Best Toy RC Vehicles & Batteries
An Anki OVERDRIVE Starter Kit and a compatible mobile device are required to play.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It's next generation technology in slot car racing, goodbye Hot Wheels and flimsy tracks, this is the new play in town (though comparing Hot Wheels to Anki is unfair, Anki is in a different league)! CONTENTS: - Modular racing tracks (4 straight and 6 curved, each piece connects magnetically). - 2 Cars (GroundShock and Skull). - Charging station (charges 4 cars at the same time). - 2 Stands (to create overpasses in tracks). - Tire cleaner. You will also need to download the Anki Overdrive app from the app store (it's available for free on both Apple app store and Google Play) on each device that you wish to control the cars with (Anki Drive app will not work with this set). SET UP: - Connect the tracks (tracks can connect in several ways, the packaging box outlines 8 different ways to lay out the tracks). - Charge the cars by inserting them in the base charging station. - Download the app to your tablet or phone. That's really it, it takes less than 5 minutes to get the racing set up and running. It's physical cars racing on an actual race mat, but they are controlled by an app. As you progress through races and collect awards, the app allows you to equip your car with weapons. These weapons are great when battling other players - they let you shoot at the other cars (not physically, but in the app), and also jam the other cars for a few seconds. When you attack another car, the opponent's car lights will flash red and the car will slow down. The problem with this was that if the car ever went off the track, it would pick up fibers from the carpet and not run correctly. - I'm not sure if the tracks have sensors, but I am assuming they have some electronic components in them which allows the app to track each vehicle on the tracks, and also lets it automatically send the cars to the start line at the beginning of each race. COMPARISON WITH ANKI DRIVE: - Anki Drive costs $100, Overdrive costs $150. - With Anki Drive, you can only battle players that are on the same type of device. With Anki Overdrive, the introduction of magnetic modular tracks makes it easy to configure the track layout to your liking, and add uphills and downhills."
"The cars have trouble staying on the track especially with 3 or 4 cars racing! When a car goes off track, the driver's screen prevents the driver from pausing the race, so you depend on another driver to notice your distress and delay the race enough for you to replace your car less you attempt to replace it with the other cars going full speed. That usually just ends in another car going off track due to the interference of your hand and/ or slow moving car. Regarding battery life, you have to make sure that you don't make the car with the lowest battery the host of the race because if the host car dies during the race, then the whole race is ended abruptly."
The car is easily maneuvered and the buttons are made simple to press, rendering it perfect for small children. Lightning Fast Cartoon R/C Police Car for Children.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"My one year old has figured it out and giggles while it soars backwards in circles. The race car driver makes noise when you click him into place..."
"On the remote there are two buttons- one that makes it go straight and one that reverses it in an arc, so it's pretty much impossible for the car to get stuck in a corner, which is great."
"He loves to chase the car when Mommy is driving it (which I have way to much fun doing), he loves to be the driver (although he hasn't gotten the concept of holding down the buttons on the remote."
"I like that you can change the volume so the sound isn't blaring, just don't show the kids were that button is otherwise the music will be burned in your brain a lot sooner."
"It took them about a total of 15 minutes to get the hang of it, and for the rest of the night the race and crashes were on."
"His older brother has several remote control cars which Michael is 'forbidden' to play with on most days, so he loves having a remote control car of his own."
"Hopefully it holds up well as the control will undoubtedly be dropped, but it feels strong enough to take a beating from a toddler."
"Bought this for my 2 year old grandson."
The Cyclone remote control race car tackles both on- and off-road courses while performing insane high-speed flips and stunts with its unique double-sided design. BUCKLE UP FOR “CYCLONE MODE.”. Just push a button and the Cyclone off road RC car unleashes 360° turns and flips like you’ve never seen before. Cyclone Remote Control Car 2.4 Ghz Remote Controller 2 LI-PO Batteries USB Charging Cable. RUGGED STUNT CAR: Spin, flip and do 360° tricks with the Cyclone - our toughest remote control car for boys and girls.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I have liked this car more than any of the others for several reasons: -when it runs into a wall, it just flips over and keeps going. -the wheels won't scratch your walls when it slams Against them. -easy remote control."
