Looking for the hottest toys of the holiday season? Toy Insider’s Chief Toy Officer Laurie Schacht stopped by Cityline in Canada to show off the year’s most in-demand toys and gifts. For more on the items featured in this segment, check out the product notes below, and for the complete rundown of the best toys of the holiday season, be sure to check our complete Toy Insider Holiday Gift Guide.
KIDI STAR KARAOKE MACHINE (VTECH)
- Take center stage and sing like a star with the Kidi Star Karaoke Machine.
- Grab the microphone and use Music Magic mode to turn down the main vocal track of your favorite songs so you can be the star!
- Easily connect your MP3 player or mobile devices with the included audio cable and play favorite tunes from your own collection or sing along to the eight original songs.
- Twist the disco light 180 degrees for colorful light effects that create a great atmosphere for singing and dancing.
- Add audience sounds like applause, cheering, and laughter so it really feels like you’re onstage at a concert!
- Record yourself for up to five minutes and add fun voice-changing effects, then listen to and enjoy your performance.
- Ages: 5+
- MSRP: $49.99
- Available: Amazon, Target, Walmart
- Canada: CAD $59.99 at Toys “R” Us Canada, Walmart Canada
YODA ELECTRONIC MASK (HASBRO)
- Chin-activated Yoda Electronic Mask
- Open mouth to activate Yoda sounds and phrases and wiggle ears.
- Kids can disguise themselves as the legendary Jedi master from the Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.
- Recreate adventures and scenes from the Star Wars galaxy.
- Ages 4 +
- Canada: CAD $49.97 at Hasbro.com, Walmart.ca
KIDS FIRST CODING & ROBOTICS (THAMES & KOSMOS)
- Meet Sammy. This cute little peanut butter and jelly sandwich is actually a robot that teaches coding principles and skills to children in grades K-2.
- You don’t need a tablet, smartphone, or computer to program this robot; programs are created by simply laying down a sequence of physical code cards. As the robot drives over the code cards, an OID optical scanner on the bottom of the robot reads the code cards one by one and loads the program. Next, place the robot on a grid made of map cards, and the robot runs the program.
- This robot kit also teaches physical engineering and problem solving skills through a series of building and coding lessons. A full-color illustrated manual guides users through the coding lessons and the assembly of different models.
- Age: 4+
- Canada: CAD $169 at Amazon Canada, Walmart Canada
WORLD’S SMALLEST ROCK’EM SOCK’EM ROBOTS (SUPER IMPULSE)
- It’s the fight of the century! You throw a right, the other throws a left, hit the jaw and the head pops up!
- Get ready to perfect your Rock’Em Sock’Em techniques because the classic boxing robots have shrunk to a mini size and yes, they’re fully functional!
- Licensed from the original Mattel toy.
- Age: 3+
- MSRP: $8.99
- Available: Amazon (Can be shipped to Canada)
- Yeti, Set, Go! is a follow-up to PlayMonster’s award-winning Yeti in My Spaghetti! It takes the yeti theme to a whole new level, as this game features four different Yetis with four unique personalities!
- There’s big, all-play action in Yeti, Set, Go! as Yetis are kicking meatballs onto a snowy mountain!
- Players make their Yeti kick the balls by boppin’ them on the head over and over and over! Skill comes in to play, too, because players can aim their Yetis by swiveling them back and forth. So, meatballs are flying all over, as players try to get them to land on all of the ledges in their side of the mountain!
- It’s a fun, fast-paced, action-packed game.
- Age: 4+
- Canada: CAD $29.98 at Walmart, Well.ca
WHAT’S THAT SMELL (WOWWEE)
- It’s the party game that stinks! What’s That Smell? is the hilariously fragrant new guessing game that will throw your sense of smell into overdrive!
- Guess the scents correctly to outrank your family and friends or suffer the stinky consequences of the Whiff of Shame!
- Game includes 48 Mystery Whiff Cards, four Stank Cards & scent-barrier bags, six cardholders, Whiff Strips, scorepad, and instructions. Let the nostril flaring begin!
- The winner aka “Nose-it-All” gets to pick a player of their choice to suffer the Whiff of Shame: Three Big Whiffs of one of the four outrageously stinky Stank Cards including: Extra Old Toe Cheese, Diaper Blowout, Hot Chunky Vomit, or Smothered in B.O. !
