The Return of the King

Mattel's Masters of the Universe (MotU), one of the company's most successful multimedia franchises, is to return in the Fall!

Behold King Grayskull, who will be a SDCC Exclusive! King Grayskull is the inaugural MotU figure to feature super articulation and classic detail sculpting by the Four Horsemen. Grayskull comes in a brand new package, featuring lights and sounds, which transforms into a mini Castle Grayskull playset.



Castle Grayskull was once home to King Grayskull, an ancestor of Prince Adam. He appears in the Episode, "The Power of Grayskull", waging battle and ultimately defeating the Snakemen led by King Hiss. King Grayskull's triumph was shortlived and he dies defending his kingdom from Hordak. During his lifetime, King Grayskull ruled with wisdom and compassion.

With the emphasis on the collectors market, and The Four Horsemen in the sculpting saddle, the revitalised MotU line is sure to raise the bar on what constitutes the very pinnacle in mass produced collectibles! Read my childhood Masters of the Universe recollection!

If anyone at Mattel is reading this, please contact me to discuss the possibility of running a 'give-away' competition during the holiday season! Thank you in advance.

Moshi Monsters MoPods launch 'give-away'

Moshi Monsters launches and brings a virtual world of adoptable pet monsters to life

Mind Candy, the award-winning creators of global Alternate Reality Game game Perplex City, this week launch Moshi Monsters, their brand new virtual world for little kids and big kids alike. After 4 months in private beta, Moshi Monsters is opening up to everyone for free on April 16th at http://www.moshimonsters.com



Players adopt their own Monster and keep it happy by solving the daily puzzles that it sends them. Monster owners can interact with their pets in a wide variety of ways such as tickling, playing games, shopping, designing their rooms, and dressing up (coming soon). One of the core elements of Moshi Monsters is the emotional bond created between the user and their Monster which is achieved through sophisticated flash animations and a complex behavioural engine. Over time the Monsters develop their own unique personalities depending on how well, or badly, they've been treated.

There are many ways players can connect and communicate with others such as the Friends tree, visiting other Monster's rooms, and leaving customised Pinboard messages. During development child safety online has been kept at the forefront of the Moshi experience.

The more attention a Monster gets from it's owner and their friends, the higher its Monstar status rises. All Monsters start as Z-Listers and can rise through the ranks to become A-List Monstars.

Moshi Monsters is played in the browser and requires no download. The game is free to play, although a subscription feature for premium elements will launch in the future, as well a range of offline products.

Michael Acton Smith, CEO of Mind Candy said, “Playing games and chatting to friends are two of the most popular activities for children online. Moshi Monsters provides these experiences in a safe environment while also helping children learn through the puzzle games and educational elements”.

I was lucky enough to receive an adoption code, ahead of the public launch, and created my very own Moshi Monster! Meet iBoggy, named after The Legend of Boggy Creek (Wikipedia)! He's one cool monster with added Web 2.0 style: you can add your Moshi Monster to Facebook and bebo!

To mark the launch of Moshi Monsters, my fantastic friends at Mind Candy are offering readers a chance of winning three full sets (of six Monsters) of Moshi MoPods!



To enter for a chance of winning these really cool prizes, please leave a comment on this post. The competition closes May 31st 2008 and the winners will be randomly selected by me. My decision will be final! Good luck.

Special thanks to Mind Candy for supplying the competition prizes.

If you enjoyed reading this post subscribe by RSS! I'll be running further 'give-away' contests throughout the spring and summer.

The Cutest Bounty

This afternoon, thanks to mimoco and UPS, I took delivery of a mimobot Boba Fett: Star Wars' most celebrated Bounty Hunter! What an adorable prize for one lucky reader, eh?



If you haven't already entered to win this cool collectible, limited to only 5000, simply post a comment on my Boba Fett 'give-away' contest post! You've got until April 30th 2008. Good luck.

Boba Fett 'give-away' contest

It's April Fools' Day and I'm running a 'give-away' contest!

Star Wars Series 2

Fresh off the success of the wildly popular Star Wars mimobot® Series 1 Designer USB Flash Drive line, mimoco – the Boston-based designer toy studio/consumer electronics brand responsible for the world’s only character-based designer USB flash drives – has announced the highly anticipated second entry into their Star Wars collection. The Star Wars mimobot Series 2 introduces four new characters to the mimobot family: Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, and bounty hunter extraordinaire, Boba Fett.

