HIGH-TECH TOY BOX COMPANIES INNOVATING AS THEY MAKE A PLAY FOR PARENTS' DOLLARS.Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer Toymakers won't just be making kids happy for the holidays - the battery industry will owe them big time, too. When gift givers take to the malls Friday, they'll have electronic gadgets galore to pick from: dolls that talk back to their young mommies, a cartwheeling tiger and scaled-down version of Dad's digital doodads. Looking to tap into kids' passion for things that light up and make noise, local toy manufacturers have enthusiastically plugged in for their holiday lineup. ``It'll be a good year for kids,'' said David Riley, a senior manager for the toy industry tracker NPD Group The NPD Group, Inc. is a leading global market research company[1] founded in 1967 and provides consumer and retail information to manufacturers and retailers. Using actual sales data from retailers and distributors as well as consumer-reported purchasing behavior, NPD . ``Whether parents can afford it or not, that remains to be seen.'' For the prime example of that high-tech trend, look to Amazing Amanda. Invented by Moorpark-based Judy Shackelford and manufactured by Costa Mesa's Playmates Toys Inc., the talking doll relies on a voice-recognition computer to let her recognize her owner's commands and carry on a fairly lengthy conversation. The animated doll cries, laughs, sings - and commands $100 in toy aisles. Malibu's Jakks Pacific JAKKS Pacific, Inc. NASDAQ: JAKK is is a multi-brand company that designs and markets a broad range of toys and consumer products and is based in Malibu, California. Its product categories include action figures, art activity kits, stationery, writing instruments, performance Inc. takes a similar concept - adapting a classic play pattern to incorporate modern technology - but in a far different fashion. It introduced its Fly Wheels line earlier this year, marrying the look of car wheels to a high-tech launcher that lets the toys zoom around at the scale equivalent of 300 miles per hour, and expects the items, which start at $4.99, to be major drivers. ``The traditional toys have to be innovative,'' said Michael Bernstein, senior vice president of boys' marketing and interactive for Jakks. ``Kids have never seen a toy that can do stunts like a Fly Wheels can. A kid sitting at home eating his Froot Loops “Fruit Loops” redirects here. For other uses, see Fruit Loops (disambiguation). Froot Loops is a brand of breakfast cereal produced by Kelloggs and sold in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, and Latin America as well as South Africa. on Saturday morning sees this and says: Oh my God, I've never seen anything like this before.'' That's a sentiment that manufacturers definitely need to evoke to come out on top this year. Toy watchers have been saying for months that companies will face stiff competition from adult electronics, particularly cellular phones and the Apple iPod music player. Throw in the coveted cov·et v. cov·et·ed, cov·et·ing, cov·ets v.tr. 1. To feel blameworthy desire for (that which is another's). See Synonyms at envy. 2. To wish for longingly. See Synonyms at desire. Microsoft Xbox 360 home entertainment system, already a top item on gift lists before it debuted in stores on Tuesday, and toymakers will have stiff competition for kids' attention. ``Home video, video games See video game console. , traditional toys, they're all converging,'' said Jessi Dunne, executive vice president of global toys for Burbank-based Disney Consumer Products. ``With something like our Mix Stick, to some kids it's a toy, to others, it's electronics. Either way, it's an important segment.'' The $49.99 digital audio player See digital music player, digital media hub and digital media server. plays both downloaded MP3s and pre-recorded cartridges, intending to yank Yank steamship stoker vainly tries to climb the social ladder, then fails in attempt to avenge himself on society. [Am. Drama: O’Neill The Hairy Ape in Sobel, 339] See : Failure (jargon) yank back market share from the iPod Shuffle The smallest and most basic iPod, and the only iPod without a display screen. Designed for people who just want to press start and play their tunes sequentially or at random, the shuffle holds up to 240 songs in 1GB of flash memory. by taking the concept and wrapping it with Disney graphics. And for a younger consumer who still wants a little pizazz at playtime, the company's also pushing its Tumble Time Tigger, manufactured by Fisher-Price and sold for $34.99. The cartwheeling tiger blares out M.C. Hammer's ``U Can't Touch This'' as it flips across the floor. Though the kids' MP3 segment is relatively new to the industry, it's quickly become a competitive segment. MGA Entertainment MGA Entertainment is a manufacturer of children's toys and entertainment products founded in 1997. Its products include the Bratz fashion doll line. External links
``Every kid you talk to wants an iPod,'' said Chief Executive Officer Isaac Larian Isaac Larian (born March 28 1954, Kashan, Iran) is the Chief Executive Officer of MGA Entertainment, the biggest privately owned toy company in the world. He was born in Iran to Persian Jewish parents. . ``So one of our biggest divisions is consumer electronics. We've come up with cool, practical electronics that adults use, but designed with kids in mind.'' That seems to be the trick, because kids are notoriously good at discarding ill-conceived products that are just devolved versions of their adult counterparts. And just adding a light or noisemaker to a regular toy doesn't cut it anymore - to survive in this fiercely fought-over landscape, the toy's got to both delight the players and hold their attention. El Segundo-based giant Mattel Inc. has tried to tap into this by adapting the classic play pattern of nurturing a doll into the digital age. Its Pixel Chix Pixel Chix are interactive electronic games based on teenage girls, fashion and so forth. They are very similar to Tamagotchi in that they have an LCD screen and controlling buttons, although they are larger. , a $29.99 extension of the electronic Tamagotchi Tamagotchi [Japanese; cute little egg] space-age cyberpet; a solely electronic state; indigenous to Japan, appearing as an egg on a liquid-crystal screen. Life history, consisting of hatching, feeding, beeping when not fed, sleeping in 12 hour snatches, growing, dying craze of the late '90s, give girls a digital playmate to care for and carry around. When connected with other Chix, the miniature little girls socialize so·cial·ize v. so·cial·ized, so·cial·iz·ing, so·cial·iz·es v.tr. 1. To place under government or group ownership or control. 2. To make fit for companionship with others; make sociable. , dance and talk on the phone. ``The merger of technology and traditional play has really evolved over the years,'' said Sara Rosales, Mattel's vice president of communications. ``We're not just doing technology for technology's sake. It's to bring a magical feature to life.'' Brent Hopkins, (818) 713-3738 brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 5 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Fly Wheels High tech cars and launchers MAKER: Jakks Pacific Inc. MSRP MSRP Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price MSRP Message Session Relay Protocol MSRP Multi-Species Recovery Plan (US Fish & Wildlife Service) MSRP Member of the Society for Radiological Protection (UK) : $4.99 and up (2 -- color) Tumble Time Tigger Cartwheeling toy MAKER: Fisher-Price MSRP: $34.99 (3 -- color) Plugged In Lips Tunes Lipstick--shaped audio player MAKER: Bratz MSRP: $79.99 (4 -- color) Mix Sticks Digital audio player MAKER: Disney Consumer Products MSRP: $49.99 (5 -- color) Amazing Amanda Interactive talking doll MAKER: Playmates Toys Inc. MSRP: $100 |
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