These are No Simple Kids’ Toys

Author: Rich

Your dad always had the best outdoor toys and gadgets, didn’t he? From a pocket fisherman to a 100-in-1 pocket knife, your dad was always the king of ‘useless’ gadgetry. These mini-marvels that kept your mum and dad amused [mostly likely mainly your dad] have grown up and developed into devices of unparalleled sophistication, combined with the latest in technology to produce tiny wonder-machines. We bring to light a few of the best gadgets that are currently doing the rounds and ones that will make your fingers dance with delight every time you slide or fold it open. Remember, these gadgets will make the perfect gift for any grandfather looking to relive a little bit of their childhood.

 For the dad or mom who is always knocking their front or rear bumper into the garage wall, the Park-Zone is here to save them [or you] from an excursion to the dent store every month or so. This innovative piece of sensor technology uses advanced gadgetry to determine how far away your car is from the back of your parking spot or garage. Just install the tiny device on the wall and when you approach said wall, a stop-light like system will indicate how close you are until the inevitable wall-smashing. This life- and money saving device will fit any model of automobile.

Every little child has had dreams of flying and with the Walkera 4G1, you too can now be one with the sky and operate your very own micro-helicopter. The Walkera is an amazing helicopter for both beginners and veteran model aircraft enthusiasts alike. No assembly is required, so young or old, your dreams of flying can finally be realised! Everything you need is included in the box set, such as the servo [feedback control], receiver and transmitter.

Who of us have not dreamed of having their very own laser gun, after drooling for one in Star Wars or Star Trek? The time has now come and with a potent laser device from online stores such as Wicked Lasers, you can at least imagine that you are a Jedi Knight or a member of the Starship Enterprise. These are the closest one can get to a real-life; handheld laser gun and aiming these pointers at paper or wood can actually cause them burn! All this power comes at a price though and expect to pay upwards from $2000 for the best of the best.

If you are anything like me, then you delight in keeping a careful eye on your employees or for that matter, anyone who you suspect is misbehaving. With a micro-camera such as the CamBall, you now have the power of a full-sized digital camera in the palm of your hand. Miniature cameras such as these are stuffed with all the features of a regular DVR camera, except for the fact that it is no smaller then a ping-pong ball. This inconspicuous device will turn any household plant or Coke can into a super spy device! With a built-in motion-sensor and SD card for longer recordings, the CamBall should be at the top of the list of any would-be spy looking to keep their affairs in order.

Gadgets such as these can be purchased very easily thanks to the prevalence of the internet and online shopping. So hop online, and browse before you buy. Such is the power of online shopping, the true definition of convenience. It is amazing what bargains await the cautious and careful buyer.  The best toy shops will usually stock these handy devices as well.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/childhood-education-articles/these-are-no-simple-kids-toys-652295.html

About the Author

Rich wants to purchase some baby toys and came across some interesting educational toys online.

Star Wars Lego Review Set 8038 The Battle Of Endor

Author: Inger Fountain

The Star Wars Lego set 8038 called The Battle Of Endor is a 10th Anniversary Set that comes with possibly the most number of minifigures in a Star Wars release outside of the Death Star. With 12 specially created and highly detailed figures this set is appealing right off the bat.

For $99 the set also comes with the iconic Imperial Bunker from the moon of Endor battle featured in Episode Six, Return Of The Jedi, a redesigned AT-ST, two speeder bikes, an ewok glider and catapult. With 890 pieces this is quite a large set and one of the few actual playsets in the Star Wars Lego range. There is much to do in the set and with a good balance of rebel alliance figures and Imperial troops sets up the environment for many hours of play.

Collectors will be most interested in the figures and they won't be disappointed. There are three newly designed ewoks, Chief Chirpa, Paploo and Wicket. The three ewoks have more detail than the last time they were issued in 2002. The heads are actual detailed headpieces rather than the blank moulds of 2002. The set also comes with two scout troopers, known for driving the speeder bikes through the Endor forest, R2-D2, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, 2 Rebel Commandos and one Imperial Death Star Trooper. All the figures are highly detailed and the rebel heroes in camouflage gear have prints on both sides.

The AT-ST measures 7'½ inches (19.1cm) tall while the Imperial bunker measures 10 inches (25.4cm) long by 7'½ inches (19.1cm) wide. The AT-ST has a walking mechanism that makes the vehicle move its legs while the bunker has a button to make panels explode off the side. All the components could have been sold in a number of smaller sets but LEGO decided to combine them into one large set which is a good thing for fans as it would no doubt cost less overall.

