Toys

Who wants to race me in a motorized bathtub?

My preferred mode of transportation is a pair of sneakers, but this may come close to usurping that. It's a bathtub on wheels.

I'm quite surprised they don't have one of these at the Googleplex already. (Actually, maybe they do.) I mean, man oh man does this Bathtub Racer playset look like fun. You get into a motorized bathtub ($9,995 for a set of two), and you zoom around. It's as simple--and as awesome--as that.

Presumably you can jet around in the battery-powered tubs wherever you please, riding them to the corner deli or maybe … Read more

Gadget report from Yuri's Night at NASA

There was an amazing party last Friday at the NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif., celebrating the anniversary of the first human spaceflight, which was made by Russian astronaut Yuri Gagarin. While CNET News.com has already penned a great article on the event, I thought I'd add my two cents on some of the cool gadgets I spotted at the party.

Peter Foucault's drawing robots drew a steady crowd the entire night. These two little robots had Sharpie pens mounted on them and were contained within what looked like a little robot boxing ring. Only … Read more

$3,000 for a cuddly social-networking toy?

In the '80s, it was the Cabbage Patch doll. In the 1990s, Beanie Babies.

What better toy to rule the millennium age than with a social-networking stuffed animal? A relatively Web-savvy concept by gift company Ganz, these plushies hope to usher in elementary-level children into the Web 2.0 realm.

Webkinz--stuffed animals that also live virtually through avatars that interact with others in their own online world--have become increasingly popular since their introduction in 2005. Like Beanie Babies, certain they're available for a only limited time, then retired. On eBay, the retired Webkinz Cheeky Pet Dog and Cat … Read more

Go small or go home

If you're ready to jump-start the hydrogen economy, well, you might have to begin at 1/10th scale. Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies announced a kit that lets you convert an electric radio-controlled car to get its electricity from an onboard hydrogen fuel cell. Horizon's H-Cell system stores low-pressure hydrogen gas in three canisters. The fuel cell system offers the advantage of four times the range of conventional batteries, letting you run your little racer for 60 to 70 minutes. With a regular battery, you would have to put it on the charger after about 15 minutes. So if … Read more

Energizer goes PC

In an effort to appeal to the "tech-wired and wireless younger generation," Energizer has announced the Energizer Duo, a charger that plugs into the USB port on your computer--or a wall outlet (thus the "Duo" name, get it?). According to the company's press release, the Duo charges two AA or AAA NiMH batteries in as little as two hours (for two AAAs anyway), though we're skeptical about that time when using USB charging.

In an apparent nod to youth's demand for choice, the Duo will come in three colors, and better yet, includes &… Read more

'Spi-Dog' takes a bite out of 'Pirates'

This may come as shocking and disconcerting news to a certain other Craver, but Pirates of the Caribbean isn't the only movie merchandising franchise in the known universe. It's gotten some serious competition, for instance, from the Spider-Man marketing machine.

This week, the "Spi-Dog" followed the "Spider Spud," the "Spidersapien" and other arachnid memorabilia dedicated to the man from Marvel. The latest of the "i-Dog" toy bot series, it seems to have officially pushed aside the "i-Cy" penguin--making it a doubly sad day for Caroline McCarthy (also known … Read more

Pirate fever gets a little too feverish

We kind of really love pirates around these parts, but there are limits to everything. Take this 14-inch TV, for example, manufactured for Disney by Japanese electronics company Runat. It's got a skull and crossbones on top, a pirate-worthy set of buttons, and some additional swashbuckling decor, but I personally find it rather lame. It's possible to integrate pirate imagery into household gadgets in far more effective ways.

Besides, the makers of this TV should really get with the program. If you're going to make a Pirates of the Caribbean TV-DVD player, it had better at least … Read more

Another pirate ship pool toy? Count us in!

Summer's coming, which means that this year's arsenal of outdoors-oriented kiddie toys is already being rolled out. And, as we've already seen, pirate-themed pool toys are going to be huge this year. (At the root of this trend, naturally, is the impending final installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, as well as Steve Jobs' anti-DRM vendetta--a high point for the other kind of pirate.) The latest in pirate fun is the Jolly Roger PT400, an inflatable pirate ship that comes with a squirt gun and two "cannonballs" to go in its built-in catapult.… Read more

Gourmet cooking with Hello Kitty

Sorry, Mike, I just couldn't resist. Looks like Hello Kitty is stalking you in the kitchen, too, thanks to this slow cooking crock pot. It's predictably pink and is decorated with lovely little depictions of Hello Kitty and food. It's supposed to make cooking easier, but really, it's just for the aesthetic touch.

Try pairing it with your pink George Foreman grill, which regrettably doesn't have Hello Kitty imprinted on it. But that's what stickers are for!

(Via ThisNext)

DIY video synthesizer looks and sounds like your busted Atari

Make magazine--purveyor of awesome and amusing DIY projects and kits--has added a new product to its online store -- the Cellular Automata video synthesizer kit. It may look like a hippie guitar pedal, but actually it creates endearingly retro (but mostly annoying) audio and video akin to an Atari 2600 meltdown. The kit offers RCA audio and video outputs, costs $50, and is mostly preassembled. You will have to find your own enclosure (the rainbow-colored wooden box is only a suggestion) and solder on the knobs and a reset button.

The video synthesizer works off a mathematical idea called … Read more