Furby (2012 Edition)
© 2012 Hasbro, Inc.
It's baaack.... Furby, that is. After 14 years and a lengthy hibernation, Hasbro is reviving one of its most famous toys for this holiday, with new technology, a hefty price tag ($60) and an app connection. This is the most huggable Furby ever, with fur that hides embedded touch sensors that can tell when he's being hugged or petted. A large pair of backlit LCD eyes sit behind mechanical eyelids that can blink, look around, or respond to sounds picked up by Furby's onboard microphone. According to Hasbro engineer Don Cameron, "this is the most subtle AI inside a toy." For example, Furby can differentiate between your spoken language, another Furby, or the rhythm of a song for dancing. High frequency audio codes make it possible for a Furby to "talk" with your iPad or another Furby, say, to ask for some food. In case you missed the 1998 Furby phenomena, the toy's biggest selling feature is that it develops over time, not unlike a child. The development starts with the unboxing and continues for months until Furby starts speaking English. Put another way, the more you pull Furby's tail or hang him upside down, the faster the next stage might come. There is no off switch — the only way to make his random babbling stop is to remove one of the four AA batteries. Or, you can wait it out for two minutes, which is one of the reasons our last Furby ended up living in the attic. Consider yourself warned.
$59.99, Smart Toy
Teaches: matching, memory, fun with language