One of the big toy news last year was the return of Teddy Ruxpin. The new teddy bear made its official debut during the 2017 New York Toy Fair.
The new Teddy Ruxpin is made by Wicked Cool and mixes up 21st Century technology with classic soft and furry teddy bear love. The end result? A much cuter Teddy Ruxpin.
The original Teddy Ruxpin got the reputation of a very creepy toy. It featured an animated face which means its eyes, ears, nose and mouth could move and react. But it looked creepy for some.
The new 2017 Teddy Ruxpin aims to fix these shortcomings. It will be difficult to shake off the reputation, though. So, you will still hear a lot of jokes and pokes towards the teddy bear about it being creepy.
The new Ruxpin features interactive LCD eyes. This means they are not simply plastic pieces, but actual small screens. They can blink, squint and make other emotions. This should make recognizing Ruxpin’s intention and messages, much easier.
The mouth still moves mechanically in accordance to what Ruxpin says. Instead of cassette tapes like the original, the new teddy bear uses a wireless connection via an iOS or an Android app. With it you can send stories for Ruxpin to read out loud to the kids. When he does so, his eyes will display various images in accordance with the story. For example, they will show hearts when Ruxpin talks about love and friendship.
When Ruxpin rests and sleeps, the eyes will be covered by mechanical eyelids and the screens will turn off. You will even be able to put a sleeping mask on his eyes to help him rest even better. That’s just for fun.
The 2017 Teddy Ruxpin will have three built-in stories and you won’t need a constant connection to use the toy. All features are built-in and you can add more stories via USB, too. There will be 10 stories (about $6 a pop) at launch and 10 more for next year. Teddy Ruxpin will hit the stores this fall for $100.
In the meantime, if you have an original Teddy Ruxpin, he may need some TLC. Here’s how to repair him. It will be cool to see both bears side by side.
