Role Play & Dress Up: spy gadgets

The CPSC has just announced that about 1,000 bicycle bells manufactured by Botou Baite Bike Bell Company and distributed by Do It Best Corp. have been recalled due to lead-paint contamination. They were manufactured in China and sold at Dollar Stores and Do It Best Hardware stores in the United States.

If you have this recall toy in your home, you should take it away from children immediatel...

I am dying to get my hands on a Geomate Jr. Geocaching GPS (compare prices.) Geocaching is a great family activity that gets everyone outdoors. The Geomate Jr. has 250,000 geocache locations preloaded. Simply scroll through to find the one closest to you and set off on foot, following the arrows on the screen. When you get there you'll find a box with little notes or treasures. Just be sure t...

Zibits are mini RC (remote-controlled) robot toys that come in 12 collectible styles. Only about three inches tall, Zibits go forward and spin around when you push the button on the remote control. Remote-control toy collectors and robot freaks would enjoy these. They are quirky and make cute sound effects, but unfortunately there's no reverse, they don't go very fast and they stumbled over ...

I admit it. Splashy the Whale (compare prices) by Pressman Toys sat on my "Toys to Review" shelf for some time before I let my kids get their hands on it. I think I was afraid that a water-spewing whale game would make a mess, and for that reason my children would love it to pieces. My fears were completely reasonable. My 4-year-old son said, "It's so wet that I love it!"

Splashy the Whale wor...

I first saw Kid Hip personalized music CDs in the giant Toys 'R' Us store in Times Square and I was immediately curious. Kid Hip CDs feature nine songs and they say your child's name 50 times! Their list of available names features nearly 1,000 names, including "Dhruv," "Atreya"and even "Vienna" (just in case Jake's looking for a special gift.)

I expected the name to sound robotic and out of...