Teddy Ruxpin is coming back and he's got emoji-like eyes
The talking bear from your 1980s dreams (or nightmares) is all spiffed up and will be back for 2017.
Oh sure, kids of today laugh at our 1980s innovations. Just because Frogger on the Atari 2600 looks like it was drawn by a kindergartner and we actually watched "Manimal," today's Gen Z's think we were all loons. Well, they're right, and they're about to find out just how right, because Teddy Ruxpin is back.
You remember Teddy Ruxpin. He came out in 1985 as a kind of stuffed bear robot with a cassette player in his butt, and he'd move his eyes and mouth in sync with whatever the cassette said. Some kids thought it was cool and comforting, some kids thought it was creepy. But whatever you thought of Teddy Ruxpin, you can now start planning to buy him for the new generation.
Teddy actually made a comeback once before, but vanished around 2010. This new version from Wicked Cool Toys still has the moving mouth and eyes, but uses Bluetooth technology, a 4GB hard drive, and an optional free app to read stories and sing songs. Squeeze his paw to switch to another story, and squeeze his foot for a singalong.
While Teddy was on display at the Dallas Toy Fair this week, don't start planning those holiday gifts yet. He won't actually be available until August 2017.
But it's the eyes, with their 40 full-color animated expressions, including emoji-like hearts, stars, and snowflakes, that will haunt our dreams until then.