Oh! Gizmo

By Andrew Liszewski

Lite-Brite is one of those toys that has managed to withstand the test of time with very little innovation. You jam plastic pegs in a hole, they light up, you get art. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement. Sketch Art from a company called Hi-Tec Art is a lot like Lite-Brite, but instead of clear plastic pegs it uses individual LEDs that stick to the background and light up on their own.

Each set comes with 100 3mm LEDs of assorted colors, and while I’d like to say that magnets and induction are the secrets to how this works, the mention of ‘LED Insertion’ and ‘LED Extraction’ tools in the ‘What’s in the Box’ list makes me think that’s not the case. $49.95 from Hi-Tec Art’s website.

[ Sketch Art ] VIA [ Gear Diary ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Epoch’s new Sound-Touch Pudding is supposed to be along the same lines as those keychain bubble-wrap simulators, but instead of popping plastic bubbles it lets kids enjoy the feeling of pudding, without getting their hands dirty. Yeah. Apparently my parents were mistaken when they thought pudding was a dessert, and not a toy. As an added bonus when you touch the pudding it triggers a cute female voice, which is another area where my childhood puddings were lacking. Anyways, if you want one you’ll probably have to head over to Japan or have them imported once they’re available on November 21 for about $7.

[ Sound-Touch Pudding ] VIA [ Japan Trends ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Da Vinci may have never had any luck getting the flying vehicles he dreamed up off the ground, but this remote controlled ornithopter inspired by one of his sketches has no problems getting airborne. Instead of a spinning propeller or rotor, the ornithopter has as a set of durable mylar covered wings that flap 40 times a second, not unlike an actual hummingbird, and can be steered around a room using the dual-stick remote control. A 5 minute charge on the controller is good for about 7 minutes of flight, and it’s available from Hammacher Schlemmer for about $60.

[ World's Smallest Da Vinci Ornithopter ]

By Andrew Liszewski

The same way that The Simpsons ended at season nine as far as I’m concerned, there are still only three Indiana Jones films in my mind. But unfortunately I did watch the fourth entry in that series (it can never be unwatched) and as a result here are three questions I don’t really want the answer to.

1) Why on Earth would anyone want a miniature 12-inch version of one of the most ridiculous scenes in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull?

2) Has any other action figure in the history of toys ever come with such a detailed refrigerator as an accessory?

3) Who in their right mind would pay $175 for this? Apparently a lot of people because they actually seem to be sold out.

[ Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull Sideshow Exclusive Edition ] VIA [ Nerd Approved ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Yep, all it took is a couple of product shots and the name ‘Race In A Case’ for me to know that my life will simply not be complete until I own this 1:59 scale slot car track that folds up into its own carrying case. Not only do you not have to worry about missing pieces of track and complicated setups, but it’s eco-friendly too since it doesn’t require batteries or a plug. The two included controllers are actually hand-cranked generators that power two miniature F1 cars, so the faster you turn the crank, the faster your car will go! ~$81 from Gizoo.

[ Race In A Case ] VIA [ Toyology ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Since everything is funner when it’s a competition, you can now get a Hacky Sack with a built-in counter to keep track of how many times it’s been kicked into the air. Except that since the term Hacky Sack appears to be a trademark currently owned by Wham-O, you’ll have to settle for referring to this as a ‘Football Keepy Uppy.’ Just rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it?

And besides keeping track of the number of kicks, there’s also a timer to keep track of how long it’s been in motion I assume, and a high score function in case you ever forget who’s the king of the ‘Football Keepy Uppy.’ (I’ll never get used to saying/typing that.) ~$20 from The Random Shop.

[ Football Keepy Uppy Counter ] VIA [ I New Idea Homepage ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I can understand that these digital slot cars are trying to make racing more challenging, but at the same time they seem to take a bit of the fun out of it. Instead of just squeezing the trigger and watching your car tear around the track, you have to manage and be aware of your vehicle’s fuel and make the proper pit stops in order to win.

Each of the cars, which includes a fairly detailed Ferrari 360 GTC, Chevrolet Corvette C6R, and an Aston Martin DBR9, have a chip that allows you to change lanes in order to pull into pit row and track how much fuel you take on. So for example, if you decide to ‘fill it up’ in order to minimize the number of pit stops you have to make, your car will actually go slower because of the extra weight of that fuel. And if you instead choose to make pit stops more often, you’ll have to watch your speed when pulling into pit row lest you be penalized a lap for speeding. A clever idea for sure, but too much thinkin’ for me. $499.95 from Hammacher Schlemmer.

[ The Realistic Digital Slot Car Raceway ]

By Andrew Liszewski

What started out as a boring Power Wheels 2001 G3740 Street Scene Silverado has ended up as an awesome miniature version of the Warthog from the Halo games, complete with a chain winch on the front and of course the triple-barreled machine gun mounted on the back. Surprisingly though it wasn’t created by Master Chief for his little Spartans, but by a modder known as flux83 who posted a ‘making of’ to the Modified Power Wheels forum.

[ Modified Power Wheels - Halo Warthog a.k.a. Chupa Thingy ] VIA [ Kotaku ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Just a heads up if you were thinking about picking up one of these new Air Hogs RC toys for your kids and happened to be the target of multiple would-be assassins. Their new Zero Gravity Laser is controlled by shining a laser dot in front of the vehicle which will automatically follow it, whether it’s racing around on the floor or defying gravity by driving on the walls. So if your home is constantly bombarded with red laser dots from distant sniper rifles, there could be issues, I’m just saying. $49.99 from Toys”R”Us Canada.

[ Air Hogs Zero Gravity Laser ] VIA [ Gearlog ]