Hot New Toys For Christmas 2012 - What Your Child Will Want

If you are looking for the hot Christmas toys for children in 2012 then you have come to the right place. Here we are going to review some of the likely contenders for the big selling toys over the Christmas period of 2012. These are the ones the kids are going to be begging you for over the coming months and we countdown some of the best toys for Christmas 2012.

With the rush for Christmas presents always being very stressful, it’s a great idea to plan ahead. That’s why we are reviewing some of the most popular toys that are going to be hitting the shops in 2012. These are the toys that your children are likely to be after, so you can get in there ahead of the queues and get your child what they want in good time with minimal fuss.

Every year there are certain toys that capture the imagination of children all over the world. These often end up selling out in the run up to the holidays and the prices tend to increase as demand goes up. If you can work out what is going to be big over Christmas you can make sure you buy your presents early.

Christmas 2011 saw some really big selling toys hit the shelves. Some of the most popular ones we saw selling were interactive toys. Fijit Friends were one of the most popular of these, the cute little dancing toys really sold very well and children all over the world are now the happy owner of one of these toys. Another very popular interactive toy was Cookie My Playful Pup, another release from FurReal friends which sold very well.

As usual Lego had a very good year, their Ninjago range was a massive seller and the new series of Minifigures also made very good stocking fillers. We also saw some new kids toys that are a little more technical. The V-Tech Spin & Smile Camera was very popular and this really shows how far children’s toys have advanced over the years.

One company that had a massive year was Blip Toys, these make the popular Squinkies and these have been growing in populiarty recently. In 2012 we have seen new Squinkies such as SpongeBob SquarePants, WWE superstars, Power Rangers and Minnie Mouse characters. Along with these there has also been a new pack released based on the new Avengers movie. These soft mini collectables are sure to be huge over the Christmas period once again. As well as the characters themselves you can also buy Squinkies Dispensers, new for this year we have seen the Crazy Crane dispenser and the Minnie Mouse dispenser. Both are proving to be very popular.

If your children like Squinkies then they will probably also like Trash Pack. These are the same kind of thing but they are aimed more at boys. The Trash Pack are basically little characters known as Trashies, there are hundreds to collect and they are all based on horrible things you would find in the trash. The kind of gross things that little boys seem to love. There are currently two series of these toys out and we have heard rumours that there may well be a series 3 coming out in time for the holidays.

Looking at what was popular in 2011 can give us a clue as to what to expect in 2012. So let’s take a look at some more of the toys that will be selling like hotcakes come Christmas.

One of the most hotly anticipated film releases of recent times is Peter Jackson’s follow up to Lord Of The Rings. The Hobbit, An Unexpected Journey hits our screens in December 2012 and so demand for Hobbit toys looks set to be massive over Christmas. Lego have recently announced they will be releasing LOTR Lego sets in June and then later in the year bringing out Hobbit Lego. We now know there will be seven LOTR sets released in June and these are already looking very impressive. These are sure to be massive sellers over Christmas as the film’s release creates huge amounts of hype. If you want to really make your little Hobbit’s happy then Lego could well be the way to go.

As well as Hobbit Lego there are also going to be other Hobbit toys. A company called The Bridge Direct have been given the licence to create Hobbit action figures and also replica weapons such as the swords. These are also likely to be big sellers come the end of the year. Chances are we will also see lots of other merchandise from the film and so there will be a wealth of toys available.

The latest company to jump on the Hobbit bandwagon is Ravensburg. Another well establish company who have signed a deal with Warner Brothers allowing them to produce a series of Jigsaws and card based games. We are expecting to see some nice toys including some 3D jigsaws that will be released around the time the movie comes out and in time for Christmas 2012 of course.

Last year Fijit Friends were one of the big sellers. The company behind Fijit Friends are Mattel, they have already introduced the Fijit Friends Newbies which are being snapped up. It is expected that these will again be big sellers over the holiday period and it would be no surprise if Mattel bring out new Fijit Friends characters later in the year.

Well now we do know for sure that Mattel are indeed bringing out new Fijit Friends to add to the growing family. In the Fall of 2012 we are going to see Fijit Friends Yippits. These are smaller than the original toys but larger than the Newbies. They will retail at around $40 and there are going to be four new characters. They have clap sensors which means they will respond in a variety of different ways to different clap patterns. Another excellent feature is that they unlock new content in the original Fijit Friends, content that you would never see unless you get yourself a Yippit. They also have three songs each they will perform and they come with two interactive games. Mattel seem really excited about this new product and when these hit the shops around September we are expecting them to be as popular as the Original Fijit Friends were back in 2011.