"The battery will go into the car by clipping it in and using a phillips head screwdriver to close the battery compartment. The controller will take a four double a batteries."
"Great little car, bought it for my nephew and he loved it."
"Super fun!"
"I loved it too because the big rubber wheels meant it didn’t hurt feet or walls when they got ran into."
"I bought this item for my kid, for Christmas, the first problem we experienced was that after we charged the batteries, they don’t even last 1 minute, it brings 2 batteries and the other one did not work at all."
"Also, the remote sometimes works (you can tell with the flashing light at the top) and sometimes doesn't, even after putting new batteries in."
"Poor battery life (< 7 minutes per charge) and one of the chargers has failed."
Best Toy RC Car Batteries & Chargers
Style: Standard Packaging. This 12-volt battery has been designed to fulfill rigorous Power Wheels requirements in order to provide the best possible performance.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Got a power wheel for my daughters 3rd birthday and she got to drive it right away for about 2 hours on this battery alone."
"Wasn't sure if ours was malfunctioning; after receiving this new one, WOW, what a difference."
"He had a great time and rode for several hours and battery was still going strong but he wasn't!"
"WORKED GREAT SONS JEEP RUNS SO MUCH BETTER WITH A NEW BATTERY."
"The battery charger doesn't connect quite like the connector to the power wheels, but it works (doesn't come with charging chord)."
"This was just what we needed to replace our very weak power wheel battery."
"We read all the reviews and decided to try it. Update:I called fisher price and they looked up the battery number - the battery sold here was manufactured BEFORE 2015."
"Going to give them one more chance (first charge) just like the book says for 18 hours worked good for about 20 minutes (second charge) charge for 14 hours just like the book says worked about 15 minutes, (Third charge) charge for 14 hours just like the book said work for about 5 minutes."
Best Toy RC Vehicles
The car is easily maneuvered and the buttons are made simple to press, rendering it perfect for small children. Lightning Fast Cartoon R/C Police Car for Children.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"My one year old has figured it out and giggles while it soars backwards in circles. The race car driver makes noise when you click him into place..."
"On the remote there are two buttons- one that makes it go straight and one that reverses it in an arc, so it's pretty much impossible for the car to get stuck in a corner, which is great."
"He loves to chase the car when Mommy is driving it (which I have way to much fun doing), he loves to be the driver (although he hasn't gotten the concept of holding down the buttons on the remote."
"I like that you can change the volume so the sound isn't blaring, just don't show the kids were that button is otherwise the music will be burned in your brain a lot sooner."
"It took them about a total of 15 minutes to get the hang of it, and for the rest of the night the race and crashes were on."
"His older brother has several remote control cars which Michael is 'forbidden' to play with on most days, so he loves having a remote control car of his own."
"Hopefully it holds up well as the control will undoubtedly be dropped, but it feels strong enough to take a beating from a toddler."
"Bought this for my 2 year old grandson."
Best Remote- & App-Controlled Figures & Robotic Toys
What makes Anki OVERDRIVE the world's most intelligent battle racing system? Each Supercar is a self-aware robot, driven by powerful artificial intelligence (A.I.). And with continuous software updates, the gameplay always stays fresh. An Anki OVERDRIVE Starter Kit and a compatible mobile device are required to play.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It's next generation technology in slot car racing, goodbye Hot Wheels and flimsy tracks, this is the new play in town (though comparing Hot Wheels to Anki is unfair, Anki is in a different league)! CONTENTS: - Modular racing tracks (4 straight and 6 curved, each piece connects magnetically). - 2 Cars (GroundShock and Skull). - Charging station (charges 4 cars at the same time). - 2 Stands (to create overpasses in tracks). - Tire cleaner. You will also need to download the Anki Overdrive app from the app store (it's available for free on both Apple app store and Google Play) on each device that you wish to control the cars with (Anki Drive app will not work with this set). SET UP: - Connect the tracks (tracks can connect in several ways, the packaging box outlines 8 different ways to lay out the tracks). - Charge the cars by inserting them in the base charging station. - Download the app to your tablet or phone. That's really it, it takes less than 5 minutes to get the racing set up and running. It's physical cars racing on an actual race mat, but they are controlled by an app. As you progress through races and collect awards, the app allows you to equip your car with weapons. These weapons are great when battling other players - they let you shoot at the other cars (not physically, but in the app), and also jam the other cars for a few seconds. When you attack another car, the opponent's car lights will flash red and the car will slow down. The problem with this was that if the car ever went off the track, it would pick up fibers from the carpet and not run correctly. - I'm not sure if the tracks have sensors, but I am assuming they have some electronic components in them which allows the app to track each vehicle on the tracks, and also lets it automatically send the cars to the start line at the beginning of each race. COMPARISON WITH ANKI DRIVE: - Anki Drive costs $100, Overdrive costs $150. - With Anki Drive, you can only battle players that are on the same type of device. With Anki Overdrive, the introduction of magnetic modular tracks makes it easy to configure the track layout to your liking, and add uphills and downhills."
