Joker dolls based on Heath Ledger's portrayal of the iconic villain in The Dark Knight are selling out all over Manhattan.
Toy peddlers are laughing all the way to the bank with Heath Ledger's Joker doll selling out at New York stores.
Droves of people lined up early at the Toys "R" Us store in Times Square to get their hands on plastic figurines depicting the dead actor's character in the upcoming Batman sequel, "The Dark Knight."
"There are none left in the warehouse, either. You will be waiting a while if you want one," one store employee said.
The hard-to-get Joker dolls, which sell for $9.99, were already up for grabs on eBay - with one being sold as part of a $55 package with a Batman figurine.
Toys "R" Us spokesman Bob Friedland downplayed the sellout, which comes on the heels of Ledger's death from an accidental drug overdose in January.
"We are getting these products, all of the 'Dark Knight' action figures, on a regular basis," he said.
A Mattel spokeswoman said the action figures were delivered to some stores a week ago, but many New York outlets were still waiting for shipments yesterday.
The prices are also going up accordingly. Right now, you can find the doll through Amazon.com, but probably not for long. You can also try bidding (and overpaying) for one of the toys on eBay. You can find several auction listings on eBay here.
Just when you thought that Fairytopia was the biggest thing in Barbie-land, Mattel throws a curveball. It's launching a new butterfly fairy-themed DVD movie called Barbie Mariposa. The theme of the movie, which hs lots of CGI animation, is that "the most beautiful thing you can be is yourself."
But the DVD is just the beginning. An entire line of products will help the fun continue after your girls finish watching the movie. From the official release:
The new supporting Barbie Mariposa toy line, complete with glittering butterfly-winged fairy dolls, styling heads, accessories, playsets and lifestyle products, allows girls to bring the Mariposa story to life and relive their favorite whimsical moments from the movie.
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"The brand new world of Barbie Mariposa gives girls a way to celebrate spring with an entire new line of butterfly fairy-inspired dolls in vibrant, glittering colors with magical transformation features that truly bring the butterfly theme to life," said Jamie Wood, vice president, Barbie Marketing, Mattel. "Barbie Mariposa engages and delights girls in ways that only Barbie doll can."
Barbie Mariposa DVD
This spring, Barbie stars in Barbie Mariposa, an all-new story set in the world of Butterfly Fairies! Mariposa (which means "butterfly" in Spanish) is a beautiful butterfly fairy who loves to read and dream about the world outside her home in the land of Flutterfield. The land of Flutterfield is protected by the Queen's glimmering magical lights, but when the Queen is poisoned by an evil fairy, the special lights begin to go out one by one. It's up to the brave Mariposa and her friends to journey beyond the safe borders of the city in search of a hidden antidote that will save the Queen forever! The heartwarming storyline of Barbie Mariposa features a wonderful lesson to instill self confidence among its viewers, showing them that "the most beautiful thing you can be is yourself." Join the butterfly fairy friends on an exciting and enlightening adventure that will transform them. Available on February, 26, 2008, for a suggested retail price of $19.98.
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The Barbie Mariposa DVD is partnered with a magical toy line that captures the vibrant, glittery aesthetic and whimsy inspired by the movie. With beautiful bold colors and incredible features, the Barbie Mariposa toy line is a great way to inspire girls to use their imagination and celebrate the spring season. Girls will enjoy playing out their favorite scenes from the full-length adventure with butterfly-themed dolls, styling heads and much more. The Barbie Mariposa toy line includes:
Barbie Magic Wings Mariposa Doll
Based on Barbie doll's newest made-for-DVD animated movie Barbie Mariposa, the Magic Wings Mariposa doll features a beautiful transformation. With the press of a button, Mariposa doll's butterfly wings change and grow from pretty purple wings to giant, sparkly, pink wings. The doll also features beautiful accents, including a butterfly tiara and removable skirt. Suggested retail price is $17.99 for ages 3 and up.
Willa Doll
Barbie Mariposa
In the Barbie Mariposa made-for-DVD movie, Willa is not only the best friend of Mariposa but also of the beautiful butterflies! Girls can play out the feature of Willa speaking with the butterflies by pressing a lever on Willa doll's back. When the lever is activated, girls can watch her butterfly friend flutter up Willa doll's arm to share a "secret" in the doll's ear. Suggested retail price is $12.99 for ages 3 and up.
Barbie Mariposa Color Change Rayla and Rayna Dolls
Catch butterfly fairy twins Rayla and Rayna -- the beautiful sisters and best friends of Mariposa from the Barbie Mariposa DVD -- on their exciting journey to save the Queen. Each fashionable butterfly fairy doll features color change sparkly wings and beautiful color change hair when girls apply icy cold water. Their pretty butterfly wings and gorgeous reversible skirts can also be mixed and switched between sisters and friend Willa doll for a dramatic transformation Each doll also comes with a brush to style their beautiful long hair. Suggested retail price is $12.99 for ages 3 and up.
