Top kids’ gifts include toy hamster
Posted
Sep 24 2009, 06:11 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Toys R Us released its list of prospective hot toys for the holidays, and guess what: Most retail for less than $100.
The toy getting the most media attention is the Zhu Zhu Pets Hamster, which retails for a very attractive $9.99. "With more than 40 different sound effects and artificial intelligence, these pets will dart around the house, play in hamster tubes, run on wheels and more," Toys R Us said. This sounds fun.
Among those on the higher end, The Associated Press reports, are "Mattel's Mindflex, about $90, which measures brain activity through a helmet and uses it to move a ball through an obstacle course." Great. We'll bring that one out whenever anyone questions our brain power.
The list is based on consumer reaction in small markets and Toys R Us analysis, and the toys on it will be heavily promoted this season. In other words, these are the ones your kids will be bugging you about.
Other lower-cost picks on the Toys R Us "Fabulous15," as described by AP, include:
- Nerf N-Strike Raider Rapid Fire CS-35 from Hasbro. A customizable dart gun. $34.99.
- Little Mommy Baby Ah-Choo from Fisher-Price. A doll that sneezes and speaks. $34.99.
- ChixOs Pink Design-A-Luxury Loft from Spin Master. A customizable doll and playhouse set. $29.99.
- Color Me a Song from Crayola Beginnings. A kit that plays music while tots color. $24.99.
- Bakugan Battle Brawlers New Vestroia Maxus Helios 7 in 1 toy by Spin Master. A version of the popular card and morphing marble game that combines seven different marbles into one fighter. $39.99.
For your shopping convenience, Toys R Us is opening 80 "pop-up" stores in malls for the holiday season and "express" stores in Babies R Us locations.
However, the company rightly expects that people will be watching their spending. One analyst the AP quotes expects holiday toy sales to be flat or slightly down this year.
Related reading:
Toy battle on Aisle 5
No ‘must-have' toy hurts sales for toymakers
