ToyTalk: Toy news, reviews and features

The Doctor rakes it in

2009-11-23T10:35:31+00:00

by David Smith
The Doctor Who auction organised by doctorwhotoys.net was a big success, raising £97 for Children in Need.

The Character Options Doctor Who action figure signed by Colin Baker (the sixth Doctor) attracted plenty of interest, with no fewer than 28 bids registered.

100% of the winning bid goes to the charity, which recorded over £20 million in donations last Friday.

Shake it, baby

2009-11-20T09:10:00+00:00

by Eleanor de Bruin
The First Years range from Lamaze now includes three bright and interesting rattles.

For all those babies who love to play with their parents’ keys and then throw them down the back of the sofa, the Shake and Jingle Keys should provide a suitable alternative. Chewable, and with button activated noises, the keys are available in different colours and are priced around £5.99.

With a snail on one end and a turtle on the other, the Shaken Shells rattle is priced around £4.99.

Babies can watch the beads tumble around the clear plastic sections of the toy, and listen to the noise it makes when they shake it. The rattle is available in two eye-catching colour schemes.

The happiest of the insects features in the third rattle, the Baby Bumble Bee Musical Rattle, priced around £6.49. The soft textured little chap has attached teethers in the shape of bright flowers, and is smiling from ear to ear (except he doesn’t have ears).

The eye-catching rattles are suitable for the very youngest babies, from as soon as they can grasp them in their tiny hands.

Review: Flair Sylvanian Families Caravan

2009-11-19T11:36:15+00:00

Approx. price: £39.99

Age range: 4+

ToyTalk Awards Winner: Collectibles

Website: www.flairplc.co.uk

by David Smith
Sylvania is far too happy a place for anyone to ever want to go anywhere else, but it’s still nice to get away from the daily routine every now and then, so the Sylvanian Families Caravan is a perfect addition to the range.

Although it’s shown with a bunny family, this caravan can be a home-from-home for any of the Sylvanian Families characters. It is equipped with a kitchen, a seating area and a bathroom, and there are fold down beds for up to four figures.

As always with the Sylvanian Families range, it’s the attention to detail that stands out here. The toilet roll holder in the bathroom actually spins round, the oven door opens, and there’s a tasty-looking stew simmering away in the casserole pot.

Other accessories include cooking utensils, a fold-out ironing board, a bar of soap, bedding, games to play when the weather isn’t good and even a map of Sylvania to help you plan your grand tour.

The result is an engrossing little world for youngsters to enjoy and the set will appeal equally to children and adult collectors.

Designed to work with the Sylvanian Families Car (sold separately) the Caravan is quite sturdy, although you need to make sure that everything is tucked away in its place when closing doors or they won’t close properly.

The retro styling is pleasing (and the number plate, ‘SM1 LEY’, is a nice little joke) and the only real shame is that you don’t get at least a couple of figures included, although for those with existing collections this won’t be an issue.

Durability: 4/5
Longevity: 5/5
Value: 4/5
Score: 91%
Conclusion: A great addition to this long-established line of collectibles.

Review: Haba Building Blocks Zoolino Maxi

2009-11-19T10:51:16+00:00

Approx. price: £23

Age range: 1+

ToyTalk Awards Winner: Wooden Toys

Website: www.haba.co.uk

by David Smith
Children have enjoyed playing with building blocks for centuries, but Haba still managed to catch our eye with the Zoolino Maxi set.

Perhaps it’s the bold colours, or the array of different shapes. Perhaps it’s the extra character added by the animal faces (you get a bear, a bunny and a rhino). It’s also possible that the sheer tactile pleasure of holding these beech wood blocks is the real key. The blocks are smooth and weighty and make a wonderful noise when knocked together.

Whatever the reasons, our testers loved piling these blocks up and knocking them down again. Children can experiment with mixing patterns and colours, or they can concentrate on building the three animals and inventing adventures for them.

As confidence increases, the animal parts can be mixed up to make new and intriguing combinations. The box has a few suggestions, but the real fun lies in creating something original.

There are enough pieces (16 in all) to attempt a really ambitious tower as well – and even though this will always end the same way, that’s all part of the fun.

With the added benefit of helping to develop spatial awareness and fine motor skills, these are simply wonderful building blocks that will give years of pleasure.

Durability: 5/5
Longevity: 4/5
Value: 4/5
Score: 90%
Conclusion: A beautiful set of building blocks with real character.

Books for babies

2009-11-19T09:15:00+00:00

by Eleanor de Bruin
Manhattan Toy has released lots of new soft books to help babies explore and develop a love of books from an early age.

Suitable from birth, the Bugboo Exploratory Book is billed as ‘a coffee-table book for baby’, and since it contains a variety of different sensory features such as ribbons, crinkly bits, a mirror and rattles, there’s plenty to keep them occupied between lattes.

Priced around £16.50, the large book’s vivid pop art graphics may tempt adults into having a leaf through it too.

For dinosaur fans aged six months and over, the Storytime Dino Adventures book includes the aptly named Dino as an attachable finger puppet, who romps through the soft pages.

Dino’s adventures take him through crinkly and peek-a-boo pages, until he can finally nod off to sleep in his very own storage pocket. This book is priced around £11.16.