The four new Star Wars mimobot designs take advantage of mimoco’s continuing revolution in cap styles. Han has his signature mop-top, Leia has her famous buns, and both Luke and Fett have helmets which can be removed to reveal their faces below. In addition, as with all mimobot releases, each character in Star Wars mimobot Series 2 will come preloaded with a desktop personalization suite with exclusive digital content, ranging from wallpapers and screensavers to icons and avatars, and the mimobot soundByte™ application that plays actual sounds from the Star Wars saga when the Star Wars mimobot is inserted or ejected from the PC.

Mimoco and myself are offering one lucky reader a chance to win Boba Fett is his fantastic mimobot incarnation! This is a very limited edition of only 5000 and the winner will receive 1269/5000. It's sure to become a highly sought-after collectors item! Not that you'd ever want to part with it!



"You are free to use any methods necessary, but I want them alive. No disintegrations."

To enter for a chance of winning this really cool prize, please leave a comment on this post. The competition closes April 30th 2008 and the winner will be randomly selected by me. My decision will be final! Good luck.

Special thanks to mimoco for supplying the competition prize. See their entire Star Wars series here.

If you enjoyed reading this post subscribe by RSS! I'll be running further 'give-away' contests throughout the spring and summer.

Toy Fair 2008 - Transformers Crossovers

When Hasbro announced Marvel Transformers, I was sceptical, due, in part, to the scattergun success of Star Wars Transformers! Well, I'll be eating my own words, it seems, if these official images, from Toy Fair 2008, are anything to go by!

Iron Man and The Hulk have transitioned well into Hasbro's new Transformers Crossovers line (incorporating Marvel & Star Wars)!



G.I. Joe can't be too far behind!

LEGO Skywalker

This link was sent in by Dave (blogger and owner of BrickPlayer)! As someone who grew up playing with LEGO and Star Wars toys, I'd have done Dave a disservice by not giving props:

Luke Skywalker LEGO Sculpture

Dave's goal in creating BrickPlayer.com is to share information about: LEGO building projects, building tips/tricks, LEGO product/company news, and whatever other LEGO related topics come to mind. I wish him all the best with this endeavor and look forward to seeing more Star Wars characters and vehicles in the future!

If you have an interesting blog post/link, that is relevant, to share with my readers, please e-mail me via the contact form (right hand sidebar).

Reluctant Spice World

When I began my tenure at Reuters in 1996, the Spice Girls appeared on the pop scene and, mentored by their manager Simon Fuller, sold the ideological premise of "Girl Power!" wholesale to the masses.

This equated to a license to print money and, whatever you may think of the Spice Girls musical oeuvre, there's no denying Fuller's conquest of the retail aisles! From CDs to posters and toys to sweets, the Spice Girls foreshadowed the arrival of Bratz and the brand dilution of Barbie!

Incidentally, Victoria Beckham (then Adams) AKA Posh Spice, allegedly auditioned for a Bournemouth University BAMP production prior to the Spice Girls! Please don't ask me for details as I don't have any further information!

In anticipation of their upcoming tour...

I’M RELUCTANT SPICE, MEL C TELLS GRAHAM NORTON THE GRAHAM NORTON SHOW

10.00 pm, Thursday 25 October 2007 (repeated Sunday), BBC TWO

MELANIE ‘Sporty Spice’ CHISHOLM confirms she was slow to sign up for the Spice Girls’ forthcoming world tour when she joins GRAHAM NORTON this week.

‘I was Reluctant Spice’ she says, ‘I was the last to make my decision because it was a hard decision to make .. I was scared we couldn’t do it again. It was a weird time of my life, I had a lot of personal s**t to get over after the Spice Girls.’ But she denies press rumours that she was bullied; ‘I never said that. How can they quote you? I wasn’t bullied at all. .. I just love the British tabloids, they’re so imaginative! In America they’re more of a joke.’

About the forthcoming single she says they all share the singing honours; ‘We all sing the chorus, we all have an equal part in the song .. it’s a very ‘Spicey’ ballad, it’s lovely to hear all our voices again, I love doing that kind of stuff.’

Mel also comes out in support of troubled Britney Spears. ‘Poor Britney, I feel bad for her. She used to be looked after. Obviously she’s not happy, she really needs someone to step in.’

And she also reveals she’s been round to the Princes’ for tea; ‘I met them a while ago. We [the Spice Girls] were invited to Highgrove for high tea. Some of us didn’t like cucumber sandwiches and we made this known to our hosts, and we were made peanut-butter on toast by Prince William (but) the kitchen was rubbish, like MFI!’ she said.