This is a must have set for collectors because of the number of unique minifigures and for casual fans it provides a high level of playability for a good price.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/star-wars-lego-review-set-8038-the-battle-of-endor-1930222.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. She has been writing words on paper for quite some time so when the Internet came along she started writing online too. You can see her latest website which helps people to choose the best blu ray laptop at  blu">http://www.bluraylaptop.org

Star Wars Lego Review Set 8083 Rebel Trooper Battle Pack

Author: Inger Fountain

The Star Wars LEGO battle packs are generally very popular for collectors who want to build up their armies.  This set, 8083 contains four of the Rebel Troopers who battle the Empire on the ice planet of Hoth featured in Episode 5, The Empire Strikes Back. This set is meant to match this wave's other battle pack release which contains four of the Empire's snowtroopers and commanders.

As with most LEGO Star Wars battlepacks the set comes with four figures, some accessories and a small vehicle or gun. The four figures in this are 3 Rebel troopers in cold-weather gear and Rebel pilot Zev Senesca. 

Zev was most famous for being the snowspeeder pilot who found Han Solo and Luke Skywalker in the icy plains of Hoth after their night out in the cold. He utters the phrase (fans say it with me) "Echo Base, this is Rogue Two. I've found them. Repeat, I've found them." His version of the snowspeeder helmet has been redone for this set as has his torso. The head is slightly different to match the uniqueness of this snowspeeder pilot as an actual character.

The Hoth rebel troopers have new helmets with snap on goggles. The goggles can cover the headpiece's eyes so or can be unclipped and placed above the brim of their helmet which gives an authentically good look.  The regular hoth troopers also come with backpacks while the Hoth Officer has a new mustached headpiece, slightly different print on his torso and white legs. Although this commander isn't named I like to think of him as Major Derlin played by Cheers star and Pixar regular John Ratzenberger, the likeness is striking.

The vehicle may not be familiar to causal viewers of Star Wars but it is known as a Laser Ice Cutter and can be seen in a cut scene of Empire Strikes Back as Luke Skywalker uses the machine to ward off a wampa attack.

This battle pack may be overshadowed by the matching Empire version 8084, which contains the highly sought after snowtrooper figures but it has slot going for it in its own right and is worth chasing at the low $10.99 price point.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/accessories-articles/star-wars-lego-review-set-8083-rebel-trooper-battle-pack-1924886.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which helps parents to sort through the rubbish and find the best quality fire truck toys for kids who like to play fire heroes. The website is at http://www.firetrucktoys.org.

Star Wars Lego Review Set 8092 Luke's Landspeeder

Author: Inger Fountain

The Star Wars LEGO set, Luke's Landspeeder is part of Lego's wave one for 2010. A Special Edition, this model is only available through Lego Shop At Home and select specialty stores. It is the third time Lego has released the Landspeeder since 1999, the first was part of the inaugural Star Wars Lego wave and the second came as part of the highly sought after set Mos Eisley Cantina.

This set has considerably more pieces than the first stand alone incarnation. That set, released in 1999 had two minifigures and a total of 49 pieces. This set has 163 pieces with five minifigures (6 if you count the security droid). The minifigures in this set are quite screen-accurate for the scene in question, which isn't always the case with Star Wars Lego sets. Often the sets are missing one key character that seems essential to the scene in the movie and more often than not it is the droids or the wookie that misses out (see Battle Of Endor, Jabba's Sail Barge, etc).

This set contains both droids and yes they are the droids you are looking for, Luke Skywalker, Obi Wan and a sandtrooper. The droids are the new versions of both R2-D2 and C3PO as featured in sets form last year like the Tantive IV and the Death Star. Obi wan and Luke Skywalker are also similar to last year's sets, though Luke has a printing on his legs. The sandtrooper is basically a stormtrooper with a black pauldron.

The vehicle is more detailed than previous sets and is more brightly colored. There are some design features in the set including the windshield piece and the storage areas in the back. Obi, Luke, C3PO and R2D2 can all fit neatly into the vehicle and smooth pieces on the bottom of the craft allow it to slide smoothly along most surfaces, much like Jabba's Sail Barge.

