October 2011 New Specialty Toys — Construction

Kids can transform, configure, and manipulate Block Builders for endless building and perpetual design. Fold and unfold the six distinctively hinged blocks to create skyscrapers, modern art sculptures, geometric marvels - just about anything imaginable. Includes 50 puzzle challenge cards. Block Builders puzzle challenge cards range from beginner to expert. Look at the design on the front of the card and recreate the shape using the indicated number of blocks. The solution is provided in an exploded view on the opposite side of the card.

The LEGO MiniFigure Series 5 adds 16 all-new, special MiniFigures to the growing LEGO MiniFigure Collection. Each MiniFigure comes in a sealed, mystery bag. Each character has its own special accessories, display plate and collector's leaflet. Inspired by movies, sports, history and just everyday life. This collection includes: Fitness Instructor, Snowboarder Guy, Lizard Man, Lumberjack, Gladiator, Small Clown, Egyptian Queen, Evil Dwarf, Boxer, Ice Fisherman, Zoo Keeper, Graduate, Royal Guard, Cave Woman, Detective.
— As of 10/10/2011 this product had 4.9 out of 5 stars from 9 reviews on ToysRUs.com.
— Robert Lightburn from Cville's Hobbies, Games and Toys in Charlottesville, Va., told TDmonthly in an October 2011 survey that LEGO items sell well with the tween crowd.

Includes 24 blue and turquoise magnetic rods & 20 chromed steel spheres. Magnetic rods combined with non-magnetic spheres transform into thousands of geometric forms.
Awards: Dr. Toy 100 Best Products For Kids

Coloraturo, a new block set created by award winning toy designer Karen Hewitt, will delight and captivate the imagination of children and artists of all ages. This smart toy functions both as a designer art piece and a high quality children’s building toy providing endless experiences with color in both two and three dimensions. The color, form and sheer beauty of Coloraturo will attract young children as well as architects, designers and playful adults. "Displaying 36 unique, vibrant colors, this piece stands out from ordinary block sets, yet will still be a timeless toy for generations of children. This toy will provide endless building opportunities, yet looks beautiful enough to display anywhere in the house," Karen Hewitt, president/designer of Learning Materials Workshop, told TDmonthly. Launch date: September 2011.
Awards: TDmonthly Top Toy Award, January 2012; 2011 Dr. Toy 10 Best Creative Products Award; 2011 Dr. Toy 100 Best Children's Products Award.
— Why it won: Beautifully designed, kids can enjoy hours of pattern play, color sorting, and building. Meanwhile, parents won't mind having these colorful, geometric blocks left lying around.

An extension of Ravensburger's popular puzzleball line, each of these buildings feature flat and hinged precision-cut pieces that snap together perfectly, and stand up to 15” high when completed. Other sets include Big Ben, the Eiffel Tower, and a New England lighthouse.

Kids can send marbles down the wooden 99-piece Quadrilla Twist & Rail Set. Curved rails, straight rails, and a big twist make up this set.  50 marbles are included along with a cloth bag for safe storage.
Awards: Dr. Toy's 10 Best Toys - 2011

These micro-sized building blocks will enable kids to execute even the finest details like never before. With over 100 pieces, kids watch in amazement as this regal bird takes shape right beneath your fingertips. With a finished size of 1.5″w x 1.5″d x 2.36h, only this giant penguin is able to fit perfectly in the palm of a hand.  Includes detailed color instructions. 9 animal designs currently available.
— In a Summer 2012 survey, Shana Hack, owner of Moon Rabbit Toys in Santa Fe, N.M., told TDmonthly that nanoblocks were an overall best seller at their store.

Toobalink is the only construction toy that uses paper towel tubes and toilet tissue tubes as a main building element.  A Toobalink set comes with all the pieces necessary to build a wide variety of connectors, which are then used to hold the tubes together to build large scale structures. Each Toobalink kit comes with 39 pieces, including brand new tubes so that kids can get building right away. Kids love it because they can collect more tubes to build bigger, better structures and parents love it because the extra building material is FREE. Made in the USA. Launch date: June 2012.

