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Wall Tracks Review and Video

Keriannot — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 02:08:55 +0000

@Mattel

At Toy Fair last year, one of the coolest toys I saw were the Hot Wheels Wall Tracks by Mattel. These plastic tracks adhere to any wall surface with Command 3M velcro tabs, allowing the brackets that hold the tracks to be removed with the pull of a tab. I really liked the concept of bringing the toys off the floor and up onto a totally different play surface, especially since I live in a smaller home where we are short on floor space.

Kids can place their Hot Wheels cars on the tracks and watch them complete stunts as they fly down the interconnecting ramps to the floor. There are also different buttons that can change the direction of the car route. My son is only 2 and much younger than the recommended age range which is 4 and up, but he was mesmerized by them, trying to bring every car he had to the tracks to see if it would fit. The ramps are fairly delicate in that they come apart pretty easily, so keep that in mind when using it with the younger age group.

We tried a non-conventional installation and my husband decided we’d hang it on a wall we have that is covered with IdeaPaint. IdeaPaint is whiteboard paint that is used to turn any ordinary wall into a whiteboard. After a search for the biggest whiteboard we could find, without any real luck, we found this alternative and it’s our lifeline for organization in the office. My husband Derek thought it would make a cool backdrop for the tracks and after he installed it he enjoyed drawing all sorts of trees, boats and mountains to turn our Wall Tracks really into a masterpiece of art. In the end, using the IdeaPaint surface was not the best idea, because one of the brackets got stuck because the 3M Command tab broke during removal. About a two inch area of sheetrock came off with the bracket, leaving us with quite a repair job in ahead of us. However, in the suggested installation, I’m hopeful that this would not happen. You can view Derek’s video here of the Wall Tracks Installation on our wall. It took him about 10 minutes start to finish.

Mattel provided Wall Tracks free to facilitate this review. The opinions are my own.

Video Transcription:

This here is the Hot Wheels Wall Tracks. As you can see the template is set
up. Here is the top, and here is the bottom. It says flush with the floor.
I’m actually going to make this a little bit higher because I have a little
one below the age of four, and I also might expand on the track as well.

First, you have the brackets that you have to put on. Each bracket is
labeled on the back side. On the back side of these brackets, this little
piece back here comes off. You can actually see the letter A. I’ll show you
in a different clip here. You’re looking at the Hot Wheels Wall Tracks.
This is the top portion of the template that goes on the wall. You tape it
just with some masking tape. Then the bottom portion actually aligns with
the floor. You can see it says flush with floor. Because I have a little on
in the house, I actually made it a little higher, plus I want to add to the
track if possible. We’ll see if that’s possible later.

Here you have bracket A. You know it’s bracket A, because if you take off
this back piece, it says the letter A. Then also on this side is B. Then it
just goes side to side C, D, E, F. Once you have all those up, the
following steps will fairly easy. You just connect the track.

One more thing to note is that you want to hold down and push on these for
at least 30 seconds so the adhesive sticks. You want to do that until you
count to about 30. Then just do the same thing with the remaining B, C, D,
E, and F brackets.

As you can see, the instructions are pretty clear. The next step is to
remove the template and we’ll do that right now.

Now before we move on to assembling the whole track together on the wall,
we need to, as it says here in step five, assemble track pieces. Here are
the track pieces that we have to assemble. It’s fairly easy. It only takes
a few minutes, and we’re going to put those together right now. Then we’ll
move on to step six, which actually goes through and shows how the wall
tracks go on to the wall as you can see here.

So this is how the pre-assembled pieces should look. It took a little
effort getting the yellow pieces on, but once you get the hang of it, it
goes real fast. Then it connects to the gray loop. What nice about this is
that this is the right side and this one is the left. Now not only are they
marked left and right on the back, on the bottom here, but the size, which
is this piece that it goes into, the right is actually larger so it only
can go into this piece. Whereas on the left, this one is a little bit
smaller, so it can only go into that track as well. On this side, these are
just easy installation of the breakaway.

