Looking for the perfect toy for your tiny techie? Toy Insider Senior Editor Ali Mierzejewski stopped by CBS in Philadelphia to talk about the year’s top tech toys and games. For more on the items featured in this segment, check out the product notes below, and for our complete rundown of the best gifts for the holidays, check out our complete holiday gift guide.


LEGO BOOST CREATIVE TOOLBOX (THE LEGO GROUP)

  • Kids can boost their LEGO building experience with the amazing LEGO BOOST Creative Toolbox. LEGO BOOST combines building and coding in one super-charged LEGO set that lets children add sound, movement and personality to their LEGO creations.
  • Build and customize Vernie, a personal talking robot friend, code its behavior, and complete fun activities with the included playmat.
  • Speak to Vernie and it will respond with facial expressions that reflect its mood. Vernie can move in all directions at variable speed on its large tracks, see objects and colors, sense distance, grip and carry accessories, make hand gestures, and launch darts from its shoulder mounted shooter. Vernie also senses and reacts to impacts and knows when you pick it up.
  • Rebuild Vernie to create the M.T.R.4 (Multi-Tooled Rover 4), Guitar4000, Frankie the Cat, or the AutoBuilder, all controlled via your tablet with the free downloadable app that also includes digital LEGO Building Instructions for all five models, plus cool activities and ideas to spark imagination.
  • The LEGO BOOST app guides children through their first build-and-code experience in a series of game-like challenges. Combining familiar LEGO building instructions and a simple drag-and-drop coding language, children build a LEGO model while building and adding behaviors.
  • Ages: 7-12
  • MSRP: $159.99
  • Available: LEGO brand retail stores, shop.lego.com

CRAYOLA COLOR WONDER LIGHT BRUSH (CRAYOLA)

  • Crayola Color Wonder Magic Light Brush lets kids create colorful art without the mess.
  • Color Wonder paints are clear and only work on Color Wonder special paper— it won’t color on skin, carpet, or furniture. The Magic Light Brush lights up to match whatever paint color kids are using.
  • The set comes with six classic colors and 18 sheets of Color Wonder paper.
  • Ages: 3+
  • MSRP: $19.99
  • Available: Amazon, Target, Toys “R” Us, Walmart, Crayola.com

PLAY-DOH TOUCH SHAPE TO LIFE STUDIO (HASBRO)

  • Open a Can of Imagination! Create a world of hands-on adventures and see Play-Doh creations come to life in ways never imagined before. To start, simply download the Play-Doh Touch app, shape a Play-Doh creation, place it on the Shape to Life Studio, and scan it with your tablet or smartphone. The creation will come to life on screen, ready to explore!
  • With the digital character stampers, create new friends that will unlock their own unique worlds and personalities when scanned into the app. Scan more creations made with the digital action stampers to see the surprising effects they have on other creations in the app. Keep shaping and scanning more creations with the cutters and tools to customize and enhance the world.
  • Even when the Play-Doh creations go back in the can, save them in the app to play another day. Interactive adventures await!
  • Ages: 3+
  • MSRP: $39.99
  • Available: Apple.com and select Apple retail stores, Amazon, Best Buy, Kohl’s, Target, Walmart

FISHER-PRICE THINK & LEARN TEACH ‘N TAG MOVI (MATTEL)

  • Teach ‘n Tag Movi is an interactive learning buddy that gets kids up and moving while developing gross motor skills, listening skills and ability to follow directions
  • 3 modes of play featuring 6 interactive games: Alpha Fun Actions: Animal Actions & Movi Says, Think & Move Shapes: Shape Moves & Step-by-Step, and Learn & Play Games: Red Light/Green Light & Silly Sounds Tag.
  • 360-degree mobility, top 2 buttons can be used for child input/indicator.
  • Fun facial expressions correspond with movement and gameplay.
  • Ages: 3-6
  • MSRP: $49.99
  • Available: Amazon, Target, Toys R Us, Walmar

SOUNDMOOVZ (CRA-Z-ART)

  • SoundMoovz is a motion-activated electronic device that plays cool music and special effect sounds as users move.
  • Kids can experience the excitement by moving, dancing, and creating unique musical beats
  • The device uses Bluetooth technology, just simply power on for pairing, download the free app, choose over 400 sounds, and start the fun.
  • The product comes with two special bands that users wear to enable the device.
  • Layer your beat onto a song. There are multiple sound modes including Robot, Karate, Instrumental, and Musical
  • Ages: 8+
  • MSRP: $69.99
  • Available: Amazon, Target, Toys “R” Us, Walmart, Best Buy

FINGERLINGS (WOWWEE)

  • Fingerlings baby monkeys come to life with endless ways of play and realistic sounds to let kids know how they are feeling. Kids can wrap them on their finger to have a new friend at their fingertips.
  • These silly critters have happy monkey sounds, blinking eyes, heads that turn, hands that grip, and a curly hanging tail.
  • Kids  can swing them, pet them, kiss them, and even rock them to sleep.
  • There are six different Fingerlings to play, share, and collect.
  • Ages: 5+
  • MSRP: $14.99
  • Available:  Amazon, Target, Toys “R” Us, Walmart

SCOOP & LEARN ICE CREAM CART (LEAPFROG)

  • This toy ice cream cart delights and surprises with a range of buttons, lights, sound effects, music, and fun phrases.
  • It features eight scoops of ice cream, three toppings, and three flavors of syrup to teach kids 10 colors and flavors.
  • Kids can create tons of delicious looking and imaginative combinations.
  • Insert an order card into the slot on top of the cash register, then build the customer’s order in the correct sequence to help build memory and sequencing skills.
  • Use the magnetic scooper to scoop the ice cream and learn colors, then complete the order by adding toppings and pretend syrup. Kids will love pressing the pump to add pretend syrup as they count along from 1 to 10.
  • Ages: 2+
  • MSRP: $39.99
  • Available: Amazon, Target, Walmart.com

AURA (KD INTERACTIVE)

  • Aura is a gesture-controlled drone that uses patented Gesturebotics technology powered by LocoRobo.
  • The wearable glove controller will have users feeling like superheroes – the drone is controlled by hand motions made while wearing the glove.
  • Kids can fly Aura up and down, forward and backward, and even perform tricks like a sideways flip.
  • Aura puts the power in kids’ hands, removing the learning curve of using a joystick controller to pilot their flying robot.
  • Ages: 7+
  • MSRP: $99.99
  • Available: Target, Toys “R” Us, Best Buy

About the author

Bill Reese

Bill Reese

Bill Reese is Business Operations Manager at Adventure Media & Events, where he's worked since 2014. A former editor at Playbill and graduate of SUNY–Purchase, he spends most weekends rooting for the New York Red Bulls pro soccer team and making subway systems out of Brio trains with his little boy Jonah.

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