Graham is also joined by Hollywood royalty JOSH HARTNETT whose latest blockbuster 30 Days of Night is released in the UK next week; and RUFUS WAINWRIGHT performs his new single Tiergarten live in the studio.

Watch the interview clip (iTunes required).

The Graham Norton Show is a So Television production for BBC TWO.

The Movie Hero

Ultimate Bumblebee has eclipsed my modest expectations! Here he is, case fresh, direct from Hasbro UK's warehouse!



Ultimate Bumblebee elicits the kind of gadget-geek excitement once reserved for Tomy's Omnibot! It's no wonder he's made it into this year's Toys R' Us Fabulous Fifteen and among the toys chosen as "12 Best toys of 2007" by Parija B. Kavilanz, senior writer at CNNMoney.com. Or was it the profit margin?

Fiscal matters aside. Ultimate Bumblebee is one cool electronic toy for boys and girls of any age! Omnibot who?

Stocking Fillers

Christmas comes even earlier this year! Cards, decorations and seasonal promotions are already hitting high street shelves and QVC!

Without further ado, here's my official top 20 holiday gift ideas, traversing books, toys, music, video games and electronic gadgets for all ages:

Please note that these are affiliate links.

1). Nintendo Wii
2). Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
3). iPod nano 8GB
4). iPod touch 16GB
5). iPod classic 160GB
6). Xbox 360 Elite
7). Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
8). PSP Slim and Lite
9). PS3 (60GB Premium Version)
10). Panasonic TX-32LXD700 - 32" Widescreen Viera HD LCD TV
11). Sony KDL32D3000 - 32" Widescreen Bravia HD LCD TV
12). The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (Nintendo DS)
13). Transformers Movie - Leader Optimus Prime
14). Be Bratz
15). Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii)
16). Change Sugababes
17). iLife '08
18). iMac 24" Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz/1GB/320GB/ SuperDrive
19). Doctor Who: The Key to Time (Limited Edition 7-Disc Box set)
20). The Making of "Star Wars"

Newer readers may wish to read:

Review of the Year 2004
Review of the Year 2005
Review of the Year 2006

Stay tuned for Review of the Year 2007 coming this December. Why not subscribe?

Dualshock®3

DUALSHOCK®3 WIRELESS CONTROLLER WITH RUMBLE FEATURE TO BE INTRODUCED FOR PLAYSTATION®3

Tokyo, September 20, 2007 – Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) today announced that it would release DUALSHOCK®3 Wireless Controller, a new controller for PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3®) incorporating a rumble feature, in Japan in November as a separately sold accessory. It inherits the basic design and functionality of the popular PlayStation® controller, while keeping the high-precision, high response motion sensitive six-axis sensing system. Introduction to North American and European markets is expected in spring 2008.

The added rumble feature, combined with the highly realistic motion sensitive six-axis sensing system, takes gamers deeper into the world of interactivity, delivering a more intuitive, realistic and immersive game play experience. The new controller will also benefit PS3 content creators, by giving them the ability to further expand their creative imagination. PS3 titles that are already in the market may become compatible with the rumble feature through software update.

With DUALSHOCK 3 and the attractive lineup of PS3 titles incorporating the rumble feature, SCEI will introduce more new ways of enjoyment that can only be found on PS3, and will further redefine the world of entertainment.

LIST OF PLAYSTATION®3 TITLES COMPATIBLE WITH DUALSHOCK®3 IN JAPAN

As of September 20th, 2007

(in alphabetical order of company name)

Title Name Developer/Publisher

Vampire Rain -Altered Species AQ INTERACTIVE Inc.

BIOHAZARD® 5 CAPCOM CO.,LTD.

Devil May Cry® 4 CAPCOM CO.,LTD.

Dark Sector D3 PUBLISHER Inc.

Burnout Paradise ELECTRONIC ARTS K.K.

FIFA franchise (title name TBD) ELECTRONIC ARTS K.K.

BUMPY TROT2 IREM SOFTWARE ENGINEERING INC.

Dynasty Warriors 6 KOEI Co., Ltd.

Fatal Inertia KOEI Co., Ltd.

GI JOCKEY 4 2007 KOEI Co., Ltd.

METAL GEAR ONLINE Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.

METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.

