The annual Consumer Electronics Show staged in Las Vegas this 2013 played a big part in the outing of several niche products aimed at educating and engaging children of all ages. The state-of-the-art toys and gizmos featured on the floor is just the perfect testament as to how kids these days have virtually limitless options to play around with tech. Here’s a brief look at the standouts in the children’s gadgets category during CES 2013.
CTA Digital iPotty
Hands down the crowd favorite at CES, the iPotty is just a simple potty training system that has a built-in case for your iPad. CTA Digital, its manufacturer, says that the tool is the perfect way to keep your toddler busy during potty time. In case unfortunate incidents happen, i.e., when your kid’s stuff doesn’t land in the bowl, your iPad is kept protected because the material is waterproof. Weird as it sounds, children get almost automatically interested with shiny or lit-up objects like a tablet. Since it would be attached to a potty, there’s a possibility that they’ll be more inclined to use it and eventually develop an all-important routine that will last a lifetime.
Fisher Price Apptivity Toys
Remember those plastic those you used to play with as a child? Fisher Price showcased reimagined versions of these toys and accessories at this year’s CES whose features revolve around allowing the user to connect the toys to their iPad and other similar devices. Think educational cards and games with more interactivity and visual elements involved. Interestingly, Fisher Price has introduced a whole new line of app-powered toys that caters to various age brackets, so from a market standpoint, it’s a really smart move. Here are some of the toys included in the line:
- Create & Learn Cases – interactive $20 ABC cards that use your iPad’s camera for gameplay; suitable for kids aged 3 and older
- Imaginext Apptivity Fortress – a $50 castle iPad case for children ages 3 to 7 that allows you to use plastic characters and surroundings along with a dedicated app to play adventure-type games
- Little People Apptivity Barnyard – a $40 toy for children aged 1.5 to 5, that envelops your iPad and turns it into a virtual farm complete with haystack, grassy fields, barns, animals, tractors, and more
Disney DreamPlay
Disney has embarked on a partnership with toy company JAKKS Pacific and Los Angeles bigshot Patrick Soon-Shiong to create DreamPlay, an AR (augmented reality) game that works with Apple devices via a dedicated app that allows players to trigger animations and other interactions when launched. Pointing an iPad’s camera to a set of DreamPlay toy bongos would show on the screen an animated version of Sebastian the crab from The Little Mermaid to play the drums and sing a song. Tinker Bell is also slated to be featured on other DreamPlay games when it hits American shelves in October, but Disney has yet to announce price points for these toys.
Truly, CES 2013 wasn’t just about the oversized TVs, full HD smartphones, and Windows 8 laptops. These very basic toys showcased in this year’s edition definitely drew oohs and ahhs from the crowd.