Mariposa Styling Head
The Mariposa styling head offers girls fashion play, hair play and transformation play all-in-one! Girls can use the pretty tulip hair braider for the styling head or themselves by snapping two pieces of hair in and squeezing the handle to create beautiful twists! There are lots of share-and-wear pieces including a tiara with removable butterfly clips that also become barrettes, a necklace, hair extensions, ribbons and more. The Mariposa styling head also includes a color change feature. When girls use the special applicator and cold water, eye shadow, lipstick as well as a cute little butterfly design on the cheek are revealed. Suggested retail price is $19.99 for ages 3 and up.
Other items in the toy collection include:
Barbie Mariposa Prince Doll
Barbie Mariposa Mini-Character Giftsets
Barbie Mariposa Flutterpixies Dolls Assortment
Barbie Mariposa Playset
And there are lots more products, if you can believe it. In fact, it's a veritable Mariposa Universe of toys. And why shouldn't there be? Fairytopia was an amazing hit with every little girl we gave one to -- they were all absolutely obsessed with Fairytopia. Will Mariposa be as big a hit? We don't see why not.
You can see a dizzying array of Mariposa products, which are sure to be the Next Big Thing for girls, at Amazon.com.
Beanie Babies 2.0 made their debut at the recent Toy Fair. What's different about these new Beanies is that they have been created in conjunction with their own interactive virtual world. Obviously, Ty was feeling the competitive heat from stuffed toys like the Webkinz dolls that come with a virtual counterpart.
Beanie Babies 2.0 are the same as their predecessors except they also have their very own interactive website. Owners of the new Beanie Babies scratch off the secret code on the Beanie's Ty heart tag to find the secret code that unlocks the virtual world. The Ty Girlz which Ty recently introduced also have this virtual environment feature.
"My intention was to take the original concept of Beanie Babies, superior quality, affordability and overall cuteness, and reintroduce it to a new generation of children," said Ty Warner, Chairman and CEO. "Kids today are so intelligent and computer savvy, so pairing an interactive computer world with something cuddly seems like a natural fit."
You can find the new Beanie Babies 2.0 on the Ty.com website. The current display on Ty.com shows the new beanies in their regular plush form. When the Beanie Babies are clicked on it shows the form the Beanie Baby takes in the virtual world. Beanie Babies 2.0 have a suggested retail price of $6.00 - $7.00.
Elmo Live debuted at the Toy Fair in New York yesterday. Mattel says Elmo Live "elevates feature plush to a new dimension of realistic, interactive play that makes you laugh, of course, but also does so much more." Based on the video it looks like Mattel delivers on their claim. Elmo Live is starting to look more like the actual muppet on television. He waves his arms around, sings songs, tells stores and plays games. When Elmo Live tells a joke about how he "just flew in from Sesame Street yesterday and boy are Elmo's arms tired" he also waves his arms around like he is flying. Elmo Live will be released in mid-October of this year - just in time to send parents in a desperate panic to get one for a holiday gift.
The Vermont Teddy Bear Company comes up with unique Valentine's Day bears each year. You might recall Vermont's Crazy For You bear that was banned a few years ago. The Crazy For You bear was wearing a straight jacket. This year some of the company's new bears include Prince Charming and Huggable Hunk - both pictured on the right. There are dozens of other Valentine-themed bears available from the Vermont Teddy Bear Company here on the their website.
The Build-A-Bear Workshop also has some Valentine's Day themed bears and stuffed animals. A couple of this year's holiday-themed stuffed toys include Hearts Fur You Puppy (pictured on the right) and Bearemy dressed as a Knight In Shining Armor. You can also visit one of their stores (usually located in a mall) and build one of the bears yourself. There you can add a customized voice message to your bear.
Lego is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Lego brick today. According to a statement from Lego the idea for the bricks originated with Ole Kirk Christansen in 1932 but the very first brick wasn't created until 1958. Today's Lego bricks still fit bricks built in 1958.
The LEGO history began in 1932 in Denmark, when Ole Kirk Christansen founded a small factory for wooden toys in the unknown town of Billund in the south of the country. To find a name for his company he organized a competition among his employees. As fate would have it however, he himself came up with the best name: LEGO - a fusion of the Danish words "LEg" and "GOdt" ("play well").
Barely 15 years later Christiansen discovered plastic as the ideal material for toy production, and bought the first injection moulding machine in Denmark. His courage, input and investment paid off: in 1949 he developed the LEGO brick prototype, which continues to excite countless children and adults to this very day. Over the years he perfected the brick, which is still the basis of the entire LEGO game and building system today. Of course there have been small adjustments in shape, colour and design from time to time, but today's LEGO bricks still fit bricks from 1958.
Production of LEGO bricks with Acrylonitrile Butadine Styrene (ABS) began in 1963. This matt finish plastic is extremely hard, has a scratch and bite-resistant surface, and is ideal for keeping the bricks connected. LEGO labs regularly monitor the high quality of the ABS for the bricks.
A Timearticle says Lego has made "400 billion Lego elements, or 62 bricks for every person on the planet" since January 28th, 1958. That's a ton of Lego bricks. Lego has managed to keep Lego bricks a hot toy through partnerships with other brands. One of the most successful partnerships was the 2006 partnership with Lucasfilm to create the Lego Star Wars line. Amazon.com's Toy section has a special page that lists some of the bestselling Lego Star Wars toys. Lego used the popularity of Star Wars legos to expand into gaming. There
have been several Lego Star Wars video games and there will soon be a Lego Batman game.