"The cars have trouble staying on the track especially with 3 or 4 cars racing! When a car goes off track, the driver's screen prevents the driver from pausing the race, so you depend on another driver to notice your distress and delay the race enough for you to replace your car less you attempt to replace it with the other cars going full speed. That usually just ends in another car going off track due to the interference of your hand and/ or slow moving car. Regarding battery life, you have to make sure that you don't make the car with the lowest battery the host of the race because if the host car dies during the race, then the whole race is ended abruptly."
Best Toy Vehicle Playsets
-- but lift the handle and it pops up to transform the camper into a three-story play set with all kinds of possibilities for an amazing outdoor camping adventure! Barbie doll can slide down from the second-story living room (featuring a couch, TV and glam chandelier) to make a splash at a fun campsite pool party. Transform the back of the cab by flipping over the spare tire cover to reveal a fire pit and opening the back door to create a kitchen complete with fridge, sink, oven and stove.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I definitely want to stress that my daughter (and 18 month old son who sneaks in to play with it as well) could care less about the problems I mentioned but, being that this is a $70 toy, I definitely wanted to mention them."
"If you try to "Drive" the camper the back door will keep popping open as there is a part that catches on the floor."
"Purchased this as a birthday gift for my 9 year old sister and she absolutely loved it!!"
"The pool can actually hold water so my daughter is very excited about that."
"My daughter loved this, she hasn't stopped playing with it... it's not only good for Barbies but she plays with her Shopkins and Paw Patrol toys in.... it has really provided hours of fun and she's still not done playing with."
"Lots of stickers to attach with not much help where they go."
"Best Christmas gift ever to a young girl."
"My granddaughter wanted this camper so she got it for Christmas."
Best Play Vehicles
Once the rocks are in the bucket, the push toy or pull toy can be moved along to see the rocks rumble around inside.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"He is too young to know how to pop the rocks into the bed of the dump truck but he puts them in the hole, turns it over and spins the wheels -- he loves wheels. He has the laptop, remote control, sit to stand (all time favortie - love love love this one), Iphone, etc. Today I put some of his other little toys in the back of the dump truck with the rocks."
"Got this for a baby for her birthday because she loves balls and this game with 3 little balls / boulders."
"Great little truck, asks you to add balls, then counts them as you bop them in."
"This toy is so fun!"
"Its now helping develop the motor skills to drop the ball in the top hole and how to pick them out of the dump truck bed."
"It was a big hit with all the little kiddos, who loved putting the balls in it and the noises it made."
"We gave this to my 1 year old nephew for his birthday last month and he loved it!"
"His dad drives a dump truck for work so I thought this would be a perfect toy to introduce him as to what his dad does for a living."
