Top Pick of the Day: Curious George Discovery Beach Game

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curiousbeachThe Curious George Discovery Beach Game is great fun (and even looking at a beach on a cold January day made us feel better).  The board is really innovative.  The board shows a seascape with puzzle like pieces that lift off. Now here’s the really cool part–below the puzzle pieces there is “blue sand” that is safely behind  clear panels.  Players actually shake the whole board (box) and when they do they redistribute the sand and the hidden treasures.  We found that shaking the box was a great hit with players.

The object is to collect six cards representing hidden treasure that you look for on your turn (the spinner tells you where you may look on your turn).  So it’s a really fun visual discrimination game that moves pretty quickly (also a plus with this age group).

The other GREAT aspect of this game are the directions…which are much clearer than my explanation I think….kudos to the team at I Can Do That! Games for making the directions so easy we only had to read them once and we were good to go.

Curious George Discovery Beach Game is the type of game your older preschooler and early school age kids will want to play again and again.  ($16.95).  We have given the game an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award–but we can already tell it will be a strong contender for our year end Platinum Awards.

Pre-Toy Fair Buzz: Trends

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The folks at Mattel see four major trends for the new season…As we go through toy fair–we’ll be adding to the list and putting their trends to the test to see if they apply across the board.

1. Customization- Kids have the ability to use self-expression through their toys. We do see this with more and more on-line/product based tie ins where kids are able to customize their play experiences.

2. Simply Social- With the economy in turmoil, board games and other products for the home are now part of a clever marketing campaign that encourages nesting and entertaining closer to home. Makes sense–and from our point of view any opportunity to connect with family and friends is a plus.

3. Active Play- this trend continues from last year with toys that encourage kids to get up and move–often with an electronic plug in component of course.  This is the Wii generation after all.

4. High Value Toys- I love this spin….in other words inexpensive toys–classics that are still a great value.  Lets face it, the industry knows that your toy dollars are more restricted — and the price points of many products are being brought down to get under that magic $20 bar.  All good news for consumers.

Pre-Toy Fair Buzz: Barbie Bye Bye Bad Hair

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bye-bye-bad-hairMaybe you have to be a certain age — but do you remember the break thru of the product “No More Tears”?  I can’t begin to tell you how much I loved that bottle.  It meant that my mother and I did not have to have a nightly battle (or tears…) over brushing my hair.  Having two boys, I don’t even know if it’s still a staple — or if the overflowing hair product industry has come up with replacements.

I bring up my love of No More Tears because now Barbie also has a similar product — a special spray that will tame that blonde mane.  Unfortunately I was told that the Barbie spray is only for Barbie hair–and should not be used on human hair.  I would have tried it on myself if it worked so well for Barbie!  Glad I asked.

Pre-Toy Fair Buzz: Barbie Digital Nail Printer

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barbie-digital-nail-printerHard to believe that another toy season is just around the bend.  While most consumers are recovering from the holidays, toy makers are busy at work getting ready to launch their new lines for 2009.  Toy Fair officially begins in mid-Feburary in NYC–but many of the companies have previews to get all of us excited about the new season.

The first toy we “previewed”  was the Barbie Digital Nail Printer.  Now we’re usually not big on nail kits that have fake nails that are intended for your seven year old to glue on…but this is really different and if it works will be a hit with girls (and some not so little girls as well).  You place your finger in the printer and then it hooks up to your PC—you can then select an image (I selected a repeating pattern of pink Barbies)….and it is literally printed on your fingernail. (The software allows you to adjust the image to exact a custom fit of the image.) Thankfully, I had just had a manicure and was good to go for my Barbie overlay.

That’s right you’re basically putting your finger into an ink jet printer. Once the image is printed on, you add a clear top coat and you’re good to go.  If you’re having a sleepover party–or any situation where you have a bunch of girls…this will be a real crowd favorite. We’re looking forward to testing this one!

Toyportfolio.com featured on BusinessWeek Weekend TV

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2e7c661a89bc34d4bb456e0dab2992dd7170172cHere’s a link to the piece we did with BusinessWeek TV’s anchor Jill Bennett about the best toys under $25.  Read It! Play It! with Babies and Toddlers.

Pick of the Day: FlyTech Butterfly

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flytechbutterfly I really feel like I need to gush about these really cool flying butterflies. Finding toys that fly without a huge scary propeller can be challenging. There’s also the whole class of flying toys that require a lot of space and finesse. Having neither a lot of space or finesse (when it comes to flying things)…I really liked these easy to use FlyTech insects (there are moths and mosquitoes in the line) when they came in last spring. So I took them to the Today Show. They were intended as the last “wow wee” toy of the segment. At set up the night before the entire crew also really liked them. We all took turns flying them around the studio. The segment was outside the next day–so everything got a little damp when it started to rain. I’m not sure exactly which factor played a bigger role but when I went to show Al Roker how cool they were–none of them would fly, not a one. It was really disappointing since such a poor performance made the toy look bad. (Not to mention that I also looked a bit silly protesting that they really do fly!) You can fly these butterflies inside–the wings aren’t hard–so it’s not like flying a plane in the house. For a full review check out our award listing. They are from WowWee and retail for just under $25–making them a good value for the holidays.

Spin Art–a favorite

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I was talking to one of the moms at the Today Show — and she mentioned that her kids are having the best time with an old fashion Spin Art set.  I love Spin Art…I haven’t tested any of the sets on the market for several years–they come and go….but after 18 years of testing toys–I still get excited when they introduce a new version.

I’m not sure why it’s such a satisfying experience–maybe it’s the surprise and almost instantaneous results that pulls me in.  I remember feeling so happy that my kids loved it too.

I have a similar  soft spot for Lite Brite — maybe it’s the toys you played with in that 5-6 year old zone where you feel that sense of accomplishment–mastery in a task for the first time. Both toys are for big kids…I liked that too.

So let me know if you’ve had the same experience with the Spin Art—and if you’ve liked any of the recent variations.