Lego has added new products to its store to celebrate the 50th anniversary. Some of these new products include The Bikini Bottom Express, Technic Cherry Picker and Exo-Force Hybrid Rescue Tank.
Gizmodo has put together an interesting 50-year timeline of Lego products that shows the company's innovation and new product lines.
Crave says Lego is also celebrating the anniversary with a worldwide competition to find the most talented kid Lego builders. The finalists will compete at Lego headquarters in Denmark for the world title.
The Lego company plans to celebrate the anniversary with, among other things, a worldwide contest to discover the best kid Lego builder. Each country will have its own national champion, Lego promises, and these lucky kids will get the right to come to headquarters in Denmark to fight it out for the world title.
Google is also helping Lego celebrate with a special Google Lego logo. A post on Search Engine Land provides some links to Google Lego logos that other people have made.
J.J. Abrams' monster movie for the YouTube generation, Cloverfield, rampaged at the box office this past weekend, taking in over $40 million. With a smart script by Drew Goddard (Buffy, Angel) and a clever point of view, the film is a (ahem) monster hit. One of the film's closely guarded secrets is what the monster looks like. We've seen the film and it's really frightening. And totally disturbing. And totally awesome. And as for the monster itself -- let's just say that we hope never to meet it or any of its piggybacking little friends.
Now Hasbro is taking orders for the hottest toy this year -- a replica of the Cloverfield monster. There are no photos online yet so the movie won't be spoiled for those who haven't seen it yet (and if you haven't, for the love of all that is hip and cool go see it now so you can seem au courant). The toy retails for $99 and will be released on September 30, 2008.
The limited edition toy is 14" tall and has lifelike detail, authentic sounds, 10 parasites, two interchangeable heads (one for when he's extra angry and ready to eat you) and a
Statue of Liberty head accessory. A cure for your child's ensuing nightmares not included. You can pre-order yours here.
The Wii is a hot game console from Nintendo. The unique aspect of the Wii is its controller that allows a player's motion to control movement in the game. You swing the Wii controller and you swing a racket or baseball bat in a Wii game. This concept has the Wii appealing to players all of ages. Even seniors are actively playing the game. Here's a video that shows seniors in a Wii bowling playoff. The Wii is a lot of fun but lately trying to find one can cause a lot of frustration.
The problem for those seeking a Wii this holiday season is that have become extremely difficult to find - at least at the retail price of $250. The New York Timessays this is the second straight year the Wii has had holiday supply problems and it is costing Nintendo millions. The interest in the gaming console
from all ages has a lot to do with the Wii's consistent demand.
Shoppers across the country have similar stories. With the Wii, Nintendo has created a phenomenon that recalls crazes of Christmases past: Cabbage Patch dolls, Furby, Tickle Me Elmo. But in this case it is happening for a second consecutive holiday season. Nintendo has been unable to keep up with demand, costing it hundreds of millions of dollars in potential sales.
The Wii, with an unusual remote control that players wave to manipulate action on the screen, has attracted a broad, unconventional following - from young children to mothers and even the elderly. It has put to shame the frenzy over another much-hyped gadget, the iPhone, which prompted long lines at its debut in June but was readily available on store shelves the next day.
The demand for the console has prompted creative buying strategies, early-morning camp outs and recrimination against Nintendo for failing to produce enough machines a full year after the product's release.
Jim Silver, editor in chief of Toy Wishes magazine and an industry analyst for 24 years, said it was unusual for an in-demand product to remain so hard to find for so long. The must-have toys of other holiday seasons, like Furby, stayed popular into a second year but became easily available.
"It's pretty amazing," Mr. Silver said. "By a year later with hot items, inventory usually catches up."
The Wii is more expensive than those other toys - $250 - and is attracting not just eager-to-please parents but also adults like Ms. Beattie who want it just for themselves. "I know 6-year-olds that love it and 50-year-olds that love it," Mr. Silver said.
The Times says 981,000 Wiis were sold in the United States in November putting it well ahead of competing consoles. Microsoft sold 770,000 Xbox 360s and Sony sold 466,000 PlayStation 3s during November.
CNET reports that some Wiis will be in stores again on the 20th and 21st but most of them will probably be sold to people willing to camp out in front of the stores.
According to Fils-Aime, Wiis will be available next week at all major retailers. If past patterns are any indication, however, that "availability" will be limited to shoppers willing to camp out before stores open on Sunday or Monday morning. Since Christmas is just two weeks away, you're probably still going to have some difficulty finding a Wii.
CNET also notes that GameStop is offering Wii rainchecks if you can wait just a little bit longer for your Wii - until after the Christmas rush. You will need to be at a GameStop store on the 20th or 21st to get your Wii raincheck for January.
While that seems to be the biggest hope for Christmas Wiis, Reggie also announced a raincheck program in conjunction with GamesStop to get more Wiis out to shoppers in January. Even if Wiis are out of stock, on December 20 and 21, consumers will be able to purchase them for January.
On those two days, if you put down the full retail price of the Wii at a GameStop, you'll receive a raincheck guaranteeing you a Wii in January. The rainchecks will be available only as supplies last, but Fils-Aime said GameStop has "many tens of thousands" of rainchecks available across its 3,000+ stores. Perhaps the Wii-hungry will be camping out next week to get a raincheck for a Wii next month. We'll find out by next Friday.