IMABIKISOU SEGA CORPORATION

Blast Factor (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

echochrome Sony Computer Entertainment

Folklore (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

FORMULA ONE CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

Go! Sports Ski (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

Heavenly Sword (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

MotorStorm (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction Sony Computer Entertainment

Resistance: Fall of Men (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

Super Stardust HD (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

TOY HOME Sony Computer Entertainment

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune Sony Computer Entertainment

Warhawk (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

LIST OF PLAYSTATION®3 TITLES COMPATIBLE WITH DUALSHOCK®3 IN NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE *2

As of September 20th, 2007

(in alphabetical order of company name)

Title Name Developer/Publisher

The Darkness 2K Games

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars Activision

Soldier of Fortune Activision

BIOHAZARD® 5 CAPCOM

Devil May Cry® 4 CAPCOM

N-Cube Creat Studios

Warbit Creat Studios

Dark Sector D3 PUBLISHER

Turok Disney Interactive

Highlander Eidos

Kane & Lynch: Dead Men Eidos

Burnout Paradise ELECTRONIC ARTS

FIFA franchise (title name TBD) ELECTRONIC ARTS

Legendary: The Box Gamecock

To End All Wars Ghostlight

RAGE id Software

WarDevil – Unleash the Beast Within Ignition Entertainment

Dynasty Warriors 6 KOEI

Fatal Inertia KOEI

METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS Konami

Blacksite: Area 51 Midway

TNA Wrestling Midway

Unreal Tournament 3 Midway

Wheelman Midway

Cops (codename, title name TBD) Pyro

Planet One (codename, title name TBD) Pyro

Heroes over Europe Red Mile Entertainment

Condemned 2 SEGA

Iron Man SEGA

The Club SEGA

The Crucible SEGA

The Incredible Hulk SEGA

Blast Factor (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

echochrome Sony Computer Entertainment

Elefunk Sony Computer Entertainment

Folklore (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

FORMULA ONE CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

Go! Sports Ski (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

Heavenly Sword (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

High Velocity Bowling Sony Computer Entertainment

MLB 08: The Show Sony Computer Entertainment

MotorStorm (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

NBA 08 (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

PAIN Sony Computer Entertainment

Rat Race Sony Computer Entertainment

Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction Sony Computer Entertainment

Resistance: Fall of Man (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

Snakeball Sony Computer Entertainment

SOCOM: Confrontation Sony Computer Entertainment

Super Stardust HD (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

TOY HOME Sony Computer Entertainment

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune Sony Computer Entertainment

Warhawk (*1) Sony Computer Entertainment

WipEout HD Sony Computer Entertainment

GirpShift® Sony Online Entertainment

NBA 2K8 Take Two Sports

Destroy All Humans 3 THQ

Stuntman Ignition THQ

Assassin’s Creed UbiSoft

BEOWULF UbiSoft

HAZE UbiSoft

Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 (*1) UbiSoft

Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas (*1) UbiSoft

Prototype Vivendi Games

The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena Vivendi Games

*1　 Users will be able to enjoy the rumble feature through software update.

*2　Actual titles to be released may vary among countries and regions.

Generation Xbox

Microsoft wants video gamers to "finish the fight" when the last chapter of its "Halo" trilogy comes out next week, but a carefully crafted merchandising strategy will make sure Master Chief lives on for years to come.

"Halo" is crucial to the success of Microsoft's Xbox video game business, which has lost billions of dollars since it was started in 2001 as a way to counter Sony Corp's growing dominance.

Hailed by some as the "Star Wars" for Generation Xbox, the "Halo" franchise has spawned a mini-empire of licensed toys, clothing and tie-ins. The game features a space marine called Master Chief trying to save humanity from an alien army known as the Covenant.

Xbox 360 Halo 3 Limited Edition Console

The console features an exclusive "Spartan green and gold" finish and comes bundled with a matching Xbox 360 Wireless Controller, 20GB Hard Drive, Headset, Play & Charge Kit, and exclusive Halo 3 Gamer Pics and Theme (available via Xbox LIVE download).



Box contents:

*Halo 3 Special Edition Console
*Halo 3 Special Edition Wireless Controller
*Halo 3 Special Edition 20GB Hard Drive
*Halo 3 Special Edition Wired Headset
*Play & Charge Kit
*Halo 3 Special Edition Gamer Pics and Theme (Exclusive download via Xbox LIVE)
*Component HD AV Cable
*Ethernet Cable
*HDMI Port
*Xbox LIVE Silver Membership
*One-month Xbox LIVE Gold Membership

A World Transformed

It is a world Transformed. Where things are not what they seem. It is the world of The Transformers. A world of Heroic Autobots and Evil Decepticons.

