Update 2: Sorry guys, the promo code is “ohgiz” and not the one at the bottom of this article. 20% off!
We wrote about BuckyBalls a few days ago and the company got in touch, offering some sets as giveaways. If you don’t know, BuckyBalls are 216 tiny magnet balls that can be re-arranged in any number of ways. I’ve got mine on my desk right now, and they’re awesome!
We’ve got three up for grabs, and all you got to do is leave a comment on this post.
Yeah… entering is that simple. Winning is different, since we’ll choose winners not at random, but at our discretion. And by “our”, I mean my dictatorial opinion. It might be the most entertaining comments, or the most compelling, or the most creative… I’ll decide. In other words, earn your BuyckyBalls guys; it just takes a little comment.
Oh yeah, and enter once. Be nice. We’ll be checking.
Update: Oh yeah, guys, I almost forgot. If you don’t win, you can still be a winner by entering promo code “ohgizmo” and get 20% off your own set of BuckyBalls!
Hard on the heels of the Nerf Vulcan EBF-25 is the Nerf Raider CS-35, a semi-automatic Nerf gun that makes use of an honest-to-goodness drum magazine, which manages to cram 35 darts into a single mag, letting you fire for a long, long time without having to reload. And the reloading system is modular, so that you can quickly swap the drum out for spring clips holding seven darts each.
The CS-35 is powered in the traditional Nerf manner, by you. Pulling the front grip back ‘charges’ the gun, while pushing it forward cocks it and chambers a dart. Squeeze the trigger to fire, or if you hold the trigger down, you can fire as fast as possible by just slamming the front grip back and forth. A big button on the side of the gun lets you easily release ammo clips, and Nerf thoughtfully included a port on the other side that opens to let you clear out jammed darts. The CS-35 is made of plastic that feels solid and durable, and easily accessible screws suggest that this Nerf gun should be simple to open up and modify.
The one thing to keep in mind is that loading systems aren’t completely modular across all of the guns, and neither are the darts. The drum mag takes only “streamline” darts, and you can’t use it in (for example) the Vulcan. By the same token, you sadly can’t use the Vulcan’s ammo belt in the CS-35. Aww.
The Nerf Raider CS-35 officially goes on sale today for a mere $30; you can find it at most major toy retailers nationwide.
Not as wimpy as your standard Power Wheels, but not as dangerous as a real ATV, this all terrain Polaris ride-on falls somewhere in the middle, making it ideal for kids and pre-teens. It’s modeled after the Polaris Ranger RZR, but the dual 24-volt electric motors can only power it to a top speed of about 7 MPH. The 15-inch molded wheels and rear suspension should help it navigate even the most unkempt of backyards, and a set of power brakes are automatically engaged whenever the driver removes their foot from the accelerator. And since today’s modern kids couldn’t possibly go for a ride without their tunes, the mini Polaris comes standard with an FM radio featuring an aux-in for connecting an MP3 player. $1,000 from Hammacher Schlemmer.
I’m impulsive, but heck… not this much. But when I saw the Buckyballs from Zoomdoggle, I made a purchase right away. Like, within 30 seconds. It’s a set of 216 small rare earth magnets that can be reconfigured in endless ways. It’s a toy. It’s crazy stupid and useless, kind of like a Hula Hoop or a Rubik’s Cube. But if you watch the video below, I bet you’ll want your own.
They’re $30 plus shipping, and free shipping if you buy two. Use promo code “GetBucked” for 10% off.
Building blocks are the perfect toy for stimulating a child’s imagination, but I’m not sure what aspirations you have for your kid if you were to get them this particular set of blocks. Ratata, designed by Tomm Velthuis, looks like a rather innocent box of handcrafted wooden shapes, but when properly assembled they actually create a full size machine gun. So while your kid won’t be building castles with them, they will be developing important skills for infiltrating them. Available soon from Tomm’s website.
While this might look suspiciously like the same LED LEGO minifig keychains we brought you last week, I can assure you it’s not. For starters, this one stands over 7-inches tall making it completely incompatible with any LEGO set on the market. And while it does include a set of white LED lights in its right foot allowing it to be used as a flashlight, they’re not powered by disposable batteries. Instead, there’s a dynamo inside that can be used to charge a set of rechargeable batteries by simply cranking the LEGO fig’s left arm. ~$23 from Play.com.
I can understand the idea behind a robot dog since the real thing does have a tendency to leave fur everywhere, chew on anything and everything and require multiple trips outside to cover your lawn in ‘waste’, but a robot plant? Now that’s just plain lazy… but my kind of lazy! The Sega Pekoppa doesn’t need watering or nutrient-rich soil or even sunlight, just a set of 3xAA batteries to keep it alive. And unlike the real thing that just sits there and eventually dies, the Pekoppa will respond to your voice and actually move around thanks to a set of futuristic muscle wires. (Remember when those were the next great thing?)
Here’s a video of a bunch of people getting overly excited at what is essentially a moving stick, and if you’d like to be one of them you can get your own from ThinkGeek for just $18.
When I was a kid, we had one of those giant trampolines in our back yard. Looking back I’m almost amazed at how entertained I was by the simple act of jumping up and down for a few hours. Granted, it was more fun with two people, because then you could bounce higher. However, someone has gone and attempted to make trampolines even more fun than they already are. Not only is Spaceball supposed to be fun, apparently it’s also good conditioning for space travel.
That last statement comes from Scott Carpenter, one of NASA’s Mercury Seven astronauts. I’m guessing it probably applies to most trampolines, but I digress. Spaceball is a game played by two people (under 200lbs each) and you appear to throw a ball through a small tunnel at the other person. I’m sure it could be fun, until the ball gets knocked into the yard, which it will. Over and over. The game is pretty expensive too, ringing in at $700. Honestly, I think it might sell better if they changed the name to “Spaceballs the Trampoline Game.”
Side Note: Props to whoever did the awesome Photoshop job on those kids. Nothing says “no one wants to use our product” quite like having to paste people into the picture.
As a kid I remember getting a LEGO fire truck and police truck that had working LED lights and an electronic siren. But oddly enough they were both trucks and not smaller cars because the design had to accommodate a rather hefty battery compartment. So it’s nice to see that LEGO has embraced the advancements in electronics over the years to create this keychain-tethered minifig that features a white LED light in each foot. He’s posable just like your standard minifig, but unlike the rest he can be used as a flashlight at night, and with some custom body work, could even serve as a pretty great start for a flying LEGO Iron Man figure. About $9.15 from Play.com available in mid to late September.
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