Zoundz, a 2007 Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award winner, creates a fusion of self-composed music and a light show. Users can create their own riffs and fine tune creations with the mode switch, enabling adjustment of tempo, volume and echo. Each interactive “hot spot” lights up when a pawn is placed, and grooves to the music’s tempo. Color indicates music type, with red indicating sharper tones and blue reflecting softer sounds. “Zounds lends itself to a diverse audience….And as a speaker for any iPod, it has numerous traits that transcend toys,” Marc Rosenberg, chief marketing officer for Zizzle, told TDmonthly.” Launch date: September 2006.