Ever wonder what makes an astromech droid tick? The latest version of Hasbro’s classic Operation game has been given a Star Wars makeover, but instead of poking around inside an alien life form like Yoda or Chewbacca, you use your amateur surgeon skills on R2-D2. The game hasn’t popped up on any of the official Hasbro websites just yet, so details on exactly what maladies are plaguing Artoo are still unknown. But here’s to hoping you don’t actually have to deal with C-3PO as a nurse. Available in September for $26.99, but you can pre-order it now from Toywiz.
I’m a big advocate of toys that stimulate a child’s imagination. So Naama Agassi’s clever Branch Holder brought a smile to my face. It’s a simple piece of flexible moulded rubber with holes at either end so it can be slipped onto a tree branch, making it look more like a sword. It also serves as a functional fingerguard, which isn’t a bad idea given my scarred knuckles reflect the wounds from a childhood spent tree branch duelling. Sadly, I see no indication that the Branch Holder is actually available for sale anywhere.
Beyblades came along well after my trips to the store started with a stroll down the toy aisles. But I get the idea. You spin them up real good like, launch them into a plastic bowl and let physics and gravity do their thing until a ‘last top standing’ winner is declared. But now, Takara Tomy has found a way to take some of the randomness out of who wins a Beyblade battle. Their new Super Control Beyblades can actually be controlled via an IR remote, letting combatants accelerate, reverse and even stop their Beyblades in the middle of the arena. It’s all accomplished by an electric motor inside the top which increases, decreases or even cancels out their spin, making them move and react more like they do in the anime TV series.
It’s hard to fault any product that incorporates the Star Wars Universe’s most lovable astromech droid. But something tells me this R2-D2 themed planetarium from Sega Toys isn’t quite scientifically accurate. It still looks like a fun way to light up a kid’s room, just as long as you’re ok when they ask you why they can’t see the Death Star looming overheard when they stare up at the real night sky. Available in Japan sometime in September for under $87 (¥7,000).
There hasn’t been a real innovation in water gun technology since the Super Soaker was introduced 21 years ago! (And cue feelings of being old.) And while I’m hesitant to officially refer to them as water guns, these Xploderz toy firearms certainly bring something new to the table. They look like Nerf guns, but work more like paintball guns. However, instead of blasting your target with paintballs that leave stains and bruises, the Xploderz fire little non-toxic balls of a superabsorbent polymer made of acrylic acid, sodium hydroxide, coloring and water. They’re safe to eat, though it’s not recommended, and can be disposed of in a garden since the material was originally designed to help crops absorb and store moisture.
The ammo starts off as little pellets that you need to soak in warm water for about 4 hours so they absorb enough water and expand to be large enough to be fired by the guns. It also means they’re softer and won’t hurt as much when they hit their target, which will most likely be another person. The pellets can be grown right inside the swappable ammo clips too, so you never have to touch them before they’re fired at distances of up to 85 feet. The two models pictured above, the sniper-like XRanger 2000 and the XStormer 1000 will cost you $39.99 and $29.99 respectively. While ammo refill packs, which include an empty clip, appear to run about $5.99.
Just because the majority of the things we write about come from massive factories and assembly lines, doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate a bit of hand made craftsmanship every once in a while. Like this Topographic Puzzle available from Etsy seller Artios. Made from solid mahogany in an 18×13-inch maple frame, the pieces of this puzzle come together to form a unique topographical mountain range. As puzzles go it actually looks remarkably difficult, and because it’s hand-made and unique, at $445 it’s also remarkably expensive.
We certainly love us some over-the-top LEGO creations, and even though the Jawa Sandcrawler certainly isn’t the most exciting vehicle in the Star Wars universe, the attention to detail Marshal Banana has put into his LEGO model has us lusting over his creation. Built from 10,000+ pieces over 9 months, Marshal’s Sandcrawler could almost pass as a movie model, since it comes complete with a working crane, a fully completed interior with a moving conveyor belt and working treads allowing it to be driven remotely. Check out his Flickr gallery for some equally impressive photos of his creation. And weep when you look over at the rainbow colored monstrosity of a house your meager LEGO skills let you construct.
I don’t have any of the back story on how the stud plates have actually been attached to the walls, but I think this idea for a LEGO Duplo themed kids’ room is pure genius. And it goes without saying that limiting such an idea to just kids is a big oversight. Covering the walls of an office or work area with regular LEGO brick plates allows you to constantly redecorate with new patterns or color schemes every day. You can even recreate famous works of art out of just LEGO bricks. In fact I hope someone from LEGO is reading this and drops a note in the suggestion box for custom colored brick plates too, because it would make decorating a room with them a whole lot easier.
Update: Thanks to Charlie Sorrel from Wired’s Gadget Lab for discovering the wall is actually from a restaurant in Brooklyn called Café Boo Bah.
If I had to compile a list of the best jobs on Earth the only position that would top astronaut, caveman and ninja star tester would be a LEGO Master Builder. I mean sitting around and building things out of LEGO all day? That’s like re-living ages 4 to 23, but getting paid to do it! Unfortunately years of writing have left me with terribly mangled blogger’s fingers, so such a dream is long gone for me. But if you’ve got kids at home with an affinity for interlocking plastic bricks, LEGO’s Master Builder Academy could put them on the right track to a pretty awesome career.
There are 6 MBA kits in total, but you begin with a starter kit that includes a handbook and a 3-in-1 LEGO model. ($29.99) Besides just building the included space-themed vehicles, the MBA lessons also teach LEGO theory and design including principles like interlocking and stability, color and shape design, microscale building, balance, details, themes and even how to plan out a creation in 3D using brickpaper sketches. Once you’ve finished the first kit there are 5 others that can be purchased as a subscription, with each one arriving every two months covering other themes like robots and vehicles. ($69.99) Of course working through all of the models and handbooks doesn’t guarantee there’s a job for you at LEGO, but an online community lets you share your creations and designs, so there’s a chance your work get noticed.
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