That might work if you have patient gift recipients. If you have to have the Wii this holiday season you are going to have to pay more than the retail price of $250. Places to look include eBay and third party sellers on Amazon.com.
Third party sellers here on Amazon.com are selling the Wii at over twice retail. Prices for new Wiis on Amazon.com range from $509 to $1,000+.
There are thousands of Wiis listed for auction on eBay.com. There are some outrageous prices in the $2,500+ range. There are also more reasonable prices auctions with prices in the $350 to $500 range. If you don't want to bid look for a listing with a Buy It Now option. You can see some of the Wii consoles up for sale on eBay here.
Be sure to look closely at the shipping method being offered by any third party seller if you are trying to have the Wii you buy delivered in time for Christmas.
The holiday shopping season seems to be going by very quickly. This time of year the days remaining to ship items and still get them there in time for Christmas (without paying extra) really starts to dwindle. It also becomes more and more difficult to find those hot toys and gadgets. Cyber Monday is behind us but there are still many great sales and coupons to be found. We have rounded up a few of them of for you in this post.
Sears.com is bringing Cyber Monday back with an extra 10% off many items today only.
Tool King has free shipping on orders of $99 or more.
You can find more coupons and sales on ShoppersShop.com's Sales and Deals page. ShoppersShop.com also has a section here that lists recent price drops at dozens of online merchants including Brookstone, Circuit City, HSN, Ross-Simons, ShoeBuy, UBid and Walmart.com.
Today is Cyber Monday and there are many great deals available online. Most of the deals are for today only. We combed through many of today's offers and these are some of the best online deals we found.
West Marine is offering 10% of all Internet orders for Cyber Monday.
Best Buy has a long list of computer and electronics offers that end today. Offers include the Samsung SC-DC173 DVD camcorder for $249.99 ($50 off) and the Plantronics 330 Bluetooth Headset for $24.99 ($28 off).
Office Depot's Cyber Monday deals include the HP Photosmart A618 Compact Photo Printer for $39.99.
You can find many more Cyber Monday deals here on ShoppersShop.com's Deals page.
This is the hottest electric gadget/toy available this Holiday season: his name is Pleo and he's a remarkable electronic dinosaur which responds like a puppy. He burbles baby talk, he wakes up, he walks, he wags his tail, he responds to light, he purrs or goes to sleep when you pet him and even knows not to walk off the edge of the table. He can also interact with other Pleos. The Pleo would make a great gift for an executive who loves fun gadgets on his desk (it's a real conversation starter) or for a pre-teen or teen. It's expensive -- around $350 at Amazon.com. The Pleo is available for pre-order (it's available on December 18th) but it's sure to sell out. Check out this video to see Pleo in action:
With all the headlines about toys full of lead paint and deadly toothpaste coming out of China (which has far less stringent purity and health controls over products than the U.S. does), many consumers are wanting to buy American -- At least until China gets its contamination woes sorted out. But is anything still actually made in the U.S.A.? Most manufacturing has been outsourced to third world countries. Peter Cohen compiled a list of products that are still made in America.
The New York Timesdescribes a creepy new toy from WowWee, the company behind the popular Robosapien robot toy from 2004. The new toy is called the Roboquad. You can watch a video of the Roboquad in action here. The Times says the Roboquad will react to events in the room.
As with WowWee's Robosapien, the infrared sensors play a crucial role: they help the robot avoid obstacles and detect motion, so the robot jumps back if you wave your hand in front of its face.
You can use the remote control (which takes three of the seven batteries) to change the Roboquad's walking direction or choose combinations of 72 possible motions. Or you can simply set the robot's mood and let it react to events in the room.
As with other robotic toys, the Roboquad's novelty factor is high, but there is the risk that a child's interest will drain about as fast as the batteries. Of course, you never know when you might need to tease your dog.
Dogs may not mind playing with this toy but we think this little robot would terrify most cats. The toy isn't black or orange but it still might work well for Halloween. In the dark it might seem like a strange creature is creeping arouund your house.
FAO Schwarz has just opened a paradise for Barbie doll lovers. The new 1500 square foot retail experience is called Styled By Me Barbie Doll and it's located at the toy store's Fifth Avenue location in New York City. So what happens inside this Ode to Barbie? The official release tells all:
The moment they arrive, girls of all ages will be captivated by two large Barbie doll styling stations, complete with eight interactive touch screens that guide girls through a step-by-step design process to personally select a doll, fashions, accessories, a doll case and even a gift for themselves. The possibilities are nearly limitless as girls can choose from among seven Barbie dolls and friends featuring different skin tones and hair colors and styles, as well as from a "closet full" of runway and real world-inspired fashions and accessories to create highly-personalized Barbie dolls.
After styling out their Barbie dolls, girls can debut their newly styled doll in a mini "fashion show," in which each customized Barbie doll will appear from behind a screen, "walk" down the miniature working runway and, ultimately, strike a pose for her audience. Like any premier fashion show, two large screens on both sides of the runway announce each girl's newly styled Barbie doll using fun animations and music. Styled by Me Barbie dolls will be available for an average retail price starting at $65.