This is bracket A. When installing this little gray piece, it just slides
right in. There’s no trick to it. As you can see, I can slide it right out,
and it just slides right back in.

This is the next piece, still on bracket A. This is the next piece right
here, this long piece that actually connects from A to B. What you see on
the bottom here is how it connects with this cross-hair. What you do is you
just snap it right in, and as you can it automatically fits pretty well
into B. As long as you have everything lined up properly, it actually just
fell right into place, right into B. The template works really well.

Then we’ll move on. This is how it looks so far. Let me just adjust that
for you.

Here’s the next piece. Again, it’s the little cross-hairs right up here.
You just drop it in. You can see it on the bottom there. Just drop that
right in. Then it goes around. That actually fell out, which is
interesting. We’ll actually try to fix that right now and show you what can
be done if that happens. So you have this piece right here. As you can see,
you can see the cross sections, the arrow showing you which direction it
should be going in. You just clip that right back in. I’m going to show it
to you again because it’s just a little clip. It’s not a big issue. You
just angle it and then clip it back in. Then you just bring this piece in.
I’m trying to do this one-handed. There we go. That’s the section that we
have right now.

Once again, this is the next piece. It’s the circular ramp. What happens is
you just drop them again into the cross-hairs. They call them cross-hairs,
but they’re just little pieces that are criss-crossed. Let’s see if I can
do this one-handed. What I’ll do is I’ll put this piece in, but just show
you this side. So again, if you do the template right, it just should drop
right in. It was fairly easy to just place right in.

So here we are, we’re moving to this left ramp that we have here. We’re
just going to line it up and drop it right in. As you can see right here,
it just lines right up and snaps right in. This is what we have so far.
Once you have that template up, it’s actually pretty easy to just piece it
all together and bring it all together all at once. If you take the time on
the initial stages, it works really well.

l mentioned this in the beginning, but remember, you need a three foot by
three foot section for the track. So keep that in mind when spacing it out.
The nice piece about this is if you do mess up, you can always replace the
tabs on the back, which are these little tabs, which you can probably find
at any hardware store or retailer, like Target or Walmart and just replace
them and you can start your track all over again in a different place. I
like the mobility of that and being able to have the diversity of moving it
in multiple locations.

Let’s finish up this last piece. So now we’re on this last section, again
with this bottom piece going right into this little cross section here.
Give me a second. I’m just trying to do this with one hand. There we go. As
you can see, it just lines right up. These are supposed to do that. They
just come right down.

The last section is the launch ramps which we’re going to put on. There is
this one piece that I did forget to add on to this left section. Like this
initial piece, it just slides right into the blue section here. Then you
just slide it right in. There’s no end piece to it. So it will just launch
right off.

After this, you have the launch that comes off of this piece, which is
another slide piece just like the initial gray piece we started with right
there. It’s actually this piece right here. This again just slides right
in. Sorry about the shakiness, I’m just trying to do this with one hand to
give an example. It’s normally not this difficult. It’s easier when you
have two hands and you’re focusing on it a little bit more. There we go.
That’s the end of that piece.

Now the big piece that we finish with are these two orange slats that just
go on the end of this piece here. We’re going to do that right now.

Now as you see here, with the two orange slats, this ramp right here, they
connect to make a longer piece by this section. You need to slide it on the
back side like this. There’s a little piece that actually should line up
and lock it in. This piece looks like so. That the way it should lock right
it, and then here’s how it looks on the back.

So here’s our wall tracks put together. We started with the initial
bracket. Again, you need three feet by three feet when lining this up.
Here’s section A. This is the right ramp, the loop, the left ramp, I think
it’s called the breakaway. Then you have the remaining pieces that come off
right here. Again, I did this a little higher than you would normally do
it. You normally would put it right to the floor. But in my case, I put it
up a little bit higher because I have a younger child in the house. I just
ramped it to this little table right here.