Priced at $24.99 it's a highly playable set and as mentioned earlier has a well rounded group of figures to get the most out of the vehicle and re-create scenes from the movies.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/accessories-articles/star-wars-lego-review-set-8092-luke039s-landspeeder-1924881.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which helps parents to sort through the rubbish and find the best quality fire truck toys for kids who like to play fire heroes. The website is at http://www.firetrucktoys.org.

Lego Star Wars Review 2010 Set 8084 Snow Trooper Battlepack

Author: Inger Fountain

Star Wars Lego Battle packs are popular items and they are generally released in matching pairs. For the first wave of 2010 Lego has chosen to release two battle packs from Episode five, The Empire Strikes Back. The battle of Hoth took place at the beginning of the movie and matched snow suit clad rebel troopers against specially armoured Empire snowtroopers, which is how LEGO has decided to release these battle packs.

In most paired battle pack releases there is generally one of the pair that is more popular than the other. Previous paired releases have included the Episode Three Clone Trooper Battle pack which was paired with the Separatist Droid Battlepack or the Episode four Rebel Trooper set which was paired with a Storm Trooper set. In both those cases it was the bad guys that garnered most attention from fans wanting to build LEGO armies and it is fairly safe to say that this set will sell out more quickly than its matching rebel set, 8083 Hoth Rebel Trooper Battle Pack.

Set 8084, The Snow Trooper Battlepack, consists of 74 pieces and, as with all Star Wars battle packs, the highlight of the set is the amount of minifigures you get with this low priced set. There are a total of four figures in the set including two snowtroopers, which will be highly sought after by Lego fans as they previously only appeared in high price sets such as the AT-AT walker and the Millennium Falcon. The set also comes with an AT-AT driver and an Imperial Officer, both also hard to come by in other sets.

The small vehicles that come with the figures in a battle pack are generally hit and miss, with most being more miss that hit. This set comes with both a small gunner station and a snow speeder. The former is nothing special but the latter is quite a cool speeder. The design is similar to the new style speeders featured in the Republic Gunship and the Battle Of Endor sets, just white instead of brown.

Overall this set is well worth the $10.99 price tag (slightly up on last season's battle packs) and expect most fans to purchase more than one.
 

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/accessories-articles/lego-star-wars-review-2010-set-8084-snow-trooper-battlepack-1917770.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which helps parents to find the perfect kids play tent for their kids at http://www.kidsplaytent.org/

Lego Star Wars Review 2010 Set 8085 Freeco Speeder

Author: Inger Fountain

The Freeco Speeder was featured briefly in the Star Wars Clone Wars episode entitled Trespass from Season One and featured the Ice Planet of Orto Plutonia. Unlike Hoth this ice planet has huge glaciers that form canyons and much of the action takes place on Freeco speeders through these canyons.

This Lego set is part of Star Wars wave one for 2010 and comes in at 177 pieces. It's one of the sets in this wave that are all new. The design of the speeder is very compact and highly swooshable. It comes with an opening cockpit and storage areas to stash lightsabers, binoculars and tools. Being a snow speeder type vehicle it sits on skis which makes it slide nicely across most surfaces. 

The set does come with a large number of stickers that, when applied to the set make it really pop. Over all the design of the speeder is beautiful-economical and stylish while being reasonably priced for a small set at $24.95. It is actually quite large, the speeder measures over 8" (20cm) and it is quite accurate to the show.

The minifigures that come with the vehicle are a snow suit Anakin and the native Talz chieftain, Thi Sen. It's the first time Clone Wars Anakin has appeared in anything other than his black Jedi suit and the snow suit is a nice blue color with a hood and a Jedi insignia on the front. Anakin's headpiece has two faces, one with a ski mark on and the other side a regular frowning Anakin. Thi Sen is a first appearance as well, his headpiece is made of hard plastic rather than the rubber of recent years (see Kit Fisto).

The Freeco Speeder is a great little set and benefits by having two original minifigures and a stylish speeder that is bigger than it seems. The set complements the show very well and while it's unlikely LEGO will release any more sets from this episode, it does stand alone very well as a highly playable set.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/accessories-articles/lego-star-wars-review-2010-set-8085-freeco-speeder-1917775.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which helps parents to find the perfect kids play tent for their kids at http://www.kidsplaytent.org/

Lego Star Wars Review Set 10179 Ucs Millennium Falcon Review

Author: Inger Fountain

Star Wars Lego Set 10179, The Millennium Falcon, is part of Lego's Ultimate Collector Series (UCS) that has wowed fans with large models, attention to detail and high collectability. The Millennium Falcon is not only the largest of these sets ever released it is the largest Lego set ever, with over 5000 pieces. For Star Wars fans there is the added bonus that this ship is built to minifigure scale. So that means that the minifigures that come with the set are in correct size proportion to the huge ship that transports them across the galaxy.