"Barbie has always been on the forefront of reflecting cultural and fashion trends, and today we combine fashion and technology for the first experience of its kind for girls," said Richard Dickson, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Media and Entertainment, Worldwide, Mattel. "With styled by me we've created an unparalleled retail experience based on the rich fashion heritage of the Barbie brand and the personalization and customization that today's girls love."
"For nearly 150 years, FAO Schwarz has provided families with memorable, enchanting shopping experiences, and we're thrilled to open the styled by me Barbie boutique, designed specifically for today’s generation of girls," said Ed Schmults, Chief Executive Officer, FAO Schwarz. Styled By Me is the ultimate celebration of our long-standing relationship with Mattel and Barbie and a prime example of our joint commitment to bring fresh, new ways to bring children's dreams to life."
Those sneaky marketers at Mattel -- now they've done it. We are going to have to head to Manhattan to see this. It's just too exciting an idea for a Barbie fan. The fashion show alone makes it worth it! And what do you want to bet that FAO Schwarz will -- for a small fee -- rent out the space for the best Barbie Birthday Bash Ever?? Bob Mackie better watch out, because we are ready to style a specialty Barbie that will make his Cher doll look like Plain Jane.
The toy business is a brutal one. CNET reports on Barbie's big battle for Internet supremacy. Although Barbie outsells other dolls, it is facing stiff competition online from virtual worlds that are aimed at young girls. In fact, Barbie's biggest competitor online right now is a group of virtual penguins.
Certainly, Mattel has tried to keep its brands Internet-savvy for more than a decade. Mattel's Barbie.com and EverythingGirl.com have the highest concentration of girls age 2 to 11 on the Web, according to researcher Nielsen NetRatings, but their overall audience hasn't grown much over the years.
The company is also being pressured by toys like Webkinz and an avalanche of virtual worlds designed for kids. Bratz, for example, the racier fashion dolls that have eaten into Barbie sales in recent years, plans to launch a virtual world called Bratz World (Be-Bratz.com) and a Rescue Pets (my e-pets.com) this summer.
"Mattel is the 800-pound gorilla in the toy industry, and it's worked hard to continually reinvent itself," said Lisa Bradner, senior analyst at Forrester Research. "I think they'll continue to be a very strong player, but it's hard to innovate at the speed and agility that a company like Webkinz can."
The overall audience for Barbie sites has declined slightly over the last year, and has failed to grow over the last three years. According to Nielsen NetRatings, the Barbie site attracted about 1.9 million unique visitors from home and work in April 2007, down from 2.1 million in April 2006. Those numbers are in line with about 2 million visitors in the same month in 2004.
In contrast, Webkinz--plush pets with corresponding virtual homes on the Web--have exploded in popularity over the last year. In April, Webkinz attracted 3.6 million unique visitors from home and work, up from just 285,000 a year before. Webkinz has even usurped the long-reigning virtual pets site of the Web--Neopets, which went from 2.6 million unique visitors in April 2006 to 3.2 million in 2007.
Another major contender in the kids category, ages 2 to 11, is Club Penguin, a virtual community of penguin avatars for children. It drew more than 4 million unique visitors in April. And Disney.com, the generalist playground of Mickey Mouse and other characters, attracted more than 11 million visitors that month.
Can Barbie hold off the hordes of adorable invading penguins and scantily-clad, big-headed Bratz dolls? We certainly hope so. We have soft spots in our hard little hearts that are reserved just for Barbie. But don't tell anyone. Especially those trashy-looking Bratz girls.
It was bound to happen sooner or later. Barbie is going virtual reality. Mattel just
unveiled Barbie Girls, a hybrid play experience that blends fashion, music and an online virtual world. Launching this week, Barbie Girls first comes to life via www.BarbieGirls.com, which Mattel bills as "the first global, virtual online world designed exclusively for girls." At BarbieGirls.com girls can create their own virtual character, design their own room, shop at the mall, play games, hang out and chat live with other girls. In July, Barbie Girls emerges into the real world with a handheld, 4 1/2" portable device that serves as a music player and fashion statement-in-one, while also unlocking new content within BarbieGirls.com.
"The Barbie Girls experience is like no other because girls are in control at every level," said Chuck Scothon, general manager and senior vice president, Girls, Mattel Brands. "We set out to create a platform that is truly revolutionary to transform how girls interact with music, fashion and the online world. Barbie Girls is the result of listening to what girls want, researching how they play and fusing it with the right technology to deliver a completely new experience."
The world has many similarities to Second Life: when a girl registers on the site, she can create a personalized virtual character, design her own room, shop with B Bucks (virtual money) that she earns, play games, watch videos and have real-time chats with other girls. Girls can create their own, highly-personalized virtual characters by choosing from 2.64 quadrillion character combinations of fashions and accessories, as well as stylish faces, expressions and hairstyles. Personalization also extends to each girl's room where more than 4.6 quintillion combinations of room colors, floors, backgrounds and furniture are offered to suit girls' varied design styles. Customization is limitless and profiles can be changed at every log-in. Girls can then chat live with other registered girls on the site.
Mattel knows that parents are freaked out about online predators, so they have spent a lot of time addressing that issue.
