Move over Elmo: Hot holiday toys

Other electronic wonders
Of course, other electronic wonders showed up on several hot lists including LEGO’s Mindstrom NXT, ages 10 and up, $249.99, a toolset used to design, build and program robots; WII, ages 6 and up, $250, Nintendo’s newest video game console; and Butterscotch My Furreal Friends Pony, ages 4 and up, $299.99, a life-sized animatronic plush toy that makes realistic movements when touched.

fisher-price.com A cool moderately priced hot toy is Fischer-Price’s Kid Tough Digital Camera, which retails for $69.99.

A cool moderately priced gadget courtesy of Fischer-Price is the Kid Tough Digital Camera, ages 3 and up, $69.99. The rubberized pink or blue camera looks like an old-fashioned View Master but takes real digital pictures. Kids can view their photos on a 1.3-inch color LCD screen and then trash the shots they don’t like. The memory card, which comes with the camera, holds 60 pictures. Photos can be transferred to a computer using the USB cord and software (included). The camera is compatible with Macintosh or Windows 2000 or higher, and runs on 4 AA batteries and 1 lithium battery.

Other toys that made Toy Wishes magazine hot list and received Family Fun’s T.O.Y. awards (selected and voted on by kids nationwide) include:

• Baby Alive, Hasbro, ages 3 and up, $49.99
• Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses, Mattel, ages 3 and up, dolls $24.99; horse & carriage, $32.99
• Bead Blast, Perler Beads, ages 5 and up, $20.99;
• Biggest Littlest Pet Shop, Hasbro, ages 4 and up, $44.99
• Bratz Forever Diamondz, MGA Entertainment, ages 6 and up, $29.99
• Bratz Cyber Style Laptop, MGA Entertainment, ages 6 - 10, $59.99
• Deal or No Deal Electronic Game, Irwin Toy, ages 8 and up, $29.99
• Diego’s Talking Rescue Center, Fisher-Price, 24 months - 6 years, $29.99
• Digi Makeover, Radica Games Ltd., ages 8 and up, $59.99
• Fly Wheels XPV, Jakks-Pacific Inc, ages 8 and up, $59.99
• Lil’ Luvables Fluffy Factory Spin Master, 36 months - 8 years, $19.99
• Magtastik, Mega Brands Inc., ages 3 and up, starter set $29.99; individual sets $5.99 and
• Star Wars Transformers: Millennium Falcon Hasbro, ages 5 and up, $34.99

As the season heats up, look for sales or promotions at neighborhood toy stores and major retailers, such as KB Toys, Toys R Us, Amazon, Kmart, Walmart and Target, if they can manage to keep them on the shelves.

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