We know it’s been a pretty crazy year that’s got you wondering how exactly you’re going to make the holiday season extra special, especially for the kids in your life. The good news is that the toy industry is just as creative as ever, and this year’s crop of hot tech toys is filled with plenty of surprise and delight, all at affordable prices. We’ve picked some of our favorites under $100, ones that will not only thrill right out of the box, but keep the kids entertained for months to come.
Best tech toys for kids
Will Lipman Photography for Engadget Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Game Controller An activity board for the little one is increasingly becoming a must-have for parents, so why not pick one that will give every adult in the room a good laugh, too? This toy shaped like a DJ rig has a working keyboard with three modes so even the tiniest child can make music. There’s a plethora of other switches and wheels to keep them entertained, and it also comes with Fisher Price’s “Smart Stages” system so the built-in lessons will grow with your child for a few years until they’re ready for a real instrument. $17 at Amazon Explore More Buying Options $15 at CVS Pharmacy
LeapFrog LeapFrog LeapMove Active Learning Video Game System Xbox’s Kinect may have come and gone, but the desire to play video games that get you moving lives on. Rather than asking parents to shell out for an expensive console and all the games and accessories needed to play motion games, the LeapMove comes with 25 games built in, and doesn’t need special controllers to play. Up to three kids can have their own profiles, and more games are available for download once they’ve run through the ones on the system. The best part? It’s less than $100, making this a budget-conscious choice for dens and playrooms. $60 at Amazon Explore More Buying Options $60 at Target$70 at Kohl's
LEGO Lego Duplo Town F1 Team Race Cars & Drivers Building Toy Playset 10445 F1 is hot this year, in no small part thanks to the recent Brad Pitt movie. Lego has a wide variety of products for fans of all ages, including playsets of teams like McLaren and Ferrari, and expensive display models of the same. They even have a set for the little ones, one that transforms all 10 teams into their DUPLO equivalents. The cars are easy to build and swap around, and the set comes with details like a finish line, a podium, and a crane for a full pretend racing experience in the box. $45 at Amazon Explore More Buying Options $45 at Target$45 at Macy's
LEGO Lego Creator 3 in 1 Retro Telephone Kids Toy 31174 You’re never too old for Legos, as evidenced by this three-in-one set that should give older adults a real strong dose of nostalgia, no matter their generation. The 383 pieces can be used in three different configurations, each depicting a particular type of phone from the past: a rotary phone with a detachable handset, a “brick” cell phone, or two handsets from the “aughts” – one a flip phone and the other a candy bar-style model. They’ll look great on the shelf, as well as being a fun way to show kids what it was like “back in my day.” $25 at Amazon Explore More Buying Options $25 at Target$30 at Macy's
Tonies Toniebox 2 Audio Player Starter Set The original Toniebox was ideal for parents seeking a screen-free experience for their kids, using small figurines to activate various stories and songs for their little ones. Unfortunately kids do eventually grow out of it, something the new Toniebox 2 seeks to remedy by adding more activities for older kids. That includes new games that involve a physical board that the Toniebox recognizes, as well as more complex content. The box has also been redesigned with rounder edges and better battery life. Tonies is a great brand that we’ve recommended for years; now you can be sure your investment in one will keep paying off as your kid ages. $140 at Amazon Explore More Buying Options $140 at Macy's
NANO-MALS NANO-MALS Stardream The Unicorn We all fidget sometimes, and Hasbro’s Nano-mals are designed to take that energy and focus it into nurturing an adorable little creature. You can flick its ears, move its arms or boop its little nose and each of these actions will fill up the creature’s heart. Still struggling to fill it up? That’s okay, because unlike other virtual pets the Nano-mals will never die (or “go back to their home planet”). Get two in the same room and they’ll even greet each other, encouraging kids to collect them all – which is easy to do when they only cost $20 a pop, making them the perfect stocking stuffer. $15 at Amazon Explore More Buying Options $15 at Walmart
Tamagotchi Tamagotchi Adventure Companion Backpack Plushes aren’t exactly “tech” but we’ll make an exception for this adorable toy based on the Tamagotchi line of virtual pets. Each wearable backpack is modeled to look like the original egg-shaped Tamagotchi toy including a viewing window where the LCD screen would be, and it contains one plush modeled on certain iconic characters from the series. And when we say “modeled” we don’t just mean one design – the plush can be flipped to look like each one of a Tamagotchi’s life stages, from infancy to adolescence to its adult form. $24 at Amazon
Tamagotchi Tamagotchi Paradise Tamagotchi Paradise is the biggest Tamagotchi yet: Physically it’s a real chonker, filling up an adult’s palm at 3 x 3 inches (and one inch deep). But it’s even metaphysically bigger, with the device allowing a player to view their Tama on a microscopic level, and then turning the crank to ascend out into the larger universe. There are over 50 different kinds of characters to raise, with over 50,000 variations so it’s unlikely a player will get a repeat. And friends can even connect to each other to exchange items and let their Tamas play together. It’s truly a device made for long-time fans, but with gameplay simple enough that even newcomers can easily jump on board. $78 at Amazon
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