Children

The best tech toys from the London Toy Fair

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New Atlas looks around London Toy Fair 2017 to find the best tech and STEAM toys
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Kids get to try out the latest VR and AR trends with some of the new toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
VTech used London Toy Fair 2017 to update its camera line-up
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Building and creative toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017 included the 3Doodler Start pen and the MeccaSpider
Drones were a big hit at London Toy Fair 2017 with models designed for taking selfies, or just having fun
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
New Atlas looks around London Toy Fair 2017 to find the best tech and STEAM toys
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
We had fun trying out some of the ride-on toys at London Toy Fair 2107
There were a number of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
At London Toy Fair 2017 it's socially acceptable for grown adults to spend an hour battling toy tanks
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
There seemed to be fewer toys at Toy Fair this year which required a tablet to use
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Vivid was showing off the Sky Viper drones, including the £130 (that’s around US$165) Vibe selfie drone
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Vibe selfie drone can be folded to make it more compact when not in use
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The folded Vibe selfie drone is easier to carry
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Vibe selfie drone is designed to help capture more interesting selfies
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Vivid used Toy Fair to show VRSE, a VR system aimed at users aged eight and up
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VRSE VR system uses a motion controller to control the games with custom add-on cases for games like Batman and Jurassic World
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VRSE VR system will come with branded VR viewers which hold a smartphone
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The new gimbal for the Extreme Fliers Micro Drone offers much smoother video footage
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The camera gimbal for the Extreme Fliers Micro Drone  automatically adjusts as your drone moves
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The new camera gimbal for the Extreme Fliers Micro Drone also offers a wider field of view
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Extreme Fliers was also showing off a lightweight carbon-fiber version of its Micro Drone
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Coco Color Stylus lets users click buttons on the stylus to change brush or color
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The buttons on the Coco Color Stylus
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
VTech launched a Star Wars version of its digital camera for kids
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Star Wars-branded VTech camera has a Stormtrooper face
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VTech Star Wars digital camera features a number of augmented reality games
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VTech Star Wars digital camera lets users appear in images with Star Wars characters
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VTech camera watch got a Star Wars make-over at London Toy Fair 2017
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VTech Star Wars camera watch offers a number of games and features
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VTech camera watch now comes in BB-8 colors
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The camera at the end of the VTech camera watch
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The VTech camera watch now has a number of Star Wars games to match its new looks
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Kidizoom Flix from VTech is part camera, part virtual pet
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Kidizoom Flix camera from VTech can detect people and features a "Bedroom Keeper" mode to take photos of sibling intruders
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Kidizoom Flix from VTech has more personality than most cameras
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Kidizoom Actioncam 180 features a slimmed-down look, and a rotating top camera
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The rotating camera on the Kidizoom Actioncam 180
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Kidizoom Actioncam 180 camera comes with a waterproof case
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Razor Power A scooter uses a removable lithium power battery
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The removable lithium power battery of the Razor Power A scooter
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Razor Power A is an electric-powered scooter
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The RazorX Cruiser is a lithium-powered electric skateboard
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The remote control of the the RazorX Cruiser skateboard
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The RazorX Cruiser features a bamboo deck
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Readers of Mardles storybooks can interact with characters in augmented reality thanks to a companion app
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Mardles storybooks are a modern augmented reality take on the traditional pop-up book
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Five Mardles storybooks will launch later this year
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The C-Me is an upcoming selfie drone from Revell 
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The new Kurio Tab Advance tablet for children offers comprehensive parental controls
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The C-Me selfie drone from Revell folds down small enough to fit in a pocket
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Revell C-Me selfie drone uses GPS and a smartphone app for control
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Kurio Tab Advance tablet for children uses Android 6.0
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Beasts of Balance sees you build balancing towers of creatures to create digital worlds
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Beasts of Balance is a great example of how to merge physical and digital play
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Hot Wheels R/C Bladez Quad Racerz can fly or drive
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
Magformers are magnetic building tiles
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
StikBots can be positioned in situations to create stop-motion videos
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
A new green-screen studio kit for StikBots makes it easy to create chroma key videos and photos
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The Maglev train model from 4M teaches users about Maglev technology
Simon Crisp/New Atlas
The MeccaSpider from Meccano is a giant robot spider that you build yourself 
Caroline Fosbury
We tried the RazorX Cruiser skateboard at London Toy Fair 2017
Charlotte Bird
View gallery - 60 images

The world's toy manufacturers are currently gathered in London for Toy Fair 2017, where they're showing off the toys that your kids will pester you for over the next 12 months. We've spent the day looking for the best tech and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) toys on offer at the show, and here are our highlights.