Designed in the same style, the Blooming Garden Book is also priced around £11.16. The bright colours of the garden design will attract a tot’s attention, the butterfly finger puppet and sensory features will keep them amused, and a teething ring makes it blooming useful for babies of six months and older.

The two new soft Photo Books are brightly-coloured and can be filled with up to five pictures of family and friends. Offering a floral variation on the classic ‘family-tree’ idea, the Family Garden book includes fun textures and crunchy sounds to engage a baby’s senses.

The My Stars photo book offers the same fun elements including a rattle and teething ring, and can feature all of their favourite characters in a starring role withinin the soft photo frames.

Both the Family Garden and My Stars photo books are priced around £9.99 and are suitable from age six months upwards.

Competition: Win Gogo’s Advance Special Edition Metal Tins from Play.com!

2009-11-18T14:17:10+00:00

If you’ve been bitten by the Gogo’s bug (and let’s face it, who hasn’t?), then this Gogo’s Crazy Bones Advance Special Edition Metal Tin should definitely be on your Christmas list.

These golden tins are packed with 10 exclusive Gogo’s Advance Special Edition characters that are not available anywhere else and you can save Santa the trouble of tracking them down by winning one in our new competition.

Our friends at leading online retailer Play.com have kindly supplied three of these must-have tins and all you have to do to be in with a chance of winning one is answer the easy question below.

Question: How many Gogo’s are included in the Special Edition Tin?
A – 2
B – 4
C – 10

Send your answers to advance [at] toytalk.co.uk, and remember to include your name and address (only one entry per person please). The first three correct entries drawn at random will win.

Automated entries, bulk entries and third party entries will be disqualified.

Please note that entries cannot be accepted via the comments tab below.

The closing date for entries is Thursday, December 10, 2009.

For further toys, at great prices and with free delivery, check out www.play.com

Scalextric revs up a pair of classics

2009-11-18T12:42:18+00:00

by David Smith
Graham Hill drives again – or rather, a very small plastic version of Graham Hill, in two classic F1 cars from Scalextric.

The Gold Leaf Team Lotus 49T was driven by Hill in the 1968 2.5L Tasman Series at Surfers Paradise, Queensland. Hill finished second in the race to team-mate Jim Clark.

The Lotus 49, meanwhile, raced at the 1967 French Grand Prix at Le Mans, but Hill was forced to retire after only 14 laps due to crown wheel and pinion failure (on the car, not on Hill).

With extra detailing in the engine and driver’s cockpit areas, each car is priced around £40.

Who's on the table?

2009-11-18T10:28:00+00:00

by Eleanor de Bruin
Keeping a baby entertained in their highchair long enough to get them to eat a proper meal can be tricky, but luckily Manhattan Toy has produced a Whoozit Table Top Toy, and it’s just as much fun when mealtime is over.

With lots of interactive features designed to hold a baby of six months or older’s attention, the toy should stimulate all of the senses as they play. The 25cm high toy has a suction base that sticks to the highchair, making it impossible for your baby to turn it into a ‘throw the toy on the floor for the parent to pick up’ game. Luckily there are lots of other things to keep them amused, such ribbon tags, a bead rattle and a crinkly peek-a-boo star with a mirror behind.

The friendly-faced character is priced at around £14.95 and will stick firmly to any hard surface.

Magnetic attraction

2009-11-18T08:00:00+00:00

by Eleanor de Bruin
Enthusiastic little SpongeBob SquarePants and his friends are now available as fridge magnets from LEGO.

Mini figures of SpongeBob and his crazy crew, including neighbours Patrick Star and Squidward, can be attached to the fridge, or any metal surface in your home, and the 26-piece set (priced around £8.79) is suitable for ages six upwards.

As if the idea of a talking sponge living in a pineapple under the sea with his meowing pet snail Gary isn’t funny enough to start with, another magnet set is available showing some of the characters dressed up and ready for an outer space adventure.

The Spacesuit Magnet Set, which includes SpongeBob, Sandy and Patrick, is also priced around £8.79

Competition: Win Rubik’s Cube t-shirts from Bravado!

2009-11-17T15:36:28+00:00

Next year will mark the 30th anniversary of the legendary Rubik’s Cube and you can get started on the celebrations early with the new Rubik’s Cube t-shirts from Bravado Retail and Licensing.

Wearing one of these will instantly make people think you are a Cube expert – just make sure to never actually carry a Rubik’s Cube around at the same time or you could be found out…

We have five of these cool, retro-styled tees to give away in our new competition and all you have to do to be in with a chance of winning is answer the easy question below.

Question: How long ago was the Rubik’s Cube launched?
A – 30 years
B – 40 years
C – 50 years

Send your answers to bravado [at] toytalk.co.uk, and remember to tell us what size t-shirt you would like (only adult sizes are available, in small, medium, large and extra-large).

Please also remember to include your name and address (only one entry per person please). The first five correct entries drawn at random will win.

Automated entries, bulk entries and third party entries will be disqualified.

Please note that entries cannot be accepted via the comments tab below.

The closing date for entries is Thursday, December 10, 2009.