The site features a three-pronged safety approach that includes:
Sophisticated word filters to keep chat secure, prevent the exchange of personal information (e.g. phone numbers, names, etc.) and block inappropriate, hurtful or offensive language.
Easy-to-use safety features that give a girl the ability to lock or open her room to other characters, the ability to block users and prevent them from contacting her on the site, and the ability to report other users for inappropriate behavior.
Robust moderation tools that provide BarbieGirls.com administrators with the ability to monitor chat that occurs in the environment, track and monitor reported users and ban users who attempt objectionable behavior.
Chatting in the Barbie Girls environment offers two levels of chat based on the relationship between users:
"B Chat" is the most common yet most restricted type of chat, and it may be conducted in a girl's room and in the public zones of the BarbieGirls.com world. With B Chat girls can only use words approved and compiled in the BarbieGirls.com database, which precludes the disclosure of personal information (e.g. real names, locations, numbers and spelled-out numbers will be blocked). The filters also prevent otherwise acceptable words that may be combined in inappropriate sequences from the site.
"Secret B Chat" is a private chat that only occurs in a girl's room and is only available to "best friends" - girls who both have a Barbie Girl device and who have physically connected their devices into one another's computer docking station. This allows girls to chat at a more personal level but still blocks inappropriate, obscene or threatening language.
BarbieGirls.com also gives girls a personal email device - My Mail- where they can send and receive messages of up to 500 characters with friends and best friends using the same levels of security and safety for chat. Girls can change the look of their mailbox with different skins and personalize incoming email alerts with fun ringtones and cool music.
Of course, Mattel is hoping that the girls spend lots of money using those B Bucks, so get ready for that. We think Mattel has a nightmare on its hands trying to police the chat rooms of girls and keeping out the crazies. On the other hand, it's a smart way to get girls interested in a Second Life kind of environment early.
Just in time for Valentine's Day, MAC cosmetics has created an entire like of makeup and accessories in connection with Mattel and its iconic Barbie doll. The collection hits makeup counters today and will go worldwide on March 1st. MAC has also created a limited edition Barbie doll, which is avaialable only at MAC stores, t-shirts and other accessories that all bear the iconic Barbie in a ponytail silhouette.
"Many women's first experiences with fashion and beauty were playing with Barbie. Today this fantasy continues with Barbie Loves MAC, a color collection that allows women to rediscover their inner girl," said Richard Dickson, senior vice president of Marketing, Media and Entertainment, Worldwide, Mattel. "Barbie is about aspiration and inspiring girls to explore a world of possibilities, and now today's woman can do that in beauty with the Barbie Loves MAC collection."
"MAC and Barbie have always been at the forefront of style and beauty, and by combining our creative expertise, we have created a collection that is uniquely fresh with inspired colors that are bold, modern and glamorous," said James Gager, senior vice president and creative director, MAC. "Barbie Loves MAC is a beautiful – and fun – palette of makeup that works for women of all ages and all races."
The Barbie Loves MAC Colour Collection includes the following products:
Lipstick: Modern Ms.; Sweet & Single; Style It Up; Real Doll; Rocking Chick (Suggested Retail Price $14)
Beauty Powder: Pearl Sunshine; Pearl Blossom (Suggested Retail Price $20)
Nail Lacquer: Steamy; Toast of the Town (Suggested Retail Price $10)
Brushes: 182 Brush (Suggested Retail Price $45)
Mini-Barbie Loves MAC: A black nylon/wool fabric Mini MAC case with pink stitching detail on the outside and matching pink lining on the inside. A small pink-on-black vinyl medallion on the outside showcases the classic Barbie ponytail silhouette logo (Suggested Retail Price $15)
MAC Barbie® doll. Barbie doll's eyes are inspired by Aquadisiac, Carbon and Taupe Eye Shadows with Smolder Eye Kohl and Coal Black Pro Lash Mascara. Cheeks feature the look of Buff Powder Blush. Lips are luscious with colors inspired by Spice Lip Liner and Honeylove Lipstick. Available exclusively at MAC stores worldwide, the doll retails for $35 in the U.S.
It's a cute idea and we love the fun colors for spring. The collection is available at MacCosmetics.com. But alas! The Barbie doll, t-shirts and Mini-Barbie Loves MAC are already sold out online. Which is extremely annoying, if you ask us. They knew the demand would be high: we really hope they're not doing this just to make it seem more "exclusive." Because we hate when companies do that and you have to pay some scalper a huge price on Ebay to get the item. You could always try your local MAC store to find the doll.
Whew. We're getting quite grumpy just thinking about that -- time for some more Valentine's chocolate to soothe our frazzled nerves.
Forbes
reports that Hasbro has issued a recall of one million Easy Bake Ovens because the ovens can burn childrens' fingers.
It's not a self-destructing laptop battery, but it's enough to cause a stir in the toy community and disrupt Hasbro stock.
Hasbro, purveyor of the ages-old Easy Bake oven, announced the recall of 985,000 of the electric ranges, sold between last May and this month, on reports that children were getting their fingers or hands caught in the product, including five reports of burns.
In midday trading Tuesday, shares of the Pawtucket, R.I.-based toy company fell 1.1%, or 32 cents, to $28.51.
