Have you ever wanted to become a professional drummer, but never had the materials? Well, now, you still might not become a professional, but you can now drum to your heart’s content with B2’s Mijam Drummer. These drumsticks operate when you hit them in the air or on something. You can choose from six different sounds: short cymbal, cymbal, floor tom, tom tom, bass drum and hi hat, and snare drum.  read more »

Few kids like baths without some kind of incentive. My kids play "Rock, Paper, Scissors" to see who gets to go last. But sometimes, the proper toy is just the necessary item to raise interest in the tub. MGA now offers a cute little puppy to do just that, and we mean cute--just look at it, then get a drink to get the sweet taste out of your mouth. My daughters love cute.  read more »

As any man who was once a boy (and I think that includes most of us), the utterance of "Hot Wheels" invokes a certain level of excitement. When the opportunity to try out the Hot Wheels Volcano Shoot-Out Play Set came along, it didn't take much thought to jump at the chance. The box came and it even had a "Try Me" button exposed that when pushed, started a whirling of parts, some fancy lights and a voice that sounded too evil to release.  read more »

If you are going to try to tame the Tyco RC Turbo Pro Wheelie Cycle, you better bring your A game. This cycle is no normal RC machine, it is the bike too tough to tame. The controller is a set of handlebars that sense the motion of your turns. Of course, as the name implies, you also have the option to pop a Wheelie with the push of the Wheelie button.  read more »

I found out a few months ago that I'm allergic to our pet guinea pigs and most other furry pets. If only there were a pet that wouldn't affect my allergies. Something that takes minimal care when we travel for the holidays would help, too. And how about making it a dinosaur, just because dinosaurs are cool? Mattel has made an attempt at doing just that with the D-Rex, a foot tall, 2 foot long tyrannosaurus rex named D-Rex.  read more »

I live my life through a tiny screen. When I go to our kids' concerts, I take the camcorder and watch much of the concert through the 3" viewfinder. Now, MGA/Little Tikes gives your aspiring mogul the opportunity to do the same with the Little Tikes My Real Digital Video Camera.  read more »

Wowwee's Robosapien robotic toys have brought the fun of a robot to the family, and with the Tri-bot, the Robosapien has "evolved" to add personality. Eschewing the humanoid feet for three wheels, each with 10 rollers for optimal movement, and trading prehensile hands for humanoid-but-immobile hands, what Tri-bot loses in form, he more than makes up for in personality and capability.  read more »

I have to give it to the advertisers, they new exactly how to go after my 4-year-old, Caleb.  No sooner had the commercial for the new Air Hogs RC Zero Gravity Micro ended when he said, “we need that!”  After a lesson in differences between ‘need’ and ‘want’, I convinced Caleb the best thing he could do was put it on his Santa Wish List.  A few weeks later, and he and I were putting a review unit through i  read more »

Zero.  Ronin.  Axis.  Huh?  I don't get it.

But I'll explain it.

Jakks-Pacific is introducing the U.S. market to pen-spinning, a popular 'sport' in Europe and Asia, with thousands of participants, tournaments, a Pen Spinning World Cup - whah?  read more »

Last year, Disney bought the online virtual polar landscape that is Club Penguin, a virtual world where kids romp and play as penguins do.

This year, they've introduced a plush toy line that extends the virtual polar landscape into the thawed real world with the Club Penguin Series One figures, produced by Jakks Pacific and available at www.ClubPenguin.com/clubpenguinshop.  read more »