High-Tech Toys: The Fun Factor of Electronics

By Peter Pernsteiner

Miniaturized computers and electronics enrich many products for leisure fun for children and adults. The spectrum of toys with electronics ranges from glowing flowers to programmable robots or AI-controlled racing cars to digital model railways.

Fantasy Worlds with Interactive Audio Stories

With hi!, Playmobil wants to bring an entirely new dimension of play into children's rooms. The basis for this is a small backpack measuring approximately 3 x 4 cm for the beloved Playmobil figures that have been popular for over 50 years. It is fastened to the figures' backs and contains a comprehensively programmed microcomputer along with a powerful speaker for interactive role-playing games. It is controlled by approaching NFC tags, which are located in nine interactive stickers included in the package and a navigation sticker. The result is a kind of fantasy audio story for children from 6 years old, which contains a wide variety of sound effects and plays out completely differently depending on the stickers attached to Playmobil toys. At launch, there are four themed worlds: horses, pirates, police, and zoo. Parents configure the backpack using a free smartphone app, enabling a completely offline play experience that works without any screen. Playmobil placed great emphasis on having the interactive stories recorded by professional audio drama speakers from Germany, England, France, and other countries, with more than 500 audio elements per language. The backpack is powered by an integrated battery that is charged via a USB-C charger and is designed to provide up to six hours of uninterrupted playtime.

AI-Controlled Racing Cars

Carrera-Toys first presented the Hybrid racing track at Spielwarenmesse 2024. Instead of conventional fixed track grooves for vehicle guidance, it features completely flat road elements with nearly invisible optical coding. The racing cars at a 1:50 scale are electronically guided on this basis using a photo sensor in the chassis. Control is provided by AI, either directly via smartphone or in connection with a wireless controller for gaming consoles. This allows vehicle parameters such as tire pressure and engine tuning to be configured. The racing cars are controlled either completely manually or at various AI-assisted levels, depending on experience. The AI ensures, among other things, that vehicles behave differently in curves depending on driving duration, as tire wear and tire heating are simulated. New track elements presented this year include sleek curves, a pit stop lane, a bridge, and a bottleneck section. Additionally, in spring 2026, the NPC mode was integrated into the free smartphone app. It enables autonomous operation of AI bot vehicles on the track. This makes not only solo race training possible but also a new challenge with autonomously driving opponents in races between multiple drivers.

Remote-Controlled Cars in All Sizes

While Carrera's hybrid system requires special tracks and a smartphone, the small racing cars Romi 64 from Rlaarlo are operated via conventional radio remote control and perform drifts. The 70 to 80 mm short speedsters at a 1:64 scale have an adjustable chassis, reach speeds of up to 9 km/h, and achieve approximately 20 minutes of operating time per battery charge. The company unveiled many other new products in Nuremberg, such as a very robust 1:7 scale Mercedes-Benz Unimog U4000, which can be seen undergoing an endurance test in this video report from Spielwarenmesse. Numerous other exhibitors also presented great remote-controlled innovations in Nuremberg. Tamiya, for example, displayed the model of the BMW M4 GT3 EVO from the 2025 season at a 1:10 scale directly in front of the original motorsport vehicle. Equally spectacular was the 75 cm long model of the four-axle tow truck Volvo FH16 at a 1:14 scale. The pre-painted model kit features a detailed metal leaf spring suspension on the spring shackles, double steering axles, and a 3-speed manual transmission. Optionally, it can be supplemented with, among other things, a lifting mechanism and a multifunction unit that includes a vibration module in addition to various light and sound functions. For comfortable remote control, the new 15-channel radio remote control Reflex Stick Pro 4 LCD from Carson is suitable, for example.

Board Game with On-Board Computer

A clever combination of board game and electronics is the Cosmic Jumper from Giiker. The table game novelty measuring 21.5 cm diagonally for children and adults not only visually recalls the star version of the classic Halma that appeared as early as 1892, but can also be played that way depending on the operating mode – with up to six people and, if desired, also alone against the on-board computer. The 19 mm tall game pieces in six colors have a transparent lower section so that the game fields, which light up differently depending on the situation, are clearly visible. The integration of buttons into the 121 fields enables a wide variety of game modes, including solving tricky puzzles. The company, founded in China in 2012, has since developed twelve other electronic games – from Rubik's cube to Tic Tac Toe or a sliding puzzle to Sudoku, Ludo, and a Reversi game as last year's novelty.

Robots as Desk Diversions

After the large Transformer robots of recent years with dozens of servo motors controlled by microcomputers, Robosen presented a mini-robot collection for the desk or children's room in Nuremberg this year. It consists of a small robot base as a universal platform and interchangeable robot modules from various Pixar film worlds. In the approximately 12 cm wide and just under 5 cm high base, in addition to a flexibly programmable minicomputer, there are four small servo motors, a speaker, and three buttons for very simple stand-alone operation without a PC or smartphone. This allows, among other things, typical pre-programmed audio sequences from the respective film hit to be played, and the attached mini-robot comes to life with the help of the servo motors to perform film-typical movements. Additional movement sequences and sounds can be individually programmed on a computer using Robosen Studio software. An integrated 3.7-volt battery with 2000 mAh capacity provides network-independent play fun. It is designed to provide 120 to 300 minutes of operating time and is recharged via a USB-C cable.

Electronic Flowers

Flowers were also a major topic at Spielwarenmesse this year. In addition to laser-cut and plastic model kits as well as building block sets, Franzis, for example, presented a light flower model kit with six circuit boards plus colorful LEDs and resistors. The package includes a soldering iron to introduce teenagers from 14 years old to electronics tinkering. The result is a brightly glowing floral display measuring approximately 15 x 8 cm for the living room or children's room. Kosmos also dedicates two new science kits to the topic of flowers. On one hand, there is the motorized Solar-Flower made of more than 100 plastic parts, and on the other hand, the Robotic-Flower with large petals that can be individually painted. A small computer chip with brightness and proximity sensors ensures that the flower slowly opens in daylight and closes when approached. There is also a night light mode that illuminates the children's room in the dark.

Scientific Experiments

Topbright addresses children from eight years old with the new Smart Circuit experiment kit from the Science Can product range of scientifically oriented toys. It contains plug-in modules for playfully exploring the world of electronics, such as switches, buttons, lights, a speaker, a motor, a crank, or a fogger for smoke generation. There is also a measuring device module with a display for showing voltage and current, as well as a smart voice module that responds to English commands. The modules are plugged onto a large plate with 22 x 30 studs like building blocks, and for electrical point-to-point or T-connections, there are pre-assembled cables with two or three connectors at the ends.

About the Author

Peter Pernsteiner discovered his passion for technology journalism in the middle of his electrical engineering studies and soon found himself in the editorial office of a major ICT trade magazine. Since 1994, he has been writing as a freelance journalist, particularly on technology topics – including for magazines in the model railway sector. In 2016, he also launched a YouTube channel for technology reports, which has since gained worldwide attention.