- For added fun, capture the loser’s recoiling face in super slow motion using the ReekCam available in the free What’s That Smell app!
- Age: 14+
- Canada: CAD $24.99 at Amazon, Target
- Rescue Runts need a home to call their own! The super soft plush puppies show up on your doorstep with matted fur, dirty paws, boo boos and fleas
- Care for your Rescue Runt using the included grooming kit!
- Use the tweezers to pluck out “fleas”
- Wipe their tears away and clean their dirty paws with the towel
- Brush their messy fur with the brush
- Remove their bandages, perk up their ears and make them smile to complete the transformation from ragged runt into perfect pet!
- Write their name on the collar and adoption certificate to make the adoption official
- Rescue Runts’ messy fur, downturned ears, dirty paws, and bandages can be restored for repeat animal rescue play
- Age: 3+
- MSRP: $19.99
- Available: Walmart (can be shipped to Canada)
CIRCUIT SCRIBE DRONE BUILDER KIT (CIRCUIT SCRIBE)
- Build and fly your own drone with the Circuit Scribe Drone Builder Kit!
- Power your cardboard arms with conductive silver ink, and connect your drone’s hub and motors. Download the controller app and take to the skies!
- The app includes easy-to-fly hover, takeoff and landing modes, or test your skills with full manual joystick control.
- Use the included pre-made plastic arms for testing, or make your own arm designs with the included extra cardboard.
- The drone kit includes a conductive ink pen, 4 motors, 8 propellers, a drone hub with on-board camera, arms, a battery and battery charger, and iOS and Android controller app download.
- Age: 13+
- MSRP: $99.99
- Available: shop.circuitscribe.com (ships to Canada)
MYSTERY FLYING SNITCH (WOW! STUFF)
- Every Harry Potter fan knows that a game of Quidditch only ends when the Snitch is caught. Now fans of the ultimate wizarding sport will be able to connect with their inner Seeker and wow their friends as they attempt to catch the new Mystery Flying Snitch as it appears to magically fly about them.
- The Mystery Flying Snitch is suspended by a high tensile Aramid fibre thread. The thread is approximately twice as strong as steel of the same thickness, but almost totally invisible from 6 feet, allowing you to recreate magical scenes from the Harry Potter films.
- This new incarnation of the famous winged Quidditch ball is ideal for cosplay and each kit comes with a free Quidditch poster for inspiration and display plinth.
- Ages: 6+
- MSRP: $24.99
- Available: Target
- Canada: CAD $32.49, All retailers
AIR HOGS SUPERNOVA (SPIN MASTER)
- Step into the future with the Air Hogs Supernova! Control Supernova with the power of your hands!
- Master over 30 moves and nine Super Tricks, perfecting maneuvers that range from simple to complex! Equipped with an intelligent on- board system, it has five motion sensitive sensors and an interactive LED light core that responds and reacts to you. With a few waves of your hands, different combinations of gestures will let you perform amazing tricks.
- Age: 8+
- Canada: CAD $54.97 at Walmart.ca, Amazon.ca
TOILET PAPER BLASTER SKID SHOT 30 (JAKKS PACIFIC)
- Uses real toilet paper.
- Blasts up to 30 feet!
- Easy to use: load the toilet paper; add water, lock & load. Fire!
- Includes a single blaster.
- Age: 8+
- MSRP: $19.99
- Available: Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond, BuyBuy Baby, GameStop, Target, Walmart
- Canada: CAD $32.41 at Amazon CA
MASSIVE MONSTER MAYHEM INFLATABLE BASH ARMOR (ALPHA GROUP US/DHX)
- Get Massive! Armor up like your favorite Massive Monster to join the battle for planet Earth.
- Extra-Large inflatable head gear and fists let you battle out the outrageous scenes from the series.
- From the hit TV series on Nicktoons (US) and Family Channel (Canada), Extra-Large inflatable head gear and fists let you battle out the outrageous scenes from the hit show.
- These wearable head gear and fists are perfect for parties, games and will sure turn heads! The Armor includes head gear and two fists.
- Age: 4+
- Canada: CAD $17.99 at Toys R Us