Here’s what the Hot Wheels Wall Tracks looks like on the Idea Paint wall
that I have in the house. As you can see, I added some dry erase drawings
to it just to give it a little bit more character. That’s it. Definitely
give it a try. If you don’t have a dry erase wall like this, look up Idea
Paint online

Fisher Price iXL Learning System

Keriannot — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 01:20:50 +0000

The Fisher-Price iXL Learning System is a portable, hand held learning tool for children ages 3 – 7. This is a combination device! It will play downloaded music, store individual photos, read digital story books and allows children to practice writing letters, words and numbers on the notepad. The drawing stylus allows children to draw and stamp on their own download pictures. There are learning games that promote academic skills of reading comprehension, counting, creativity, phonics, math, vocabulary and spelling. Even better, there is a headphone jack (though headphones are not included), so this is a great portable device for travel. An internet connection and computer operating system (Windows or MAC) is required to download the pictures, music and additional software. Other educational software programs with character licenses such as Dora, Sponge Bob, Disney Princess, Handy Manny, and Toy Story 3 can be downloaded on to the device. The basic device is rather simplistic and I would recommend purchasing some additional titles for your children to learn and explore from to keep their interest. You will need to install computer software to download additional titles and also access printable learning activities.

Fisher-Price provided the iXL free to facilitate this review. The opinions in this blog post are purely the bloggers own.

ToyQueen on Digital Dads Talking Holiday Toys!

Keriannot — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 01:47:15 +0000

On Monday November 22nd I had a blast appearing on a segment of Digital Dads with C.C. Chapman on the Pulse Network! We talked about all sorts of holiday toys for different age groups Dads might like to purchase for their kids! Toys featured included Leap Frog Twinkle Twinkle Little Scout, Leap Frog Fix & Learn Speedy, Whiplash Scooter, Air Hogs Hawk Eye Helicopter from Spinmaster, Bakugan Dragonoid Collossus by Spinmaster, Zoobles by Spinmaster, U-Build Games by Hasbro, Mega Bloks Musical Pirate Ship, Rubik’s Slide, Tron by Disney, Helmtops, Sassy Baby Rattles, Lego Games, Paper Jamz, Stinky the Garbage Truck by Mattel, Zhu Zhu Pets by Cepia, Sumo Ham Slam by Gamewright, Battlestrikers by Mega Brands, Squinkies!

Here is an updated link to imagery for Helmtops and the Mega Bloks Pirate Ship!

Fisher Price Little People Wheelies Stand and Play Rampway

Keriannot — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 20:58:25 +0000

Fisher-Price Little People Wheelies Stand and Play Rampway.

BigFoot the Monster by Fisher Price

Keriannot — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 02:38:20 +0000

Fisher-Price, BigFoot the Monster will be a sought after remote controlled dinosaur toy for preschoolers this holiday season. He has multiple emotions that include sad and angry. He exercises, flips, and walks forward. Recommended for kids 3-10.

Mattel Sing-A-Ma-Jigs

Keriannot — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 16:20:54 +0000

Mattel Sing-A-Ma-Jigs these soft fun collectable creatures will make you smile with every squeeze of their belly. They come in four different colors. For kids ages 36 months to 6 years old.

Time to Play Holiday Showcase overview 2010

Keriannot — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 21:21:23 +0000

Keriann Wilmot from ToyQueen.com, pediatric occupational therapist, shares photos and videos of some of her favorite products showcased at Time to Play Magazine’s Holiday Showcase in NYC on Tuesday Septemer 28th, 2010. Products included from companies such as Leap Frog, Mega Brands, Lego, Disney Consumer Products, Blip Toys, Mattel, Hasbro, Jazwares, Jakks Pacific, Spinmaster, PlaSmart, VTech, Pinkalicious, Learning Curve.

Video Transcription:

Hi this is Keri Wilmot from www.ToyQueen.com. Last week, my husband Derek, from www.DadsLanding.com, and I were invited to the Time to Play Holiday Showcase in New York City, where we were able to preview a lot of the hottest holiday toys of the season.