The Easy Bake ovens sold at Toys R Us, Wal-Mart, Target, KB Toys and other retailers nationwide from May 2006 through February 2007 are part of the recall.
Wal-Mart shares edged up 9 cents, or less than 1%, to $48.61, while shares of its rival Target increased 1.2%, or 76 cents, to $62.88.
The Easy-Bake Oven, manufactured in China, is a purple and pink plastic oven that resembles a kitchen range with four burners on top and a front-loading oven designed for children 8 years and older.
"Easy Bake" is printed on the front of the oven. Model number 65805 and "Hasbro" are stamped into the plastic on the back of the oven.
Hasbro has recieved 29 reports of children getting their fingers or hands caught in the oven's opening, and reports that five children were burned.
The recall only applies to models sold after May, 2006. You can get a free retrofit kit by calling Hasbro at 1-800-601-8418.
We absolutely loved our Easy Bake Oven back in the day. Although our mothers absolutely despised them. Why, you might ask? Well, after you add water to the mix, bake the mix into a cake and apply frosting, then all the adults have to eat said cake and exclaim with joy over how delicious it is. Imagine our shock when we learned -- years later -- that the day that Easy Bake Oven went away was a joyous day for the moms. But we treasure our memories of creating flat, tasteless cake-like items for everyone to enjoy.
The Rubik's Cube was extremely popular in the early 1980s. The Rubiks.com website says that 100 million Rubik's Cubes were sold from 1980 to 1982. Will Smith's hit film The Pursuit of Happyness has reinvigorated interest in the Rubik's Cube. In one scene in the film Chris Gardner (played by Will Smith) quickly solves the Rubik's Cube in a taxi cab. The St. Louis Post-Dispatchreports that 22-year-old Rubik's Cube expert and World Cube Association co-founder Tyson Mao helped Will Smith learn the right moves to solve the Cube.
He was the logical go-to guy, who showed Smith how to get all of the colored sides to match in less than 10 hours of instruction. But if you want to learn just to impress your friends, Mao can teach you in a lot less time.
Typically, he says, "After an hour and a half, (people) can solve the Rubik's Cube with a sheet of instructions on it, without any input from me. After 10 hours, Will Smith was able to solve the Rubik's Cube on his own, without anything. Not only learning the process, but committing it to memory. And Will is a pretty busy guy with many responsibilities. Basically, he had to memorize lines for his scenes and all that other stuff as well."
Initially, Mao was enlisted to help fake Smith's manipulation of the Cube.
"The first thought was that we could get a hand double," Mao says. "It turns out that, first of all, Will Smith didn't want that. It seemed to me he wanted to really just understand the character, so he wanted to learn to solve the Rubik's Cube on his own, and he wanted to do this genuinely on camera.
Smith's trainer also holds the record for solving the Cube blindfolded. A return to popularity for the Cube seems a sure bet. There are even Rubik's Cube competitions starting up again. For more competitions check out the Speed Cubing website.
It isn't very hard to find a Rubik's Cube. Toy stores and novelty stores including ThinkGeek.com, Amazon.com, and Toysrus.com sell the cube. There are also hundreds of Rubik's Cube items on eBay. The Rubik's Cube only costs about $10.
There are still people with some Christmas shopping left to do and fortunately there is still a shopping weekend left to do it. The malls are going to be extremely crowded so it will help to have some ideas in mind before you head out the door. Many of the hottest toys, like TMX Elmo and the new gaming systems (PlayStation 3 and Wii), have already sold out and are nearly impossible to find except through third-party sellers on sites like eBay and Amazon.com. Last-minute toy shoppers may need to expand their list of ideas to include more toys as some toys will be out-of-stock. Even the lesser hot toys are getting harder to find. A WZZM news story puts Hasbro's Butterscotch the Pony in this category.
With one week left before the big day, you probably won't find that hot holiday gift item on the shelf. You can find the spot where it's supposed to be....like Playstation 3 or the WII video game system. It looks cool on the display inside the store, but come 2pm at the Target on Alpine Avenue in Walker, you're not going to find one to buy. Lori Mattingly says, "We are looking for a WII for my nephew. It's the only thing he'll be getting this year if we can find one."
The hard-to-find items this year also include toys like the Rescue Dogs or Butterscotch the Pony. You might find one or two on the shelf, but don't expect to see Tickle Me Elmo or Baby Alive. You'll have to work a little harder to find these items. Even the ones you wouldn't expect to be sold out, like the One-Touch can opener, are out of stock. Here at Target, Manager Penny Evert says there is hope. She says, "The best bet is to shop early in the morning. Maybe even call at 8 am and see if we have the item in stock."
An article from the Sheboygan Press mentions Playmobil theme toys, Legos, trains and puzzles as popular gift choices.
"We basically have four really hot categories," said Evanoff. "Playmobil theme toys, Legos, trains and puzzles."
Evans specializes in providing unique toys and a wide range of add-on toys for existing sets, such as Playmobil, Brio trains, Lionel trains and others.
"The Playmobil theme toys have been very, very strong for us," Evanoff said, "but the Legos have just been a blowout."
"There's not much out there anymore," Evanoff said of the themed Legos, which include Pirates of the Caribbean and Star Wars sets. "I reordered 30 percent more (of the Legos) each of the last four months, and still that wasn't enough."