3-D Laser Cut Models featuring detailed laser etching and laser cuts on a 4.5" square metal sheet.  Easily assembled by popping out the pieces and connecting them at the attachment points using the easy to follow instructions.  Eleven styles to choose from:  Golden Gate Bridge, Cable Car, P-51 Mustang, Fokker D-VII Bi-Plane, Boeing 747 Jet, Beach Buggy, Checker Cab, Huey Helicopter, Staten Island Ferry, Empire State Bldg, Chrysler Bldg. Launch date: September 2011.

Where to buy:
NORTH WEST

HEXACUS is an exploration in creativity and fun for the entire family. Just sort by size and color, then stack, nest, and balance to create a wide variety of patterns and shapes. Our Idea Booklet shows over 100 examples of easy to challenging patterns and shapes to build.  Ages: 2+  CONTENTS: 12 Hexagonal Pieces – 3 Red, 3 Orange, 2 Yellow, 2 Green, 1 Light Blue, 1 Dark Blue, Idea Booklet. "Due to it's unique and geometrically accurate shape, children are able to nest and stack HEXACUS pieces in a wide variety of ways using horizontal, vertical and diagonal planes," Jason Cheung, general manager of Huntar Company, Inc., told TDmonthly. Launch date: 2012.

Junglemorphs, new for 2011, is part of the Zoomorphs pop-together building system.  The child can build animals that exist or have existed in nature; or easily pop the pieces apart to make all sorts of friendly, poseable fantasy creatures.  There are four characters in this set:  Tree Python, Bird of Paradise, Tiger and Tropical Beetle.  All sets are interchangeable.  Some animals have hinged jaws. Launch date: August 2011.
— Karin Evick, manager of Kids' Ketch in Lewes, Del., told TDmonthly in an April 2012 survey that Zoomorphs are one of their best selling construction toys.

This 51 piece set helps kids get back to the basics. With the addition of square locking widgets this simple block set turns into a building set with ability to build stable horizontal and vertical structures as well as endless stacking fun. Launch date: 2010.
Awards: 2011 Parents' Choice Recommendation

Kids can have fun with the 24 Christmas gifts from LEGO City with the LEGO City Advent Calendar (7553). With a great for each day, the LEGO City advent calendar has 24 days of building fun with Mini-figures, vehicles and other accessories for LEGO City sets. The LEGO City Advent Calendar (7553) includes: 6 MiniFigures, Christmas accessories, furniture and lots of vehicles.

Escape from the Death Star in the iconic GO Star Wars Millennium Falcon (7965). Straight from the Death Star escape scene of Episode IV A New Hope, the all new LEGO Millennium Falcon features stunning details, like hull plates that open to reveal a detailed interior, twin flick missiles, rotating quad laser cannons and detachable cockpit cover. Featuring Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, Ben Kenobi, Princess Leia Organa and Darth Vader, kids can rewrite history and help Ben Kenobi defeat his evil nemesis from the dark side. The LEGO Star Wars Millennium Falcon (7965) includes * Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, Ben Kenobi, Princess Leia Organa and Darth Vader MiniFigures * Millennium Falcon features opening hull, detailed interior, twin flick missiles, rotating laser cannons and detachable cockpit cover * 3 lightsabers, 3 blasters and 1 crossbow also included
– As of 07/23/2012 this product had 4.6 out of 5 stars from 73 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Set is very large; figures all fit inside the ship once it's built; sturdy once assembled. Cons: Though many reviewers said the set was durable enough to be played with, some reviewers reported that the set fell apart easily.

Playable Metal blocks are made in aluminum alloy. There are 10 different shapes each with threaded holes on many of its facets. Blocks can be interconnected using specially designed screws. This patented connecting mechanism makes building flexible structures possible for each two adjacent blocks can be secured in any easily adjusted angle. Playable Metal blocks are available in 7 metallic colors. This set includes, 22 playable metal blocks, 39 connecting screws, 6 aluminum rods, 2 special rods (sports pack), L-shaped wrench.

