being our first year, it quickly became obvious that we missed the first rule of Comic-Con: leave your civilian clothes at home!… Read more

The hoverboard floated onto the big screen in "Back to the Future II" and broke the hearts of geeks worldwide when director Robert Zemeckis announced that the technology would not be available until the year 2015. Decades later, we're all still waiting for power laces, hydrator machines, power laces, and a real hoverboard, but Mattel was on-hand at Comic-Con 2012 to show off the next best thing: a 1:1 scale replica of the original hover board ridden by Marty McFly.

While it's still unacceptable that the thing doesn't actually glide through the air (don't even think about water), the prop retains the exact look and feel of the real thing, replete with a scooter handle hole, Velcro ankle strap, motion sensors, and "whooshing" sound effects pulled directly from the movies.… Read more

Comic-Con is filled with memorable moments, but nothing could prepare The 404 guys going face to face with The Hoff himself, legendary pop culture icon David Hasselhoff.

Hasselhoff was at Mattel's Comic-Con booth to help promote the Hot Wheels 30th Anniversary Limited Edition K.I.T.T. car, which was being sold exclusively at the show. After getting to sit in Michael Knight's magic ride ourselves, we asked The Hoff a few questions about the timeless "Knight Rider" franchise. Just as expected, we got some eye-opening answers.

But before we got to speak with David, we … Read more

If only I had a pair of plastic pink pumps for every time I've wondered what it would be like to sail through life as Barbie, she of the perpetually perfect skin and hair day and cute but crotch-challenged boyfriend.

Well, thanks to the "try almost anything out virtually" technology known as augmented reality, I can now step into Barbie's gold-beaded slip-ons.

The iconic and sometimes controversial doll/brand has employed Zugara's Webcam Social Shopper platform to let fans go inside Barbie's Dream Closet and see how they'd look in some of her most famous, mostly pink outfits. … Read more

If you're burning to spend this Valentine's Day, Pizza Hut has a $10,000 engagement party package that includes a personal fireworks display, a one-topping pizza, and bread sticks with icing to prep your stomach for a lifetime of loneliness. … Read more

Barbie is a digital camera, Angry Birds flock to Facebook, and iPad 3 rumors hint at 4G connection speeds.

Links from Tuesday's episode of Loaded:

The year 2015 will be here before we know it, and we're still a long way from flying cars, skyways, and auto-drying jackets as imagined by "Back to the Future II." It's depressing, but there is one futuristic piece of tech from the movie that will be available soon: hoverboards.

Mattel announced at Toy Fair 2012 in New York that it will finally release a 1:1 replica of the hoverboard from "Back to the Future II" and "Back to the Future III," and it's set to arrive just in time for the holidays.

The "movie accurate" replica includes such details as a hole at the front of the deck where Marty McFly, played by Michael J. Fox, ripped out the handlebar and pole and features the same neon-rrific coloring. According to Mattel's press release, it also makes multiple whooshing noises and "glides" over most surfaces. The company didn't provide much detail on how it glides, but one thing's for sure: It does not work on water. Dangit! … Read more

I'm not a fan of Hot Wheels, but I might buy Mattel's latest tin can car, the Video Racer. The vehicle has a VGA video camera mounted at the front to record the thrills and spills of spinning round the track. There's even a small LCD on the undercarriage that lets you play back the clips. … Read more