I'll presage this review with the following caveats. Transformers are one of my all-time favourite toy lines (an admission made in many a previous post)! The notion of a live-action movie, directed by Michael Bay, left me apathetic. I really enjoyed The Island (2005)!

Knowing that this movie was going to be big on excess, I hadn't foreseen that the regular Pepsi, I'd purchased in the cinema foyer, would be super-sized too! Fellow Star Wars fans maybe interested to learn that a very cool Nintendo Wii redemption machine spouted sound effects and dialogue from our beloved saga! At first I thought I was hallucinating - RD-D2 beeps and Obi-Wan Kenobi intoned "Trust your feelings!"

Not since Jurassic Park (1993) has an audience (myself included) been so willingly caught up in movie mayhem - like osmosis. This happened during Saturday evening's showing of Transformers at the Odeon, Colchester. Incidentally, I watched Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) and For Your Eyes Only (1981) at this venue.

Unlike Steven Spielberg's deft (if no less commercial) decision to delay the dinosaur reveal in Jurassic Park for up to an hour. Michael Bay, aided and abetted by Spielberg's distrust of a generation exposed to instant gratification, thrusts us, tumbling, into the action!

Blackout, a monstrous Decepticon, and the first Transformer introduced, makes a bombastic entry; heralded by a cacophony of sonic booms that would delight even the most demanding fan of James Cameron tech noir. Keep your ears peeled for the classic Transformers transformation sound, taken from the original Marvel cartoon series, now amped-up to deafening levels and with no signs of distortion. This sent chills of excitement down my spine!

There's much to enjoy not least the attention to detail lavished on the Transformers, themselves, by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM). Whether watching charismatic lead Sam Witwicky (played by Shia LaBeouf) whose empathy with Bumblebee, an Autobot scout, recounts Elliot's friendship with E.T. (1982) or an Autobot titan emerge from a suburban swimming pool and step over a young girl carrying a plush My Little Pony (another successful Hasbro franchise, which shared names with Transformers and G.I. Joe. For example, Beachcomber, Cosmos, and Seaspray were both My Little Ponies and Transformers characters, and Firefly was both a My Little Pony and a G.I. Joe character).

There's humour too! And laugh-out-loud you will! Sam Witwicky astride his mother's bicycle and pursued by Bumblebee, brought the house down and could have been taken from any number of popular Spielberg produced movies such as The Goonies (1985) or Explorers (1985). Frenzy (the original toy was an audio tape cassette and one of the earliest Transformers I owned), an impish switchblade endoskeleton of a Decepticon, delights in Gremlins (1984) mayhem, droid-like discourses and an homage to John Carpenter's The Thing (1982). Diagetic and non-diagetic sound is used to underscore the comedy too.

Enter Optimus Prime. Of all the Transformers, Optimus Prime is held in greatest reverence (on a personal note my late mother bought me the original Optimus Prime - as a surprise gift - whilst I was off, sick, from school in 1984). No longer a Freightliner Cab-over-engine. Prime's alternate mode, a Peterbilt 379, replete with stylish flame decals, reminded me of Kenner's M.A.S.K Rhino toy (Kenner merged with Hasbro in the early 90's). When he gracefully transforms into a gleaming god-like mecha I gulped and wiped tears from my eyes!

Advertising aplenty! A movie about toys wouldn't be ironic sans product placements! And Transformers is filled to the max with Hewlett Packard, Apple and endless eBay expositions.

Aside from the usual gripes levelled at Michael Bay - disorientating camera angles propelled by dizzying editing and jarring slow-mo, which culminates in a palpable sense of nausea (taking the roller coaster metaphor too literally). All-in-all Transformers transported me back to a galaxy, far, far away and left me smiling from ear-to-ear.

Bot-Bombast

This weekend I really can't wait to see the first live-action Transformers movie in Colchester, Essex! My generation grew up with Hasbro's inspired rebranding - with a lot of help from Marvel - of Takara Tomy's Japanese puzzle toys Diaclone and Micro Change. And Transformers, alongside their ingenious stablemates, Microman and Zoids, are amongst some of the most imaginative and clever toy lines ever conceived.

