On this Turn the Table Tuesday Tom makes it more like a Gadget Warehouse Friday.

TTTT Tuesday, March 1^st, 2011, Netcast 1297

For today’s Daily Giz Wiz Tom brought in something from his own collection of stuff he couldn’t part with. It’s his very own handheld Mattel Auto Race. I don’t own one of these “electronic marvels” of the past, and I never got to play with one. But Tom sent me a link to a great website where I got the info on the Mattel Auto Race that follows. The website has tons of info on all kinds of handheld games, so if you want to bring back memories of the past, be sure to visit them. Here’s their info on Mattel’s Auto Race: It was released in 1976, and was the first Mattel Electronics handheld game made available to the public (and is also the first ever all-electronic handheld, using no moving parts, just electronic components). Programmed by: Mark Lesser (a whopping 511 bytes of code!) (This game too easy for you? There's a speed control inside the game, it's like a little volume control. It's usually set right about in the middle, so you can make the game about twice as fast or twice as slow by moving this POT. Of course, you have to get those dang triangle screws out... :) Auto Race was released in two different box styles: The older (original) box was significantly larger than the second (smaller) version. The large version had the game packed in Styrofoam blocks, where the smaller version had the game packed in a plastic bubble-wrap bag. (Several of Mattel's earlier handhelds went through this change.) Some of them also have an A/C adapter port for powering the game. Auto Race was followed the much more popular Football, the game almost everyone thinks of when they think of the original Mattel line of electronic games.

Here’s where the photo and info above came from. It’s a great website for info on all sorts of handheld games:

http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Mattel/AutoRace.htm

More Mattel Auto Race Info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mattel_Auto_Race 

See or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1297

No room to store a boat? This boat folds in half.

February 28^th, 2011 Netcast 1296 

THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE TO PLAY THE JAN/FEB 2011 'WHAT THE HECK IS IT?" GAME: http://gizwizbiz.squarespace.com/new-what-the-heck/ 

The EzyBoat is like a clamshell flip phone, it folds in half! It’s hinged at the center, and when it’s folded it actually becomes its own trailer with room inside for all your gear, including the engine. But wait, there’s more! The trailer for your boat is built into the bottom. When you want to launch the boat, unhitch it from your car, unlock the boat halves and unfold them. The backbone of the trailer doubles as a reinforcement to prevent the boat from folding when in use. The company says it can cruise at about 14 mph with a 20hp outboard. Top speed is about 23 to 24 mph. It's rated for outboards up to 25 HP, but it can run with outboards as small as 2.5 HP. The EzyBoat is not designed for big, open water or waves, but it’s great for lakes and exploring inland waterways. Another advantage of this boat is that a small car can tow it. Because your trailer travels with you, you can launch the boat from the beach or a boat ramp. Once the boat floats, you do something most boaters will never do: retract the trailer wheels up into the hull. (The hardware and handle to do this are built in.) If you don’t want an outboard, you also have your choice of sail (the company offers a complete optional sailing kit), or for a great workout, you can just row, row, row your boat. When your trip is over just re-folded your EzyBoat and head for home.  Even though the company says you can exit the water at a different spot from where you started, you still have to have someone come meet you with the tow vehicle. The price in the US should be in $12 to $13,000 range w/o an outboard engine or sail kit.

www.ezyboat.com

See or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1296

What year did the first clock displaying digital numbers appear?

Friday, February 25th, 2011, Netcast 1295

I found a clock that would have been in the Gadget Warehouse if I had born a lot earlier. While I was in Miami for the Boat Show. I made a side visit to the Wolfsonian Museum. With an exhibit called Speed Limits how could I not go? (The Wolfsonian is located at 1001 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, FL.) Speed Limits explores the impact of speed on our daily lives. (The exhibition has ended but a spokesperson said it will move on to other museums.) It was interesting to know that studies of how to speed up things at home and at work have been going on since the 1920’s. Increasingly, humans are processing complex overlapping of information including time and related data. This growth is reflected in a collection of clocks illustrating the tempo of modern life. In the early to mid-1930’s Lindley S. Lawson and Harold B. Lawson opened a clock business. Their company, Lawson Clocks Limited made a line of strikingly modern digital clocks that displayed the time on rolling wheels much like an odometer. (Yep, just like a modern digital clock!) The clocks were of very high quality, with many exhibiting the latest streamlined designs. For some models, Lawson worked with designer KEM Weber to ensure the clock cases were as up-to-date as the digital concept. The clock on display at Speed Limits was a KEM Weber design. I found it amazing for a 1933 device. Thanks to the web, I discovered a guy who put the history of Lawson clocks online. And I even found someone selling a Lawson clock on Ebay. Here are a couple of interesting things from the description on Ebay: “Even though the clock measures approximately 8" long by 3 1/2" wide by 3 3/4" Tall and features a Fine wood cabinet with metal deco style trim accents, it still weighs approximately 3 pounds. (They really built stuff to last back then.) A real 1920's-30's art deco look and it works, although is a little slow. Loses about 30 minutes every day or so- but does work!!!” (Hmmm, off by 30 minutes a day is pretty bad time keeping, but hey it’s about 80 years old! History of Lawson clocks:

http://www.decopix.com/Lawson_Clocks/

Info on the Museum: www.wolfsonian.org

See or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1295

A new trend at Toy Fair 2011 & Two Neat Examples.

Thursday, February 24, 2011, Netcast 1294

One of the new trends is to take world famous electronic games or hugely popular phone apps and turn them into home family games. Tetris has been around for more than 25 years and millions of people have electronically jiggled those dropping multi-shaped colored blocks. So game-maker Techno Source thought it was time there was a living, hands-on version.  At Toy Fair they debuted Tetris Link. Instead of being a solo affair, 2 to 4 players can compete. Each player picks a block color. Players then take turns rolling a die that tells you which shape block you must drop down the groove on the plastic game tower. The object is to link your color pieces together while blocking your opponent from doing the same thing. Players track their points in real-time with the built-in scoring markers. When the tower is full, the player with the highest score wins the game! The retail game includes the game tower, 100 Tetrimino playing pieces in four different colors, playing die and instructions. Appropriate for players ages 6 and up. There are no batteries, sound effects or LED’s. That’s why it’s under $20. Tetris Link goes on sale this Spring.  Stiff rules won’t let you use a hack saw to trim the plastic pieces, or a mallet to drive them in where they don’t belong!

Angry Birds has gone from America’s #1 app to a real-life version from Mattel called Angry Birds: Knock on Wood. It should be called Angry Birds: Knock down the plastic because the wood is made of plastic. The object is pretty much the same as the app. Use the spring-loaded catapult to hurl one of the three plastic angry birds into the house the pig’s built. You still win by demolishing their edifice. The kind of structure you have to wreck is decided by selecting a 'mission card' that show different kinds of structures that have to be built. But to stop you from cheating by building a weak easy-to-knock over structure, your opponent builds it. Then you get a chance to built the structure your opponent must knock down. (No, you can’t use crazy glue!) Each card has a point value, and whoever reached 1000 points first wins. The set includes three birds–red, yellow, and black, plus four pigs. You also get molded plastic ‘wooden’ boards for building structures, and of course, a spring powered launcher. It will sell for under $15 and reach toy stores in May, 2011.

See or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1294  

You’ve heard of Neon, but have you heard of Meon?

Daily Giz Wiz -- Wednesday, February 23^rd, 2011, Netcast 1293

February brings one of my favorite trade shows, Toy Fair!

At the Javits Center, a new company called Skyrocket Toys unveiled Meon. This electroluminescent tube lets kids (and adults) create and display their own "Meon" signs. (They really need to be displayed in darkness to look their best.) Some of the Meon kits feature famous TV and movie characters; or kit builders can use their own images to create their “Meon masterpieces”. I was quite surprised when I asked the price range. Kits will sell for as low as $10, and they include a plastic display frame. There are several different kits. The most expensive is the Meon Interactive Animation Studio with prices that range from $29.99 to $34.99. That kit features a 15" frame, 10-12 feet of Meon wire, and six licensed picture templates. This deluxe version can feature animation, games, sound effects and voice activation. I only saw a demo of the animation, which is quite nice. The Meon Picture Maker Kit ($19.99 - $24.99) features a 12" frame, 7-8 feet of Meon wire and two licensed picture templates to create and display.  And the lowest price kit  (SRP: $9.99 - $12.99) features a 7" frame, 3 feet of Meon wire and one licensed picture templates.  All the kits are recommended for ages 5 and up. They’ll be available in toy stores starting in late spring. Meon is powered by two AA batteries. Right now the company website just has a rocket animation, but no info. (As of February 21, 2011.)

www.skyrockettoys.com

A video I shot at Toy Fair showing Meon:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kKuaFBwC-I

See or hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1293