Examples of the Playmobil sets include the Animal Farm and the Eagle Castle. There are many add-ons available for the playsets. Eagle Castle add-ons include jousting equipment, guard towers, castle walls, knights, slingshots and more. Another gift choice mentioned in this article are the plush Doodle Monster dolls by Play Along Toys that kids can draw on with washable color markers. These dolls can be thrown in the wash so they are clean and ready to be drawn on again.
A Grand Rapids Pressarticle says that Webkinz, plush toys that have an online virtual room that kids can be build, are a hot item.
"They've been out for about a year, but they're really starting to catch on," said Candy Lancioni, owner of Aunt Candy's Toy Co. in Rockford.
Basically, it's a stuffed animal that has a virtual life you can play online. Each Webkinz comes with a secret pass code. You log onto a Web site, enter your pass code and begin to build a virtual world for your friend.
You can design your pet's bedroom selecting wall colors and accessories, you do activities to earn cash to purchase food, and, of course, there are dozens of fun games to play. One of the most popular components of Webkinz online is the instant-messaging area on which fellow Webkinz wonder kids can talk to each other. Lisa Shrotenboer has bought her 6-year-old daughter several Webkinz.
"She just loves them," Shrotenboer said. "She's online just about every day talking and playing with one of her friends that lives in Alpena. It's a fun way the girls stay connected."
In video games, the Xbox 360 is a good gaming system gift even though it is not brand new. It is still a very powerful gaming system even though it did debut this holiday like the PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii. You can see some ongoing discussion of Xbox 360 features and games on our GamersGame.com's Xbox 360 section.
Knowing what toys are hot is helpful but kids may have their own ideas about which toys are the best. Toy Wishes magazine provides this advice on hot toys:
But remember the most important thing of all: When you think about "hot" toys, no two kids are alike, so we always say, "The hot toy is only hot if it's hot for your child." Lists are great, but kids are the ones who make toys truly popular. So have a blast and look for toys that help your kids express themselves, discover their world and develop their imaginations.
If you end up simply not finding the hot toy you wanted to buy you can cheer yourself up with the knowledge that many of today's hottest toys should be pretty easy to find in a month or two.
Beanie Babies 2.0 made their debut at the recent Toy Fair. What's different about these new Beanies is that they have been created in conjunction with their own interactive virtual world. Obviously, Ty was feeling the competitive heat from stuffed toys like the 
The Vermont Teddy Bear Company comes up with unique Valentine's Day bears each year. You might recall Vermont's 
The 
Lego is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Lego brick today. According to a statement from Lego the idea for the bricks originated with Ole Kirk Christansen in 1932 but the very first brick wasn't created until 1958. Today's Lego bricks still fit bricks built in 1958.
Google is also helping Lego celebrate with a special Google Lego logo. A post on 
J.J. Abrams' monster movie for the YouTube generation, 
The Wii is a hot game console from Nintendo. The unique aspect of the Wii is its controller that allows a player's motion to control movement in the game. You swing the Wii controller and you swing a racket or baseball bat in a Wii game. This concept has the Wii appealing to players all of ages. Even seniors are actively playing the game. 
This is the hottest electric gadget/toy available this Holiday season: his name is Pleo and he's a remarkable electronic dinosaur which responds like a puppy. He burbles baby talk, he wakes up, he walks, he wags his tail, he responds to light, he purrs or goes to sleep when you pet him and even knows not to walk off the edge of the table. He can also interact with other Pleos. The Pleo would make a great gift for an executive who loves fun gadgets on his desk (it's a real conversation starter) or for a pre-teen or teen. It's expensive -- around $350 at 
The New York Times 
FAO Schwarz has just opened a paradise for Barbie doll lovers. The new 1500 square foot retail experience is called Styled By Me Barbie Doll and it's located at the toy store's Fifth Avenue location in New York City. So what happens inside this Ode to Barbie? The official release tells all:
It was bound to happen sooner or later. Barbie is going virtual reality. Mattel just
unveiled Barbie Girls, a hybrid play experience that blends fashion, music and an online virtual world. Launching this week, Barbie Girls first comes to life via www.BarbieGirls.com, which Mattel bills as "the first global, virtual online world designed exclusively for girls." At BarbieGirls.com girls can create their own virtual character, design their own room, shop at the mall, play games, hang out and chat live with other girls. In July, Barbie Girls emerges into the real world with a handheld, 4 1/2" portable device that serves as a music player and fashion statement-in-one, while also unlocking new content within BarbieGirls.com.
Just in time for Valentine's Day, MAC cosmetics has created an entire like of makeup and accessories in connection with Mattel and its iconic Barbie doll. The collection hits makeup counters today and will go worldwide on March 1st. MAC has also created a limited edition Barbie doll, which is avaialable only at MAC stores, t-shirts and other accessories that all bear the iconic Barbie in a ponytail silhouette.
Forbes
The Rubik's Cube was extremely popular in the early 1980s. The Rubiks.com website 
There are still people with some Christmas shopping left to do and fortunately there is still a shopping weekend left to do it. The malls are going to be extremely crowded so it will help to have some ideas in mind before you head out the door. Many of the hottest toys, like 