A striking feature of Toy Fair 2017 is that there aren't quite as many tech toys as we've seen in recent years. Don't get us wrong, there's still lots of great tech waiting to be played with, just not as much as 2016 when it felt like almost everything was connected to an app or the internet. With its internet-connected dinosaur robots, toucans, and an iPad loom, maybe 2016 was the moment of the peak connected toy.

Drones were a big hit at London Toy Fair 2017 with models designed for taking selfies, or just having fun
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

And while there were plenty of drones at Toy Fair last year, this time around the offerings seem better considered. Revell had a prototype of its upcoming pocketable C-Me selfie drone (top left), which will shoot 8-megapixel stills or Full HD video of a user, and is GPS-controlled from a smartphone app. The C-Me will launch later this year. Meanwhile, Vivid was showing off the Sky Viper range of drones, with the £130 (that's around US$165) Vibe selfie drone (bottom left) looking like a direct rival for the C-Me.

Extreme Fliers was also back at the show, after impressing us last year, with its latest Micro Drone developments. These include a new camera gimbal (top right), which offers smoother video footage than rival cameras (it's normally only much bigger drones which have gimbals) and a carbon-fiber racing model. These are due to be available later this year. If you want your drone to be more of a toy, we liked the look of the Hot Wheels R/C Bladez Quad Racerz which can fly or drive, and are due to cost £40 ($50) from September.

VTech used London Toy Fair 2017 to update its camera line-up
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

VTech used Toy Fair to update its line of child-friendly cameras. This included Star Wars-branded versions of its camera and camera watch (top left and right). In addition to snapping photos, the Stormtrooper-faced camera lets users put themselves into images with Star Wars characters, and play augmented reality games like shooting down spaceships in your living room. The camera watch also features built-in games, though not AR ones.

The Kidizoom ActionCam also got a much-needed update and the new ActionCam 180 (bottom left) is much sleeker than previous models, and features a better LCD monitor. It also has a rotatable camera which makes it better for selfies, and comes with a waterproof case and various mountings. VTech also introduced a new camera with the Flix (bottom right), a tripod-mounted "Alien" which has expressive eyes on its LCD display. As well as shooting snaps, the camera can detect you with eye-recognition, and will repeat phrases you say in a funny voice. There's also a "Bedroom Keeper" mode which will take photos of sibling intruders. All of the cameras will be available later this year.

Kids get to try out the latest VR and AR trends with some of the new toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

We all know by now that kids don't have to miss out on the latest trends just because of their age, and AR and VR tech are no exception. We were impressed by the Mardles storybooks (top left) which are a modern take on the popup book and use augmented reality to bring the characters on a page to life when a smart device running the companion app is pointed at them. Five of the £7 books, which are aimed at younger readers, will be released in June.

On the VR front, we've seen ViewMaster give kids a taste of virtual reality, but now it could have some competition. Vivid used Toy Fair to show VRSE, a VR system aimed at users aged eight and up. After inserting a smartphone into a kid-tough VR viewer (Batman and Jurassic World styles will be on offer) a Bluetooth-connected motion-controller is used to control play. It's no Oculus Rift, but at £70 ($90) it's a more affordable entry into VR gaming.

We had fun trying out some of the ride-on toys at London Toy Fair 2107

Last year it was impossible to walk around Toy Fair without tripping over the countless two-wheeled hover-boards which were everywhere. This year that trend seems to have all but disappeared with scooters once again being the dominant ride-on. Of those, our pick was the Razor Power A (left) which brings lithium power to offer users speeds of up to 10 mph and a 45 minute run-time from the replaceable battery. It will cost £230 (about $275) when it's released in the summer.

We also liked the RazorX Cruiser skateboard (right), which is also lithium-powered and offers the same 10 mph top-speed, though it felt much faster than that when we tried it out in the halls of the show. The RazorX Cruiser will also cost £230 (around $275) when it's released in the summer.

There seemed to be fewer toys at Toy Fair this year which required a tablet to use
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

There were far fewer kid-oriented tablets on show this year than there have been at previous Toy Fairs. However, Kurio looks like it has still got something to offer with its Tab Advance tablet (botton left) which uses Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) and features some of the best parental controls we've seen on a tablet. It also comes with STEM and coding apps, along with other games (including motion-controlled ones). The 7-inch, 16-GB tablet will cost £100 (about $126) when it launches.

