(VTech $34.99) Let us preface this review by saying, it comes with a lot of pieces, it has a lot of buttons to push and it can make a lot of noise. That said, our preschool testers really loved it. What they particularly loved was how easy the scanner works. You just pass the object over the scanner -- and just like at Trader's Joes -- it makes a beep. The toy comes with a paper shopping bag, tons of plastic food as well as cardboard "food" you construct. There is also money

(Melissa & Doug $24.99) Our testers loved this oversized floor puzzle with 48 pieces. When completed the puzzle is 3 feet x 2 feet. The puzzle also received high marks for featuring a unicorn -- actually two unicorns in a woodland setting with a castle and rainbow in the background. The glow-in-the-dark pieces added to the fun. Marked 3 & up but will be even more enjoyed by the 4 and up crowd. Working on a puzzle together is a great way to build your child's ability to prob

(Stickerbox $129.00) AI has entered toy world with the new Stickerbox Printer. Say what you'd like to see printed and voila, the red Stickerbox cube will produce a black and white sticker with what you said. So ask for an elephant having an ice cream cone -- and that's what comes out. We tested this out at a family party so we could test lots of different ages and voices -- and it really works. The printer comes with four rolls of paper, colored pencils and a USB charger. Y

(Playmobil $19.99 each) Take your pick of your favorite vehicle. While parents may enjoy building a small Porsche, most of our child testers picked by their favorite color! These are fun small builds to do together. They range in piece count -- from 25-31 pieces. Once put together, your child has a fun vehicle to enjoy. Each comes with one mini fig. Marked 5-99. Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Awards 2026 Shop these products on Amazon

(Tree Town Toys $34.00) Hands down, Spin Animator Studio is one of the best toys of the year. Building on the concept of a zoetrope where you spin a strip of graphics to give the illusion of animation, this spinning animator takes that experience to the next level. The set comes with premade strips that are done in color, black and white strips with pre-made art and then blank strips so that you can create your own. There is a knob on the side to put the strip in motion. Com

(Educational Insights $22.49) An engaging art platform for creating your own graphic novel pages. The artwork is from graphic novelist Brady Smith. The set comes with a light up tracing board, 400+ traceable images, blank pages, pages with images and frames and five colored-pencils. A fun way to explore the art of writing and illustrating graphic novels. Also any toy that brings kids back to books is a winner in our view. We would suggest adding other colored pencils for mor

(Educational Insights $12.96) With over 200 puzzles to solve, this brainteaser game for solo play celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. The puzzle will challenge your visual, logic, and spatial skills. The playing pieces come in a portable case with a slot so that the booklet with puzzle pages can fit inside. Each challenge starts you off with pieces in position and then the fun begins. The idea is to fit the rest of the pieces into place around those fixed pieces. It

(Sassy Baby $24.99) One of the best electronic music toys we've received in a very long time. We are always on the look out for toys for making something happen at this stage and this toy does just that with an easy push of the buttons. There are four different modes here to explore with your older baby. There are notes that are clear and have a much better sound quality than most toys in this category. Babies will enjoy making something happen. Around the rim of the toy, you

(Playmobil $99.99) We are for any kit that encourages girls to build. The Waterpark is a fun and active theme. Playmobil provides a great parent-child play opportunity given that younger kids will need adult assistance putting the setting together. Once it's been assembled, the setting is ideal for pretend play and language development. Also fun, not Barbie related but will appeal to the same audience, is their new Animals & Friends Hot Air Ballon which features a female b

(Sassy Baby $12.99) The soft open-air ball shape makes it easy for older babies to grasp and for teething babies -- this is a perfect toy for them to hold and explore. There are some beads that move as they turn the ball. The clear rattle has colorful pieces that move up and down when the rattle is flipped. the middle is easy to grasp. Editor's note: for some babies a soft fabric rattle will be a better choice if they are not yet in control of wacking themselves in the face.