It seems that toy makers don’t really care if their ideas put our kids at risk. In their drive to conquer tot’s attention (and parents’ dollars), these folks are running amok with IoT offerings. (If you don’t know about IoT- and it’s insecurity- check out my blog series.  This is the first blog in the series.)

In particular, they are licensing Amazon’s technology to incorporate into their offerings. Pretty soon, our kids will think Alexa is their full-time nanny! At least, that’s the way it would have looked if you were walking around the cavernous gallery of the New York Toy Fair.

Moreover, as opposed to my incessant playing of Scrabble against my computer (competing against a theoretical PhD level English major), these toys won’t offer robotic competitors. Nope- these Alexa clones will only keep score, provide the rules of the road, or deliver music and sound effects.

But, you have to recognize that it is often pointless to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to develop voice recognition systems when you can license Alexa for that function. And, supposedly (I have found only ONE reference to this fact) 16% of us already have voice-controlled (smart) speakers in our homes. Which means those folks think nothing about letting their kids have such devices.

And, there’s another trick these toys must conquer. The ability of a child to speak intelligibly enough (and intelligently enough?) for Alexa to recognize the query or command. It can be done- but you know the price tag for that device ain’t gonna be cheap!

Consider this (failure). Mattel (OK, I know they’ve been struggling for years, and have even lost their #1 ranking as a toy maker to Hasbro this year) had expected last year’s toy to garner kids attention as their first PDA (no, not public display of affection- personal digital assistant). It’s “Hello Barbie Hologram” was essentially a glowing speaker box (in pink, of course). It supposedly was stocked with Mattel’s “secure” software, and instead of “Alexa”, it’s opening command was “Hello, Barbie”. The hologrammed Barbie would then yield the weather, play music, set reminders, and even train the child for yoga. (Supposedly, you could command Barbie to throw a dance party, too. I wonder how all the guests were “commanded” to arrive.)

So, why was it a failure? After all, it sounds like something every little girl would want, right. (I’m SO glad my “little” girls are now fully mature.) Hmm. Maybe it was the price tag. $ 235 is a bit much for a toy- even one that may be useful. (I also wonder who else could learn about the little girl’s appointments? Spies are everywhere.)

Novel Effect is collaborating with Amazon to develop a different wake-up than “Alexa”. Since it wishes to augment the child’s experience of having mommy or daddy read them a book, it needs the device to recognize “roar” or “bark” or “the Pied Piper tune” to play the sound effects. Because having daddy read, “As Tom walked warily through the jungle, he was accosted by the “Alexa, roar” of a lion.” simply won’t do! Except, as of now, Novel Effect is simply an app. On Apple.

There’s also “Gameball”. This Bluetooth foam ball (for outdoor play) is replete with all sorts of semi-high-tech sensors. And, like Novel Effect, right now, it’s an app that requires someone (hopefully, NOT the one[s] hitting or throwing the gameball) examining the smartphone screen to discern our speeds, progress, and timings. Play Impossible’s ultimate aim  is to link this to Alexa.

Given last year’s fiasco (mentioned above), Mattel is no longer considering their Alexa-type toy to kids. Instead, “Escape Room in a Box” will be on the shelves soon- for adults!

This toy is cashing in on the craze millennials have been enjoying (or maybe not) by getting locked in a room with other similarly-minded (or not) folks, seeking a way out of their dilemna. And, it won’t be coming with an Echo (Amazon, of course)- but the game expects you to own one so you can receive hints- and be timed for your performance. Not that I would drop $ 30 for such an experience (which is also why I didn’t jump at the chance when my son [a millennial, of course] wanted us to play while we were in Jerusalem. I also wonder how many folks will buy the game without already having the Echo- because those hints are probably going to be critical, and, from what my son says, the timers heighten the experience [or is that paranoia]).

Less wedded to Amazon (the developer is working on hooks to Siri [Apple] and the Assistant [Google]), Sensible Object has a board game (with voices, of course- this toy is also aimed at adults) Voice Originals- When in Rome. Another $ 30 adult toy, one is subjected to sound effects and voice actors (kind of like an Audible book reader- oh, and Audible is now an Amazon subsidiary) as we “roam” the world- virtually. And, the voice devices (right now just the Amazon) tracks your scores and keeps us within the lines (by providing us the rules of the game).

I wonder how much fun it will be to keep hearing, “Alexa, is s/he cheating? What’s the rule on this?”, or “Alexa, who’s winning?”.

And, then, wondering, who else is in the audience…