The minifigures are probably the least interesting part of the set, given the appeal of the ship, but it is nice that Lego sought to include minifigures with the set as previous UCS releases have not included any figures.  There are five figures, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, Obi wan Kenobi and Chewbacca all in Episode Four, A New Hope garb. It is a good selection of figures that could have been improved by adding the final two characters that travelled with this crew on their travels, the two droids R2-D2 and C3PO.

The Millennium Falcon ship is a Corellian Engineering Corporation YT-1300 freighter and was won by the smuggler Han Solo in a game of Sabacc. The person he won the ship off was none other than Lando Calrissian. The Lego model itself is obviously very big and would warrant a significant display area if it is to be put on show.  The ship is over 33" long, 22" wide and 8" tall (84cm long x 56cm wide x 21cm tall). And given the piece count this is not the kind of set that you will be assembling very often, so defiantly decide where it is going to go before you start building!

The detail on the UCS model is beautiful and the attention given to even the smallest surface extends all over the ship. A large variety of small pieces are applied to the top surface to give it the realistic look. Given all the attention paid to the outside it is a shame that there is almost zero playability inside the ship.

Two people can sit side by side with another two people in a row behind them. There is a boarding ramp underneath and a gunner chair at the top. That is about it. Granted, much of the inner space is taken up with construction pieces to keep this large and wide set together but it would have been nice to see a dejarik table or some sleeping quarters etc. But this is a minor quibble.

The set comes with a large spiral bound instruction book and will take some hours to build. It also features a display card with detailed ship specifications of the ship to accentuate the display. Overall it is a highly recommended for those with the money to afford the $499 model and the space to store it.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/lego-star-wars-review-set-10179-ucs-millennium-falcon-review-1968750.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which takes a look at the best electric pizza oven models for making the perfect pizza in a flash. The site is located at http://www.electricpizzaoven.net

Star Wars Lego Review Set 7754 Home One Mon Calamari Cruiser

Author: Inger Fountain

The Star Wars Lego Home One Mon Calamari Cruiser is a 10th Anniversary set released in 2009. This particular set was a fan's choice set as voted on by visitors to a website online and the set can only be purchased at Lego Shop At Home or at specialty stores. The set replicates a scene from Star Wars Episode Six, Return Of the Jedi, when the rebel alliance gathers to plan what will be their final battle against the Empire.

The model is primarily a playset and consists of two distinct areas which don't necessarily appear together in the film. With 789 pieces, set number 7754 comes with six minifigures, most of which are exclusive to this set.  The figures are Mon Mothma, Admiral Ackbar, General Crix Madine, General Lando Calrissian, an A wing pilot and a Mon Calamari officer. Based on the figures alone this set is highly appealing.

Lego have done a wonderful job representing each of these characters in minifigure format. The Mon Calamari head is made of hard plastic and is a wonderful likeness. It almost makes you want to say "We have no choice, General Calrissian! Our cruisers can't repel firepower of that magnitude!" or "It's A Trap!" which I'm sure most fans will do more than once as they play with this set.

The main playset area consists of a command center and briefing room constructed all in white which then adjoins a hangar area to house an A-wing vehicle. There are wonderful details in both areas and a number of play features including the ability to replicate the famous "It's a Trap" moment with Admiral Ackbar's revolving chair. The contrast of the all white clean command center with the grey of the hangar is striking.

The command center houses Admiral Ackbar's command chair while the briefing room, made famous as the meeting point for all the heroes before they parted for their final confrontation with the Empire, features an orange hologram of the second Death Star and places for characters to sit while being briefed by Madine and Mothma.

The hangar is large and houses a newly designed A-Wing which can be manipulated around the hanger using a rod piece at the front.  Lego has added extra playability by allowing the A-Wing engine to be removed, fuel to be added and maintenance to be performed by technicians. It adds appeal to an already attractive set. 