SmartMax allows children to explore magnetism safely. The oversized pieces are specifically designed for handling by young kids as they learn about the effects of magnetic attraction and repulsion. Older children will have fun using the pieces to construct towers and bridges. The magnets are strong enough to carry up to 60 times their weight. Basic 36 includes long bars, short bars, large 1.8" diameter metal balls and a guide to build models. 25-piece and 42-piece sets are also available.

The Domino Express Maxi Power Plus set combines the fascinating action of falling dominoes with even more exciting stunts. It comes with a rocket tower, 2 straight and 2 curved speed tracks, a plane launcher, 36 speed dominoes and over 100 regular dominoes to stack up and watch fall. This set is hours of fun for both new domino fans, as well as the experienced pro. Launch date: July 2011.

The WudWorkers™ line is a “Build and Play” construction line that allows children as young as three years old to begin their love affair with creative play and construction. They can be built into one specific set and become a work of art on a shelf, or they can be played with, taken apart, and then turned into something entirely different. "Our line stands out from any other wooden construction set through our design and creative engineering," Kris Millington, SVP of Maxim Enterprise Inc., told TDmonthly. Launch date: September 2011.

These blocks can be stacked to over four feet tall—a foot taller than most stacking blocks. Kids can also arrange the blocks into cityscapes filled with skyscrapers, houses, vehicles, trees, and traffic signs, and then use the blocks as a play space for action figures, dolls, or toy cars. Includes 10 stacking blocks. Launch date: August 2011.

The all-new LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar comes with 24 unique gifts, including an exclusive Santa Claus Yoda minifigure plus vehicles and accessories from the Star Wars universe. Features 8 minifigures, mini Millennium Falcon and X-wing Starfighter, and is 266 pieces total.

The Make It! series are fun construction games that will challenge problem solving and memorization, and will develop fine motor skills of young children as they build their favorite creatures.  Featuring Dinosaurs, Zoo Animals, Farm Animals and Animal Babies, Make It! is a multiplayer game that teaches cooperation skills and animal recognition.  Simply take turns selecting game cards and try to collect the pieces necessary to complete your animal.  Great family games for all ages.  Ages 3+ years.

The HEXBUG Nano Hive Habitat Set is the first transportable environment that enables HEXBUG Nano architects to customize the design and layout within a HEXBUG Nano Habitat Set. The Hive Habitat Set features an integrated center ramp for multi-level Nano interaction and a floor spotted with attachment points that kids can build off of, further extending its creative play pattern. Each attachment point can be filled with a variety of new playground accessories including pegs, which act as bump points for the HEXBUG Nano, rotating flags, which direct the HEXBUG Nano toward ramps or other obstacles including merry-go-rounds and even a seesaw for the playfully energetic HEXBUG Nano to explore. The HEXBUG Nano Hive Habitat Set can be connected to any pre-existing habitat set or used as a stand-alone product that kids can simply pack up to go with a convenient carrying handle. The Hive Habitat Set comes with one extremely rare HEXBUG Nano mutation and 35 easy-connect construction pieces including 16 pegs, 16 adjustable flags, two merry-go-rounds and one seesaw. HEXBUG Hive is CPSIA approved for kids 3 and up.  Launch date: mid-August 2011.

100 piece assorted "camo" colors including : Green, Olive, Brown, Khaki, and Natural. Fun and educational, these award winning eco-friendly blocks will keep kids building for hours on end. This 100 piece CAMO colors set contains 5 different colors to add a little pizazz to building fun. Colors include: green, olive, brown, khaki and natural (20 blocks of each color). Kids can build towers, towns, castles and more. Building guide included. Launch date: July 2011.

This set includes 10 assorted colorful trees to decorate Citiblocs creations. This set of 10 vibrantly colored trees in a variety of shapes and sizes lets kids expand their Citiblocs environment. Launch date: July 2011.