Over the past few weeks, the ramp-up to the holiday season has kicked-in, and with that comes speculation on what will be the hottest toys for 2017. Each fall, retailers, experts and speculators alike weigh-in with their hot toy lists, but the two best are ones I’m very partial to: The Toy Insider’s Holiday Gift Guide and THE ROCK FATHER™ Magazine’s Holiday Wish Guide™ (coming soon). As a member of The Toy Insider Parent Panel, for the second year I’ve contributed a “Rock Father Pick” to their guide, joining my colleagues in highlighting a favorite from the 42 toys featured in the Hot 20, STEM 10 and Tech 12 lists. But that’s just the start of things! Beyond those 42 toys, this year’s print guide features more than 230 toys from nearly 100 different manufacturers, and an additional 150 toys can be found online, representing more than 130 toy companies in total (you won’t find a more comprehensive list). Look for the print guide in the November issue of Family Circle magazine, on newsstands on October 10th. Preview the 42 top picks below!
0-2 years
- Go! Go! Smart Wheels Race & Play Adventure Park (VTech)
- Scoop & Learn Ice Cream Cart (LeapFrog)
3-5 years
- Disney Junior Doc McStuffins All-in-One Nursery (Just Play) ROCK FATHER Pick!
- FurReal Roarin’ Tyler, The Playful Tiger (Hasbro)
- L.O.L. Surprise! Tots (MGA Entertainment)
- Mickey Transforming Roadster Racer R/C (Jada Toys)
- Peppa Pig Lights & Sounds Family Home (Jazwares)
- PJ Masks Rival Racers Track Playset (Just Play)
- Teddy Ruxpin (Wicked Cool Toys)
- Thomas & Friends Super Station (Fisher-Price)
6-8 years
- Fingerlings (WowWee)
- Hatchimals Surprise (Spin Master)
- JoJo Siwa CD+G Karaoke Machine (eKids)
- Oonies Starter Kit (Moose Toys)
- Shopkins Shoppies Super Mall (Moose Toys)
- Soft’n Slo Squishies (ORB)
9+
- LEGO Star Wars First Order Star Destroyer (The LEGO Group)
- Nerf Rival Nemesis MXVII-10K Blaster (Hasbro)
- Nintendo Switch (Nintendo)
- SoundMoovz (Cra-Z-Art)
- Aura Drone with Glove Controller (KD Interactive)
- DigiLoom (WowWee)
- LeapFrog Epic Academy Edition (LeapFrog)
- Lightseekers Starter Kit (TOMY)
- Luvabella/Luvabeau (Spin Master)
- Meccano M.A.X. (Spin Master)
- Merge Cube (Merge VR)
- R2-D2 App-Enabled Droid (Sphero)
- Sky Viper V2450 GPS (Skyrocket)
- Star Wars Hero Droid BB-8 (Spin Master)
- Ultimate Justice League Batmobile (Mattel)
- VRSE (Skyrocket)
- 3Doodler Start Robotics Pen Set (3Doodler)
- Barbie Fundamental Chemistry Set (Thames & Kosmos)
- Dance Code Belle (Hasbro)
- Droid Inventor Kit (littleBits)
- HEXBUG VEX Robotics BattleBots Minotaur/Tombstone (HEXBUG)
- Imagine: Power & Play Motorized 50 Model Building Set (K’NEX)
- LEGO Boost Creative Toolbox (The LEGO Group)
- LEGO Worlds (Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
- Remote-Control Machines: Construction Vehicles (Thames & Kosmos)
- Rube Goldberg The Acrobat Challenge (Spin Master)
Parents and gift-givers can easily search by a child’s age (broken out into 0-2, 3-5, 6-8 and 9+ age groups) and interests using the handy skill-development key. They can also view the guide online with their children to create a wishlist of favorite toys, making holiday shopping easy for friends and family.
The Toy Insider is an independent organization. Its team of experts attends major toy industry trade shows and events, and conducts briefings with manufacturers, retailers and analysts throughout the year. The Toy Insider hot list submission is open to all toy companies, of all sizes. Toys must be new for 2017 and available to consumers for purchase for the holiday season, either on the company’s website or widely available through any retail partner. When evaluating toys, the team considers play value, originality, skill building, product integrity, and, of course, fun factor.
For more: https://www.thetoyinsider.com/2017-holiday-gift-guide/