If you are looking for a child-friendly tablet accessory, the Coco Color Stylus (right) is a £30 ($37) Bluetooth-connected stylus which lets users select different pens, pencils, brushes and colors, by clicking buttons on the stylus. We also couldn't stop ourselves from having another game of Beasts of Balance (top left) which was called Fabulous Beasts when it launched on Kickstarter. The £70 ($90) game sees you build balancing towers of creatures to create digital worlds, and is a great example of how to merge physical and digital play.

Building and creative toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017 included the 3Doodler Start pen and the MeccaSpider

Building toys were as popular at the show as they have always been, with brands like LEGO and K'NEX showing off their latest kits. However, it was a couple of other building kits which stood out for us this year. The £40 ($50) 3Doodler Start pen (top right) - which we first got to play with at Toy Fair 2016 - continues to impress and gives kids the freedom to draw what they want, or use mold kits to create specific objects.

We were also quite taken with the MeccaSpider (bottom right) from Meccano which is a giant robot spider that you build yourself and can then control via a smartphone app. It has an interactive personality and plays games such as a "Venom Attack" where it scuttles around and squirts peoples it sees moving near it. The MeccaSpider will cost £100 ($125) when it launches later this year.

There were a number of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

Other toys which impressed us at the show included a £10 ($12) Maglev train model (top left) from 4M, which teaches users about Maglev tech, and Magformers (top right) magnetic building kits which now include all sort of vehicles. Another pocket-money-friendly toy which can also provide a surprising amount of fun are the StikBot figures which can be positioned in situations to create stop-motion videos. You can even get a green-screen studio kit for £20 (that's $25) to make chroma key videos and photos.

At London Toy Fair 2017 it's socially acceptable for grown adults to spend an hour battling toy tanks
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

We had great fun at London Toy Fair 2017, and not just because it's one of the few places it's socially acceptable for grown adults to spend an hour battling toy tanks. There were plenty of interesting toys on display, and it's good to see how the use of technology in toys is getting smarter, not only in terms of what it can do, but also how it can add to a child's experience of play.

London Toy Fair runs until January 26 at Kensington Olympia London.

The world's toy manufacturers are currently gathered in London for Toy Fair 2017, where they're showing off the toys that your kids will pester you for over the next 12 months. We've spent the day looking for the best tech and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) toys on offer at the show, and here are our highlights.

A striking feature of Toy Fair 2017 is that there aren't quite as many tech toys as we've seen in recent years. Don't get us wrong, there's still lots of great tech waiting to be played with, just not as much as 2016 when it felt like almost everything was connected to an app or the internet. With its internet-connected dinosaur robots, toucans, and an iPad loom, maybe 2016 was the moment of the peak connected toy.

Drones were a big hit at London Toy Fair 2017 with models designed for taking selfies, or just having fun
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

And while there were plenty of drones at Toy Fair last year, this time around the offerings seem better considered. Revell had a prototype of its upcoming pocketable C-Me selfie drone (top left), which will shoot 8-megapixel stills or Full HD video of a user, and is GPS-controlled from a smartphone app. The C-Me will launch later this year. Meanwhile, Vivid was showing off the Sky Viper range of drones, with the £130 (that's around US$165) Vibe selfie drone (bottom left) looking like a direct rival for the C-Me.

Extreme Fliers was also back at the show, after impressing us last year, with its latest Micro Drone developments. These include a new camera gimbal (top right), which offers smoother video footage than rival cameras (it's normally only much bigger drones which have gimbals) and a carbon-fiber racing model. These are due to be available later this year. If you want your drone to be more of a toy, we liked the look of the Hot Wheels R/C Bladez Quad Racerz which can fly or drive, and are due to cost £40 ($50) from September.

VTech used London Toy Fair 2017 to update its camera line-up
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

VTech used Toy Fair to update its line of child-friendly cameras. This included Star Wars-branded versions of its camera and camera watch (top left and right). In addition to snapping photos, the Stormtrooper-faced camera lets users put themselves into images with Star Wars characters, and play augmented reality games like shooting down spaceships in your living room. The camera watch also features built-in games, though not AR ones.

The Kidizoom ActionCam also got a much-needed update and the new ActionCam 180 (bottom left) is much sleeker than previous models, and features a better LCD monitor. It also has a rotatable camera which makes it better for selfies, and comes with a waterproof case and various mountings. VTech also introduced a new camera with the Flix (bottom right), a tripod-mounted "Alien" which has expressive eyes on its LCD display. As well as shooting snaps, the camera can detect you with eye-recognition, and will repeat phrases you say in a funny voice. There's also a "Bedroom Keeper" mode which will take photos of sibling intruders. All of the cameras will be available later this year.