Priced at $109 it is a high price point for only 789 pieces but the exclusive figures, attention to detail  and high playability make it hard to miss.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/star-wars-lego-review-set-7754-home-one-mon-calamari-cruiser-1924983.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which helps parents to sort through the rubbish and find the best quality fire truck toys for kids who like to play fire heroes. The website is at http://www.firetrucktoys.org/http://www.firetrucktoys.org/

Star Wars Lego Review Set 10198 Tantive Iv

Author: Inger Fountain

The Tantive IV is one of the most iconic sets of the Star Wars saga. It is the very first ship you see in the series, if you count the original trilogy first, as it blasts through space being perused by a monolithic Star Destroyer. Also known as the rebel Blockade Runner for this very reason the set has been released once before in Lego in the large Ultimate Collector Set format.

This set is the regular Lego scale and comes with four minifigures. A C3PO, R2-D2, Princess Leia (With hair bins) and a first time release figure of Captain Antilles.  While the other 3 figures have been seen before in other sets, the Captain Antilles is exclusive to the set and Lego have done a great job of distinguishing him from other rebel troopers by the color of his uniform and the rather unfortunate expression on his head.

Like many figures these days the Antilles headpiece has two expressions, one on either side of the head. As Captain Antilles is notorious for being the first person Darth Vader chokes on screen in the opening moments of A New Hope his alternate expression reflects his fear (in a cute Lego kind of way). Additions of a Darth Vader and Stormtrooper minifigure would have rounded out the set nicely but that is a small complaint.

Obviously, the ship itself makes up the significant portion of the set which rounds out at 1400 pieces. The Tantive IV measures 20.5" (52 cm) long, 7.5" (19 cm) wide and 5.5" (14 cm) tall so it is quite a large ship. Inside there is a small amount of playing area, a desk, escape pod and large cockpit for two figures. Swooshability factor is fairly low as it can't be picked up easily, so it is recommended more for playing on the ground.
 
For ardent Lego fans there are no stickers in this set at all. All the detailed pieces are printed parts, including the large cockpit screens, which makes the set highly appealing. On the outside there are lots of details on the external fuselage which is a nice touch. Priced at $149.99 this is obviously not a set for everyone but Lego has done a great job in replicating this iconic ship in a minifig size.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/accessories-articles/star-wars-lego-review-set-10198-tantive-iv-1924880.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which helps parents to sort through the rubbish and find the best quality fire truck toys for kids who like to play fire heroes. The website is at http://www.firetrucktoys.org.

Lego Star Wars Review Set 8036 Separatist Shuttle

Author: Inger Fountain

The Star Wars Lego set, Separatist Shuttle, model number 8036 recreates Nute Gunray's Shuttle as seen in The Clone Wars television series episode Mission to Rodia. In this episode Nute Gunray flew to the planet Rodia to recruit the planet's leader and Padme Amidala's old friend Onaconda Farr. Nute hoped to trap Padme as revenge for her role in the Battle Of Naboo, where, as queen, she successfully defended her planet from Separatist Shuttle.

With 259 pieces and with a recommended retail price of  $29.99 this may seem like a small set for the price but the exclusive minfigures go some way towards making up for the vehicle's small size. The five figures include two regular battle droids (both are the new arm version that allows them to hold a gun properly) and one pilot battle droid who is distinguished by having a blue torso piece rather than the regular tan. Nute Gunray appears at last in a Lego set, after a decade of absence and he is a screen accurate representation of his Clone Wars character. The color s and detail on the torso are beautiful and his Neimoidian features and ceremonial headpiece make him instantly recognizable. The final figure is another first, the Rhodian senator Onaconda Farr and again Lego have done a wonderful job with the colors and designs on this figure.

The vehicle itself is fairly small and simple. As a shuttle there are not many weapons or play features that would feature on a starfighter of similar size.  Instead there is an opening at the back which converts to a ramp for Nute to exit the vehicle and an opening cockpit for the pilot droid to sit. The legs of the ship lower and raise manually and the creepy spider-look makes for a nice effect.

Overall a small set that will appeal to fans and collectors more than casual fans, but the former will be drawn by the first appearance of a long awaited villain.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/lego-star-wars-review-set-8036-separatist-shuttle-1957126.html

About the Author

Inger loves stories and loves to write. As a librarian in a previous life she also has an insatiable thirst for general knowledge. You can see her latest website which takes a look at the best small water pump models for home, garden and other water relocation requirements. The site is located at small/">http://www.smallwaterpump.org