Best Pull Back Vehicles
Watch the train chug through the station and under the bridge, or turn the hand crank to make it ride up the conveyor belt. locations with fun phrases, music and sound effects Includes one motorized, SmartPoint Train and cargo car that teach the letter 'T' through pretend play Includes 32 interchangeable track pieces for 15 feet of play Product Measures: 5.9" x 23" x 16". Watch the train chug through the station and under the bridge, or turn the hand crank to make it ride up the conveyor belt. Smart educational toys; kids build their own toy train track and push cars around the track for miles of fun. Includes 1 motorized SmartPoint Train and an educational cargo car toy that teaches the letter "T" through pretend play; 3 included AAA batteries.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"My layout uses all the pieces, and it also enables the train to complete a circuit around the track and hit all of the SmartPoints without manual intervention. The diagrams for the track layouts are a bit difficult to read, and the photos included in the manual are way too small to see all the details. I may order a few more red pieces from vtech's website (under "Customer Support", go to "Order replacement parts"): vtechkids.com. For those of you who have misplaced the manual, it's also online at the vtech's website (search for "go go train" and you will see a tab for downloading the manual PDF file)."
"As another reviewer wrote, there is a hill that requires you to hand crank - my son picked up on this pretty quickly and it has added that much more interest to his play. The way the the track configures you can choose to send the train up the hill or under the tunnel, so if your child can't hand crank yet, don't worry they can still use this toy and have time to grow into it. The reason I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5 (really minimal in the scheme of things) is that the track configurations are kind of tricky. My only other complaint (again minimal, but the real reason for 4 stars) is that the track comes with a number of pieces open on 4 sides. The train can't use half of the route you see configured on the box because it would need 2 of these pieces to stay on the track."
Best Children's Die-Cast Vehicles
This pack is trunkloads of fun with 20 Hot Wheels vehicles included. Collectors and car enthusiasts admire these amazing 1:64 scale vehicles with fondness and reverence. This set is trunkloads of fun with 20 Hot Wheels cars included.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I bought this to make party favors for my son to pass out to his preschool class on his birthday."
"True care aficionados might get annoyed at Hot Wheels because some of their cars are a bit fantastical, but hey, kids like funky colors and shapes and shiny things! We buy 20 packs of these things (usually costs less than lunch for two people) and we dole them out to the kids as incentives to clean their rooms, for potty training, whatever you can think of."
"Every generation of young boys in my family has loved toy cars and especially Hot Wheels. For saving me from the young boy's present conundrum alone I'm giving this Hot Wheels collection 5 solid stars."
"You will not find a better price in your brick & mortar stores."
"Santa scored big time with this one ;) Yes, it would have been nice to see multiple packages to pick which set my kid would have liked better, but my son went bonkers when he opened it on Christmas."
"Nothing special about the, but a great collection of toys for a kid to play with."
"Worked perfectly for our Hot Wheels themed bday party for the games and gift bags."
"gift pack is a joke."
Best Remote Train & Railway Sets
Witness the children’s shadows as they sit in the passenger cars drinking steaming mugs of hot chocolate and chattering excitedly about Santa. Remote Control: Buttons allow train to go forward and reverse, sound the whistle, ring the bell, and play announcements.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"After seeing all of the recent reviews I was a little scared when I ordered the Polar Express Train set to put around our Christmas tree this year. I was afraid the extra weight would make it sluggish or not want to pull the other 3 cars around the track. So here we go...I put it in forward...I went slow for the first few laps expecting a derailment or something, especially after the recent reviews. For just using it at Christmas I look forward to many more years of enjoyment...provided Oscar doesn't attack it!"
"The remote control controls the audio: train sounds increase with speed, and you can add whistle, bell and "all aboard the Polar Express" announcement. My only quibble with the design of this beautiful train is the decision to secure the battery compartment with screws."
"My son loves trains and he was asking if we could have a train to put under our tree this year so I looked around locally and found the typical Christmas train sets that all range from about $40-$100. I found this by accident and it is perfect since my son just watched and really "got" the Polar Express this season."
"I cannot put into words the disappointment I felt as a parent, when I waited until Christmas eve to set up and surprise my little boys with their long awaited Polar Express train. They were a bit busy at first (probably from the Holidays) but the customer service reps were very nice and very helpful when I finally got through to them."
"Looks great easy to assemble........and then......on second day "threw" the rubber grommet on front wheel and hasnt worked since."