Game on! Top 15 tech toys for the holidays

There are so many video games and tech toys to choose among, it's hard to zero in on the ones that will be enjoyed after the holidays and inspire kids' imaginations. James Oppenheim of JamesGames.com reveals the top products for children of all ages.

Amazing hardware for students young and old, or ‘the pen is mightier …’
Whether you’re looking for a present for an elementary school or college student, there are products to make “learning” easier:

• Tag Reading System (Leapfrog $49.99): This unique reading system works with a pen-shaped device that kids can use to “read” individual words, paragraphs or even play games in specially encoded early-reader books. Many of the books are classics like “Olivia,” “Chicka,” “Chicka Boom, Boom,” “I Spy,” “Click,” “Clack,” “Moo: Cows That Type” and “The Little Engine That Could.”
  
  
• Pulse Pen (Lifescribe $149-$199): High school and college students will really appreciate this note-taking pen. It records the audio of lectures as you take notes and then lets you play them back by clicking on the notepad. It makes you a better note taker and keeps you from ever having one of those situations where the prof says there were five causes of the Civil War, but you only got three down in your notes!

Creativity games and thinking games
User-created content is the big buzz this year. You create something for others to use or view, kind of like YouTube for gamers:

• Little Big Planet (Sony $59.99): Playing video games is one thing, but with Little Big Planet you can actually design your own, without knowing how to program. If you did nothing but play through the amazing photorealistic levels, the game would be a lot of fun; but what makes this one of the most exciting games of the year is that with the items you collect as you play, you can design your own games and levels.
  
  
• You're in the Movies (Microsoft $69.99 including camera):This game puts you and three of your friends into hilarious parodies of classic film genres. Everything is done automatically using the Xbox 360, the bundled camera and the software. First you compete in fun activities in front of the camera. The program puts it all together and creates movies that you can share online.

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