SECTOR GUIDE: APP TOYS Appy days FLAIR
GP Flair first dipped its toes into world of tech last year with the APPen and Cupets brands. This year sees the
introduction of the brand new Cupets Ice. Cupets enjoyed a successful launch in the UK, with over 100,000 downloads in the first month on release. Following on from this
good start, Flair is hoping to keep the Cupets UK invasion growing into 2014 with the arrival of a new line.
VIVID
Vivid is bringing a first to toy shelves in the form of My Friend Cayla. My Friend Cayla is the first doll of its kind to be fully interactive by downloading a free app.
Using speech-to-
text technology, Cayla is able to recognise what a child is
asking her and is thus able to reply using a safe internet search and her extensive database. Parents of children using My Friend Cayla are able to log in and block any words they deem unsuitable.
The doll does not
require an internet connection for all modes, and children can enjoy playing games, talking to Cayla and
hearing her read them stories, all while the synched smart device is offline. Cayla stands 18” high, has soft hair that children can style and she encourages role-play and
dress up.
My Friend Cayla arrives in stores across the UK this
summer, with a price of around £59.99. 01483 446268
BEEWI
BeeWi has a wide range of app toys ranging from racing buggys to robots that fight, play football, race and even partake in Sumo tournaments. The BeeWi KickBee is a
range of football playing miniature robots that connect to Apple, Android and Windows 8 devices. Players control the
robots by touching the screen of a smartphone or tablet, and each KickBee set contains a mini robot, a goal frame, a ball and shirt stickers to customers the robotic players.
When not kicking a ball
around, the KickBee Mini Robots also race or take part in Sumo matches and the Beewi website has kits
GREEN BOARD GAMES
To complement its range of Snap of Pairs card games, Green Board Games has created an educational app game called Pairs Pro. Players must find pairs of
cards that match up to a country through categories including a country’s
64 March
outline, name, flag or capital city. Pairs Pro also features a ‘super-evil’ Challenge Mode which sees non-matching cards swap places for a harder level of gameplay. The fastest times are
recorded and a multiplayer
version allows players to join three friends to to match cards. Successfully match a
pair, and a player gets another go, but if they don't, the cards go back, and it's the next person's turn.
Green Board Games has
several game modes to keep players hooked to Pairs Pro, including different modes to allow gamers to match from either 24 or 40 cards, as well as the Challenge Mode. 01494 538999
www.toynews-online.biz
that transform the KickBee into different scenarios including cones for races, a sumo mat and also football kits from around the globe. Away from the world of
football and Sumos, the BeeWi ScaraBee is an all terrain buggy controlled by a smart device. The ScaraBee boasts an
in-built VGA camera capable of relaying live footage back to the smart device, and can also be used to take still images and short video clips which can then be uploaded to social media. The buggy uses local Wi-
Fi networks to connect with the chosen smart device to ensure that the ScaraBee can be controlled up to 50 metres away.
Autumn 2014 will see six
new Cupets arrive on shelves, each with a different frozen theme. The new range includes Mou the moose, Frac the penguin, Blob the walrus, Moby the whale, Snowl the owl and Barry the polar bear, each with an RRP of £6.99. These new cubed
characters live in their own icy home and will come with new gaming experiences in snowy climates for kids to enjoy and master.
Also available from GP Flair is the APPen, £14.99, which was launched in August 2013. The tablet pen for kids
works as a colouring pen, joystick and learning aid when used in conjunction with the free app.
When writing on smart
devices, APPen creates lines of varied thickness and to enhance the experience, APPen can be turned upside down and the nib used as a joystick in several games. 020 8643 0320
Most kids know their way around the world of apps and smart devices better than their parents these days. Billy Langsworthy takes a look at some of the most impressive toys to fully embrace the brave new world of app technology
Finally, the BeeWi Fighting Robots, compatible with Apple, Android and Windows 8 devices, are miniature robots that use infrared eyes to shoot its opponents. Players can pair robots to
make them fun navigation devices that can be moved in different directions at various speeds, while they also shoot infrared lights at the flick of a finger. The Fighting Mini Robot can battle with other toys in the BeeWi range including helicopters and tanks. 07766 338895
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