Our first stop was the Leap Frog table, and, in my opinion, Leap Frog continues to develop some of the greatest educational toys for kids ever. They’ve built upon their Tag and Tag Jr. reading systems, to now incorporate both the United States and world maps. Hand-held devices for kids that incorporate learning to read and write through fun games, like the Leapster Explorer, the VTech VReader, the Fisher Price iXL, were very prominent at the event. There are all sorts of great pre-school toys out there that incorporate learning on the go, in the bathtub, through a variety of different games.

Little girls this year are going to love the Mix Pups, where they can rearrange different hairstyles on little dogs. There’s Squinkies by Blip Toys, which are already flying off the shelves.

Those are Zoobles by Spin Master, which are similar to Bakugan for little boys. The Disney Princess and Me dolls are absolutely stunning. There are all sorts of different accessory packages for your little girls, to be able to dress like their favorite princess.

Stinky the Garbage Truck loves to eat Matchbox cars.

There were many different creative activities. Some by Crayola, with the Sound Studio and the Presto Dots. That’s Moon Dough by Spin Master. There was a deluxe workshop called Real Construction by Jakks Pacific.

The family games market was very, very prominent. Lego has been the front runner in this environment, where not only can kids build structures that they like, they can play games once they’re finished.

And that is Loopz by Mattel that incorporates infrared technology.

So, hopefully, over the next couple of weeks, we’ll do some more in-depth reviews of some of these great products so that you can be well-informed before the holiday season.

ToyQueen’s Top 12 Holiday Toys for 2009

Keriannot — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:59:34 +0000

With the holidays fast approaching and in the spirit of gift giving, I’ve created a list of my 12 favorite educational toys. Toys were chosen based on their ability to combine fun, and developmental value over time. Most of these toys have multiple uses and can be used with a variety of different age groups!

There are 3 toys per category including Infants, Toddlers, Preschoolers, and Elementary School Age.

Birth to 12 months

1. Fisher-Price Stack & Roll Cups

For infants, not only do these cups stack and nest, put them together to make a rolling ball! When children get older, these cups would make great sand and tub toys!

2. Crayola Drop & See

A great infant toy that combines a marble track with a fine motor activity box!

3. Mega Bloks Lil Dump Truck

What infant doesn’t love dump and fill play, with the ability to generate early social skills by pushing the truck back and forth to a parent or sibling? Trucks will always last a lifetime!

12 months through 2 years

4. Cranium Cariboo

Toddler’s will initially enjoy using the key to open all the boxes to work on foundational skills such as turn taking and vocabulary development. As their thinking skills improve, this game advances with them to teach skills such as color and number recognition into the preschool years.

5. CAT Ride-On by Mega Bloks

This is a 3 in 1 toy that is a stable push toy for children learning to walk and a ride-on toy for older children. Children can drive their blocks to different locations before stacking them up and crashing them over.

6. Crayola Color Me a Song

Children love to scribble and color, but do not always have the attention span to do so for long. This product incorporates coloring along to music where the music will speed up and slow down based on how fast or slow the child is coloring. It comes with triangular crayons which are great to enhance grasp development.

Preschool Age (3-5 years)

7. Leap Frog Tag/Tag Jr.

Depending on your child’s abilities, either the Tag or Tag Jr. is a great way to foster reading, vocabulary development, the ability to answer questions and to develop reading comprehension. The Tag Jr. Book Pal is appropriate for children up to 4, the Tag Reading System is geared for children 4-8. I’ve successfully heard many times that parents have used the Tag with younger children, though they require more supervision and assistance. If you are looking for an independent toy for a young child, the Tag Jr. incorporates board books with a more basic level of operation.

8. Zippity by Leap Frog

Jump and move with your favorite Disney characters! I am a huge fan of the moving to learn concept. There are multiple games with multiple levels included in the console, which becomes more difficult as children advance their skills. You can also purchase other games more specific to the child’s interest.

