Summer might be just around the corner, but it's never too early to start shopping for Christmas.
That seemed to be the message behind the Toy Industry Association Holiday Toy Preview, held on Wednesday in New York City. Thirty toycos, including Spin Master, Mega and Wild Planet, presented their upcoming holiday offerings – some genuinely new, and others representing fresh twists on existing product lines.
Here's a few sneak peaks:
Havoc Heli Laser Battle Dogfight
Spin Master's $80 Havoc Heli Laser Battle package, due out this Christmas, is part of the Air Hogs R/C line, and is already in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's smallest flying helicopter. Now it's the most heavily armed, as well.
Two of Spin Master's Havoc Heli Laser Battle helicopters engage in a little friendly fire.
Video: Alexander GelfandEach Laser Battle set comes with two hummingbird-sized helicopters packing infrared beams and sensors. Hit your opponent with an IR blast, and he'll briefly spin out of control. Along with machine-gun sounds, the RC controllers feature two triggers and a set of vertical, horizontal and trim controls.
"There's as much thought and energy that goes into this as goes into a real aircraft," said Craig Gomeral, head of R&D at Spin Master and a former Apache helicopter pilot for the U.S. Army.
(To his credit, Gomeral let a colleague shoot him out of the sky during a demo, when he probably could have used his 'copter to kill her and everyone else in the room.)
Havoc Heli Solo Flight
Former Apache helicopter pilot (and current head of R&D for Spin Master) Craig Goleman shows off his Havoc Heli moves.
Video: Alexander Gelfand__Lego Monster Dino__
Elsewhere on the mechanized marvel front, Lego unveiled an updated version of its Monster Dino (SRP $89.99), a roaring, stomping dinobot that can be reconfigured as a spider or a crocodile, and which will boast an improved power system come August.
Run! Flee! The Monster Dino is on the loose! Oh, where are those Havoc Helis when you need them?
Video: Alexander Gelfand__ICoaster and Brian the Brain__
Those looking for a little fun closer to home can zone out while watching tiny metal ball bearings zip around the magnetically powered, Rube Goldberg-like iCoaster, a mess of translucent plastic tubing due out in September from Mega. The $80 iCoaster can be configured in a myriad of ways, with those little metal balls being carried up a magnetic elevator before being let loose among a network of plastic tracks and towers.
Thanks to a couple of motion sensors, the balls also trigger a slew of beats and music samples from the set's Sound FX Music Studio. And as the name suggests, you can jack your own MP3 player into the system to supply your own soundtrack.
Mega is also launching $100 Brian the Brian, a talking skull-in-a-bubble that marketing and communications supervisor Carine Sroujian describes as "the next-generation virtual roommate."
Brian comes loaded with the Concise Encyclopedia Britannica, a digital calendar, an integrated speaker phone, and a deeply annoying attitude. Thanks to voice recognition and some simple AI, he can also learn your name and your tastes, so it won't be long before he's asking you out for a pizza. A word of advice: Take Monster Dino instead.
Brands simultaneously unleashes a supercool MP3 accessory and a super-annoying virtual roommate.
Video: Alexander Gelfand