Critics may lambaste Hollywood for its voracious consumer-orientated ideology in the wake of Star Wars revolutionising merchandising - eclipsing box office receipts tenfold. I'm guilty of perpetuating the phenomenon, and dutifully aspire to George Lucas' and Steven Spielberg's adoration of toys; the term gadgets sweetens the pill somewhat. Movie-making is a glorious playtime, which can, at its best, also instruct and educate. Go on fellow deconstructionists, discuss.

So, Michael Bay, director of Transformers, it's over to you for some serious Autobot vs Decepticon bot-bombast! Review to follow.

Wii Loved E3

E3 played host to a veritable avalanche of exciting Wii news! From the Wii Zapper (remember the NES Zapper?) to Wii Fit and Mario Kart Wii to Wii Boogie. Big N has set its lofty sights (no Zapper-pun intended) on eclipsing Sony's PS2 sales record.

Come to think of it, the Wii Zapper would've made for a very cool Transformer toy gestalt, combining, as it does, the Wii Remote and Nunchuk! Hasbro and Takara should ink a licensing deal with Nintendo pronto!

Last Friday Paper Mario finally graced European Virtual Console, and the N64's beguiling swan song is richly deserving of your attention - "the best RPG on the Nintendo 64, and acts as a superb gateway to the genre," and "an RPG rich with ingenuity and style" with "all-important Mario moments that only a true fan will understand."

The addition of the 2001 classic brings the number of N64 titles available via the Wii Shop to six, joining Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Lylat Wars and F-Zero X. Each costs 1000 points to download, which equates to about GBP 7 - or just over 10 Euros.

Haven't got a Wii yet? Amazon.co.uk has stocks.

LEGO Serious Play

It is a pleasure to introduce you to my latest affiliate.

LEGO is, arguably, one of the most recognizable and popular toy brands in the world. LEGO is a line of toys manufactured by LEGO Group, a privately held company based in Denmark. Its flagship product, also commonly referred to as LEGO, consists of colourful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures (also called minifigs by LEGO fans), and other pieces which can be assembled and connected in a myriad combinations, including cars, planes, trains, buildings, castles, sculptures, ships, spaceships, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Spider-Man, Batman, SpongeBob SquarePants, Avatar: The Last Airbender and even working robots.

Did you know that The World's Biggest LEGO Shop is at your fingertips? You can purchase direct from The LEGO Group at www.legoshop.com. The online shop is packed with all the newest LEGO sets, exclusive collector's items, LEGO bricks & pieces for individual purchase, PLUS hard-to-find classic LEGO sets!

This Phone Is Not A Toy

Goodbye Apple Computer. Hello Apple Inc.

With the advent of the long rumoured iPhone, Apple is, officially, a consumer electronics company. Stanley Kubrick, Gene Roddenberry and E.T. would be proud of Steve Jobs' telecommunications device and seeing Mac OS X, in a portable context, could be portentous! Does the iPhone form factor herald the shape of future iPod iterations?

Whilst the iPhone isn't available in the UK until Q4 2007. We can at least look forward to Apple TV shaking things up a bit in terms of vertical integration in the broadcasting industry (despite the limited range of iTunes movies and television series available at time of writing). There's shelf space for Apple TV next to Wii.

Sony, my other favourite brand, are you paying attention?

An Apple A Day

Almost everyone knows that the world's favourite 'toy computer' (said with irony) celebrates its 30th anniversary this year! So, we're all expecting really big things from tomorrow's Steve Jobs Keynote at Macworld Conference & Expo 2007.

For all the latest news and announcements from MacWorld, bookmark The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) and/or add Macword to Twitter.

I've written before about how stoked I was committing my cash to buy a new Intel iMac last year and, subsequently, bailing on the idea! This year I really mean it! Why did I wait? Well, that's a good question and the answer lies somewhere between socio and economic!

In time for Macworld, here are my aStore links:

Apple Shop UK
Apple Shop USA

Buy hardware, software and accessories under one roof and be assured of excellent order fulfilment (provided by Amazon). At the same time you're supporting my blogging at no extra cost to yourself. Thank you.

New Year Toy

A very warm welcome back. This year marks the 30th anniversary of a certain Skywalker space opera and the release of Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard amongst many more memorable moments!

Mac Users can now download my all-new RSS Dashboard Widget for Mac OS X 10.4.3 and higher. This is the first in a proposed series of Widgets created using Apple Computer's Dashcode Beta. All feedback is welcomed.