9. Uno Moo by Mattel

This preschool game involves color matching with round barnyard animals that can be played with separately from the game but builds on the skills needed for Uno at an older age.

Elementary School Age (5 & up)

10. Goblet Jr. by Blue Orange

Awesome take on Tic-Tac-Toe that involves strategy as you can gobble up your opponents so the game can continue with a different strategy. Kids and adults love this game!

11. 1,2,3 Stomp by Wild Planet

Number and math game that pops the pieces all over to incorporate speed and movement!

12. Candyland Sweet Celebrations by Hasbro

New version of Candyland with the same concept of turn taking and color recognition but children can constantly change the game board to play differently every time!

Interview with Dr. Michael Shore from Mattel by ToyQueen

Keriannot — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:19:12 +0000

Dr. Michael Shore from Mattel is interviewed by ToyQueen, Keri Wilmot regarding some of the developmental aspects that have been included in Mattel’s process of toy creation and development to promote emotional benefits, imagination, empowerment, and the sense of discovery in the design process. Toys featured include the Fisher-Price Trio Building Set, Preschool game Uno Moo and Matchbox’s Rocky the Robot Truck.

The Trio Building System, for 3-5 year olds, was engineered with concepts in mind such as the auditory feedback that is provided when the blocks are successfully snapped or connected together.

Uno Moo was developed to make a compelling game for young children, that were not able to hold a large deck of cards. It’s a matching game that incorporates color and animal matching with manipulatives that are more appropriate for the preschool age. Game play sessions were created to be brief, it’s active and comes in a nice storage container.

Rocky the Robot Truck is a fully interactive truck, great for boys ages 3-6. This type of construction vehicle play brings a whole new magic to the truck, as Rocky was developed with a personality and movement. Rocky makes over 80 statements, that are rewarding and encouraging, that also invite children into the play pattern. The children are also able to activate many of the features themselves through the use of buttons, etc.

Most Wanted Holiday Toys from Time to Play

Keriannot — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 03:37:56 +0000

Last Thursday, I had the awesome opportunity to be at Time to Play Magazine’s press conference in New York City, where Chris Byrne – The Toy Guy (@thetoyguy) and Jim Silver – editor in chief of Time to Play Magazine (@jimsilver) unveiled the magazine’s list of what they believe are the Most Wanted Toys of the 2009 Holiday Season. Sixteen (16) toys were highlighted overall. Feel free to check out the list in detail, but I’m gong to highlight my three favorite toys that were presented. We had an opportunity to interview Hasbro, Mattel & Wild Planet who represent these products, so check back for the video posts to see these toys in action!

For preschool and elementary school aged children, Hasbro has created a 60th anniversary edition of Candyland, called the Candyland Sweet Celebration game. How exciting is it that your child now has the power to create a unique Candyland adventure every time, as the pieces snap together like a puzzle to create the gameboard! What a great addition to such a classic game!

For young toddler boys who love their dumptrucks, Mattel/Matchbox has created Rocky the Robot Dump Truck. Not only does Rocky function as a regular dump truck, but he has been developed with a personality! We had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Michael Shore, who discussed all the behind the scenes work that Mattel does for research to bring products to children that are developmentally sound, especially with regard to Rocky. It’s no wonder their toys are always among my personal favorites!

Lastly, Wild Planet has paired up with Crayola to create Crayola Town. There are different sets to purchase such as a zoo, ranch, house, and airport. The child first colors in the mat and puts together 3D aspects of the play mat. There are a few play mats included in each set, though there is an opportunity to download more online for free. Each set comes with different pieces as well, to turn your child’s crayons into animals, cars, etc. so that after they are finished coloring, they can make their pictures come to life with a pretend play experience!

I know my mind has not yet focused specifically on the holiday season, but hopefully these three suggestions may make the stress of creating your gift buying list a little easier!