Kids get to try out the latest VR and AR trends with some of the new toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

We all know by now that kids don't have to miss out on the latest trends just because of their age, and AR and VR tech are no exception. We were impressed by the Mardles storybooks (top left) which are a modern take on the popup book and use augmented reality to bring the characters on a page to life when a smart device running the companion app is pointed at them. Five of the £7 books, which are aimed at younger readers, will be released in June.

On the VR front, we've seen ViewMaster give kids a taste of virtual reality, but now it could have some competition. Vivid used Toy Fair to show VRSE, a VR system aimed at users aged eight and up. After inserting a smartphone into a kid-tough VR viewer (Batman and Jurassic World styles will be on offer) a Bluetooth-connected motion-controller is used to control play. It's no Oculus Rift, but at £70 ($90) it's a more affordable entry into VR gaming.

We had fun trying out some of the ride-on toys at London Toy Fair 2107

Last year it was impossible to walk around Toy Fair without tripping over the countless two-wheeled hover-boards which were everywhere. This year that trend seems to have all but disappeared with scooters once again being the dominant ride-on. Of those, our pick was the Razor Power A (left) which brings lithium power to offer users speeds of up to 10 mph and a 45 minute run-time from the replaceable battery. It will cost £230 (about $275) when it's released in the summer.

We also liked the RazorX Cruiser skateboard (right), which is also lithium-powered and offers the same 10 mph top-speed, though it felt much faster than that when we tried it out in the halls of the show. The RazorX Cruiser will also cost £230 (around $275) when it's released in the summer.

There seemed to be fewer toys at Toy Fair this year which required a tablet to use
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

There were far fewer kid-oriented tablets on show this year than there have been at previous Toy Fairs. However, Kurio looks like it has still got something to offer with its Tab Advance tablet (botton left) which uses Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) and features some of the best parental controls we've seen on a tablet. It also comes with STEM and coding apps, along with other games (including motion-controlled ones). The 7-inch, 16-GB tablet will cost £100 (about $126) when it launches.

If you are looking for a child-friendly tablet accessory, the Coco Color Stylus (right) is a £30 ($37) Bluetooth-connected stylus which lets users select different pens, pencils, brushes and colors, by clicking buttons on the stylus. We also couldn't stop ourselves from having another game of Beasts of Balance (top left) which was called Fabulous Beasts when it launched on Kickstarter. The £70 ($90) game sees you build balancing towers of creatures to create digital worlds, and is a great example of how to merge physical and digital play.

Building and creative toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017 included the 3Doodler Start pen and the MeccaSpider

Building toys were as popular at the show as they have always been, with brands like LEGO and K'NEX showing off their latest kits. However, it was a couple of other building kits which stood out for us this year. The £40 ($50) 3Doodler Start pen (top right) - which we first got to play with at Toy Fair 2016 - continues to impress and gives kids the freedom to draw what they want, or use mold kits to create specific objects.

We were also quite taken with the MeccaSpider (bottom right) from Meccano which is a giant robot spider that you build yourself and can then control via a smartphone app. It has an interactive personality and plays games such as a "Venom Attack" where it scuttles around and squirts peoples it sees moving near it. The MeccaSpider will cost £100 ($125) when it launches later this year.

There were a number of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) toys on show at London Toy Fair 2017
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

Other toys which impressed us at the show included a £10 ($12) Maglev train model (top left) from 4M, which teaches users about Maglev tech, and Magformers (top right) magnetic building kits which now include all sort of vehicles. Another pocket-money-friendly toy which can also provide a surprising amount of fun are the StikBot figures which can be positioned in situations to create stop-motion videos. You can even get a green-screen studio kit for £20 (that's $25) to make chroma key videos and photos.

At London Toy Fair 2017 it's socially acceptable for grown adults to spend an hour battling toy tanks
Simon Crisp/New Atlas

We had great fun at London Toy Fair 2017, and not just because it's one of the few places it's socially acceptable for grown adults to spend an hour battling toy tanks. There were plenty of interesting toys on display, and it's good to see how the use of technology in toys is getting smarter, not only in terms of what it can do, but also how it can add to a child's experience of play.

London Toy Fair runs until January 26 at Kensington Olympia London.

View gallery - 60 images
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2 comments
Dan Lewis
I wish the drone industry would wake up and start making light, protective spheres made of wicker/bamboo or recycled plastics, for all prop assemblies. I'll know sanity has finally arrived, when that happens. As it is, too many adults, children and animals are suffering from those spinning blades.
BarrisHarms
And I thought this was going to be an article about updates to antique steam powered toys. I suppose steam powered toys would be a bad idea for children. You know, burn hazards, noxious gases from the firebox, and such. Still, steam power did great things in its day.