One exciting new toy that could well be on many older children’s wish list is the Sphero. This is a small ball that actually interacts with a smart-phone. You can control the ball and make it roll in different directions, the ball also has lots of different LED’s fitted inside so it can glow different colors. The Sphero looks like being one of the big toys for 2012 and no doubt will be a big seller at the end of the year.

One toy that came out late in 2011 and was expected to sell well was the LeapFrog LeapPad Explorer. This is marketed as being a Tablet for children. The fact is though that it seemed to fall flat on it's face and sales have not been as impressive as it's designers were hoping. One step up from the LeapPad though is the new Kurio Tablet. This is made by Inspiration Works and is the best child friendly tablet we have seen so far. It comes with a rubber casing but this can actually be removed so it looks just like a standard Android Tablet. The designers of this have been very smart and given parents plenty of controls over limiting what their children can and can't see, so security is a big feature of the Kurio. The product is aimed at children age 5-15 so a large age range. This is by far the best Tablet we have seen for children and it will be retailing at around $200 and be available around September.

As we mentioned earlier one of the biggest selling toys over Christmas 2011 was Cookie My Playful Pup from Furreal Friends. Looking to build on the success of that toy the company behind Furreal Friends are bringing out various new pets for 2012. We are predicting the biggest of these to be Baby Butterscotch Pony. This is a smaller version of the classic Butterscotch Pony which came out back in 2006. This new toy is the most interactive one that Furreal have released to date. It has six sensors on it's body which will trigger various reactions in the form of movements and sounds. Baby Butterscotch Pony is also wonderfully cute and cuddly and will even nuzzle up to you when stroked. This one is going to retail at around $120 and be available in the fall.

Another great looking toy from Furreal Friends is Bouncy, My Happy To See Me Pup. This adorable little toy has a movement sensor so when you approach it will start jumping all over the place and barking with giddy excitement. There are lots of other movements and sounds this one will make as well. We are expecting this one to come out sometime around September, so in plenty of time for Christmas 2012.

Other additions to the Furreal family will include new Walkin' Snuggimals which are basically a slightly updated version of the Snuggimals we already see. These will be a decent price and should be around the $15 mark so are ideal as stocking fillers. We're are also going to see an updated version of Gogo My Walking Pup, this will be a glitter edition of the toy. Throughout 2012 we will also see some new Hop n Cuddle Bunnies, possibly the best of these is a Lop-Eared version which will be out in the fall.

A slighly different set of toys that Hasbro the company behind Furreal Friends has brought out is the Dizzy Dancers. These are very clever little spinning tops which are dressed up to look like cute little animals. There are currently around 20 of these available and you can usually buy them for around $8. You can also buy accessories for the Dizzy Dancers such as places for them to spin. The big release for the end of 2012 is the delux version of the toys. There will be six new delux versions coming out and they will retail at $14. What makes these that little bit more special is the fact that they light up and play music while they are spinning, plus they are that little bit bigger than the standard Dizzy Dancers. So as you can see, plenty of new Furreal Friends pets which are sure to be very popular come the end of the year.

Every year we see more new releases from classic toys that have been going for years. One of the most obvious of these is one we have already mentioned, Lego. In 2012 Lego release their Superheroes range, a line of toys based on Marvel Comics and also the DC Universe. These are already being snapped up and with more releases planned for later in the year it is likely these will feature on many children’s wish list. There are also lots of other popular Lego themes and the company will be releasing plenty of new toys just in time for the holidays.

One of the all time classic toys for girls is of course Barbie. In 2012 we are seeing a new take on the doll, we are going to be seeing Barbie Photo Fashion Doll hit the shops. This is basically a normal barbie doll but with a little camera installed. There is a display on Barbie's front and when you take a picture you can save this and then Barbie effectively wears your picture. There are well disguised buttons and controls and you can also download the pictures or even upload ones onto Barbie. The camera is an impressive 5 Mega Pixels and you can actually store up to 100 photos. This looks like a really nice take on what is a classic toy. Barbie Photo Fashion Doll will retail at around the $50 and we are expecting her to be available around September time, just in time for the Christmas rush.

As well as all these new toys that incorporate technology and interactive elements, there has also been a swing back to more classic toys. You can pick up some beautiful handmade wooden toys at the moment and these seemed to be gaining in popularity. Come Christmas 2012 we may well see these being very popular and sought after.

As the year progresses it will become clear what are to be the hottest new toys for Christmas 2012. In February there was a massive Toy Fair and this gave us some clues as to what to expect over the coming year. The real buzz seems to be around the interactive toys that incorporate technology along with classic kids design, but we have also seen some more classic design toys as well. As more toys start to appear we will update this page throughout the year giving you an idea of some of the best toys for Christmas 2012.